The Ocean – Precambrian
November 27th, 2007
Progressive Metal / Sludge Metal
Metal Blade Records
Berlin, Germany
Coming to the fourth album from German progressive metal sextet The Ocean we are treated to the group’s longest and most ambitious effort yet. This record is presented to us as a double album that clocks in at almost an hour and a half worth of music. The first half, coming in at around 22 minutes, is entitled Hadean / Archaean, while the second half, clocking in at just over an hour, is entitled Proterozoic. Its an interesting collection of music to say the least, especially considering that the shorter first half is much more aggressive and retains some of the metalcore elements introduced on the previous record, Aeolian, whereas the second half is more reminiscent of the band’s debut effort with the atmospheric and experimental passages.
The record opens without pulling any punches, immediately clocking listeners in the face with the one two punch of “Hadean” followed by “Eoarchaean”. Both tracks are heavy and crushing, deriving clear and obvious influences from the world of progressive sludge metal. There are noticeable shades of early Mastodon on this thing, though the riffs and song structures never get quite so gnarly as Remission.
This record also sees the band encounter some slight lineup changes. While guitarist Robin Staps, drummer Torge Liessmann, and vocalists Meta, and Nico Webers, remain a part of the band, Mike Pilat returns on bass duties, joined by new member Matt Beels on guitar as well. This lineup remains relatively the same for most of the record save for Hannes Huefken who joins for some of the bass tracks on Proterozoic. As with most of The Ocean’s records there is also a slew of guest musicians involved who are far too numerous to fully list here, but who each contribute to the overall sound in their own way.
Meta and Nico Webers are both quite similar here as they were on the previous record. Each provides their different tone of harsh vocals across this record, combining the more mid-range, yelling bellow, hardcore-style vocals with higher pitched screams that come together to form a unique combination of textures across the record, both during the harder first half and the more prog-centric second half.
Staps, Pilat, Beels, and Huefken bring their A game on this album when it comes to the riffage. There is just such a sheer mountain of total variety on this album that it demands of you to listen to it over and over again to pick out and familiarize yourself with every individual passage. Some tracks like “Neoarchaean” contain straight up d-beat style riffs that sound inspired and influenced from a stadium crust band like Disfear whereas other songs like “Siderian” and “Rhyacian” have a smoky, jazz club aura to them that reminds me of groups like The Atlas Moth or even Between the Buried and Me at points. There’s just such a wealth and breadth of different styles being tackled on this album that it’s hard to not respect it. What makes it easier is the fact that the compositions here are actually quite memorable and catchy as well as emotionally impactful on top of the variety and instrumental capability on display. It truly is the best of both worlds.
Torge Liessmann is, perhaps unsurprisingly, absolutely crushing it behind the kit on this record. The drumming on this thing, whether its during the heavier, more abrasive first half of Hadean / Archaean or the prog-centric, intricate and atmospheric side of Proterozoic, is a complete and total joy to listen to. Liessmann is clearly a very experienced and talented percussionist by the time this album was recorded and released, and it shines through in just the sheer complexity and variety presented on here. I know I’m stressing the variety a lot, but its because its really what makes this album so interesting and compelling. The drumming has just gone to the next level here, embracing everything that makes progressive metal drumming so great without overcomplicating things for the sake of complication. All the beats and rolls and time signatures are handled so tastefully with grace and precision, making this album sound so much more mature than what preceded it.
The production here is far away the best of The Ocean’s career up until this point as well. While I typically gravitate towards the rawer sounds present on an album like Fogdiver or Fluxion, here I think the additional polish works wonders. This album feels like such a grandiose and epic piece of work thanks in no small part to how each of the instruments blend together in the mix. The symphonic elements bleed directly into the crushing riffing, with neither of them overstepping their bounds. This is especially noticeable on a track like “Statherian” where the synth elements are significantly present.
Precambrian is easily one of the best works that The Ocean ever released, even in the context of their newer material. It’s a monumental and impressive piece of work, comparable in scope and intricacy to other lauded prog albums like Mastodon’s Crack the Skye or Between the Buried and Me’s Colors. If you’re a prog nerd and you somehow haven’t listened to The Ocean yet, I would recommend you start with this bad boy. It contains aspects of all corners of The Ocean’s sound that they’ve maneuvered through across their storied career and has so much to offer the listener in a single spin.
Final Verdict: 9.5/10
Awesome
Favourite Tracks:
“Palaeoarchaean”
“Mesoarchaean”
“Neoarchaean”
“Rhyacian”
“Statherian”
~ Akhenaten
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