The Ocean Return to India for Five-City Tour in January

When German metal band The Ocean (also known as the Ocean Collective) visited India for the first time in October 2014, it’s safe to say it wasn’t under the most ideal circumstances. After problems with promoters paying them on time, they were finally hosted at Bengaluru’s Vapour.

Four years on, the band will come back to India between January 10th and 18th, on a five-city tour as part of Bengaluru gig series Unscene. On the back of releasing their new album Phanerozoic I: Palaeozoic (with a second part expected next year), the German metallers will perform in New Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Guwahati and Hyderabad.

Watch the video for their latest song “Cambrian II: Eternal Recurrence”

Known for their blend of metal, sludge, hardcore and even post-rock, The Ocean have gained a following largely for their detailed style of songwriting, forging double albums as well as concept albums like 2013’s Pelegial, which concentrated on deep-sea themes, drawing parallels with the human psyche. They even worked with Japanese post-rock giants MONO for a split EP Transcendental in 2015, which was followed by an outtake from Pelegial called “Turritopsis Dohrnii,” taking its name from a species of jellyfish which is technically immortal.

Phanerozoic I: Palaeozoic, according to the band, is the missing link between their albums Precambrian (2007) and the two-part Heliocentric / Anthropocentric (2010), featuring songs that mirror the evolution of plant and animal life on Earth. Founder, guitarist and songwriter Robin Staps told Rolling Stone India in a 2013 interview, “I’ve had people come up to me after shows and tell me they discovered Nietzsche through us, which is awesome. Of course there are people that only want to come out to the shows and rock out and bang their heads, and that’s totally fine with us.”

The Ocean join a fairly exciting bunch of progressive rock and metal artists headed to India in the coming months, including Norwegian band Leprous, Brit metallers TesseracT and prog auteur Devin Townsend. Stay tuned for ticket details and support acts.

Unscene presents The Ocean India tour poster. Artwork: Denver Fernandes

Unscene presents The Ocean India Tour 2019

January 10th ”“ Café Turquoise Cottage, New Delhi

January 12th ”“ Above the Habitat, Mumbai

January 13th ”“ Fandom at Gilly’s Redefined, Bengaluru

January 17th ”“ Xtreme Sports Bar & Grill, Guwahati

January 18th ”“ The Moonshine Project, Hyderabad