Sputnikhalle, Münster, Germany21st October 2023
The Ocean & This Will Destroy You, Special Guest: Spurv
You are up for an evening full of atmosphere, rumbling riffs, stumbling delays and raging furore? THE OCEAN from Berlin and THIS WILL DESTROY YOU from the USA once again showed the Sputnikhalle where the frog’s curls are. The evening was opened by SPURV from Norway. But enough platitudes, you like details? Here we go!
Spurv
When we arrived at the venue short before 18.30, already a few people were waiting in front of the venue. While we were waiting, we could hear the last sounds of SPURV’s sound check. Shortly after, doors were opened and we entered the hall, where last remaining equipment was still moved from the audience area. A short chat with THE OCEAN’s drummer Paul and then we secured a nice spot in the front row since there was no pit and I needed to take some pictures during the evening. Opener were Norwegian SPURV, entering the stage at ten past seven for their 35-minutes set. The stage was packed to the max and the six-piece Instrumental Postrock / Metal Band from Oslo nearly had no room to move, even though all six people did a lot. The most exciting to me was the use of trombone and occasionally trumpet during the set. Just to copy from the band’s BandCamp: “This Norwegian sextet has released three stellar albums thus far, but their new record ‘Brefjære’ opens up a whole new dimension in terms of composition, musicianship, scope and production.” And if opend a new dimension for me as well. I never heard of them before, but the left a very positive impression on me. After the show, you could meet the guys at the merch. Very likeable. https://www.facebook.com/Spurvinnen
Rating
Music: 9
Performance: 9
Sound: 7
Light: 7
Total: 8 / 10
This Will Destroy You
THIS WILL DESTROY YOU, wasn’t that the band with the crocheted doilies, or was it a bear? BOTH! Currently based in Los Angeles, the band has been on the musical map longer than most guitar effects get old. That’s exactly what THIS WILL DESTROY YOU uses to create scores for film and television, alongside classics like ‘Young Mountain’ (bear) or the self-titled album ‘This will destroy you’ (crocheted doily). A dense atmosphere between shoegaze, ambient rock and doom will ensure an evening full of closed eyes and nodding heads. https://thiswilldestroyyoumusic.com / https://www.facebook.com/thiswilldestroyyou
Music & Performance
When the stuff of SPURV was removed, there was much more space on stage. A keyboard was placed in the middle and a chair left behind the guitar pedals and knobs. A single microphone was standing there and later on I learned that it only was there for a short announcement to thank THE OCEAN and the audience and wish anyone lots of fun. TWDY was entering the stage a quarter past eight for a one-hour set. The show was intense, no vocals were needed. Walls of sound were rolling from stage over the audience, smoke and flashing lights created a special atmosphere. Their songs are initially characterized by mostly calm, harmonious and wide-ranging instrumental arrangements.
As each title progresses, the compositions slowly increase and significantly increase in complexity, dissonance and heaviness. At the end, there was total extasy on stage when heads were banged and guitar pedals smashed to the floor. Heavy applause rewarded the musicians from Texas and happy faces on stage showed how much the band liked the show. Thank you!
Rating
Music: 8
Performance: 9
Sound: 7
Light:7
Total: 7.8 / 10
The Ocean
THE OCEAN is progressive, powerful, varied metal art from the finest pen. Since the early 2000s, the band has continued to develop their complex sound with breathtaking variety, creativity and productivity from album to album. A legendary reputation precedes their intense live performances, making THE OCEAN a much-anticipated fixture on festival and touring lineups worldwide. With their current album ‘Holocene’ they add a final chapter to their delicately worked out paleontologically inspired album series. The Age of Humans ‘Holocene’. In this brilliant last track of the concept albums, the band combines dark, synth-driven grooves with metal parts that range from complex to brutal. THE OCEAN once again shows how holistically conceived hardness can go hand in hand with an intellectual concept claim. https://www.theoceancollective.com / https://www.facebook.com/theoceancollective
Music & Performance
It is already eight years since I saw the band for the last time. Back then it was in Cologne when they were supporting SOLSTAFIR. The change-over was quite quickly done and at ten to ten, the five men entered the small stage, welcomed by loud cheers and applause. During the show, the audience went more and more nuts and the band liked it, absorbing the energy from their fans. Their set was filled with crunchy riffs, snarling singing, booming basses, and crashing slats. When TWDY created huge walls of sound, you literally could call THE OCEAN’s set a huge spherical thunderstorm of sounds, supported by an unbelievable dynamic light show… including epilepsy-inducing strobe light. Every now and then I had to close my eyes, since it was a bit too much for my eyes. But during that time, I even could concentrate more onto the music. There were time signature shifts a la MESHUGGAH - you could nod your head, but it was confusing. All musicians are true sound wizards and put so much energy onto stage.
The audience was in top form. Knowing the lyrics by heart and singing loudly with the band… or growling if you like. The contact of band and fans was very close. There were hugs and handshakes, there were microphones held onto the hall to let fans sing. It was close to eleven when the band left the stage (a party was scheduled for 23:00), but soon came back for an encore. This was the first time when singer Loïc Rossetti jumped into the audience after he was already sitting on one of the big speakers besides the stage. When the band left again, loud cheers for encores sounded through the hall. After a short discussion (yes, the party should have been already started), they came bad for a furious final with Loïc surfing the crowd once again and later on jumping into the audience to sing surrounded by the fans. More hugs and handshakes and waving and then finally it was over. Whan an energetic show!
Rating
Music: 9
Performance: 10
Sound: 7
Light:8
Total: 8.5 / 10
All pictures by Dani Vorndran (http://www.vorndranphotography.com / http://www.facebook.com/blackcatnet)
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