Search - Devin Townsend :: Ocean Machine

The Ocean speaks

Mark F | MA | 03/25/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"There are those special albums that just overwhelm your senses and leave you in awe. For me, Ocean Machine is one of those albums. It is both promptly gratifiying and long lasting in interest.



The ocean is an apt metaphor for this entire album. The ocean is serene, violent, deceptively simple, beautiful, deep, and ever changing. Ocean Machine is all of these. A vast array of emotions and atmospheres are traversed througout this album from the spoken word intro to the piercing scream in the bonus track.



However, Ocean Machine isn't some kind of esoteric masterpiece that only a few can appreciate. It is actually pretty listenable(but not in a commercial way) and for anyone. The music is beautiful, catchy, majestic and ridiculously powerful. Ocean Machine is also a great way to get into the works of modern metal genius Devin Townsend. It is his most accessible and one of his best works(thats saying A LOT).



The fact that one man wrote this entire album, is a testament to Devin Townsend's talent. Majestic, crushing guitar riffs, sublime bass and drums, beautiful synthesizer lines, sound effects and Devin Townsend's gorgeous melodies and unpredictable songwriting make this a masterpiece in every meaning of the word.



The most amazing part is that all these elements are layered upon each other to make a huge wall of sound.As a result, you'll notice something new with every new listen of this album. There are few albums I've heard that accomplish this so well.



Individually describing each song here would be futile. I would run out of room. The album is basically one song divided into 12 parts. Each movement has its own atmosphere and personality. You have powerful, catchy tunes like the majestic SEVENTH WAVE, the bonus track THINGS BEYOND THINGS and the seemingly poppy LIFE. Complex noisescape interludes like SISTER and 3 AM. Catchy, complex, hard rocking songs like VOICES IN THE FAN, HIDE NOWHERE, NIGHT and GREETINGS/REGULATOR. Beautiful epics like BASTARD, FUNERAL and THE DEATH OF MUSIC. This album is chock full of memorable moments. To name a few:



-The soaring bridge and chorus in Seventh Wave

-The chorus of Life

-The multi layered vocal attack of Hide Nowhere

-The pounding riff and beautiful choir outro of Voices in the Fan

-The soaring vocals in Greetings

-The crushing riff and soaring chorus of Regulator

-The beautiful guitar and melodies of Funeral

-The huge riff, chorus and lyrics of Bastard

-"Its like death becomes a musical"

-The obnoxious yet amazing scream at the end of Things Beyond Things



There is not a single boring moment here. This is music at its best. Original, beautiful, moving, complex and always interesting. Never ceases to amaze me. Now that this album is easy to find, buy it! Also recommended: Infinity and Acclerated Evolution, both by Devin Townsend."

If you like the following albums you'll like this.......

Xenocrony | Johannesburg, Gauteng South Africa | 06/14/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"First off I didnt like devin on the Vai album Sex & Religion,it sounded too forced and fake to me,and I ditched the album and was not interested in giving his solo stuff a shot.By pure chance I heard biomech and bought it immediately.If you (like me) are into the following albums&tracks then you're going to love this:
Black Sabbath-Sabotage tracks :Megalomania&the Writ
Sabbath's most spacey and futuristic album almost prog like.
Pink Floyd Momentary Lapse tracks Sorrow,Terminal FrostAlso Division Bell by Floyd.
Rush Moving Pictures,Permanent Waves & Hemispheres.I'm 43 and I'm not particular about any one style of music but do like 70s prog & rock (Floyd,Yes,UK,Rush,Sabbath the later stuff still with Ozzy,Zeppelin etc just any good rock with memorable lasting music).If you like stuff that is dark,haunting,heavy,proggy&very emotional you need this disc.If (like me) you've checked out most of the Inside Out Label stuff and found it almost gets there but lacks originality & ooomph despite being good,you need this disc.If you feel that despite(or perhaps because of)the advances in recording and production technologies ,rock music has regressed not moved foward,you need this disc.If you liked the sound of some nu metal but found the textures & songs too boring,you need this disc.If you like some of the new,darker Rush(Driven,Spit It Out)you need this disc.If you like songs that fit together perfectly on a single disc with a HUGE soundscape and interesting SFX you need this disc.If you like the technical ability of Dream Theatre,but fell asleep after the second track,you need this disc.If you like heavy futuristic impeccably written songs with a REAL difference,you need this disc.If you've heard all the new stuff and wished the songs were better,you need this disc.This is literally the only thing I've heard in the last 20 years that actually makes me thank god for new technology.This is a remarkable album that is totally apart from anything else out there ,Dark,haunting lasting,as someone else said the music does not assault you it envelopes you and can be hard to describe.The heavyness is so tastfully used its hard to fathom.Make no mistake,this is no light album,but if you like metal type stuff and many more deeper layers and textures,you need this disc.This is truly the future of good quality rock,everything else out there seems like a waste of disc space.Also please note that although the material is well performed,it isnt particularly technical or shred guitar riddled,the emphasis is purely on high quality music.My only quibble(hardly anyway) is that it doesnt contain any Gilmour-like searing emotional solos(although there are some fitting breaks in there as well),for this reason Ill give it only a nine star rating instead of the ten that it could have been for me .You Need This Disc!"

The most awe-inspiring piece of music ever recorded.

K. Bartlett | Kissimmee, FL United States | 03/04/2004

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Remember the theme behind "Bill and Teds Excellent Adventure"? That in the future they (Wyld Stallyns) would create music so astounding that mankinds entire society would reform to be based on it?
IF it were even remotely possible, this would be that album.
It is immensely powerful, surprisingly beautiful, amazingly complex, and delightfully unpredictable, all while still retaining a serious groove throughout.
My favorite tracks on the album are "Greetings" and "Regulator",they're more like one song with two parts. "Greetings" starts by tapping in the nail with it's lighthearted, clockwork-like guitar and pausing slightly before "Regulator" winds up and pounds it home with the force of a locomotive driven, eighty ton industrial hammer press.
"Seventh Wave" sounds as if the ocean itself had written the song. "Hide Nowhere" gives the listener the impression of a triumphant marching column of rowdy giants. "Night" is straight ahead and relentless, and "Life" is just plain fun. "Funeral" has the most gorgeous, atmospheric guitars and an addictive, head-bobbing bottom end.
The track order is so perfect that it seems like each one is simultaneously entertaining your mind and conditioning it for the maximum enjoyment of the next. I've been listening to Rock in all it's variations for quite awhile (41 years old). I have always been a fan of progressive rock and metal, and came upon this after enjoying Spock's Beard, Dream Theater, and Porcupine Tree (Just to name a few) Now everything else sounds uninteresting. In twenty-six years of listening to all kinds of music, I've never heard anything like this. Try it, it will caress your soul."