As for 2013, 4 of 5 band members are from Switzerland, while its founder continues to live in Berlin. In addition, Chris Breuer, a touring bass player who also made a recording appearance on Pelagial, is a citizen of Berlin too. Breuer is touring member who is filling in for Louis Jucker (who has gone on hiatus due to his desire to finish university studies) for all shows in 2013, also has recorded some parts for band's 6th album "Pelagial" released in the same year.
The Ocean was founded in 2001 by guitarist and songwriter Robin Staps. During the following two years, about 40 musicians joined and left the band until a stable line-up was established. July 2002 saw The Ocean play their first concert at Berlin's now defunct semi-legal Eimer Club. Shortly after, the band released their eponymous debut album featuring Islands/Tides, a 30-minute-long song that also constituted the substance of their early live shows.
After a brief tour with Swedish crust punk outfit Coma in early 2003, the band signed to Make My Day Records, which then released Fogdiver, an EP consisting of five instrumental songs—despite the fact that on stage, at least two singers could be found. Unlike its predecessor, this recording received considerable acclaim from critics throughout a variety of genres.
During winter and spring 2004, The Ocean recorded what was to become the material for their two following albums. The calmer and more atmospheric half of this recording session was released as Fluxion in August 2004; a joint effort of Make My Day and Throne Records. While the fact that the band now used vocals on their recordings seemed to make the music more accessible to some, it also caused many other critics to consider the album a step backwards in terms of innovation and originality. In interviews, the band would comment on this by pointing out the perceived closed-mindedness of some of the reviewers and their supposed inability to deal with the harshness and brutality the anti-Christian, anti-theistic vocals now added to The Ocean's sound.
After signing to Metal Blade Records in summer 2005, all the remaining songs from the session were released as Aeolian. Since Fluxion and Aeolian had originally been planned as a double CD with a mellow and a brutal part — a plan that did not work out — Aeolian came across as very different from its predecessor. Unlike on previous albums, classical instruments and electronic sounds were hardly used here, making the record sound rather minimalistic. But whereas Fluxion had featured only one singer, seven of them could be found on Aeolian, among them Nate Newton, Sean Ingram, and Tomas Hallbom, whose names were also used extensively for the album's promotion campaign. According to the band, Meta's voice on Fluxion had created a monotony that was to be avoided on Aeolian. March 2006 saw the North American release of the album. Later that year, a joint vinyl version of Fluxion and Aeolian was released by Throne Records, featuring three records in different colors. Recently in late 2007, they released a new 2 disc album entitled Precambrian. In April 2008, The Ocean embarked on a year long tour through Europe and North America with bands like Intronaut, Opeth, and At The Gates. In April 2009 it was announced that primary Precambrian vocalist, and full time touring member Mike Pilat was leaving the band for personal reasons and other commitments.
On November 17, 2009, Robin Staps announced that a replacement vocalist had been found, Loïc Rossetti. The Ocean released two albums in 2010, Heliocentric on April 9 and Anthropocentric on November 9. Taken together, the two albums "represent a fundamental and philosophical critique of Christianity," with Heliocentric describing the internal battles within the Catholic Church over the heliocentrism of Copernicus and Galileo, and Anthropocentric critiquing the fundamentalist Protestant view of Creationism.
They announced that their first live DVD would be filmed on the 29 January 2011 in Berlin at the Museum für Musikinstrumente and will only contain tracks from their album Precambrian.
On August 3, 2011, The Ocean announced via its Facebook page that Robin Staps had been working on new material for an upcoming album. They stated that recording would get under way in early 2012 and hinted at the possibility of releasing another double album. In a September 2012 article on the website MetalSucks, Robin stated that the new album was due for an April or May release in 2013 and would have very few if any vocals, but elaborated that Loïc remains the vocalist of the group despite the change in style.
The band released Pelagial on April 29, 2013 in the United States. The CD version contained two discs - one has the songs with vocals, the other is purely instrumental.
On October 20, 2013, the band announced the departure of guitarist Jonathan Nido and drummer Luc Hess. It was later announced that Paul Seidel of the band War From A Harlots Mouth would replace Hess after the current tour. Additionally on the 8th of December Robin Staps announced via the bands Facebook page that Australian Damian Murdoch would be the bands new guitarist.
Rhyacian
The Ocean Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Their vile inhabitants
Abashed by their own lives'
Insignificance
The silent void of cogitations
Absence of signification
Committed to burn twice as long and half as bright
We're dashing forward with our eyeballs turned inward: until the end of time, the human eye
We have awoken from our sleep
Nevermore shall we be unheeding as the flock of sheep
Grazing ingenuously
Living blithely
Roaming insouciantly
Forgetting instantly
Every night
I'm swooping with the vast span of my wings
Into the death-throes of my memory: the eternal scourge of the human mind
I'm wandering in times which are not mine
Terrified of what I'm about to find
I'm trying to stop the past's rapid flight
I'm wandering in times which are not mine
Lost in between the shit and the shine
The snake of fear creeps into our hearts at night
Subdueing every mind at bedtime
What will it take to arrive
And cease trying to stop the past's rapid flight? How much more do I have to go through
To prove myself that I'm still alive? We are living in pain
The wind of the past will always shake you in the end
We're waiting for the day
When we will attain the ability to forget
For, every day of our lives, the present is painful
The future unknown
The sting of the past is what makes every moment unbearable
The future is overgrown
The Ocean's song Rhyacian: Untimely Meditations is a dark and introspective piece that explores the nature of human existence and the struggle to find meaning in a world that often seems meaningless. The lyrics paint a bleak picture of a city populated by blind and insignificant people, who are "abashed by their own lives' insignificance." The song urges listeners to awaken from their slumber and to stop living ingenuously, roaming insouciantly, and forgetting instantly. The lyrics suggest that we must confront the horror of our minds and the eternal scourge of our memories in order to truly live.
The theme of the passage is the struggle to reconcile with the past and to find meaning in the present. The singer seems to be haunted by his memories and is tortured by the rapid flight of time. He wanders in times that are not his own and is terrified of what he might find. He asks himself what it will take to arrive and to stop the past's rapid flight. The lyrics suggest that the past is a snake of fear that creeps into our hearts at night, subduing every mind at bedtime.
Line by Line Meaning
A City of the blind
The people of this city are incapable of seeing the truth and are blinded by their misguided beliefs.
Their vile inhabitants
The people in this city are immoral and wicked.
Abashed by their own lives' Insignificance
The people in this city are ashamed of their mundane and unimportant lives.
The silent void of cogitations
There is a lack of thought and meaning in this city.
Absence of signification
There is no meaningful purpose found in this city.
Committed to burn twice as long and half as bright
We are committing ourselves to live a short and intense life without the lingering pain of old age.
We're dashing forward with our eyeballs turned inward: until the end of time, the human eye
We are living life with a self-centered focus and have no intention of changing this perspective.
Staring wide-open into the horror of the mind, shall never ever sleep again
We are obsessed with our own thoughts and will never be at peace or relaxed in mind.
We have awoken from our sleep
We have finally realized that we cannot remain ignorant to the truth forever.
Nevermore shall we be unheeding as the flock of sheep
We will no longer blindly follow the masses but will instead think and act for ourselves.
Grazing ingenuously, Living blithely, Roaming insouciantly, Forgetting instantly
We were once naive, carefree, and ignorant, but we can no longer be that way due to the changes we have experienced.
Every night I'm swooping with the vast span of my wings, Into the death-throes of my memory: the eternal scourge of the human mind
Every night, I am haunted by my own memories, which continue to bring pain and suffering to my life.
I'm wandering in times which are not mine, Terrified of what I'm about to find
I am exploring different periods and experiences while scared of what I may discover about the world.
I'm trying to stop the past's rapid flight
I am attempting to slow down time to prevent the past from escaping me and fading away forever.
Lost in between the shit and the shine
I am searching for meaning in an existence that is both full of beauty and horrors.
The snake of fear creeps into our hearts at night
We experience a sense of dread and anxiety during the dark and quiet hours of the night.
Subdueing every mind at bedtime
The fear we feel immobilizes us and reduces our ability to think clearly and rationally.
What will it take to arrive, And cease trying to stop the past's rapid flight?
What must one accomplish to be at peace with their past and allow it to remain where it belongs, rather than fighting its inevitable passage through time?
How much more do I have to go through, To prove myself that I'm still alive?
What other struggles and obstacles must I face to prove my worth and vitality to myself and others?
We are living in pain, The wind of the past will always shake you in the end
Our lives are full of suffering, and the winds of time will eventually reveal the damage and pain that we have incurred through the experiences we have had.
We're waiting for the day, When we will attain the ability to forget
We eagerly await the day when it will be possible to leave behind the hurtful memories of our past and focus on the present and future instead.
For, every day of our lives, the present is painful, The future unknown
We struggle to find hope and optimism for our lives because we face constant pain and uncertainty due to our past and present experiences.
The sting of the past is what makes every moment unbearable, The future is overgrown
The pain and regret we feel from our past experiences make it impossible to find happiness and contentment in our current moments, and our future is uncertain and unknowable.
Contributed by Muhammad H. Suggest a correction in the comments below.