Ocean Grove have announced details of their visionary third album “Up In The Air Forever”, out April 22 via UNFD.
Birthed straight from the belly of Ocean Grove’s creative engine – none other than their own Oddworld™ universe – “Up In The Air Forever” is a 10-track, genre-bending epic musical journey. An evolution of the trio’s early heavy sound, the record finds Ocean Grove leaning into their strengths in the worlds of Brit-rock, pop, grunge, and punk and ultimately confirms them as a creative force that can’t be tamed.
Celebrating personal freedom, expression and creativity, the record is characterised by strong anarchic sentiments and resentment for a system that squashes individualism and anti-“norm” ideas.
Following the reveal of their summery earworm “CALI SUN”, Ocean Grove are lifting a second taste of the album with the reveal of their uplifting anthem “SILVER LINING” last week alongside its new music video.
“We want nothing but to empower the listener with a positive mental attitude (PMA), especially in their darkest hours when they may feel completely lost in themselves or in the loss of a loved one. Life isn’t meant to be easy and there is always a reason to keep fighting for the beauty in the pain, even when the way out of the darkness seems impossible. Where there is hope, there is power if we choose to tap into this PMA mentality. Death is a tool to remind us of the importance of every moment we are alive. Time is scarce, use it wisely and let ‘SILVER LINING’ be an anthem for the loving lost, that they are eternal and will be remembered with fierce optimism. There are great lessons to be learnt from solitude and it doesn’t have to last a lifetime. All will be okay in the temporary separation, and until the moment we meet our loved ones once again, we will fight every day on this planet to uphold their legacy and wisdom in the best way we know how” – Ocean Grove
Taken as a whole, “Up In The Air Forever” delivers a head-spinning dose of positive energy and a message of courage and unity in a bitter and troubled world. It’s an impassioned burst of light amid the darkness, confusion, and “up in the air” nature of our world today. “COVID or not, everything is always uncertain” muses frontman Dale Tanner on how the album’s title is a parallel to the unforeseeable nature of life. “Being fearful of uncertainty and the unknown squashes creativity. Embracing this notion of things being up in the air forever, eternally, is a really positive thing if you take it on board and let it empower you”.
Uncertainty and change have followed Ocean Grove for much of their career, yet it’s been PMA that’s continued to inform Dale, Twiggy, and Sam in everything they do and the creatives they aspire to be – and it’s a message they vehemently want to spread further with “Up In The Air Forever”.
Tracklist of “UP IN THE AIR FOREVER”
1. FLAVA
2. SEX DOPE GOLD
3. CALI SUN
4. BUSTIN’
5. SILVER LINING
6. HMU (ft. Lil Aaron)
7. BORED (ft. Dune Rats)
8. NOISE
9. SILENCE
10. UP IN THE AIR FOREVER
“The power is in The Shoe”, declares the manifesto for Ocean Grove‘s visionary upcoming record “Up In The Air Forever”. “The Shoe, affectionately branded the ‘Oddworld 3000’, is the key to unlocking the listener’s full potential. It represents a portal that transmits the wearer to the universe of the Oddworld and beyond, where rules like gravity don’t apply”.
That shoe – of course referring to the colossal sneaker dominating the “Up In The Air Forever” cover art – is a wearable transportation – better said, a transformation device. Brought to life through the genius of comic artist Brent Engstrom (Garbage Pail Kids, Topps), the album cover illustrates the walls of real-world mediocrity that Ocean Grove are looking to shatter – and the shoe they plan to do it with! Slip it on and gravitate to the highest frequencies of the Oddworld and the realest you.
“With this album, Ocean Grove is empowering the listener to reach for the stars”, continues the mission statement penned by the OG collective. “It’s not that The Shoe promises them any new powers, but rather a change in perspective that removes the external callus and conditioning they’ve acquired over possible lifetimes, the veil of illusion over their eyes that keeps them subdued and contracted”.
Coined around their inception in Melbourne in the early 2010’s, the Oddworld is the new reality in which all are welcome to enter and approach Ocean Grove, who reside at its fervent nucleus. As a gift to the trio’s “Junkies” (the already-citizens of the Oddworld) and for those uninitiated, Ocean Grove have lovingly created “Up In The Air Forever” and its tangible companion, The Oddworld 3000.
With its release, Ocean Grove are inviting all to strap on the sneaker and fasten themselves to the Oddworld movement. It’s an extended hand of hope and validation to anyone that feels like an outsider on this planet – a personal welcome from Dale, Twiggy, and Sam to step beyond the normal and into the freedom of the anti-normal.
Pre-save the new record here.
For more information on the band, follow their social media:
https://www.facebook.com/oceangrove
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