Precambrian (album)
| Precambrian | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by The Ocean | ||||
| Released | 5 November 2007 | |||
| Recorded | Oceanland, Berlin, between April and July 2007 | |||
| Genre | Post-metal, sludge metal, progressive metal | |||
| Length | 83:43 | |||
| Label | Metal Blade | |||
| Producer | Jonas Olsson, Robin Staps | |||
| The Ocean chronology | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| About.com |   [1] |
| Allmusic | [2] |
| Decibel | (9/10)[3] |
| Pitchfork Media | (8.3/10)[4] |
| Revolver | [5] |
Precambrian is the third studio album by the German metal band The Ocean, released on November 5, 2007 through Metal Blade Records. It features the participation of several guest musicians, including Caleb Scofield (Cave In, Zozobra, Old Man Gloom), Nate Newton (Converge, Doomriders), Dwid Hellion (Integrity), Tomas Hallbom (Breach), Erik Kalsbeek (Textures) and musicians from the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra.
Development
The main concept of the album is based around the Precambrian, an early period in the formation of Earth. Hadean/Archaean (disc one) is heavy and raw just like their previous album Aeolian while Proterozoic (disc two) is more post-metal-influenced with the inclusion of symphonic and electronic elements like their first album Fluxion.
The production of the album lasted more than six months after their tour in Europe in late 2006. All the drum tracks done by Torge Liessmann and most of the guitar tracks were recorded in Finland. Some of the guitar tracks and all of the vocals, bass guitar, percussion, samples, and various instruments played by the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra were recorded in The Ocean's own Oceanland Studio in Berlin, Germany. Additional vocals were recorded in Sweden, Belgium, The Netherlands, and Los Angeles, California and Seattle, Washington in the United States. It was mixed by Andrew Schneider in New York City. Originally the album's mastering by Nick Zampiello dissatisfied Robin Staps so it was remastered in Finland. The artwork was done by Martin Kvamme, who has done artwork for various Mike Patton projects like Fantômas and Tomahawk. The release in both the United States and Europe differed; the U.S. version is in a two disc crystal case while the European version is in a complex digipak case with additional artwork.
Jonas Renkse from Katatonia and Bloodbath was planned to be on the album but due to Katatonia's touring schedule during the production, The Ocean was not able to approach him on time. The Ocean wanted to have Dave Verellen of Botch to participate but he never responded back during production.[6]
Track listing
All music written by Robin Staps. Lyrics written by Robin Staps except where noted. All non-instrumental songs include sub-titles that correspond to the lyrics provided, not to the main concept.
Disc one
Hadean/Archaean
I. Hadean
- "Hadean (The Long March of the Yes-Men)" (Ray J. Shaw, Robin Staps) – 3:48
II. Archaean
- "Eoarchaean (The Great Void)" (Micheal Pilat, Staps) – 4:45
- "Paleoarchaean (Man and the Sea)" (Charles Baudelaire, Staps) – 2:46
- "Mesoarchaean (Legions of Winged Octopi)" (Comte de Lautréamont, Staps) – 5:20
- "Neoarchaean (To Burn the Duck of Doubt)" (Lautréamont, Staps) – 5:24
Disc two
Proterozoic
III. Paleoproterozoic
- "Siderian" [Instrumental] (Staps, Tomas Svensson) – 1:56
- "Rhyacian (Untimely Meditations)" (Friedrich Nietzsche, Lautréamont, Staps) – 10:57
- "Orosirian (For the Great Blue Cold Now Reigns)" – 6:29
- "Statherian" [Instrumental] (Kevin Spacey, Staps) – 5:57
IV. Mesoproterozoic
- "Calymmian (Lake Disappointment)" – 8:18
- "Ectasian (De Profundis)" (Georg Trakl, Staps) – 8:58
- "Stenian (Mount Sorrow)" – 8:19
V. Neoproterozoic
- "Tonian (Confessions of a Dangerous Mind)" – 7:18
- "Cryogenian" [Instrumental] – 3:32
Personnel
Hadean/Archaean
- Torge Liessmann – drums, percussion (all tracks)
- Matt Beels – guitar (all tracks)
- Robin Staps – guitar, percussion (all tracks)
- Walid Farruque – guitar (track 2)
- Mike Pilat – bass (all tracks), vocals (tracks 1, 2, 3, 5)
- Nico Webers – vocals (tracks 1, 2, 3)
- Nate Newton – vocals (track 3)
- Eric Kalsbeek – vocals (track 4)
- Meta – vocals (tracks 1, 5)
- Rene Nocon – vocals (track 3)
- Jason Emry – vocals (track 3)
Proterozoic
- Torge Liessmann – drums, percussion (all tracks)
- Matt Beels – guitar (all tracks)
- Robin Staps – guitar (all tracks), vocals (tracks 2, 6, 7)
- Mike Pilat – bass (tracks 2, 3, 5, 6, 7), vocals (tracks 2, 3, 6, 8)
- Hannes Huefken – bass (tracks 4 and 8)
- Jonathan Heine – bass (track 6)
- Stefan Heinemeyer – cello (tracks 2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9)
- Karina Suslov – viola (tracks 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9)
- Christoph Von Der Nahmer – violin (tracks 2, 3, 4, 8)
- Katharina Sellheim – piano (tracks 2, 6, 7, 8, 9)
- John Gürtler – saxophone (track 1)
- Daniel Eichholz – glockenspiel (tracks 2, 3, 4, 5, 7)
- Jonas Olsson – tambourine (tracks 5, 7, 8)
- Tomas Svensson – additional samples (track 1)
- Nico Webers – vocals (tracks 2, 5, 8)
- Meta – vocals (tracks 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8)
- Tomas Halbom – vocals (track 7)
- Rene Nocon – vocals (tracks 3, 7, 8)
- Nate Newton – vocals (track 8)
- Dwid Hellion – vocals (track 6)
- Jan Oberg – vocals (track 6)
- Caleb Scofield – vocals (track 3)
- Kevin Spacey – passage (track 4, audio from The Life of David Gale)
References
- ↑ Bowar, Chad. "Precambrian review". About.com. Retrieved 21 January 2010.
- ↑ Prato, Greg. "Precambrian review". Allmusic. Retrieved 21 January 2010.
- ↑ Parks, Andrew (February 2008). "Not as Oceanic as you might think". Decibel (40): . ISSN 1557-2137.
- ↑ Lee, Cosmo (11 March 2008). "Precambrian review". Pitchfork. Retrieved 21 January 2010.
- ↑ Kennedy, Patrick (January 2008). "Precambrian review". Revolver (64): p. 106. ISSN 1527-408X.
- ↑ "An interview with The Ocean for Lords of Metal monthly metal e-zine, published in issue 77: January 2008". Lords of Metal. Retrieved 2008-06-27.
External links
- Precambrian at Metal Blade Records
- Precambrian at Metal Blade Europe
- Precambrian at MusicBrainz (list of releases)
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