On September 6th, 2024, during what felt like the last summer evening of the year, THE OCEAN hit Hamburg’s legendary Logo, bringing along BIPOLAR ARCHITECTURE and A SWARM OF THE SUN.
The Turkish/German quartet BIPOLAR ARCHITECTURE kicked off the evening. They entertained a nearly full Logo with their upbeat blackened post-metal style. In particular, the song “Disillusioned” worked wonderfully live. The band has truly mastered the art of creating heart-wrenching melodies, which is one of the aspects that makes them unique. The intense effort from the drumming and rhythm guitars, however, cannot go unmentioned. These elements propel the compositions forward, turning them into powerful bursts of energy.
Earlier this year, the band released “Metaphysicize” through Pelagic Records, and this album is definitely worth checking out.
The crowd made its appreciation loudly noticeable to the band, even though the interactions between the two were kept to a minimum.
Next, the mood shifted as the Swedish post-rock outfit A SWARM OF THE SUN took the stage. Frequent visitors know that the Logo venue has its downsides, but on this occasion, those aspects actually enhanced the atmosphere needed to fully appreciate their live performance.
Amidst a sea of fog and mostly static shadows, a slow yet melodic sound began to emerge from the stage. A SWARM OF THE SUN took its time to build a scene and musically convey their message, but when the moment arrived, it hit hard. These moments are often preceded by the gentle, yet emotionally charged vocals of singer Jakob Berglund, and an atmospheric soundscape that culminates in a wave of heaviness. On that particular evening, A SWARM OF THE SUN celebrated the release of their latest album “An Empire” after some years since their last full-length effort.
THE OCEAN began their set in a calm manner with “Preboreal,” the opening track of their latest full-length “Holocene.” The setlist seemed designed to gradually build tension among the audience, which finally erupted when the band reached the chorus of “Subboreal,” a composition that showcases all the best attributes the band is known for, at least since the current lineup has been on duty. The quiet, yet ever-dynamic build-up and performance by all members peak in heavy, energizing riffing, finely accentuated by frontman Loïc Rosetti’s harsher melodic vocals. Next came “Bathyalpelagic III: Disequilibrated,” which somewhat contrasted with the newer material but served as a reminder of the unique sound “Pelagial” offers. The compositions from that 2013 album have truly withstood the test of time. The crowd in Hamburg created a great atmosphere, and not even the newly installed air conditioning system at Logo could keep the heat down.
The band eventually left the stage, but the crowd immediately and persistently demanded an encore. The band obliged, returning with “Triassic” and “Jurassic | Cretaceous,” during which vocalist Rosetti literally walked on the ceiling with the help of the crowd. As he jumped off the stage to crowd-surf, he used his hands and feet on the venue’s low ceiling to propel himself across the audience, all while still performing his vocal duties.
This was definitely a night to remember, reinforcing the long-standing belief that this band must be experienced live every single time the opportunity arises.
Text and Photos by Michelle R.
Setlist
- Preboreal
- Cambrian II: Eternal Recurrence
- Boreal
- Atlantic
- Subboreal
- Bathyalpelagic III: Disequilibrated
- Oligocene
- Pleistocene
- Parabiosis
- Subatlantic
- Triassic (Encore)
- Jurassic | Cretaceous (Encore)
