Oceans - Sound In The Signals Interview

Brighton-based alternative rock band Oceans formed in September 2014. They had some setbacks when members left the band, but they are about to release their new EP On & On which proves that they are committed to the band and the party will go 'on and on'. Recently they explained to us how their first writing sessions with their new lineup would last whole days, how they managed late night recording sessions, and how fans can expect a few surprises that they threw in while recording.

Three members left Oceans last summer. The band is about to release an EP, which you've said is a rebirth. Tell us about the band and your music for those who may be unfamiliar.

We're a Brighton based band bringing elements of post hardcore, pop rock and alternative rock in our music and we have been known to dabble with math rock and funk!

You're set to release your EP On & On on August 6th. I've read that the EP is basically about how the band will keep going on and on despite setbacks. It's great that you took something away from that situation and made a positive, fun EP for the fans. Can you explain what it was like when the band first started writing with the new lineup? Did your approach change with this EP?

Funnily enough our vocalist Zach Silver has no rock experience at all and by trade, is an R&B vocalist! Zach Silver was always a very supportive and dear friend to the band and when Oceans was without a singer, he approached us and said "I'll give it a shot!" and the rest is history! We had no idea how the writing process would go at first but the whole thing started to gel really well and those first writing sessions would literally last whole days. As we're progressing, all of us in the band are starting to meet in the middle much more as we've all come from various musical back grounds.

You recorded in Liverpool at the music institution, LIPA, which was co-founded by Paul McCartney. Tell us about being in this storied location and about the recording process. Did it add anything to the EP that you didn't expect prior to recording?

Most of our recording sessions at LIPA finished between 5AM - 6AM and forcing your self to stay awake at those times does crazy things to a man! It added an energy drink fueled vibe to the sessions which resulted in strange behaviour and that becomes apparent in the music video of 'Electrified'. Liverpool is an inspiring place with a fantastic music scene and we hope to record there again because the whole process was amazing!

It was was produced by Joe Furness, Bradley Rolling and Ian Lovett. You've said fans can expect the EP to be well produced. What did these producers bring to the EP and what advice did they offer you?

Joe Furness tracked a majority of the EP and he was a pleasure to work with because his approach to it was very laid back but effective. He was very patient with us and it was great learning with him. Bradley Rolling did a majority of the post production and he basically "pumped the EP with steroids" which is a direct quote from him. Ian Lovett is Jess Glynnes producer and has a very impressive roster of artist that he has worked with. Ian did his thing on the track 'On & On' and he made the track more accessible from a production perspective by heavily concentrating on the vocals.


The band has said fans can "also expect elements of funk, post-hardcore and lots of riffs! I'd imagine people listening to the EP will struggle relating it to anything else". Fans got a great glimpse into the EP with your song "Electrified". The video shows a unique view of behind the scenes. Tell us about filming those scenes and the video.

The video idea isn't exactly unique but the soul purpose of the video is so the fans can get an insight into who we really are and in a way it's more intimate than your standard 'getting chased in the woods' video that you see a lot of underground bands do. I think that's why lots of bands do these videos where it's just a large montage of footage of the band in the studio and otherwise. The video is also a small insight into what we have been up to in the last six months, including recording the EP, and the numerous gigs we have done. A lot of the scenes are of us recording the EP where we traveled up to LIPA, which is an amazing arts University in Liverpool. We recorded the EP with our good friend Joe Furness over the course of the whole weekend, in a state of the art studio designed by the one and only George Martin himself! It was an amazing experience so we decided to film parts of it to share with everyone.

We really wanted to show everyone how much fun we have had over the past six months, and we thought Electrified was the perfect song to show that. We hope it portrays what a great time we have as band, both in the studio and gigging.

The EP has unique cover artwork. What inspired the design? Who came up with the concept for it?

Conor Hyde (guitarist) and Zach Silver (singer) came up with the concept for it. The cover art goes with the theme of our band name and the promo for our merchandise featured girls as well so we have an on going theme basically.

The EP comes out in August. What can fans expect as you prepare for the release? Any teases for those who are waiting?

We have released two singles off this EP prior to it's release but we won't be releasing anymore tracks from the EP as the the launch is soon approaching. Fans can expect to hear all the songs on the EP played at our upcoming shows. What we can say is you can expect a few surprises we threw in while recording...


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-L.Burden