Introspection in music is often done, but never overly. Many bands love to dip the odd toe into waters of reflection but there’s not many that dedicate an entire album to such an emotion.
Maybe it’s a fear of pushing your audience away, or possibly drawing them too close. Either way, it’s seemingly not the done thing. It seems The Boxer Rebellion might not have been at that meeting though; ‘Ocean By Ocean’ is a complete, end-to-end downer. They’ve filled these ten tracks with every piece of their broken heart. There’s wallowing in misery, and then there’s redemption, and this is the epic sound of a band recovering in glory.
The Boxer Rebellion can reflect on a career of achievements against the odds. A now fiercely independent band who in their infancy took the adversity of a record label crumbling around them with a shrug of the shoulders and rebuilt from the foundations of their own terms.
Vindication came quick after four years of reflection and bloody minded determination when in 2009 second album ‘Union‘ caught the attention of iTunes, an international single of the week, mixing it on there with Kings Of Leon – a band who were busy lapping up their own new found commercial success via much more cynical means.
‘Ocean by Ocean’ has a distinct sound; powerful, enchanting, driving (albeit slowly). ‘Weapon’ is an amazing opener that uplifts and resonates, and it’s a formula that’s replicated to stunning effect across the record. ‘Big Ideas’ and ‘Firework’ pull powerful punches, the U2 feel of the album really starting to come to the fore.
Tracks like ‘Pull Yourself Together’ have an angelic quality – Perfume Genius, only more pop orientated, while ‘Let It Go’ is a powerful and exciting finale in slow motion. Utterly irresistible. Yet ‘Ocean by Ocean’ is less about the individual moments and more about the ambience. When viewed as a whole, it’s impressive, there’s some fascinating touches. Like how at many points it sounds like the unwanted offspring of Enya and ‘Nothing Compares 2 U‘ by Sinead O’Connor.
This may sound strange, but this haunting, deliberate production is as challenging as it is beautiful, and alternately it also sounds like ‘Joshua Tree’ era U2 in places. Not simply because of the jangly guitar work, but due to its scope and emotion. There’s even a wonderfully glossy, Coldplay-esque sheen to its grander moments.
For an album that barely moves beyond a shamble, it’s a diverse amalgam of sounds and styles. What The Boxer Rebellion have created is very special, it’s intense and atmospheric without becoming intrusive. You are carried along with it, moved by it and challenged by it. Records that usually achieve this do so with gusto and energy. The Boxer Rebellion manage it on pure emotion. This is its power and its beauty. This is what bands aren’t supposed to be able to do, and yet The Boxer Rebellion have done it.
Now just sit back, relax and let it all out – you’re in great company.
