THE OCEAN – Full Album Stream

THE OCEAN have begun streaming Anthropocentric, the upcoming full-length from the German progressive/atmospheric metal act, in its entirety. The stream will remain active until November 8, the day before the official North American release date.

Check out Anthropocentric HERE.

Anthropocentric is the sequel to the band’s Heliocentric long player, released earlier this year. Where Heliocentric tells the story of the rise of the heliocentric world view — the idea that the earth revolves around the sun — and the effects this discovery had on Christian belief and occidental culture, Anthropocentric challenges the views of creationists and other modern fundamentalists who still believe that the earth is at the center of the universe and no more than 5,000 years old. “Anthropocentric continues the critique of Christianity, inspired by the questions that Dostoyevsky asked and some of the answers that Friedrich Nietzsche and Richard Dawkins gave,” notes guitarist Robin Staps.

Musically heavier than Heliocentric, Anthropocentric covers a similar sonic and dynamic range as its predecessor by including a number of calm, acoustic moments, but these are, for the most part, orchestrated with guitars, and not so much with piano and strings. “The album is a pretty big production, and still has a very earthy, organic feel to it,” says Staps. “We’ve spent a great deal of time on the basic sound this time around — the drums, bass, guitars and vocals — and at this stage I am pretty confident that this will pay off in the end!”

Anthropocentric will be released on November 9 via Metal Blade Records.

THE OCEAN Robbed In Spain

On Wednesday, October 20, 2010 THE OCEAN, who are currently on tour supporting The Dillinger Escape Plan in Europe, were robbed on a highway near Madrid. Said the band in a statement: “Two guys in a black BMW pulled us over with fake police IDs. They asked for our van papers and IDs and wanted to know if we had any money to declare. We were not skeptical at this point, as it is normal in Europe that you have to declare larger amounts of money when you’re crossing borders, so we told them we had merch money with us, and the guy wanted to see it. When we showed them the merch wallet, the guy reached through the open window, seized it and ran back to the BMW in front of us, where his colleague was waiting with the engine running. Unfortunately our van and trailer don’t match the speed of a BMW, but fortunately it’s not allowed to carry guns in Europe, as otherwise we would be in jail now for shooting the guy in the face.

“We are facing a loss of + 6000 euro of merch income of the last days and fees. The exact amount is still to be determined. As some of you may or may not know, conditions on support tours are usually grim. Fees are low and barely cover expenses for van, gas, highway tolls, ferries etc. There is no accommodation arrangements, we’ve been crashing out on people’s floors for weeks. Losing more than 6000 euro is something we simply cannot afford at this point.

We are asking everyone who is planning to order Anthropocentric in the next few weeks through our shop to help out. You can do so by donating 5 Euro when you place your order. All income generated through this will make the loss smaller for us.

Everyone who donates 5 Euro will receive a copy of the police report and a Thank You card signed by all band members. We would like to thank you in advance for your support!”

You can donate at: http://www.pelagic-records.com/shop

In related news, THE OCEAN will support Anathema on another run of Euro shows in November. Confirmed dates include:
11/09/2010 Rocking Chair – Vevey, Switzerland
11/10/2010 Z7 – Pratteln, Switzerland
11/11/2010 Estragon – Bologna, Italy
11/12/2010 Alpheus – Rome, Italy
11/13/2010 New Age – Treviso, Italy
11/14/2010 Magazzini Generali – Milan, Italy
11/15/2010 Boogaloo Club – Zagreb, Croatia
11/16/2010 Listhalle – Graz, Austria
11/17/2010 Viper Room – Vienna, Austria
11/18/2010 Diesel Club – Budapest, Hungary
11/21/2010 Akademija – Belgrade, Serbia (Headline Show)
11/22/2010 Randall – Bratislava, Slovakia
11/23/2010 Rock Café – Prague, Czech Republic

http://www.theoceancollective.com/heliocentric
http://www.metalblade.com/theocean