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Older and wiser, The Ocean Party up the ante on Mess and Noise Critics Poll 2015

A couple of days ago you might have woken up to a little pressie from The Ocean Party as they decided to release a cheeky album more or less overnight. Titled Mess & Noise critics poll 2015, the work is eight tracks long and oozes some classic Ocean Party sounds, with a couple of twists chucked in there to keep it real (they’ve joined the synth party).

The Ocean Party critics poll 2015

Old mates The Ocean Party have pulled the tablecloth from under us to reveal their surprise mini album Mess and Noise Critics Poll 2015.

Now, for those fanatics out there that know The Ocean Party’s entire discography, you might notice that this release came fabulously quick after their 2015 album Light Weight. Chatting to one of The Ocean Party’s musos Lach Denton, he tells me that the band had a bunch of songs left over after Light Weight was released and they didn’t want them to fall by the wayside, so they banged em’ all together to make a little mini album. And what a bloody brilliant idea that was! Who says you have to wait to release them in your next album? Just release all of it and start fresh!

Again for the fans or those who have amicably listened to The Ocean Party over the last couple years, you might’ve noticed the change in their sound since their first couple of sun-kissed albums. Going from guitar chords that are happy-go-lucky and dripping in summer, there are differences in the way they play these tunes that are almost metamorphic. The songs now have more emphasis on that horrid mature concept called adulthood. Their riffs and bass have become more purposeful and altogether, the tunes have a greater sense of urgency about them. Less sun, but no less mastery.

The Ocean Party’s music has always questioned the realities of maturity and becoming a somewhat responsible adult – Split, Quarter Life CrisisWent Out and their latest releases exude the meaning of it all a lot clearer. In the music that is, you can hear the somewhat heavy, the hopeful and the happy feels that maturity can bring. In the song Hail, the main guitar riff is the heavy, with it’s blues-like feel flirting with the contempt sadness that comes with feeling the blues.

Then, the synth in the background is the hopeful because let’s be honest… synth always sounds pretty optimistic. And the piano, Oh Sweet Lord, there is nothing better than a piano solo that takes the weight off your shoulders for you and lets you fly away. A.K.A the happy.

As for said ‘twists’ to keep the tunes sounding fresh, I’ll give you a couple teasers. Some drums – I think congas or bongos – in the first song Cool Boys get it sounding a wee bit exotic. As well as some 80s sounding synth thrown in the mix, and a guitar with a nice amount of twang to it, your ears simply will not expect what the boys have thrown at you.

Finally, I’ll tell you what makes this release entirely individual and even more fabulous: you can buy it on cassette. Yeah, you know what I’m talking. Those old-school things that your mum and dad probably still have lying around somewhere. Most likely an old Police album or that Barbie cassette you got when you were 5. Understandably, the technology isn’t as fast and as high quality, but get in touch with your hipster side and for the love of music, don’t hate!

You can get your hands on Mess and Noise Critics Poll 2015 through their Bandcamp page. You can listen to it for free for a while, but for only $7 you can digitally download it. Or for only $12 you get that cassette tape I just got a bit over exited about. And all the money goes to supporting the band! So get out your wallets!