The Ocean - Pelagial (2013)

The Ocean's latest release sees them at their most progressive and varied while still retaining their trademark heaviness and sweeping atmospherics. It's a kind of concept album with each track representing a deeper section of ocean than the last (similar to Precambrian which explored geologic time scales). The instrumentation is excellent with some nice indirect references to early Mastodon, and the vocals, both clean and harsh, fit perfectly. I'm not sure if it's actually my favorite Ocean album as I need more listens to see how it ranks, but it's definitely up there. Along with the new Cult of Luna and, most likely, the upcoming Mouth of the Architect album, this is a sure contender for post-metal album of the year. It's great to see how such a talented band have progressed their sound so much and I'm looking forward to seeing what they do in the future.

9/10