Electronic act THE OCEAN BENEATH is a mix bag of sorts, taking an 80's approach of inspiration, mixing together powerful analogue synthesis, melodic sweeping vocals and huge grooving percussion! Mainman Matt Burnside goes into discussion about this particular styling of music plus more!
1. Please tell us about the history of your band and its members.
The Ocean Beneath started life as a shared ideal between Rich Blacker and myself, Matt Burnside. We both wanted to create new music moving away from our previous ventures with an 80’s influence and a modern push on the production. We also wanted to bring in as many other people as possible along the way for collaborations so we did just that. We released our debut EP in 2019 and have worked with loads of great artists including Nath Jackson, Fran Minney, Mik Crone and more. In Feb of 2020 Rich wanted to take some time away from the project so now I’m just pushing things forward and doubling down on the collaborations.
2. What’s the origin of the band’s name?
The name came really easy to be honest, it was a nod to people not always wearing their true feelings for all to see, thankfully we talk about mental health nowadays a lot more and beneath the surface people can be really struggling. The name just fitted and it sounded great!
3. Where is the band based out of and what is your music scene like there? Are there any local bands you could recommend?
I’m based just outside Leeds in the UK and the music scene here is pretty damn amazing. Although gigs are a bit of a touchy subject right now people should definitely come to Leeds in the future when all this is over. Check out artists like Lost Colours, Hope & Social, Jon Gomm and Purple Thread.
4. How would you describe your style?
The music we make always has a fully loaded amount of 80’s influence, that’s something that we really don’t shy away from. The 80’s retro scene seems to be having a revival of sorts with hits like Stranger Things and my god the 80’s music, we love it. As well as an 80’s vibe we’re constantly looking at modern production techniques and trying to evolve the sounds we’re making. Real analogue synthesizers take a big roll in our sound so that’s usually where we start.
5. What have you released so far and what can someone expect from your works?
In July 2019 we released our self titled debut EP The Ocean Beneath, it’s a trip through familiar 80’s electronic music but smacks you in the face with hooks, huge vocals and beats you’re definitely going to dance to. We’ve also just released a brand new single SKIN featuring Fran Minney that Fran described as encapsulating the touch starved feeling we’ve all had through lockdown with a beat to dance out the frustration. It’s got a Madonna Frozen kind of vibe mixed with some hard electronica.
6. Do you have any new music in the works?
We’re working towards an EP or potentially a full album of collaborations right now. We’ve worked with some amazing artists already and we love the idea of showcasing them all in one neat product.
7. How about playing shows and touring, have anything planned out?
With the pandemic stuff stopping all live shows for now we’ve kind of put that idea on ice. We do have live shows planned, we even have the setup and how it’s all going to work mapped out but as things are our energy is best spent elsewhere.
8. What plans do you have for the future as a band?
We’re already working on new tracks and even more collaborations so watch this space, we just want to keep making the music that we love and hope everyone is along with us for the ride.
9. Where can we listen to your band and where can we buy your stuff?
The best place is as we all know Bandcamp, right? You can get us on http://theoceanbeneath.bandcamp.com but you’ll also find us on Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube and all the other usual places.
10. What is it you’d like a listener to remember the most when hearing your music for the first time?
When you’re listening just picture John Carpenters Escape from New York. If you’ve not seen this movie go find it right now and watch it whilst listening you’ll thank me later.
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