The World is a Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid to Die opened with the bittersweet melodies of “Dim Sum,” Josh Cyr’s bassline weaving a mournful foundation for Chris Teti’s jangling yet expansive guitar work. Their performance was captivating – the tension in “Fuzz Minor” built gradually, the band layering delicate guitar lines and ethereal vocals before exploding into a cathartic wall of sound. They demonstrated stunning versatility: the melancholy introspection of “We Saw Birds Through the Hole in the Ceiling” contrasted dramatically with the frenetic, almost hardcore energy of “Died in the Prison of the Holy Office.”
SETLIST:
- Dim Sum
- Fuzz Minor
- We Saw Birds Through the Hole in the Ceiling
- Died in the Prison of the Holy Office
- Your Brain Is a Rubbermaid
- Invading the World of the Guilty as a Spirit of Vengeance
- Kersed (Ceremony cover)
- Katamari Duquette
- P Markets
When The Ocean took the stage, a transformative shift occurred. “Preboreal” opened their set, its slow, atmospheric build hinting at the power to come. As they launched into “Boreal,” Loïc Rossetti’s vocals shifted seamlessly from guttural growls to powerful melodic passages. Robin Staps and David Ramis Åhfeldt’s intricate guitar lines intertwined mesmerizingly, punctuated by the precise, technical drumming of Paul Seidel. Songs like “Miocene | Pliocene” took the audience on a breathtaking journey, ebbing from delicate ambient passages to crushing crescendos punctuated by blast beats.
The Ocean’s performance was an immersive sensory onslaught. During the epic “Hadopelagic II: Let Them Believe,” dissonant swells gave way to a breathtaking melodic chorus. The slow, doomy riffs in “Devonian: Nascent” were hypnotic. At the same time, the progressive-metal onslaught of “Jurassic | Cretaceous” left the audience breathless, its shifting time signatures and intricate guitar work showcasing the sheer musicianship of the band.
SETLIST:
- .Preboreal
- Boreal
- Sea of Reeds
- AtlanticSubboreal
- Miocene | Pliocene
- Hadopelagic II: Let Them Believe
- Devonian: Nascent
- Statherian
- Pleistocene
- The Quiet Observer
- Jurassic | Cretaceous
While The World is a Beautiful Place channeled emotional vulnerability, The Ocean painted sonic landscapes, their music a breathtaking reflection of Earth’s complex geological history. The two bands offered strikingly different yet equally compelling performances, leaving the audience both emotionally resonated and sonically stunned.
Photos by Scott Martin Photography
The World is a Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid to Die
The Ocean (Collective)
