Ocean Alley In Concert
A series of coastal towns and suburbs north of Sydney, Australia, the Northern Beaches offer some of the world's best surfing spots and most majestic beaches. It's not hard to hear the impact that these surroundings made on the music of Ocean Alley, six young friends who somehow managed to get away from the sand and sea long enough to discover a special musical kinship while jamming in a backyard shed. Their shared love of Jimi Hendrix, Pink Floyd, and Bob Marley led to the development of an unmistakably sun-kissed sound that marries the feel and scope of psychedelic rock to the pulse and warmth of reggae. Their devotion to Dire Straits means recent singles like "Bones" and "Confidence" have a sturdy foundation in classic '80s songcraft, too.
The new songs also make good on the promise displayed on Ocean Alley's first recordings. Reversing the title of Donovan's 1967 classic, the 2013 debut EP ‘Yellow Mellow' was an enthralling sign of things to come from the band, which consists of singer-guitarist Baden Donegal, guitarists Angus Goodwin and Mitch Galbraith, keyboardist Lach Galbraith, bassist Nic Blom, and drummer Tom O'Brien. Their inaugural set of international shows and their 2015 debut album ‘Lost Tropics' marked further leaps in maturity as their retro-leaning sound expanded to include elements of more contemporary peers like the War on Drugs and King Gizzard and the Wizard Lizard. All the while, their relentless touring and mind-expanding live shows suggested that they were hardly as lazy as their most languid songs might suggest.
As the Top 10 success on the Australian charts for 2018's ‘Chiaroscuro' prompted sellouts, Ocean Alley's conquest of their home turf beyond their beloved Northern Beaches was complete. North American audiences seem destined to follow suit, especially now that the band have crossed many great expanses of land and water to play a series of supporting dates for their friend Tash Sultana.
