Review: Oceans - Nothing Collapses

Label: Copper Lung Records

Released: March 24, 2009

I have long believed that artists only are only half of the creative force behind art. The other half of the creation is the interpretation. Often, the greatest art allows for significant breadth of interpretation even as it guides the very same. Most often though, the artist errs on the side of doing too much and closing too many doors.

This is particularly true in music, but every once in awhile, an album comes along that acts in a sense as an open-ended soundtrack to a movie that will play in the listener's head. Nothing Collapses is one such album. In a sense the music is in the background, but not in a passive way. It's twisting, turning rhythms and layered sound paints a vivid scene with both a clear point and endless possibility. What's best is that Oceans trusts its listeners to do their part, to participate in something great, to not just listen, but to act (at least on the stage of their own minds).

Ratings
Satriani: 8/10
Zappa: 7/10
Dylan: 9/10
Aretha: 7/10
Overall: 8/10

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