Isis (6) – Oceanic

anyone else notice that not only is the printing all around lower detail/color/quality, but the gatefold image is UPSIDE DOWN compared to previous issues? what the hell happened here???

I just got a copy from Bandcamp. I'm glad to have a vinyl version of this masterwork. Yes this remaster does have a more crisp sound than the earlier release in comparing it to a hi-res needle drop version I have, which is more bassy and smeary, perhaps better for a metal album. It's a trade off. I can also hear the difference on the two versions on the streaming service. Listen for yourself.

The vinyl looks cool and matches the label nicely and overall album look. But the cover art detail is very much reduced. Disappointing. Doesn't look like an ocean at all. I like the printing directly on cardboard look, but it is more suited to graphic designs, not photographs.

The discs came with a slight lens warp, but plays ok. I didn't clean it yet but it is rather noisy too. I guess what was said about the cheap public toilet liner style inner sleeves leaving paper traces is true. Unfortunately the jacket is too tight for decent plastic lined paper sleeves, only the basic rice paper ones will work. The heavy card stock is noted as a feature, but a better image on the front would have been more interesting. Cardboard is hardly a major selling point. So it is a bit of a miss on the art and packaging direction. Oh well...

The sound is very clean and crisp, but this is at the expense of the sludgy feel of the original master. The character of the remaster is so different compared to the original, which had a more laid back feel to the drums and more low end to the guitars. I never had a problem with cymbals being distracting with the original master, but I find them too bright and too large on this remaster.

This release sounds amazing. I can’t really say enough about the album itself. Still gets me through tough times. It will always be my go to.

I need a jacket for my copy of Oceanic. I have a press from some years ago but I bought it highly discounted because it didn't have a cover. If anyone has an empty jacket to sell please give me a message.

Thanks!

haha oh man, this is the tightest gatefold i've ever had. I can't even get the paper insert back into the pocket! ridiculous! My LP2 also has a chunk missing. Man, they must have rushed these off the plates.

The album themes are considered to be an expansion on the bands 1998 EP The Red Sea, which includes themes of water throughout, death, emotional detachment, incest, and suicide.

Oceanic is a concept album (presumably told non-chronologically, or told through memories) about a man who, on the brink of emotional emptiness and numbness, finds a female counterpart who, prematurely, completes him (“The Beginning and the End"). However, he soon discovers that she has had a long-term incestuous relationship ("False Light", "Weight") with her brother over the course of the man’s relationship with her. ("Hym", "The Other"). After discovering this, it drives him back into his emotionally comatose state, and he subsequently commits suicide by drowning himself in the ocean.("from sinking sands, he stepped into light's embrace").

Sound is ok, but the packaging... As Fadedsun said the gatefold is so tight, that you can barely get the discs out without damaging the inner sleeves. Talking about the inner sleeves, they are a disgrace. 34.32€ to buy the album and they couldn't include anything better..

Wonderful vinyl, It sounds very well and clean. Matt Colton did a fantastic job.

My first disc was a bit warped, but not so much that it affects playback. Still a bit annoying having waited so long to get it. That said, it sounds fantastic and I’m glad to have it. The gatefold is extremely tight that was hard to even get the discs out, and the discs came with cheap paper sleeves that were full of static. A common theme I’m noticing these days. Give all of your discs a good wet clean when they arrive, as there will be bits of paper residue on them.