Oceanic

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Editorial reviews

Amazon.co.uk Review
Principally fêted for his film scores--of which IChariots Of Fire/I, IBlade Runner/I and I1492: Conquest Of Paradise/I are the most noted--Vangelis was composing music for wildlife documentaries as far back as 1972. So it's little surprise that IOceanic/I began life as part of a film project about whales before waxing into an electro-symphonic poem about all things deep, aquatic and Aegean-blue in hue. At face value, a concept album about the ocean from a Greek keyboard maestro, who once almost joined Yes, sounds as ominous as a tidal-wave warning. But IOceanic/I is not, to the chagrin of long-standing fans, topographical prog-rock twiddle but cleansing New-Age navel-gazing hydro-hypnosis--and pure Greece travel-brochure-perusing therapy to boot. With tracks as titularly enticing as "Dreams Of Surf", "Siren's Whisper" and "Fields Of Coral" and the whole album awash with pleasurable synth-strings, harps, pianos and blissed-out Clannad-style choristry, IOceanic/I gently beckons a finger and says "Come on in, the water's lovely". I--Kevin Maidment/I

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Customer reviews

review by: date: 2009-03-26 rating:
Exquisite New Age symphonic electronica
On first listen, I would have probably given this disc 3 or 4 stars, but on subsequent listens, I've discovered such a lot more in the music and have found it easily worthy of the full 5 stars. br / br /The opening track, "Bon Voyage", is one of my favourites on the album, with a sumptuous orchestral sound, reminiscent of the Hans Zimmer score to the film "Paperhouse" (particularly the scenes set in Devon towards the end of the film). br / br /Track 2, "Siren's Whispering" features some lovely voices and harp glissandi; my only criticism of this track is that it's perhaps a bit long, and some of the other sounds and rhythms on the track are almost a bit "Bontempi-organ" ish at times, to my ears. br / br /Track 3, "Dreams of Surf" opens with some gorgeous piano arpeggios, perhaps reminiscent of the Bach piece from the "Well Tempered Klavier" that Gounod used as the basis for his "Ave Maria"; this is joined later on in the track by a flute, giving a mood reminiscent of part of the second movement of Rachmaninov's Piano Concerto No. 2. To me, this track could have done with being a bit longer; it has some lovely themes and almost seems as though it's over too soon. br / br /Track 4, "Spanish Harbour"'s highlight is the gorgeous guitar, giving it the Spanish feel; it's more up-tempo than the previous tracks on the album, with a "chillout" type beat, whilst still being fairly laid back. There's echoes of some of Vangelis's earlier albums if you listen carefully though, e.g. there's a "screechy" sound at around 4 minutes 10 seconds in the track which could have come straight out of "Heaven and Hell", and some of the bass in the track is reminiscent of Albedo 0.39. br / br /Track 5, "Islands of the Orient", opens with quite a trancey/chillout riff, over which Vangelis adds piano, guitar and the occasional harp glissando. This then builds up into a big climax, with a rhythm that wouldn't sound out of place on Autechre's "Incunabula" album. br / br /There's then a lovely key change into track 6, "Fields of Coral", which has a rather Enya-esque sound to it, think the accompaniment to "Caribbean Blue", and "Lothlorien" from Enya's "Shepherd Moons" album. br / br /Track 7, "Aquatic Dance", has a sound which reminds me of part of Magnetic Fields by Jean-Michel Jarre (the chord progression and harmony with the voices), and perhaps "Aldebaran" by Enya (especially the harp glissandi), from "The Celts" album. A flowing track with a minor key. br / br /Track 8, "Memories of Blue", has a lovely laid back piano tune - this is quintessential Vangelis, and to me remninscent of some of the more reflective moments of his "Blade Runner" soundtrack. br / br /The final track on the album, "Song of the Seas", features a Japanese-sounding flute, and a Hawaiian-sounding guitar, and is another fairly laid back track. br / br /So quite an eclectic mix, with a lot more depth and interest than the vast majority of instrumental New Age albums, and definitely worthy of Vangelis's name.

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review by: date: 2008-09-08 rating:
Not as bad as some critics say
I find Oceanic as good as anything Vangelis has done. This is wonderful and adventureous music. I like how the music is not so clearly defined but flushes back and forth like ocean waves. There may not be grand melodic ideas here and some sounds are a bit midi-like but it all works together to paint a picture of a hidden water world. This could be a game soundtrack. This CD can take many listens.

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review by: date: 2007-04-25 rating:
At my age it could be a problem.....but it wasn't
A whole CD about water and oceans could be a problem for me, especially at my time of life the wrong side of 47. When I bought this I was in two minds of playing this at so close to bedtime with my Horlicks. As I have not got to the stage of buying incontinent underwear yet. I didn't fancy spending more time in the little boys room, then sitting and relaxing to it. My doubts were unfounded and a dry bed in the morning as well. It is truly a amazing weak bladder friendly experience. No squelchy embarrassingly around. No! br / br /The whole feel of this album is brilliant, hate to say it, but it's like being one with the ocean, man? No feeling of sea sickness either, it is in my top 3 of all time favourite Vangelis albums. br / br /Beware if you have an STD, like a live infestation, I have not tested this album against that. Don't be surprised if they don't all gather around ones ankles waiting for the tide to come in. br / br /Again Brilliant, no water wings needed as we are all dolphins with this album. br / br /

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review by: Gloating Father date: 2006-09-25 rating:
Drift Way With Vangelis' Oceanic
I bought this CD back in 1997 without knowing anything about it other than knowing a number of Vangelis' other works most notably 1492, Blade Runner and Chariots of Fire. I can quite honestly say I fell in love with this CD from the moment I first heard it. It is quite simply wonderful. An ideal distraction from the stresses of everyday life.


review by: date: 2005-04-06 rating:
Greek God watered down
The music of Vangelis is very important to me. Some of his albums (Opera Sauvage, Chariots of Fire, China) are are amongst my favourite of all time. I love his gift for melody, and his arrangements are original and definitive.pOceanic passed me by when it was first released. I only discovered it when I was browsing through these Amazon pages. My enthusiasm was triggered by some of the extremely positive reviews you see below. I immediately sent for the CD.pOceanic is not in the same league as Vangelis' finest. There are a couple of vintage tracks (Dreams of Surf and Memories of Blue) but overall its all rather bland and uneventful. Some tracks just go on too long (Sirens' Whispering, Fields of Coral), where a simple and limited melodic idea is just repeated over and over again - you wait for something to happen in vain. Overall it's a bit like one of those chill out albums - you know the ones where you gets 7 CDs for £9.99 and you think you're getting a real bargain, but when you wade through the 9 hours of music you realise that only 20 minutes were worth listening to.pI suppose that this is Vangelis' travel brochure for Greece, and like a brochure it is all gloss and no real substance. Rather than get the brochure get the real thing - a copy of Opera Sauvage perhaps!!

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