Featuring former members and the primary writing core of Philadelphia hardcore mainstays All Else Failed, HOLD DOWN THE OCEAN is a powerhouse of a band. Channeling the energy and emotional intensity of their previous work into something wholly different, these scene veterans have crafted a beautiful, heavy, emotive post-hardcore record, so sweeping and epic in scope that it is at times reminiscent of early ’00s era post-rock. Head2Wall Records is about to release “Sidereal Month” EP, the digital-only follow up to Hold Down The Ocean’s 2018 debut LP, and today we’re stoked to give you their new track called The Gravity Of Things, along with the band’s special commentary below!
“‘The Gravity Of Things‘ is the intro to the ‘story’ of Sidereal Month” said guitarist/vocalist Patrick Shannon.
“The project was originally some odds and ends type songs that just developed into something we were super passionate about. There is an underlying theme to the songs, but it developed subconsciously, when I found that much of what I was writing was maybe rooted in deeper things that I wasn’t even really aware of. “Gravity” for example, is really about my fear of flying, but when I dug deeper, it was like, ‘ok is being scared of flying really a metaphor for other issues in my life?’ Then a “story” just grew out of that.”
“Sidereal Month” will be released exclusively on Hold Down The Ocean’s Bandcamp page (www.holddowntheocean.com) and streaming services this Friday, July 3rd, with a physical release to follow in the Fall, in conjunction with the “Sidereal Year” LP.
As a preface, we wrote this Press Release about a month ago, when the quarantine was still the most pressing thing on everyone’s mind. Clearly, a lot more has transpired since then. I wanted to mention that fact, so the following does not read as though it is blissfully ignorant of everything else happening in our country and around the world, and I want to state unequivocally that Hold Down The Ocean stands with and supports the plight of the protestors and that Black Lives Matter.
πΌππππππ ππ ππ ππππ‘πππ ππ π πππππππ’ππ‘ π‘βπππ. πππ ππ π‘βπ ππππβπ‘ π πππ‘π ππ ππ‘, βππ€ππ£ππ, ππ ππ ππππππ‘π’πππ‘π¦ π‘π ππππ π ππ π πππβπ πππππ‘ππππ βππ π€ππ‘β π‘βπ π€ππππ, πππ πππβπ πππππ ππ ππ‘. πβππ π‘βππππ ππππ π‘π π π πππππβπππ βπππ‘, ππ‘βπ π πβππππ π‘π π‘πππ π πππππ‘β πππ π‘βπππ ππππ’π‘ π€βππ‘ ππ£πππ¦π‘βπππ πππππ , πππ π€βππ‘ πππ ππππ.
For us, a huge part of our lives is music, and the art of creating it and putting it out into the world. Sometimes itβs a big record that you tour on and that gets a bunch of exposure. Other times it might be a voice memo that someone adds a track to and it never goes too far. The process feels the same, though. The process is the beauty, and the act of putting music together with friends (beyond friends, actually- lifelong brothers) and putting it out into the world, speaking for myself, that is entirely what I live for. To add our collective voice and our collective vision to the chorus of the worldβs musical soul is something that is a necessity for us, and being given the opportunity and the audience to do that is never something we never take for granted.
When the world went on lockdown, Hold Down The Ocean was about 75% through the recording process for 2 releases that were intended to come out around the same time, and that had intertwined themes. βSidereal Monthβ is an EP of a few odds and ends type songs that spoke to us outside of our wheelhouse, and upon realizing that lyrically, a subconscious narrative had emerged, became a story unto itself. βConcept Albumβ is weird and not really applicable but for lack of a better term, it is a βconceptβ EP.
βππππππππ ππππβ ππ π‘βπ ππ’ππ πππππ‘β πππ’ππ‘ππππππ‘, πππ π€βπππ ππ‘ ππππ πππ‘ ππππππ€ πππ¦ π πππ‘ ππ ππππππ π π‘πππ¦ππππ, π‘βπ ππππ‘πππππ ππππππ‘πππ ππ πππβ π πππ ππ ππ ππππ π€ππ‘β π‘βπ πΈπ, π‘π π‘βπ πππππ‘ π€βπππ π‘βπππ ππ π πππβππ€ ππ π’πππππππππ πππππππ‘πππ πππ‘π€πππ π‘βπ π‘π€π.
The bad news is that our studio of choice being closed down put everything on an indefinite hold. The good news is that the EP, which was always intended to drop a little bit before the LP, was just about 100% done. One properly distanced vocal session and a mix down via gmail later, and βSiderealMonthβ is complete.
SO, since there is no real timeline on when we will be able to finish the LP, and given that we have this impossible drive to put our music into the world, and with the blessing of our partners at Head2Wall Records, we are going to call an audible. βSidereal Monthβ will be released on Friday, July 3rd exclusively on our bandcamp pages and digital streaming services. When life resumes, we will finish βSidereal Yearβ for a proper vinyl release on H2W, and a combination CD release of the LP and the EP together will drop simultaneously. The target for that is the Fall, but as is the case with everything, that remains to be seen.
In the meantime, we are thrilled to be able to continue to put our art into the world, even if it isnβt quite the way we drew it up. We hope you like it, we hope it brings you some joy, and we hope you all stay safe, both physically and mentally, through the duration of these challenging days.
Please consider donating to IDIOTEQ to keep this magazine going
π With no-ads policy and mission to give independent artists space they deserve, IDIOTEQ is a place to get inspired, learn more about lesser known artists and their perspective. Reporting on DIY music is our priority.
π―π πΎπΊππΎ πΌπππππ½πΎπ π½πππΊππππ ππ ππΎπ π ππππ πΌπππΎππππ πππ πΌππππ πΊππ½ ππΎπΎπ ππππ πππππΎπΌπ πΊπ πππΎ
DONATE via PayPal ππ SUPPORT via Patreon
100% of the funds collected go toward maintaining and improving this magazine. Every contribution, however big or small, is super valuable.
