Culture
Review

Lost Ocean

Christianity Today February 1, 2007

Sounds like … alternative pop/rock bands such as Mae, Radiohead, Keane, Sleeping at Last, and Coldplay, fusing melodic piano-pop with creative soundscapes.

Lost Ocean

Lost Ocean

February 20, 2007

At a glance … though some of their lyricism is a bit obtuse, Lost Ocean is another example of a talented band on Credential Recordings with a knack for a relevant alt-pop sound and artful expressions of faith.

Track Listing

  1. Believe
  2. Still Life
  3. Just Glide
  4. You Are
  5. Mute
  6. Dreams
  7. Everything Is
  8. Trust
  9. Lights
  10. Vast

My respect for Credential Recordings (a subsidiary of EMI) grows with each release, as they consistently introduce us to new bands that have distinct sounds, rooted in alternative pop/rock styles current with today’s mainstream music scene. The same holds true for Lost Ocean, a young quartet from Bakersfield, California that has been described as Supertramp meets Mew. They’re actually closer to a band like Mae, combining the pop sensibilities of Keane with creative soundscapes reminiscent of Radiohead and Coldplay.

However you choose to peg them, their self-titled national debut offers a gorgeous fusion of piano pop with indie rock sensibilities. “Still Life” is as good an example as any, relying on a beautifully piano-driven sound, only to unleash some scorching guitar further in. Both “Dreams” and the lead single “Just Glide” manage to deftly balance a dancing piano riff with guitar ambience and pounding rhythms. And the closer “Vast” is as majestic as the best from Coldplay. This is a band that clearly understands what they are, and more importantly, stands out from others that sound alike through their skillful merits.

Lost Ocean also has the distinction of being the subtlest on Credential when it comes to spiritual lyricism—sometimes frustratingly so. “Dreams” is particularly abstract in expression, and the relational song “You Are” vaguely comforts a friend (a line like “You can make it, but you just can’t make it” is somehow relatable-yet-empty in its contradiction). But there are also songs that do point to the band’s faith. “Mute” relishes the quiet times when we shut out the world to listen for that still small voice, “Lights” touches on mankind’s inherent need for the divine, and “Vast” expresses humble awe over God’s greatness (“You are the first and last, and I can’t compare to that”).

For Lost Ocean, this album represents a terrific start to a hopefully distinguished career. For Credential, it’s par for the course, continuing to offer artists who are artful in expressing their Christianity.

Copyright © Christian Music Today. Click for reprint information.

Our Latest

News

Died: John Huffman, Pastor Who Told Richard Nixon to Confess

The Presbyterian minister and CT board member committed to serve the Lord and “let the chips fall where they may.”

The Pastor Who Rescues People from Japan’s ‘Suicide Cliff’

Yoichi Fujiyabu has spent three decades sharing God’s love to people who want to end their lives.

An Ode to the Long Season

Why fans love a game designed to break their hearts.

Is This Heaven? No, It’s Banana Ball

What baseball’s most amusing team gets right about joy in sports.

News

Black Clergy and Christians Grapple with Charlie Kirk’s Legacy

Many say the activist’s inflammatory statements on race should inform how we remember his life.

News

A Sudden Death: Voddie Baucham, Who Warned the Church of Fault Lines

Known for confronting critical theory, moral relativism, and secular ideologies, Baucham died a month into leading a new seminary in Florida.

Why Many Black Christians Reject the Evangelical and Mainline Labels

The history of a prominent church pastored by MLK in Alabama shows the reason African Americans often don’t embrace either term.

News

Pastor Abducted in Nigeria Amid Escalating Kidnapping Crisis

Armed gang continues to hold him after family paid the ransom.

Apple PodcastsDown ArrowDown ArrowDown Arrowarrow_left_altLeft ArrowLeft ArrowRight ArrowRight ArrowRight Arrowarrow_up_altUp ArrowUp ArrowAvailable at Amazoncaret-downCloseCloseEmailEmailExpandExpandExternalExternalFacebookfacebook-squareGiftGiftGooglegoogleGoogle KeephamburgerInstagraminstagram-squareLinkLinklinkedin-squareListenListenListenChristianity TodayCT Creative Studio Logologo_orgMegaphoneMenuMenupausePinterestPlayPlayPocketPodcastRSSRSSSaveSaveSaveSearchSearchsearchSpotifyStitcherTelegramTable of ContentsTable of Contentstwitter-squareWhatsAppXYouTubeYouTube