To celebrate their 10^th anniversary, United Kingdom’s finest Oceansize, released a new EP called Home and Mirror a few months ago, where they tried to do things a little different (see review as well). To please their true fan base, they also released a brand new 3 DVD and 4 CD box for this special occasion.

 

Oceansize played 3 gigs at the Roadhouse in Manchester, where they played their 3 full-length albums Effloresce, Everyone Into Position and their latest effort Frames entirely live. Filmed by 5 cameras at the same time, this DVD box shows Oceansize at its absolute best. I’m glad I’ve witnessed the band live myself as well, in a short but stunning performance as support act for 65daysofstatic, and I can say for everyone who’ve seen them live; it’s worth every single penny. This DVD box definitely shows the bands capabilities. The venue itself is not too big which really adds something to the atmosphere of the DVD and the same atmosphere you’ll catch when you see these guys live. Besides the small venue, the light technician really did a good job as well, switching mostly between atmospheric blue and red lights.

 

And music wise, all 3 DVDs are really exceptional. Oceansize is known for their switch between styles over the passed ten years and over these 5 hours or so of DVD material, you’ll witness their switch from more post-hardcore/Tool influenced material to ambient, post-rock and progressive rock (think Porcupine Tree and Ulver) on a Meshuggah timing level. To keep things a little interesting, Oceansize also invited members from Amplifier and Kong to peform a track on the first DVD. Something they could have done a bit more often in my opinion. I’m not that much a DVD person myself so I must admit not watching all the material without doing something else as well. 3 DVD’s is a long sit but definitely worth it for the die hards. Luckily, the DVD box comes with 4 audio cd’s as well including the whole performance and all the encores on a separate fourth cd. The only down side is that this DVD box has absolutely no special features or whatsoever. It would have been nice to see at least some interviews or backstage material, but Oceansize decided to let the music do the talking and I actually can’t blame them for that. Besides that, this DVD-box is excellent enter level material for the starters as it gives both a good impression on their studio albums as well as their live performances. Hope to see them soon again!