Dreampop heroes The Ocean Blue have completed recording their follow-up to 2013’s Ultramarine, and are now set to release their first new album in six years, Along with the announcement of the record’s completion, with a release to follow later this year, the band and have announced five concerts a handful of concerts across the US this summer—followed by a single concert held in Detroit this November.
“We’ve finished a new record, and can’t wait to share it with you in person, on vinyl, and on compact disc in 2019!”
The Hershey Pennsylvania band’s first show promoting the new album in scheduled for June 22nd in the neighboring town of Lancaster, PA, followed by an appearance at the Rough Trade store in Brooklyn, New York the next day, with dates in Seattle, Washington, and Portland, Oregon. A single concert is scheduled Minneapolis, Minnesota towards the end of July on the 26th at the Fineline, and the standalone Detroit gig on November 1st.
The Ocean Blue had released four major-label records between 1989 and 1996, most notably their first three albums on Sire Records, starting with their 1989 self-titled debut LP and it’s hit track “Between Something and Nothing.”
The band’s most famous track, “Ballerina Out of Control” was featured on 1991’s Cerulean, which is an album featured on our Definitive Dreaminess: 100 Essential Dream Pop Releases list compiled by Frank Deserto, Greg Fasolino, and Amber Crain:
“The Ocean Blue’s sophomore album is every bit as cozy as it is bright, offering their most deliciously atmospheric slices of pop perfection to date. Album centerpiece “Mercury” is the perfect hybrid of The Wild Swans’ springy jangle-pop and Cocteau Twins’ manic bliss, while single “Ballerina Out of Control,” tugs gingerly at the heartstrings, with a chorus that is impossible to resist.”
Last year The Ocean Blue released their most recent song “Therein Lies The Problem With My Life”. The track appears on Korda Records’ fourth label compilation Korda 4 Komp.
Watch the video below:
See The Ocean Blue full dates below. Ticket information is available at the band’s website.
The Ocean Blue tour dates
- June 22: Tellus 360, Lancaster, PA
- June 23: Rough Trade, Brooklyn, NY
- June 27: The Crocodile, Seattle, WA
- June 28: Holoscene, Portland, OR
- July 26: Fine Line, Minneapolis, MN
- Nov. 1: The Magic Bag, Detroit, MI