Crossfaith + Ocean Grove kick-off EU tour in Madrid with a no-holds barred performance
It’d been a while since I’d cover anything music related, but figured that if I’d be making a comeback, it’d better be over something memorable. Fortunately, Crossfaith announced a EU tour and decided to bring along some old friends: Ocean Grove; with the tour having started on February 7th at Sala Caracol, in Madrid. With an objective set in mind, things are looking good from this point of view!
Between flights, interview bookings and an inherent sense of adventure, by the end of the afternoon, I found myself hanging out with Dale Tanner, vocalist for Ocean Grove, as we were sipping on an expresso at a nearby coffee place, talking about all things coming for the Aussie band.
It’s not the first time Ocean Grove have toured with Crossfaith, having run around Japan back in 2018:
“That tour was really great, we got to play in front of their Japanese fans, which was a really unique experience as a Westerner. Us being a band from Australia, we’re so used to touring with bands that speak English and that perform to English speaking audiences. When you come to Europe, it’s expected that at least a fan base speak somewhat English.
But being in Japan and seeing a Japanese band performing to a crowd of Japanese people, it was the first time in our career seeing this and it was something very, very special and unique. Those four shows, they were all really big and really great. For our first time there, it couldn’t have been any better. We couldn’t have had a better band, sort of take us under their wing. With the Japanese culture and the country in general, we loved going there. We became good friends with Crossfaith on that tour, so here we are doing another one on a different continent.”
Ocean Grove saw their line-up shake-up, as guitarist Jimmy Hall and vocalist Luke Holmes leave the band to pursue other projects, but it’s been said in the past that OG isn’t quite a band and more a collective…
“We’re still friends, absolutely! Luke was even involved in some of the writing of this new album, so it’s really nice and it’s still very much on those terms. They still have a connection to the band, but unable to play live with us anymore. They have new interests and a new career but still want to be involved behind the scenes, so having Luke sort of have his influence on a few of the songs on the album, and writes bits and pieces here and there meant we could keep that relationship going. We’ve been friends since we were about 12 and is still one of my best friends; so we’ve know each other for a long time before the band started and we’ll remain friends after so.”
Dale had moved on to become the vocalist of OG, while they opened their arms to their new bassist, Twiggy Hunter:
“He’s been great! Honestly, having Twiggy on board has been a great addition! He’s a great songwriter and he can also sing, which really helps me because I was very excited knowing that I’d had someone be able to back me up. And he has a very good work ethic, as well as his general character, it really fits in with the Ocean Grove, sort of aura. The way he dresses and the way he sort of behaves, everything was very fitting. He’s a better base player than me anyways, so I’m kind of happy that he stepped up into my shoes. And I’ve now been able to take on the lead vocal role, which I’m really enjoying myself. It’s feeling really natural and at home and I love it.”
It’s at this point of the conversation that we get into the first few details of the bands new album, titled Flip Phone Fantasy, to be released in March. Even though other details have been scarce, we’ve been able to hear a glimpse of things to come for the past year, with singles “Ask For The Anthem”, “JUNKIE$”, “SUNNY” and, from today, “Neo”, a video that puts Twiggy singing and Dale back on bass; have given us an idea of what to expect.
Everything else is still in tight-lipped secret, but sounds like we should be getting ready for an interesting ride:
“I think it’s a one of its kind, that no album that I can think of has really been able to achieve what we’ve achieved with it. I don’t mean this necessarily in terms of any particular sound, I’m not claiming that we’ve created a new sound that’s never been done before. But I think it’s more so in the fact that we’ve been able to create an album that has such diversity and that’s what makes it unique. I think the fact we’ve been able to incorporate some of our heaviest songs today with some very light kind of ballads, creates a roller-coaster of emotions and sounds.
If anything, we’ve mastered what we tried to do with the ‘The Rhapsody Tapes’ on this album, and I think the listener will really see that when they hear this new record. I think we had an idea and a dream when it came to ‘The Rhapsody Tapes’, and we almost got there, and I believe we’ve truly achieved it with ‘Flip Phone Fantasy’, because it’s as diverse, if not more diverse, and it feels more mature. It’s the best work that we’ve done today, so…”
It’s an absolute pleasure talking to Dale about Ocean Grove, a band that is considered by many in the Australian scene as local heroes, saw them rise to the top in 2017 when The Rhapsody Tapes was listed in several Best of Year lists, while being heavily played, be it by request or otherwise, on their national radio Triple J.
Outside Sala Caracol is a small line of fans waiting for the doors to open, while some had already had the chance to hang out with what seems their favourite band, through a VIP Meet & Greet opportunity.
Somewhere outside, I meet Lucia, who’s been a fan for five years already, when she found Crossfaith after hearing the likes of One Ok Rock and “has since fell in love with them”. She explained “a lot of things have happened to me in life, so Crossfaith have been made things better. I was super nervous at the meet & greet, but it was so awesome having the chance to hang out with them and tell Tatsuya (Amano) that he is my favourite drummer. I really I see them again some time soon!”.
After a long afternoon hanging out with fans and doing a soundcheck, vocalist Kenta Koie and bassist Hiroki Ikegawa join me in a lounge to talk about the their Synchronicity EU Tour in Madrid. The last time Crossfaith was in Madrid, it was at the Spanish’s capital edition of the Download Festival back in 2018. Having just dropped their new single “Endorphin”, does this mean we’re getting a new album?
Kenta: “It’s not going to be an album, but it’s going to be an EP and it should have around five tracks. We’ll release a new song next month.”
However, an official release date and title will still have to remain a secret…
In the meantime they’ll be presenting “Endorphin” live for the second time, with the Spanish audience having the chance to be of the first in the west to hear the performance:
Kenta: “It’s very exciting to be playing it! Even at the rehearsal, everyone’s so excited! It’s our first headlining show in Spain and it’s sold out in this legendary venue so we’re super excited”
Crossfaith have the particularity that they’ve resonated with audiences in the west, alongside bands like Coldrain and Crystal Lake, but why?
Kenta: “Firstly, those two bands are really good musicians. And two, they have an amazing stage presence. Some bands don’t aim to play like Western bands. They love them, but they sing in Japanese, so it’s bands like the ones mentioned and us, we really focus on the Western market.”
Hiroki: “There’s lots of metal bands in Japan, that play in the clubs, like local venues. But Crystal Lake and Coldrain, they got the chance to play with bands from outside of Japan. I think was that opportunity that woke them up to want to go outside of Japan and I think that also happened to us as well.”
After the quick interview I’m treated to watching Ocean Grove soundcheck, hearing broken-down, pseudo instrumental versions of “Stratosphere Love” and “JUNKIE$”, while technicians get everything set for the big night.
Shortly after 7pm, doors open to the crowd that has been building outside for the past few hours. While black seems to be the predominant outfit colour, there is a mix between traditional metal fans and young ones, influenced by Japanese pop-culture and fashion, including a little visual-kei.
I end up meeting two other fans, Yami and Valentina, two girls who also collaborate with the Crossfaith Germany page on Instagram, after meeting the person responsible for the page at few shows in that country.
Their passion started when Yami was introduced to the bands music via a friend sometime in 2013 or 2014, with the songs “Scarlet” and “Eclipse”. Yami then showed the band to Valentina and both started to grow an interest in the band, having travelled to the UK and Germany to see the band, as well as attend the Meet & Greet events.
Yami believes that “during their shows, they always give their best, with a lot of positive and powerful energy”, while Valentina adds “they’re the kind of people who actually care about their fans and it’s something that makes you want to support them in whatever they do!”
Their fandom is not only showed on a personal level, but also through a creative outlet, with Yami gifting drawings to band members (see below) and having her work recognised on the bands official social media.
As the time passes, there’s a certain electricity in the air. By 8:15pm, nearly without warning, Ocean Grove opened what sounds like a tour of a lifetime, ad they introduce themselves for the first time to Spain. Modern classics like “Intimate Alien”, “Thunderdome” and a groovy “Slow Soap Soak” blend with newer songs, such as “SUNNY” and “Ask For The Anthem” with a certain naturality. Yet there is a small treat for this first night on tour, as we get the chance to hear a new song, titled “Thousand Golden People”, which has yet to have a studio version be unveiled, giving us yet another glimpse to what Flip Phone Fantasy might be all about.
Even as they play part of their set in the dark, it does add a certain mysterious mood to their show, as the live quartet take on their distinct personalities and amplify them on stage, mostly as we see Dale jumping around, Twiggy appropriately showing off his tongue while wearing a KISS t-shirt, Sam banging on the drums and Matt chilling out on the guitar.
The crowd seems genuinely excited to rock out to what to is many an unknown band, but Ocean Grove have certainly made more than a handful of new fans as from tonight.
Just a couple minutes after 9pm, Crossfaith’s mixtape goes live, with a 15 minute countdown that includes a few handpicked songs, this until the band make their way on stage and rip everything off with “Xeno” and then “Monolith”. As expected, once you realise what is happening, it hits you like a freight train, with the crowd positively reacting to every moment.
Naturally, as we’re seeing Jägermeister being passed around from one band member to the other, this could only mean that “Jägerbomb” was set to destroy, in amazing fashion.
Nonetheless, fans seem to have embraced “Endorphin” very well, by singing the words out loud, despite it only being released for a few days, making it an absolute success; while their homage to The Prodigy by performing their own version of “Omen” makes us wonder what a Crossfaith cover album might sound like!
All in all, a Crossfaith gig is a fairly intense experience, as their larger than life, ruthless aggression stage personas bring the heat in ways very few bands are able, much to everyone’s delight. It is a striking contrast from the two, very chill, men that I interviewed earlier, making it an incredible start to a month-long EU tour.
After the gig, I had the chance to hang with Ocean Grove, meeting Twiggy, Matt and Sam in person for the first time, watching while other Spanish fans approached to meet them. They’re as candid as your neighbour next door, happily available for all the fun photo opportunities with everyone who is curious enough to ask.
At one point, the name Donny Kershaw gets thrown around (Donny is a fictional character in the Ocean Grove’s video universe, seen mostly during The Rhapsody Tapes era), but I’m told there might be a possibility that he’s dead… Poor Donny!
A couple of hours pass and the band, while selling some merch, are also helping the crew taking everything down and putting it away, looking extremely proud over tonight’s performance, in the hope of a return soon enough this side of the world.
As for me, I went straight to the airport with a bag full of memories from this epic night!
Thanks to Ocean Grove, Crossfaith, tour manager Maax and KINDA Agency for the opportunity.