The Black Map: #4 Oceans Ate Alaska from Birmingham!

Part #4 of our Metal journey around The Black Map of UK cities takes us from Sunderland to the Midlands. The city of Birmingham has been home to genre crossing Tech-Metallers Oceans Ate Alaska. Progressive Metalcore is what some have described them as but we prefer the description afforded to them by their label, Fearless Records – “Fusing unpredictable polyrhythms and a sporadic partnering of melodic and dissonant passages” – which is as accurate a description of Tech-Metal as you’re going to find. Formed at Birmingham University and then releasing debut single “Clocks” in 2010, the band have come a long way since, releasing two EPs before signing for Fearless Records for their full length debut “Lost Isles” in 2015. Replacing frontman James Harrison with Jake Noakes late in 2016 and then dropping the impressive “Hikari” last summer, the band have gone from strength to strength. Tours in the US alongside the likes of Volumes and participation in the Vans Warped Tour in 2016 have been some of their career highlights so far. Oceans Ate Alaska’s appearance on Fearless Records annual Punk Goes Pop release with a cover of Beyonce‘s “Drunk In Love” raised more than a few eyebrows, but it’s such an impressive version that it leaves the original in the dust. Maybe you have heard the bands version compared to Palisades cover of the same song in our Vs Tuesday series last year. You can catch Oceans Ate Alaska in on a headlining UK run this summer with Kingdom of Giants and Shields in July.

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