DESERTED SYMPHONY

WHYOCEANS has been the former Portuguese output of Macao's premiere post-rock since 2005, almost as long as the territory has been transferred back to China. The band has been quite a sensation with its live shows that incorporate cool visuals with its mix of alternative rock, psychedelia and soundtrack-like musical themes. The band's appeal has been popular not only on mainland China but in Taiwan and has been a major player in the Midi Music Festival and Spring Scream Music Festival. On top of that the band has received airplay on various radio stations around the world from Canada to Poland, France and Germany as well as South Korea.

For a near two decade existence, WHYOCEANS is only now releasing its third album DESERTED SYMPHONY in 2023 six years after its last album "Inmost Dens Of Emilie" emerged in 2017. The album continues down the path of Mogwai influenced post-rock with heavy doses of alternative rock and stellar light and fluffy piano runs which makes it feel like a 90s alt rock band is often jamming with a lounge performer! The album features seven tracks at about 42 minutes so unlike a lot of modern post-rock doesn't take the liberty of eating up every possible second of a modern CDs capability but then again it doesn't look like a CD has been released for this third album.

In many ways DESERTED SYMPHONY is business as usual with the band's ability to meld in traditional Chinese folk music that sounds like a dramatic operatic interlude with sung passages that evoke sniffs of Sigur Ros without the ethereal vocals. The musical procession generally relies on piano melodies to establish followed by a slow build up of guitar parts that culminate in heavy power chord rich crescendoes. The band relies on the established post-rock playbook which for a place like China where all of this is fairly new may be quite satisfying.

For my ears though i find WHYOCEANS to be rather run of the mill offering nothing new to the bloated world of post-rock nor does it excel at delivering a stereotypical album's run very well either. Granted this is a pleasant album that is deserving of a fanbase for those who love the Mogawai model of crafting post-rock but for my personal tastes it's not exactly my favorite stylistic approach. There are no jarring dissonant moments such as on a Godspeed! You Black Emperor or no substantial mood shifts. It's pretty much a straight forward type of album that sounds dated by at least 20 years. Recommended for those who love beautiful piano based classical music in their post-rock. For me it's too much a one-trick pony.