Ocean Alley formed in 2011 after meeting at school and on the beaches of their hometown in Sydney, and are now creating an original fusion of reggae and psych rock. Together Baden Donegal (vocals), Angus Goodwin (guitar), Lach Galbraith (keyboards/vocals), Mitch Galbraith (guitar), Nic Blom (bass) and Tom O’Brien (drums) are pushing the boundaries of genre and it’s definitely paying off.
Their dream-funk sound comes from psych gods Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin and Jimi Hendrix, to reggae legends Bob Marley, Dennis Brown and Kingfisha. Managing to intertwine the two contrasting genres with such ease and resulting in smooth, groovy bops, Ocean Alley have set themselves apart from anyone else in the Sydney surf scene.
They independently released their debut EP Yellow Mellow in September 2013. They consequently toured this 6-song release across Australia five times before the release of their second EP In Purple two years later. Both of these releases racked them up an avid fanbase further afield as they hit the roads of New Zealand, while American and European fans begged for shows. After the release of their debut full length release Lost Tropics in 2016, they broadened their tour schedules and visited the UK and Europe for the first time. After establishing themselves as diverse artists who know how to hold an audience with every hook, movement chanting chorus, Ocean Alley now very rarely fail to sell out their enigmatic shows.
Their most recent album Chiaroscuro (referring to the high contrast effect in art) was released in March. The title gives the perfect description of the album’s interchangeable tone which, like the Italian technique, shows depth of their art. The Pier noted “Musically, Ocean Alley has created a winning formula: fiery, heartfelt vocals, riveting guitar fills and solos, reggae-inspired organs, and a top-class rhythm section. […] We could be watching the development of one of the next major reggae rock bands around.” It debuted at number 15 on the ARIA Chart and prestigious Australian radio station triple j listed it as their Feature Album, referring to it as a “sun drenched, genre bending delight.” Lead single ‘Confidence’ has already amassed over 4 million Spotify plays, marking it as one of their most popular tracks on the streaming site where they also have over 54.5K monthly listeners.
With this rate of success, you won’t want to miss out on their upcoming UK tour dates this September. Their show at London Garage may have already sold out but you can join the waiting list here, and tickets for Manchester Deaf Institute are still available here.
Ocean Alley tickets available here!
Website – oceanalley.com.au
Facebook – /oceanalleyband
Twitter – @oceanalleyau