Ahead of the release of their new album tomorrow, Australian Musician’s Greg Phillips catches up with Alex and Nadav of Melbourne-based exotic guitar duo OPAL OCEAN to discuss the creation of their new recording The Hadal Zone and the gear they used to make it
On October 16 Melbourne-based exotic guitar duo Opal Ocean release their second full length recording, The Hadal Zone. Combining new influences with the prog rock and flamenco flavours that have always been ingrained in their souls, with The Hadal Zone Nadav and Alex take it up a notch and deliver a world class album, one which should increase their already loyal global audience. The actual Hadal Zone, also known as the hadopelagic zone, is the deepest region of the ocean lying within oceanic trenches. The album’s concept is a metaphor for their relentless efforts to explore the limits of the classical guitar.
In the spirit of the daring of the album, one of the biggest highlights off the new album is the featuring of Jordan Rudess from the critically acclaimed progressive rock group Dream Theater, on their tribute track Polycephaly. Rudess performed a range of textures and classic Keyboard shred-solos throughout the seven and a half minute long piece. Along with a successful crowdfunding campaign raising over $20,000, Opal Ocean was also awarded the inaugural Yamaha “Make Waves Grant” grant aimed to support artists with new and ambitious music. This enabled the duo to record at the infamous Sing Sing Studios (Melbourne) with head engineer Terry Hart at the reins. Hart previously recorded the bands earlier releases: Mexicana and Lost Fables and was a perfect fit for this new record.