As Flaming Wrekage’s brutal fourth album tickles your earholes, you know this is something special. …
They say you should walk a mile in someone’s shoes to truly understand them, and you can now step into your own slice of the Oddworld universe with Ocean Grove today officially launching the ODDWORLD 3000, aka the larger-than-life sneaker literally come to life from the cover of their 2022 full-length album Up In The Air Forever.
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With the shoe itself physically and metaphorically designed to act as a vessel for personal freedom and unbridled creativity, aka the pulsing force behind Ocean Grove‘s artistic existence, the launch of the limited edition ODDWORLD 3000 this week is the perfect final chapter for the Up In The Air Forever journey, with the vegan and water-resistant footwear offering equally a stylish, ethical and painstakingly crafted addition for music lovers, collectors and fashion-fans alike. Strictly limited to 400 pairs worldwide, these once-in-a-lifetime shoes will never be reproduced.
“We’re so psyched for the shoe of the Oddworld, the one that dominates the front cover of Up In The Air Forever to finally be manifest in all its glory as the ODDWORLD 3000™,” the band shares of the long-awaited launch of their custom footwear. “Our dream was to create a universal yet tangible icon, giving life to the idea that you could possess the very thing that appears in the artwork and the Oddworld.”
With their third full length album overflowing with nostalgic stylistic nods, devoted evolution and trademark Oddworld flavours, Up In The Air Forever gained fan and critical acclaim upon its release last April, with Kerrang! declaring it to be “the best showcase of Ocean Grove’s quirks to date, and they’ve got all the right to be bullish about it when playing it feels so, so good“. But while the 10 tracks on the album certainly declare the ever-growing innovation and excitement that coats the Ocean Grove MO, a key focal point for the album stems from the giant ODDWORLD 3000 shoe gracing the cover artwork – an intentional fact to drive home Up In The Air Forever‘s underlying manifesto.
“When Up In The Air Forever dropped back in April 2022, we mentioned that the shoe represents everything that is Ocean Grove,” the band continues … “It’s a vessel for personal freedom, unbridled creativity and bucking societal tropes. It’s for PMA (Positive Mental Attitude), fierce individualism and hope. It’s anti-establishment, anti-mundane and anti-mediocre. If the shoe fits, wear it.”
“We have been very mindful to test run and ensure these sneakers meet every standard of the Oddworld over the past year. The ODDWORLD 3000’s have been worn by all members of OG and performed in every OG live appearance since the album’s release. Never have we felt so comfortable and airborne on stage – they are the only shoes we ever perform in.”
“Now, when Junkies rock the ODDWORLD 3000’s to any Ocean Grove event, they will gain guaranteed front-of-line privileges. How’s that for power? Come step beyond the norm and into the Oddworld.”
Armed with Up In The Air Forever, Ocean Grove have been recently tearing up stages and airwaves with more ferocity than ever before. Fusing 90s alternative rock with grunge, punk, Brit Pop and sprinklings of hook-ready pop, Up In The Air Forever firmly showcased the diversity and rattling technicality underpinning the Ocean Grove sonic world, while also nodding at times to their much heavier roots. In 2022 alone, the trio performed at Unify Forever, Monolith Festival and Good Things Festival, with headline appearances and a special Christmas show also solidifying a mammoth 12 months in OG land. And while Aussie fans may have to wait until April to catch Ocean Grove back in action on stages in 2023, the group recently joined beloved Brit rockers Don Broco and American post-hardcore icons Sleeping With Sirens on the road in Europe – and there’s guaranteed to be a whole lot more Ocean Grove goodness still to come as 2023 unfolds.
Order here.
