John Butler
Ocean

LA RECENSIONE

Nature has enormous power. We seldom pause to reflect on how this planet survives on its own: it's like a huge human body breathing, with a vast array of water resources flowing through it. It is a potent essence that can easily overwhelm us humans.

And perhaps, on reflection, the ocean is the greatest of these forces, as it encapsulates them all. In it, calm and storm coexist, peace and suffering, poetry and horror. The ocean manages to reflect many emotions. It is a harrowing image that confronts you with your most hidden self, lays you bare, makes you feel truly small.

The first time I listened to "Ocean", I thought the name wasn't very fitting for such a track, but I was wrong. In light of these considerations, John Butler couldn't have given a better title to this short masterpiece. One of the most intense, most significant pieces I have ever encountered; an experience that delivers exactly these great emotions, sometimes delicate, sometimes simply traumatic.

When we fail to understand what surrounds us, all we can do is contemplate it, with humility and emotion.

Turn up the volume, please.

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