Hailing from Hershey, Pennsylvania, the Ocean Blue first assembled in 1986 around singer and guitarist David Schelzel, keyboardist Steve Lau, bassist Bobby Mittan, and interim drummer Scott Stouffer. The four friends, acquainted since junior high, united over a mutual admiration for Echo & the Bunnymen, U2, the Smiths, and R.E.M. While still enrolled in school, they produced early demos that secured spots on the local Lancaster Christian radio station WJTL’s Preliminary Hearing compilation. After drummer Rob Minnig joined the lineup, the group signed with Sire Records and, shortly after receiving their diplomas, delivered their self-titled 1989 debut, The Ocean Blue. Powered by the singles “Between Something and Nothing” and “Drifting, Falling,” the record gained traction on alternative and college radio while climbing onto the Billboard 200.
Their second album, Cerulean, arrived in 1991 and showcased a more refined version of their lush dream pop approach, highlighted by the tracks “Ballerina Out of Control” and “Mercury.” Two years later, Beneath the Rhythm and Sound appeared, its video for “Sublime” becoming a regular feature on MTV. The band concluded its Sire tenure with the EP Peace and Light, which also marked Lau’s final contribution before he departed to establish his own Kinetic imprint.
Guitarist and keyboardist Oed Ronne joined in time for the 1996 Mercury release See the Ocean Blue, steering the sound toward a fuller ’60s guitar-pop direction. Subsequent label consolidations stalled momentum, delaying the next project until 1999, when Davy Jones’ Locker surfaced on the band’s own Ocean Blue imprint; March Records reissued the album in 2001. Although employment and family commitments reduced the pace of activity, the members kept performing and writing. In 2004 they issued the six-song EP Waterworks, introducing drummer Peter Anderson, who had succeeded Minnig. Serious studio work resumed around 2010, culminating in the long-awaited full-length Ultramarine in 2013. Their seventh album, Kings and Queens/Knaves and Thieves, followed in 2019.
