We Lost The Sea

An Australian post-metal ensemble known as We Lost the Sea emerged in 2007, crafting expansive compositions that merge heavy, sludge-laden guitar work with building climaxes evoking the sweeping styles of film-oriented post-rock acts. The core of their broad membership consists of guitarists Mark Owen, Brendan Warner, and Matt Harvey, alongside bassist Kieran Elliot, drummer Nathanial D'Ugo, and keyboardist Mat Kelly. Bradley Garnam, Grant Warner, and vocalist Chris Torpy formed part of the initial roster and participated in creating the band's first album, Crimea. This self-issued recording from 2010 received engineering and mixing from Magnus Lindberg of Cult of Luna. Multiple well-received performances across Australia followed, among them joint appearances alongside the American outfit Rosetta, leading to a 2012 contract with Bird's Robe Records. December of that year saw the issue of their sophomore effort, The Quietest Place on Earth, via the same imprint; this release broadened their sonic palette considerably through the addition of piano elements and heightened shifts in intensity. In March 2013, tragedy befell the group when 24-year-old Chris Torpy took his own life, prompting a sharp reduction in activity limited to merely two live shows that year. The ensemble recovered their direction in 2014 and commenced development of what would become their most far-reaching work to date. Issued in July 2015 through a joint effort involving Bird's Robe, Art as Catharsis, and Translation Loss, Departure Songs constituted an ambitious two-record set incorporating vocal contributions from a girls' high-school choir together with cello and trumpet orchestrations, with each track drawing from particular accounts of admirable yet unsuccessful historical occurrences, including the Challenger mission. Concerts alongside the Japanese orchestral post-rock ensemble Mono ensued after the album's launch.