A Beautiful Goodbye

Frank Hammersland gained notoriety in the early 1990's as the front man of the Pogo Pops and Popium; both of which played crucial roles in the inception of the “Bergen Wave” of music. He would later go on to produce solo work, and developed a relationship with the backing band The Love Connections which continued into this album.

Beautiful is the first word that comes to mind when thinking of The Ocean Sleeps Alone Tonight. The entire album is saturated in Hammersland’s characteristic stylized pop rock sound. The opening track, “The Wheel Inside the Wheel” serves as our introduction, and it does nothing but succeed. It leads in with the gentle, lofi-esque synth sounds that will characterize most of the album, with a soft, steady beat and cascading guitar accents. Hammersland’s vocals are the icing on the cake; gentle, melodic, and laced with a deep sense of melancholy.

There’s not a single track on this album that I would not gladly listen to, but my personal favorite is “Shimmer from the Lighthouse”. It stands as a juxtaposition to tracks like “Some Kind of Misunderstanding” with its lingering sorrow, and “The Drive to Paris” with its nostalgic, bordering-on-joyful reflection. “Shimmer from the Lighthouse” is a sad song, on paper, about the afterlife and moving on. In its moody synths and Hammersland’s ever-delightful vocals, however, melancholy and fear melt away into a ballad about hope for an unknown future.

The Ocean Sleeps Alone Tonight is Hammersland’s fourth solo album, and it will unfortunately be his last. During the album’s production, Hammersland was diagnosed with cancer, an ailment that would take him on January 20th, 2023. Hammersland completed work on the album in palliative care, and had plans to record the album’s final vocals from a hospital bed. With vocals recorded for 8 out of 10 songs, however, his health took a turn for the worse. He succumbed to his illness a week later. The final vocals were performed by Marte Wulff and Sergeant Petter.

In sorrow, in joy, in nostalgia, in the midst of a diagnosis no one ever wants to hear, and a debilitating illness, Hammersland carries with him a radical hope and acceptance. The album is melancholic, yes, but at the same time, it reaches for an uncertain, but beautiful, future. It is a testament to Hammersland’s love for music and joy for life. The Ocean Sleeps Alone Tonight is everything it needs to be and so much more; as a send-off, it is beautiful. Frank Hammersland will be sorely missed.

Beau Philpot is a Freshman at SUNY Geneseo and member of WGSU's Music Selection Staff.