BEHOLD...THE ARCTOPUS

Pretty complicated and overdriven as well but more emotional, sentimental, and reflective than ever. I've been immersed in "Skullgrid" and shaken by their complexity and flexibility, but no excessive metallic keypoint notifies me that the current formation should be their intention and themselves. From the beginning of the first attack "Hot For Emotions" their quirky speedy percussive beats and strict guitar playings are fully open. Sorry but I'm always wondering if their precise instrumental combination might depend on tape operations or effects (they make no faking operation at all, FOR SURE) and I'm saying their instrumental / interval techniques are incredibly brilliant and excellent. On the other hand, it's also true that their 'emotion, sentiment, or reflection' makes their music more difficult and less melodical. This album "Interstellar Overtrove" should be in front of us for our enjoying their enthusiastic rhythmic measures and their introverted circumstances nowadays.

The situation around them can be heard especially via "Echoes Of Deletion", featuring repetitive plaintive melodic streams and irregular tribal, ethnic percussion foundation. We can feel surrealism and inner-mindfulness through such a mysterious timbre essence in the instrumental track. The one-man-show of percussion is even magical and ritual, that reminds me they might have strayed into a blind alley or something under the tough situation all around the world. However, some breaths of air and slight melodic hopes in the epilogue "SETI: The Search For Entertaining Terrestrial Incompetence" will stabilize our inner mind. Particularly in the middle part, acoustic guitar performances are quite romantic and dramatic. Beautiful aroma of guitar sounds will come up with a comfortable act for the audience as previously. The last guitar reverberation makes us expect their (and our) future brightness. 2024 has got started with some bad, terrible incidents and accidents in Japan but we should look and walk forward without turning back, as they say in this superb creation.

Ladies and Gentlemen: the aliens have landed!

Remember Wardenclyffe: Nikolai Tesla's old power plant/research lab on Long Island? Jason Bauers, Colin Marston, and Mike Lerner have restored it, moved in, and are using it as a recording studio! And this is what comes out of them when they play there!

1. "Hot for Emotions" (4:15) solo Simmons drums opening. Sounds like the arrival of an army of programmed robot foot soldiers. Warr guitar (with touch-tone bass notes) and microtonal guitar join in to give this musical experience other otherworldly dimensions. It's not until the 90-second mark that anything resembling 20th Century rock 'n' roll joins in--which comes in the form of a Joe Satriani-Steve Vai-like electric guitar lead. It's as if these guys have taken Tony Levin and Bill Bruford (or Trey Gunn and Pat Mastelotto) another step into the future--beyond even Les Claypool and Adrian Belew or Stephen Thelen and Sonar. At least on this one the drums often sound familiar albeit synthetic. (Thanks Bill Bruford for preparing my ears and brain for the likes of this music--and the onslaught that is to come!) (8.75/10)

2. "Def Lepton" (3:31) the comparisons to King Crimson's 1980s album output--both in terms of brain-shattering music and the overall effect on the state of music as we know it--may not be far-fetched. There are few melodies here--except for the occasional sustained chord. It's as if someone had the ability to render the night-time movement of mice in the walls of an old home that is heated by woodstove or kitchen hearth in the middle of winter. The synthetic drums are the scurring, the high speed microtonal Warr guitar play the time-elapse photography, and the occasional chord or musical note the recordings of their telepathic conversations. (8.75/10)

3. "Insane in the 11th Membrane" (3:22) more rodent scurrying, this time a rendering of their nocturnal activity in the barn out back, as related from the predatory perspective of the observant house cat (the gentle, slow-timed guitar chords). I like the "Love Supreme" guitar chords (yes, that Love Supreme!) around the two-minute mark as well as the Mark Isham synth chord progressions at the end of the third minute. My favorite (if one could call it that). (8.875/10)

4. "Time-Denier" (5:54) Starting with the atmospheric Vangelis Blade Runner tribute of the opening 30 seconds, this a more musical presentation with odd, unpredictable--even, at times, jazz-ambient (in an ADRIAN BELEW-kind of way), though discordant--guitar chord progressions over/within which RoUS (Rodent of Unusual Size) Jason Bauers scurries and stops, scurries and stops. Weirdness. (8.75/10)

5. "Speculated.Inflated.Transparent" (2:59) Jason Bauers' Southeast Asian cave water torture and bat therapy is interrupted in the second minute by a genuinely human King Crimsonian jam, but then, after the humans pass through, the native creatures return to their favorite activities. (8.75/10)

6. "Echoes of Deletion" (Instrumental) (7:34) genuine man-made percussives intermixed with guitar-MIDIed tuned percussion sounds. this is easily the most accessible and relaxing song on the album. It's still non-Western: more like drug-induced/altered Gamelan/world music--like stubling upon a chance encounter of a secret coven of Gamelan players warming up and/or trancing each into their own inner dimensions. Luckily, I love (and find fascinating as well as soul-soothing) Gamelan! Another top three song. I need to see the sheet music to this one! (13.25/15)

7. "SETI: The Search for Entertaining Terrestrial Incompetence" (7:21) If there's ever been a tribute to--or continuation/variation of--KING CRIMSON's famous "Indiscipline," this is it--or maybe more aptly put: "Indiscipline 12.0" (Does this, by default--and taking the only-slightly-hidden reference to the increasingly organised effort that has been actively searching for signs of extraterrestrial life since the days of Nikolai Tesla--mean to imply that Sirs Robert of Fripp and William of Bruford and their trusted squires--foreign-both, both--were receiving interstellar signals--or even guidance?--back in 1981?) The only things missing are crazed self-obsessed "stream-of-consciousness" lead vocals and the oddly beguiling-yet-cloying, sedating and disarming background vocals.) (13.3333/15)

Total Time 34:56

I'm not sure if even the likes of Dmitri Shostokovich, György Legeti, Olivier Messiaen, Frank Zappa, Robert Fripp, Bill Nelson, Chris Cutler, Gérard Hourbette, Daniel Denis, Claudio Milano, or Francesco Zago could imagine the kind of music these guys are creating. Despite the initial astonishment and lingering awe, I'm just not sure how much long-term pleasure I would ever be able to derive from this music. Personally, I prefer more melody, harmony, and Western flow. This music rarely has any of those. (In fact, it's only when they throw me a little bone--give me some familiar sound, Western melody, or diatonic with its chords--that I find myself engaging, relaxing, and enjoying a bit of this music.) So, while I can recommend this for any adventurous prog lover to try out for themselves, I do so with a caution warning: if you were born before Y2K it is highly unlikely that you will understand much less enjoy that which you hear when you listen to this album--unless, of course, you been able to keep your mind open (and your brain plastic) beyond the course of your 25+ years.

I have to admit that over time, with repeated listens (I've gone through four times now), the woven sounds of these songs have grown on me: I now think I hear music (though it may be more familiarity: the unguent of the Central Nervous System and enabler of species adaptation and, thus, survival)--some of which I'm actually starting to like!

B/four stars; while I will not recommend this amazing album to everyone (those of you with heart conditions or nervous disorders please beware!), I do think every self-identifying "prog lover" should expose themselves to this music. Like 1981's Discipline by King Crimson, this album may portend the discovery by the James Webb Space Telescope the birth of a new galaxy beyond the hither-to-now accepted boundaries of our known Universe.

Melodic is not an adjective one usually uses when describing a Behold...The Arctopus release...more like extreme chatoic. That said, I knew Colin Marston / Warr guitar, guitar synth had it in him. Marton's stellar performances with Gorguts, Krallice, and Dysrhythmia made me a believer. Houston! We have a melody!

With Interstellar Overtrove, Marston slows things down a bit. Jason Bauers' drums skitter like a centipede scurrying up your spine. Jibber jabber, talk-talk, slitter-splatter split matter...tick tock, pitter-patter...Colin pivots on the porch top of a human skull. Clitter-clatter, take a little guitar synth synthesizer lip gloss, and fold it into the lull of the space/time signature criss-cross across the Arctopus. Behold the band forsake chaos for the folks in focus who clamor for a mysterious hocus-pocus, time/space detonation... obliteration. Short, shark, sharp.

A monotreme masterpiece of instrumental math rock- tech/extreme. Well worth your time...especially if you always wanted Melody swinging in your Arctopus.

Could you let me say the latest album of BEHOLD The ARCTOPUS "Hapeleptic Overtrove" is flooded with smart senses of humour? We could mention that 2020 is another cornerstone for themselves and their creation. "Hapeleptic Overtrove", drenched with excessive complicated melodic lines and crazy dissected rhythmic vibes as well, actually sounds crispier and more delightful. One reason would be that fantastic percussion has been introduced dramatically, and another would be they have launched colourful and diverse sound appearances in this opus intensively and intentionally. In this sense more eclectic development and improvement can be heard all over.

The first shot "Quithtion" is kinda killer, massively with lyrical percussion bullets and technically exaggerated instrumental puzzles. Jason's percussion is amazing and tempting. His play gives flowery seasoning to their impressive extreme metallic sound basis, and simultaneously leads and agitates themselves completely, oh great. The following "Adult Contemporary" features sensitive, repetitive speed guitar phrases and magnificent percussion explosion that cannot be beaten by twin big guitars. Cannot hear any adult contemporary via this track (of course lol) but can get relaxed and stabilized mysteriously and mystically regardless of its complex movements. "Telepathy Apathy" is not apathetic at all but definitely congested with distorted guitar sound material, that amazes us. Could only the fans feel sound through such an eccentric stuff? And in "Blessing In Disgust" we can touch their 'disgusting' heavy play in a metallic manner. "Forgotten Explanations" is another unique one reminding us of the similarity to Le Silo or so. Slightly monotonous and inorganic but the toughness is not bad really. In "Other Realms" we can enjoy a strongbox full of their technical treasures and melodic malformations. Wondering if they could reproduce such a musical complication, but in fact it should be easy for them even on stage. The former part of "Perverse. Esoteric. Different" is pretty surprising, due to steady ambience and chamber approaches. And to go forward, to get heavier and more straightforward as usual. This development of musical theatre is awesome. A six-minute track might have almost all of their current situation I guess? "Hapeleptic Perspective Respect" can show some upsurges of emotion in a flat sound ground. Hapeleptic ... I'm not familiar with this word but suggest it would mean that they could grasp lots of musical items? The last "Quithtion Overtrove" is kinda decent reminder of the first attack, and we can be overdriven and immersed in this deep testament of theirs.

One of giants is their fascinating shout in 2020. "Hapeleptic Overtrove" is their cornerstone and Tech / Extreme's cornerstone. The cornerstone should be shining brilliantly.

So, I was in the mood for something obscenely chaotic and heavy about a week ago, but also didn't feel like listening to my go to in this mood of The Dillinger Escape Plan. After browsing around for a bit, I read something about how this band was meant to be absolutely insane in terms of pure technicality. This seemed quite promising to me, so I decided to check out this album, thinking that such an album would be really awesome and strange. What I ended up finding was not that, as I find the majority of this album to be incredibly boring. This sounds like what happens if you take some of the worst elements from technical metal, i.e, extensive technical wankery, and then made it the noly thing going for your music at all, although to be fair, it's still better than the plethora of terrible metalcore scream vocalists you tend to find with these sorts of bands. The album honestly starts off well enough, as Disintegore's intro is really awesome, encompassing exactly what I expected from the band, literally changing time signatures every second or 2. The issue is that the rest of this album follows the exact same template, but without the anarchic streak that such aggressive, chaotic albums should have, making it simply sound like highly technical, frenetic metal and nothing more. You may be questioning why I started off this review with a needless, banal anecdote, and it's for the simple reason that I find very little to talk about with this, as there's essentially one element to it, technicality. I'll give this album 2 stars for the fact that despite the fact I find it really dull, both because of occasional entertaining memoents, and because the sheer talent of the band members is downright ludicrous, it's just that they forgot about their songwriting.

Best songs: Disintegore, Deluge of Sores

Weakest songs: Annihilvore (essentially 10 minutes of annoying dissonance)

Verdict: Honestly, the lack of variation or any particular interestig qualities of the album beyond how well played the instruments are really makes this a miss for me, however, if you're really into dissonant music that never wants to sit still for even a second, you may find this band enjoyable.

Look at such a meaningful weird sleeve ... a hell crazy pic and crazy nice nasty tracks. Currently (Jan. 2019) this is the newest album by BEHOLD ... The ARCTOPUS, where are four melodic eccentricities based upon complicated rhythmic ground. The content is a bit short but amazingly deep and heavy and especially introspective, let me say. Their creation "Skullgrid" extremely with weird melodic explosion and unpredictable rhythmic development amazed me indeed, and I could not help having massive expectation of "Cognitive Emancipation" naturally. But surprisingly, such a dark matter's notified me of stabler appearance than the previous one. Wondering why.

It's just my speculation but their entire creativity might have got refined and stabilized. Firstly I've felt that not so aggressive atmosphere or non-theoretical manner can be heard as previously. Hell yeah I found out it's wrong. Through this creation they released bombastic sound impression beneath sorta downtone melodic texture. Never monotonous nor inorganic but intriguing and impressive.

Mind you, it's quite fantastic they launch drastically precise musical prescription for the audience, even if more polished. Suppose their hearts into playing music would have been perfectly synchronized and crystallized with each other. On the contrary, their power and energy to discharge such an incredible mass should be limited ... so this creation is slightly short (but smart and energetic) for a full-length album, let me suggest.

Woooo ... can melody lines get such a complication like their excessive style? 'Skullgrid' was released in 2007 as the debut album of BEHOLD ... The ARCTOPUS and their superb masterpiece 'Canada', that was introduced by my progr mate, has called me upon their turf. Yes I've got knocked out completely by the track where every piece is played without any breath nor relief at all. Complex, eccentric, and concentrated melody / rhythm lines are pretty harmonized and crystallized perfectly. No distortion is here. It makes sense you can find something innovative and immersive in their sound world.

Already tremendous is the weird combination of a mammal skull and digitally formed cubes. The first titled track is quite short but powerful and intensive as the very first call of theirs. Just felt as if Janus Stark met Yoshiharu of Le Silo. Imagined all of them might play together under such a nervous and sensitive condition, for the 90 seconds. The twin guitar explosions are incredibly gorgeous precisely based upon the chilling, outstanding rhythms created by the drum genius. Their soundscape is not so metallic but splendidly technical and extreme. It would navigate your massive expectation for a rock novelty.

'You Are Number Six' has less brilliance nor motivative potential in kinda shoegaze playing situation (maybe) but notifies you of dramatic repetitions and critical intentions. Wondering how long they could create such a musical perfection. Melodic, rhythmic seriousness in 'Some Mist' or speedy madness in the following 'Scepters' sounds amazing, attractive too. Minor details aside, their play should show you another fantastic sound appearance along with complicated but completely synchronized instrumental ritual managed by them all. Brilliant.

Why, why do so many extreme tech metal bands feel the need to contrast their technicality with gore humor. I mean, one joke is enough, we get it, you are not taking yourself too seriously. But an entire career of disintegore and putrefakction (song titles)? Come on. Anyway, this is a deconstruction, or, in less fancy terms, destruction of music. What sounds like a rehearsal, a technically nearly impossible hyper-fast metallic flurry of notes with only a brief slowing down. No vocals, great. Reasonably well produced. And this basically the end of the review. Because there is no more. No melody, no direction, no sense, Sometimes tech metal grows on you on repeated listens, like Spiral Architect's lone album. This one doesn't. Its just an amusing curiosity.

Behold The Arctopus - Horrorscension.........says it all, really. The music presented here by Tech/Death Extreme instrumentalists Colin Marston (WARR guitar) Mike Lerner (Guitar) and Christopher 'Weasel' Walter (Drums) is a lesson in over-the-top technical proficiency and ultimate chaos, yet remaining tight, coherent, and ridiculously dissonant and uncompromising!! Not music for the faint-of-heart, I tell you. Opening with a track titled Disintegore - shredding guitar, rumbling WARR guitar in bass range, and stuttering stop-start outbursts of drums, one is likely to shake their head in disbelief. These guys annihilate the listener with a pummelling barrage of relentless noise and ridiculous time sigs (questionable, as the music sounds so random), crushing everyone and everything in their path. More or less a vehicle for NYC's premier Death-Squad of Colin Marston and his Menegroth studio, home to many Extreme underground Metal acts, local and far, where Marston's understanding of the rules and how to break them get a chance to express themselves without any constriction. We get 6 tracks, clocking under a half-hour, where Colin states he did have another piece or 2 for this release, but time ran out and he was more than satisfied with the unusually short running time of this slab of sonic concrete. Sometimes less is more, Y'know. Don't expect any respite from Lerner's guitar fury, the soul- crushing double-pedal work of Weasel, and God-knows-what from Marston and his 12-string beast, the most 'ambient' or moment of relief, comes at the end of Horrorsentience, where we hear a minute of a Mellotron sample. Yep, a 'tron !! Gotta love the 1 min. Putre[%*!#]tion, a freak-out with 380 mph double-kick. I guess I'm fairly new to this part of the PROG World, so I'm mightily impressed, maybe you, fellow readers can be too. Had it not been for fellow reviewer Atavachron, this, disgustingly attractive punch-to-the-face, may never have been unleashed. At least he reached one reader !! And the cover art, love this cover design, great colours. Even better as 12" x 12"......

Before anything else, this HAS to be said first. Brooklyn, New York is the last place you would expect to find a technical/prog band. New York, however, has covered some prog bands, and some quite successful ones at that, including Dream Theater and Spock's Beard. They've both received lots of attention, even the former getting MTV airplay. What makes Behold... the Arctopus different, though, is that they break any conventions of aforementioned two bands, and instead take a more technical route.

So before the review, be warned that this is not exactly as much an album as an E.P. with demos and live songs.

The album opens but very harshly and aggressively, signalling that this band will be very unexpected. The beginning pounds out of the gate with drums blasting, and guitars and bass/warr guitar taking the forefront. Exospacial Psyonic Aura sets the tone quite well. After the brutal opening, some speed metal riffing takes place, along with jazzy rhythms to support it all. In the middle of this song, there's a very neat jazz interlude with subdued textures. This portion of the song can remind one of the early tech/death bands such as Atheist, Death or Cynic. Don't hold your breath for too long, though, as the intensity builds back up for a smashing conclusion to a great opener.

Estrogen/Pathogen Exchange Program is very... interesting. The Estrogen part is mainly comprised of dark, brooding synthesizers, with some bass mixed in. Soon enough, the guitar enters and makes this song even heavier. After a long dissonant chord at 2:32, the bass and drums kick off to the start off Pathogen Exchange Program. The rest of the song is standard tech metal fare, but of course with BTA's signature style. The next song Sensory Amusia begins abruptly, just as the first. In fact, this song is very closely related to the first, for this reason and for another jazz interlude in this one too. Again, the intensity builds up, but this time a crazy fuzzled noise part comes in, and some listeners may want to avert their ears.

Then it leads to the highlight, Alcoholocaust. This song is very short, at a mere 2:50, but not to worry because there is a LOT going on in this song. It begins with a very technical riff that could remind someone of Mick Barr's work, notably with Orthrelm. After this though, it turns into one of the most melodic songs here, with melody and technicality sharing equal aplomb. When it gets to the solo, everything just gets chaotic, with Mike Lerner's wild guitar parts going all over the place, while bassist Colin Marston provides a good backbone. It then just goes for a melodic conclusion. Great song.

Finally, we get to the last studio track, You will be Reincarnated as an Imperial Attack Spaceturtle. Phew, long name! Anyway, this song is the longest one here, clocking in at 8:27. Once again, a melodic prog metal riff strikes first, but soon gets intensely technical. The interesting part about this song is the "Pause, start, pause" method they use in the middle, when they keep stopping their playing for a short period of time. A nice bass solo also accompanies this song in a 4/4 spot. Plus, there is another break just for Mike Lerner when he does 9 arpeggio chords.

The last four tracks are just live versions of these songs minus "Estrogen...". These are ok live, but they have much worse quality, and it would've been great to hear some new material by the band, instead of a rehash. However, Skullgrid, their first full album, came out already, and apparently has new songs.

Again, while this is a short album/long E.P., it provides quality work from a growing band. Sure, there are some rough patches here and there(especially on Sensory Amusia), but it still does not take away from how great this band's potential is.

(Originally published on Sputnikmusic)