BEYOND THE KARMADELIC COLDNESS, THERE'S A LOVEDELIC WAMTH

This needs a warning, I believe: I just discovered that this album doesn't have any reviews yet, so I wrote my very first one. I do hope it provides at least some information about the music. I'm neither a rock musician nor a native speaker, though. Due to my limited knowledge I will focus mainly on things as: What mood does the album invoke? What band does it sound similar to? To whom would I recommend this? Are the streams on this site representative of the album? I hope such a review is ok on this site. If the administrators feel that this is inappropriate, please feel free to delete the review.

Who and what is this?
Octopus Syng is a project by finish musician Jaire Pätäre. He plays all instruments himself, to produce psychedelic music that hunkers back to its 60s roots. His style brings early Pink Floyd and Jefferson Airplane to mind - at least to my mind. Indian, folk and blues influences left their mark on this album. The music feels warm and happy and is predominately acoustic. Most songs of the album are mellow and tranquil, with only a few rockier numbers in between. There's no "space" rock to be found here. This album is pure psyche.

What about individual songs?

1) We Could Be Everywhere
The album starts out with this sitar driven instrumental track. This song is very upbeat and happy.

2) It's So Nice To Feel High In The Summertime
This is a tranquil, floating ballad dominated by acoustic guitar and a drifting, mumbling voice.

3) Intuition Waltz
Here the tempo takes up a bit and the bass is featured more prominently. Psychedelic effects are used on the voice. The production is rather muddy.

4) Life Of Nature
Slow acoustic music floats aimlessly through a garden that is basked in sunlight. Instrumental lines are repeated endlessly to lull the listener to sleep. The singer mumbles on to help in the effort.

5) Soft Velvet Dreams
This one follows the psychedelic tradition to incorporate noises in songs. It starts out with the contribution of either a train, a helicopter something similar. The guitar solo is at the heart of this track. The rest has a jammy feel to it.

6) Chinese Garden*
A short song, that's very psychedelic. It has tranquil, floating acoustic guitar, percussion effects, a short drum solo and wind chimes in the end. The mumbling, dreamy voice adds to the hypnotic effect again. The lyrics summarize what all slower songs on this album are about: Lie on your back in a garden, look above you and feel joy.
The track may seem rather silly, but is one of the better ones on the album in my opinion. It condenses the atmosphere the artist wants to transport rather well. To go on any longer in this style would be superfluous, in my opinion.

7) Frail Elephant *
This song is funny, energetic and happy. It's also the rockiest track yet. The funky bass line here should be mentioned. It's also one of the better tracks, in my opinion. Frail Elephant can be listened to on PA.

8) Magical Moonlight And Mystic Girl*
For the first time on the album, electric guitar is the dominating instrument. This is a bluesy song rather than Indian psyche. The Doors may have been an influence here. The rather interesting mix of styles makes this one of the better songs on the album.

9) Spring
This is the piano ballad of the album. The piano is accompanied by electrical guitar and soft vocals without lyrics.

10) All The Woods Of My Childhood
A short instrumental interlude combining Indian and blues influences.

11) Varanasi Rock'n'Roll All Night Long*
This is an upbeat, sitar based, Indian rock song. We are treated to a fake Indian accent and a party atmosphere. This song I recommend. In my opinion, the album could have profited from more fast-beat rock songs in this style. The track can also be heard on PA.

*Most recommended tracks

Are the two songs on PA representative of the album?
Both tracks that are available for streaming on PA, are rockier than all the other songs on the album. They may give you an idea of the hippy, psychedelic atmosphere of the work. The other tracks however, are more tranquil and drifting. Both examples are also pretty tightly composed songs, while other tracks feel more like jams at times. So I don't think they are very representative of the whole album.

Why do I rate this work with only two stars?
Well, the album is clearly rooted in 60s psychedelic music. I just don't think it has anything new or important to say. It is not terribly well made either. It sounds rather amateurish, with a muddy production. This may have been intentional to emphasize the hippy-atmosphere, but it doesn't resonate with me. Mr Pätäre's voice is not the best in the world and the mumbling doesn't help. His instrumental skills are decent, though. The album succeeds in transporting a warm, fluffy, happy feeling. I believe this must have been a major goal. However, the songs are not very well compost, in my opinion. Their only prog-connections are the psychedelic atmosphere and the use of sitar. This album should adequately be labelled psych-pop in my opinion. I also feel that the target audience is rather limited. Only die-hard fans of old-style psychedelic rock will really enjoy this, in my opinion. That's why I rate it a "fans only album".

Who should listen to this?
Mmmmh...that's a tough question. Can I recommend a 2 stars album to anyone? Mmmmh...perhaps...ah yes:
Recommended to anyone in search of a soundtrack for their backpacking trip to Tibet!
It should also work as therapy for proggers who suffer a psychological condition after a Meshuggah overdose.

Seriously: I believe, the album can only be recommended to fans of 60s psychedelic music, who might value the retro and slightly amateurish feel. That's why I gave it two stars, as explained above.

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