OCTOPUS

Twenty years ago I would have hated Gentle Giant. I was into Bauhaus and Dead Can Dance at that time. Now I'm older and wiser (ahem!).

This is the first Gentle Giant record I heard around five years ago. I was immediately struck by the extraordinary time signatures which reminded me a lot of the 'Cardiacs' - who are one of my all time favourite bands. 'Octopus' is pretty tricky to review. If you hear it as background music, it's nothing special.

But... with a pair of headphones on and complete attention, it's nothing short of astonishing. Astonishing in it's diversity, array of instruments and complexity. And surprisingly, like the Beatles used in some parts, - a lot of polyphony techniques are applied.

A very bright and adventurous album like most of Gentle Giant's early to mid 70's works and far more inventive and interesting than their sometimes counterparts, 'Genesis'.

It doesn't quite make the five star maximum due to it sounding VERY 70's and of it's time. An excellent recording nonetheless accompanied by very decent vocals. Love that cover too! You can't go wrong with this one if you're a 'progger'.