Ozric Tentacles

> I first heard about Tentacles through the SubGenius ''[[Hour Of Slack]]'', where [[Rev. Ivan Stang]] promotes independent, up-and-coming bands who create their own Slackful noises in search of bigger and better things.
> I was browsing through the used music stores in Harvard Square back in 1999 (where I also came across [[Negativland]]'s ''[[Fair Use]]: The Story of the Letter U and the numeral 2''), and I was surprised to come across the CD ''Arborescence'' by Ozric Tentacles. Out of curiosity, I bought the disc and gave it a try.
> This is a fun piece of work! The entire CD is instrumental (no lyrics), and it makes great background music for going online. It's full of great synthesizer music with a "cosmic" feeling, backed up by some rocking drums and fancy guitar work. It's certainly not "new age" stuff, and it's got a great a combination of cosmic psychedelia and kickin' rock. There's none of that repetitive thumpthump-thump stuff that you hear in techno-acid-house dance stuff. The third track, "Arborescence," has something of a "Greenpeace" feel to it, while "Dance of the Loomi" might well be at home on a dance floor...but I doubt you'll be hearing this stuff in the clubs at any time soon. That's a pity, because this is a fresh, energetic disc that's free of the cliches we see "dance hall" stuff.
> This disc is like a modern-day symphony. Great stuff! Since then I've bought serveral of their CDs and learned that their early albums were imitations of Pink Floyd, before they evolved into their more fast-paced cosmic rock. The albums I find in my CD player most often from these guys are ''Jurassic Shift'' and ''Live Underslunky'' (a live album).
> Praise to Reverend Ivan Stang for daring to showcase bands like Ozric Tentacles on the Hour of Slack! It's a refreshing change of pace from those radio stations that only play bands that made it to the Big Time.