*REVIEW* BRAIN TENTACLES

9/10

If you have a look outside yourself for a moment, and really think about yourself as a music admirer, you will quite often dismiss something that sounds like a novelty, because really "it won't last" or "it's so gimmicky it has not substance".

Well I'll the first to admit that, however it was only the last review I did where I basically lambasted The Lemon Twigs for doing the same thing that I'm commending Brain Tentacles for.

So here I am doing an about face, because really.. this thing is super silly. If you haven't even heard a note of this record, I will explain why.

This group basically incorporates a horn section with bass and drums, and occasional synths. What isn't orthodox about this though, is that where the horn sections are playing, is exactly where the guitar parts would be.

That's right a sax is replacing guitars entirely... 

It almost feels like all  of this music was written and arranged on guitars, because there so much riffing in this music, that's it's hard to imagine it's been arranged for a brass instrument. 

At their core, Brain Tentacles are a sludge metal group, infused with horns. It would astound me if they didn't know about King Crimson's 21st Century Schizoid Man, which is basically the template for this sound, throaty sax riffs against the backdrop of precision fusion bass and dexterous drumming, with constant time signature changes throughout single tracks. 

They blend this sludge metal with these elements, and quite often with interesting results. I think once I got past the sheer stupidity of the concept of the record, I then began to really enjoy it.

The group is a really tight unit, there is some excellent playing on this. The jazz fusion level of precision really stood out. I think the musicianship is the major focal point of this project.

The opener, "Kingda Ka" really shows you the brass element of the album. 

The silly "fruitcake" basically begins ridiculous high pitched yelling, and for some reason the main riff/motif on this reminds me of a sped up version of Frank Zappas "Peaches En Regalia". The really cool, and if you thought the saxophone couldn't shred like a guitar does, you are wrong my friend, they kick ass on this track.

The next track "Cosmic Warriors Girth Curse", with it's stop start drone epicness is another early highlight, and the second most expansive track on the album nearing 10 minutes in duration. 

"Gassed" with it's circus from hell waltz is truly disturbing, and would not be out of place as backing music for a freakshow rodeo.

"Death Rules" walk a tightrope with a call and response rhythm section from the drummer and sax playing.  It is so intense that you feel like you're in a black turtleneck trying to defuse a bomb before the whole city blows up just listening to it. 

"Fata Morgana" takes it down a couple of notches, and is probably the most straight forward track on the album, with it's slow rhythm and moody background vocals really giving some nice sound texture.

At this point, it seems like remnants all of the best horn parts from rock music in the last 40 years, have been distilled and worked into a context within which a band can operate wholly. While John Zorn had used horns in the late 80's with his Naked City project, I feel like Brain Tentacles is the full realisation of this. And it's not like the band members just said, "oh hey, we can just put saxes all over this stuff", and were done with it, they actually thought it out properly and came up with something endearing, paying homage to some great music while still being slightly innovative.

The musicians involved in this project basically speak for themselves. Anything Bruce Lamont touches is oozing with elite musicianship and gusto, and Dave Witte is one of the best drummers around at the moment. Some of the beats of this LP are amazing, but he also knows when not to play, adding incredible nuance to these songs. Aaron Dallison has a huge presence with his bass work on Brain Tentacles. Quite often high in the mix, he imposing himself in the rhythm section, and adds some serious amount of precision and dread. 

In assessing this album, I was thinking well it doesn't have to be meaningful and pretentious to be good, it has to be listenable.. and that it is! But it's also full of hilarious sections of tracks, that you can't help but laugh at. 

So in what I hear, it's great, it's engaging. Will I be calling it a classic in ten years time? Who knows? But one thing is for sure, it's campy quality and well played instrumentals will keep me returning for a while, this one is a gem, out of the box.. I hope they make a followup. 

Callan Cummings.