FEATURED CD - Ozric Tentacles : Arborescence

[Duncan Glenday]

Per Allmusic:

Ozric Tentacles carries its mainly instrumental version of the Gong experience forward to new heights with 1994's Arborescence. Instrumental prowess abounds. Ed's guitar can best be described with two adjectives: swirling and Hillage-esque. Drummer Merv and bassist Zia lay down odd-meter rhythms with confidence and energy, and the way they mutate some of these long grooves is one of the most entertaining things about this record. In fact, this is one of the things that Ozric Tentacles does best in general: creating legitimate, memorable song structures out of very little purely melodic material. On only a few occasions on Arborescence does the band provide the listener with some sort of melodic hook, with one notable occasion being the Arabic-themed melody to "Al-Salooq." Rather, they prefer to insinuate grooves under your skin while guitars, flutes, and synthesizers dance gleefully around the rhythms. It is ambient music crossbred with alien dance music, and it is marvelous stuff. If any complaint can be mustered against this record or Ozric Tentacles in general, it can be said that some of the drum patterns become a bit tired and repetitive. One tom-tom fill in particular really must have the love of Merv, because he uses it every four bars (this is admittedly hyperbole, but not as much as you might think). The Gong nods also may be a bit too obvious for some but, to those who don't mind, the OT experience is a trippy one indeed. Spicy, evocative, and hypnotic, Arborescence is an unpredictably joyous record.

www.allmusic.com/album/arborescence-mw0000116148

[zeprogmeister]

Love it. This was about the time when I first got into them. This is one of their best sounding/produced albums as well.

[kid_runningfox]

Probably their last truly great album for me. Later albums certainly have their moments, but some of the spirit of the band seemed to get lost after Aborescence, and I don't really see it coming back.

[Scrotum Scissor]

It was a dark age for vinyl, but they still released this on a 3-sided double set back then, and it was the first Oz I got. I've kept this and Strangeitude; the others I either gave away or sold to some bidder (I think I had about six or seven altogether). I figured these two were essentially all I needed to get that specific "kick" from the band's music. while I've heard a handful of their later stuff and seen them live on several occasions, I must say that I've never really felt tempted to explore further albums.

[Sunlight Caller]

Also the introduction to the Ozrics for me. For some reason I had side-stepped them, but I was round a friends house, and he was the most unlikely space rocking dude, but he played me this and I was hooked from the get go. I play it a lot when I need an Ozrics fix.

[Supersonic Scientist]

One of my favorites too....however, my copy was sitting inside my Wife's car stereo when we sold the car....didn't realize that mistake for several days. Alas, the CD is gone. I still need to replace that and it's been YEARS now.

[spacefreak]

Back in 1994, I hated the fact that it was a 3-sided and was the very first album I bought on CD (plus a CD player to listen to it). Hadn't played it since then, as I find myself liking newer Ozric albums as "Curious Corn", "Become The Other" and "Spirals In Hyperspace", more.

[Spiral]

I quite like this one (IIRC it was one of my first), although in my book it's sort of settled into the "average as OT albums go" column. They'd gotten into a groove that was due for shaking up. It's definitely very good on its own merits, but just sort of a lull between the more special sparks of Erpland and Become the Other.

[oilersfan]

Probably my favorite of theirs and the one I reach for most often. I think the opening track, Astro Cortex, has just about as much energy as anything else I've heard from OT.

[strawberrybrick]

Somehow I'd just rather see them live than listen to any of their CDs....

[Ground and Sky's Ghost]

I had seen the cover of Jurassic Shift in a mail order catalog and bought it just because I thought it looked interesting. Loved that album, so when I found Arborescence in a used CD store a few months later I grabbed it. For some reason Arborescence has just never really grabbed me the way Jurassic Shift did. It's certainly not a bad album, and maybe if it'd been the one I heard first I'd like it more than Jurassic, but...eh.

[Wounded Land]

My favorite of theirs. Love it.

[Trane]

yet another OT album... Some are better than others,but they're mostly interchangeable.

Swirly Termination is the one I preferred.

[Zeuhlmate]

My first CD with Ozrics was Waterfall cities, and I was overwhelmed

I ended up with
Become the Other (1995)
Curious Corn (1997)
Waterfall Cities (1999)
The Hidden Step (2000)
Swirly Termination (2000)
Spirals in Hyperspace (2004)
The Floor's Too Far Away (2006)
The later albums I found them a bit redundant, but maybe I should give Arborescence a try.

[Paulrus]

This is the last album to feature one of Ozric's better lineups and it has a nice flow to it with the sort of variety I like from them. It stands up to their other 90s output, though it doesn't reach the heights of Erpland or Jurassic Shift IMO. Still, it's a safe addition to the collection.

[Rael Imperial Aerosol Kid]

Arborescence was also my first disc from OT. I have a few others.

Saw them live last night in Burlington. Great show. Wish I could get a setlist. It's difficult to ID the tunes.

[MYSTERIOUS TRAVELLER]

this is the *only* Ozrix album where I own just the LP, no CD. Some others I have on LP and CD but most are just CD... hence, I don't get to hear this one very often. Need to digitize it for throwing around the car

[spacefreak]

The later albums I found them a bit redundant, but maybe I should give Arborescence a try.

In your place I'd rather give a chance to any of Pungent Effulgent (1989), Erpland (1990) or Strangeitude (1991). They're more rewarding i.m.o. and the only ones I would have kept if I were to considerably downsize the O.T. albums in my collection.

[Trane]

Curious Corn (1997)
Waterfall Cities (1999)
Swirly Termination (2000)
The Hidden Step (2000)
.

their best artwork era too.

[Valen]

I think this was the last album with Merv and Joie on board - once they left, it pretty much became Ed's band and for me the music gradually started to become a bit dull and one-dimensional.

I liked individual tracks on each of the albums that followed, but for an overall 'album vibe', Pungent to Arborescence are probably the definitive Ozrics albums.

[Spiral]

I think this was the last album with Merv and Joie on board - once they left, it pretty much became Ed's band

I think you're skipping a step there. I agree that Pungent and Erpland are the definitive early ones, but Strangeitude and Arborescence made a (relative) coasting pattern until Merv and Joie left. I rated Become the Other a little higher above because they sound noticeably perked up by the new blood once their replacements were on board.

The Ozrics were noticeably becoming the Edrics (as I remember seeing someone call it somewhere) in the late 90s, but I don't think he really became too dominant until Spirals in Hyperspace.

[ProgArtist]

I've got 7 Ozrics albums, and Erpland remains my favorite (I have Pungent Effulgent through The Hidden Step but minus Become the Other and Curious Corn). It was my first one, and that may be a part of it. It can be hard to differentiate one OT album from another, so I had to look at my iTunes collection and see how I've rated the tracks. Based on that, Arborescence seems to be a more mediocre offering according to my taste. Having said all this, I think OT is really a strong band and definitely scratches an itch.

[MYSTERIOUS TRAVELLER]

I have them all and, aside from the Vitamin Enhanced box (which is really cool) their first 3 relesed on LP are excellent standouts in their catalog as are Jurassic Shift and Waterfall Cities.

[Jerjo]

It's the dance beat that kills my enjoyment of this stuff (which is my own personal prejudice but that's the way it is). I can listen to some ambient with an electronic beat but the thump in that first cample is a little too high in the mix, distracting. The next one works far better because there's no thump thump thump.

[spacefreak]

It's the dance beat that kills my enjoyment of this stuff .

Leftovers from the Goa trance parties and the big soundsystems (playing mostly dub oriented stuff) that mixed with the UK festival scene and the "new age travellers" in the late 80s. I can understand the aversion of many rock fans towards this sound but keep in mind that in that actual scene it was primary drugs that did the talkin' and "thump thump thump" is the best soundttrack to get hooked on certain substances.

Don't forget that many bands of the scene had also goa/psych trance offshots to keep the party going. Ozric Tentacles had Eat Static, Magic Mushroom Band had Astralasia, Mandragora had Medicine Drum, Paperhouse had Shamanic Tribes on Acid etc...