Octopus Syng - Hollow Ghost/Rochelle Salt

  by Kimberly Bright

published: 6 / 9 / 2016

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Review

Finland’s Octopus Syng are psychedelic purists, but that description shouldn’t fool anyone into assuming there will be much colourful glitter and hazy sunshine on their new album 'Hollow Ghost/Rochelle Salt', originally planned to be two EPs. The noir baroque tapestry of eleven tracks delves heavily into pain and emotional struggles and is only occasionally leavened by light psych and whimsy. What began as the solo recording project of singer-guitarist-multi-instrumentalist Jaire Pӓtӓri in 1999 is now a four-piece band consisting of Jaire on vocals, guitar, and whatever else is needed, Joni Seppӓnen on backing vocals and guitar, Antti Sauli on bass, and Jukka Toivanen on drums. Any discussion of Jaire and Octopus Syng inevitably leads to comparisons with early Pink Floyd and Syd Barrett, even their official press release. This recurrence seems to irritate Jaire, although to be fair, he could do worse for a reference point than 'The Piper at the Gates of Dawn'. He told 'Active Listener' blog in 2014, “I’m actually trying to go further away from Syd’s/’60s Pink Floyd’s domain in my songwriting/in our music making process all the time, but Syd’s/Pink Floyd’s style of music is such a basic archetype in old school psych music that it is hard to avoid.” He also opined that Pekka Streng and Tasavallan Presidentti’s 1970 album 'Magneettimiehen Kuolem' as “the best psychedelic album ever made.” For 'Hollow Ghost/Rochelle Salt' Jaire listened to, among other genres, chanson and musique concreté. If Octopus Syng’s new music sounds like Syd Barrett-era Floyd, then it’s on a terrible day when the Piper didn’t even make it anywhere near the gates of dawn, because his heart was unexpectedly broken, dipped in LSD, and then run over with a tractor. The songs’ themes are heavy-hearted but lush, complex, sensitive, and melodic. The opening track 'Carbon Dust and Latin Romances 1927' is an ambient instrumental with a gorgeous Spanish guitar. The funereal waltz-like 'Woman' sets the theme of Jaire’s despair over a female object of desire, truly suffering while waiting to hear from someone who seems to have discarded him: “Do you even love me anymore?”… “You know well I’d do anything for you/You know my world inside out.” His introspective, ruminating frame of mind predominates on 'Melancholy of Delight', with an out of place spoken word section plopped in the middle, 'Today’s Portrait' (“I can’t say if I’m happy or sad/Maybe I’m a little bit of both”), and the haunting, serene, nature sound-filled 'Walking in the Pale Light'. Traditional English psych is evident on 'Echoes from the Past Centuries', with swirling 60's guitar and vintage lo-fi sounding production, as well as the superb, fuzz-laden 'Surrealistic Room' and 'Unknown Actress'. 'Surrealistic Room' was floating around on a demo as early as 2011 and easily stands alone. Here the album’s tone turns dreamy and escapist, with droning harmonies, a harder guitar sound, and the refrain “My typewriter is singing.” 'Lady Florette', about a contemplative, chain-smoking Lady of Shalott, is sweet and childlike with a trippy twist and an ending with what sounds like a room full of antique music boxes and grandfather clocks going mad simultaneously. In the hopeful waltz 'Belle and Ville', he is cheered by thoughts of a new love on his long walk home: “Now I have hope…Maybe this world has some love for me.” These much-needed lighter songs buoy the album’s mood, keeping the listener engaged with the bleak landscape without being overwhelmed by it. The best track by far might be 'Unknown Actress', a mysterious garage rock oasis of confidence, with a streak of dark humor similar to the Kinks and Magnetic Fields. The ending track, 'Reverberating Garden Number 7', is the link to their previous album of the same name and appropriately ghostly and beautiful. Resolution and closure are finally achieved through gorgeous layers and textures that slowly unravel and simplify down to a single solo instrumental line. The emotional struggle ends on a note of quiet resignation. As he sings in 'Today’s Portrait', “I just had to keep going on.”

Track Listing:-

1 Carbon Dust and Latin Romances 1927
2 Woman
3 Echoes from the Past Centuries
4 Surrealistic Room
5 Lady Florette
6 Melancholy of Delight
7 Belle and Ville
8 Unknown Actress
9 Today's Portrait
10 Walking in the Pale Light
11 Reverberating Garden Number 7

Band Links:-

https://www.facebook.com/Octopus-Syng-
https://octopussyng.bandcamp.com/