Review: The Space Octopus – Tomorrow We’ll be Gone

Just the name of this band is interesting enough to go and check this album out! Speaking of interesting things… The cover of the album fits perfectly in the almost apocalyptic times we live in at the moment, with Covid_19 making an world tour, tearing down countries and economies like no other crisis did before.
Luckily The Space Octopus, lead by Dann Hoyos, is very well able to provide a soundtrack that makes me hope this apocalypse is not ending very soon.

This fifth album since 2006 is a nice collection of intelligent, heavy rock with ten 3-4 minute long songs that are both catchy and diverse. A little warning though: there is a good chance of getting a speed fine while listening to the album in the car. So maybe better to enjoy your hot summer days in the garden while listening to this record. For real metalheads the album might be a bit too soft though.

The album kicks off with the pointy Go On!. Great guitar riffs, straight forward vocals and a catchy chorus. (Lyrics of the chorus -don’t be surprised: “Go on!”) The guitar solo on this one is a great one for a repeat button.

The song is followed by Our Time is Running Out. In fact a song that has everything to be a hit song for alternative radio. Punky, straight forward but not plain, on the spot and the song manages to blow you away in just three minutes. Great.

This is the Last Time I’ll Feel starts with a nice singing saw-like sound, which comes back during the song. It has a full sound, and is basically just a memorably good song.

Tomorrow We’ll be Gone is to me a bit too smooth. Hardly any rough edges and a bit too much musical food for the masses. Then again, at DMM we are maybe so used to dark and heavy metal that every kind of rock sounds too commercial to us 😉

Closer deserves a special mention, for being everything you expect from a classic rock song. A good song structure, very nice guitar work, reminds a bit of 90’s rock, yet sounds very fresh.

To Die for the Outside is an emotionally strong song where the backing vocals of bassplayer Josu Holy Brandy and drummer Oier de Pedro make the song very strong. Also the drumming and guitar works are very nice to listen to on this one.

Paralyzed provides some more rest, where the darker vocals bring an extra layer into this song.

Involved opens with a little more attention for the bass, that mixes in so well in the others songs that you hardly notice it (until it is left out!). Driven guitar riffs, good drumming and a smooth rhythm makes this song catchy and stick inside your head for quite a while.

Then, after about 35 minutes, it is time for a little pause. The instrumental song Pause displays a different, more or less Hispanic way to use the guitar. At the same time it provides a great introduction to the last song of the album, React, almost sounding like a gospel of music, sounding hopeful and cheerful, (both musically and lyrically) with choir background, great guitar solo, a celebration of a band that have been working very well together for the past fifteen years or so, and will probably do so for the next fifteen to come. Not a metalhead song at all, but a great song altogether. The only flaw is the weak fading end, whereas other songs on the album ended so much better. Really a pity, for the album is great…but for the last three seconds.

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