The toughest thing in the world is to play a style that leans on classic bands from decades ago. Bands like Black Sabbath, Thin Lizzy or even Iron Maiden have such distinct signature styles that the moment a new band plays a riff that even mildly resembles any one of those forefathers, it's instantly flagged.
Which is sort of what makes "Supernatural Alliance" by Octopus so perplexing. Clearly the influences of the Detroit-based band lie in the bell-bottom era, yet it's tough to place any one entry point. Fuzz and wah are used heavily, but Octopus don't entirely lean on Blue Cheer's approach. There's a jammy hard-rock feel, yet the band never delves into the same blues-heavy world of early Deep Purple. There are any number of dozens of other bands from the era, like Sabbath, Sir Lord Baltimore and many more that are reference points — yet Octopus keep it fresh all while staying vaguely familiar.
Stream the title track from Octopus' Supernatural Alliance for the first time above and look for the LP on 3/30 via Rise Above Records (order yours).
