It was another blissfully stormy night in Seattle, where even though it was raining buckets, the Nectar Lounge still had its outside patio open to revelers who refused to believe they had to spend another August night stuck inside.
Having recorded part of their most recent album Hello, Avalanche in Seattle, the Austin-based band The Octopus Project was likely somewhat used to Seattle's wet weather. Not to be outdone by the storm outside, the proper and immaculately put together Yvonne Lambert and her Octopus Project bandmates hubby Josh Lambert (guitar/beats), Toto Miranda (percussionist), and Ryan Figg (guitarist) in their dress shirts and ties took to the stage. They quickly set up all their gear, and let me tell you, that is no small task for this band. Drum kits, beat machines and amps galore were set up along with just the typical band instrumentation. Yvonne, looking like one of the Stepford Wives, with her 50s-inspired ice blue frock and perfectly applied makeup and flipped hair, rolled out her most precious theremin. This prompted the usual mutterings from the crowd, "What’s that?!" from the inexperienced, and "Yes!" from the more educated music lovers who know of Lambert's expertise on this obscure, yet recently popular instrument. There were cords and wires everywhere, prompting me to have a momentary bout of paranoia thinking that the roof might spring a leak right over the stage causing a massive electrical fire, but that was quickly forgotten.
The Octopus Project has a great aesthetic, if not just a little intriguing...or even strange. I'm actually pretty sure that I don't get it. Apart from their more dressed up stage attire, they set up little abominable snow creatures onstage lifted from their Hello, Avalanche album art. A film playing on the backdrop showed scenes of people riding bikes wearing monkey masks and a plastic Jesus figurine roaming busy city streets. That’s just a hint of what makes The Octopus Project so unique and what earned them such accolades as the Best Experimental Band at the Austin Music Awards. Their uniqueness likewise carries on into their music, namely because their melodies completely lack vocals. It’s quite refreshing to fully appreciate the guitars, vocals, drums, and all their specialized instrumentation without being distracted by one person belting out lyrics (but OMG, if those people were to write lyrics, what fuckin' crazy lyrics they would be!).
The Octopus Project works hard for the money, or possibly lack thereof. Their frenzied stage activities matched their equally feverish music. While Yvonne tended to keep a fixed state of stoicism while at the keys or hypnotically playing the theremin, the boys of the band ran around constantly like naughty little troublemakers. Wildly dancing to their deliriously happy songs like "Truck" and "Tuxedo Hat," they would swap instruments mid-song or bolt from one side of the stage to the other. Fun to watch but also a little exhausting, the exuberant Tito Miranda began and ended the set with the drums, but in the middle took over both the keys and guitar.
If you are drawn to the sounds of Ladytron, The Flaming Lips, Stereolab, or Cut Copy, you will most definitely dig this band. If you don't really care for these bands or (gasp!) don't know who they are…well… you should do yourself a service and check them out anyway. I mean, really, who can deny a band that has song titles such as "Music is Happiness" and "I Saw the Bright Shinies?”
Check out The Octopus Project: MySpace / Official
