js 70s Space Rock and 90s Ambient Techno are two musical styles that have a lot in common. On the CD "Stragetude", Ozric Tentacles expertly combine the two and come up with a sum greater than the parts. Think Clearlight jamming with The Orb, only better. Techno has always been an influence on the Ozrics, but it becomes more pronounced on this album. By the time this CD came out drummer Merv Pepler and keyboardist Joie Hinton were wanting to leave the band so they could work full-time on their trance-techno project Eat Static, and it really shows. At this point both the Ozrics and Eat Static share a lot of the same keyboard sounds, and in fact there are a couple of tunes on "Strangetude" that wouldn't sound out of place on an Eat Static album. After leaving the Ozrics, Merv and Joie's new techno project would go on to be one of the freshest new sounds in a genre often given over to dull cliche.

"Strangetude" also shows the band moving ahead in their mixing technique. The production on this CD is incredible, guitar solos come out of the background only to be swallowed up by waves of synthesizers and electronic sounds. This is psychedelia at its best, the soundscape is constantly shifting making repeat listenings always enjoyable. Although the Ozrics are usually kind of jazzy in a fusion kind of way, there are couple songs on here that really rock in a heavy chugga-chugga Hawkwind kind of way. They also show a lot of skills with dub reggae on "Space Between Your Eyes". Usually rock bands sound so clumsy trying to play Jamaican rhythms, but these guys sound natural playing it their way. Overall, this is a very pleasant modern jam band record with touches of fusion, dub, techno and psychedelic rock all rolled into one.

FunkFreak75 At this point, with this, their eighth studio release, the band's albums and song styles have not quite turned so formulaic as to overstretch the soundmakers' creativity and cause the listener buyer's recourse due to repetition and overfamiliarity.

1. "White Rhino Tea" (5:55) the band going for something heavier--almost in the TED NUGENT vein of music. Some really cool elements but, as a whole it just doesn't come together well. (8.75/10)

2. "Sploosh! (6:24) real water sounds with TD sequencer joined by synth sploosh bass and flanged bass start this one off but the recordings of water being manipulated seem to be the lead instrument that everything else is trying to buoy. In the third minute speed-manipulated guitar play enters for a bit but alternates with splooshy sounds and other keyboard oddities every 20 seconds or so. I'm sure this was fun to create in the studio, but as a listening pleasure it holds little interest. (8.6666667/10)

3. "Saucers" (7:30) the band moves into its now-recognizable Arabian-influenced musical spectrum with some fancy almost-Bayou guitar and rock drums and bass. Spacey keys join in during the second minute. The melody picked up at the two-minute mark for the "chorus" is very familiar from (so many) other OT songs of this ilk. About halfway through, as the soundscape thickens, the Arabian flavours turn more Spanish--and hold this way throughout the more rockin' second half. (13.25/15)

4. "Strangeitude" (7:29) Arabian nose horn opens this as if a call to prayer while monstrous bass notes float and morph ominously beneath. a great groove from the rhythm section drives this one into and through multiple aural dimensions without suffering veer or deviation. Some very sound manipulation at the beginning of the fourth minute cuts off the opening motif, cleaning the slate for a totally new groove to set up. It sounds like the dance music from The Matrix Reloaded (which doesn't come out for another 12 years). Then alien voices and other odd "vocal"izations flit in and out while the future rave continues. Pretty cool. The coolest, most original and innovative song on the album. (13.5/15)

5. "Bizarre Bazaar" (4:04) a very engaging song with Nature/animal sounds (of course) but a nice jazz-rock fusion flow and feel to it (with some Arabian inflections). (8.875/10)

6. "Space Between Your Ears" (7:46) time for a jaunt into Rastafarian jungle lands. The bass holds the line with spacious drumming doing the Jamaican time keeping while a wild assortment of odd noises are thrown into the soup-- until the third minute when a righteous slide guitar seems to want to direct traffic--but then, lo! and behold! it just disappears, allowing more oddities and keyboard sounds to be thrown in. It's like we're viewing a constantly flowing jumble of random items (thoughts and ideas). I like the shift in drumming (percussion) in the fourth minute and then the hyper bass in the fifth--before the guitar re-enters to wail away. Pretty cool song despite my usual aversion to all- things Reggae. The final two minutes are pure rockin' jam-ba-lam. (13.35/15)

Total Time: 39:08

B/four stars; an excellent display of creative sound engineering over great grooves.