Brother Octopus - Connected Through Corals

​Brother Octopus

​Connected Through Corals
self-released; 2016

3.8 out of 5

By Matt Jensen
​

Brother Octopus is a band that formed in 2011 and recently released their fourth studio album entitled Connected Through Corals. The band members known as Brother Octopus, Little Guppy, Golden Boy, Sea Bass and New Guy collaborated with a different artist for each track. In lesser hands this idea could be a disaster but the results are quite rewarding. The disparity from track to track is minimal and weaved together but the music of Brother Octopus. I definitely have some preferences along the way and they were the songs that didn’t seem to take themselves too seriously.

Take for instance the dance track “Cheetah On Drugs (feat. The Skips).” The song is catchy, a bit silly but not too bananas and has an airy, light vibe to it. Another highlight that is full of levity and humor while being insanely catchy is  “In The Future (feat. Two Bears North).” The combination of female and male voices works wonderfully in this song. The chorus is addictive and repeat worthy. They sing “There will be love / There will be hate / The sun will rise / The moon will fade In one hundred years / This will all be changed / We’ll be in the clouds / Watching everything. Great chorus.

They are other optimistic, fun dance songs not far off from a band like Passion Pit. Take for instance “Pronto (feat. Sirens & Shelter)” or ”Rebels (feat. A Gentleman's Pact).” The songs definitely start to have a celebratory vibe the more you listen. Not a bad album to listen to when you’re feeling a bit morose. 

“Synth Cowboy (feat. Jake Ian)” brings to mind the band MGMT while “This Universe (feat. Dunna)” is another buoyant dance track that feels carefree emitting positive vibes. “This Universe (feat. Dunna)” very well may be the highlight. The multiple vocalists are fantastic but have to admit I preferred the female. They close with “Video Game Revolution (feat. KickupaFuss)” which is a perfectly appropriate name.

​Brother Octopus took a chance by working with different artists that paid off in the long run. Connected Through Corals is ultimately a bubbly pop album that delivers solid songwriting along with a good amount of diversity.

official website

Tweet