Customer Reviews

Curious Corn

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Decent late '90's effort from the Ozrics.Total of seven tracks.The absolute best being the disc's closer "Meander",which is nearly worth the price of admission alone."Oolite Groove" and the eleven-minute title cut "Curious Corn" are also good.Overall,another piece of Ozric Testacles(that's TENTACLES!)giving fans some more 'new age' neo-space rock tunes to trip on.Worth checking out.

While in their eariler days the Ozrics were in my opinion one of the greatest psychedelic bands, after the last couple of discs I was wondering if these guys would ever get out of their rut. They'd been turning out more or less the same sound for a decade and didn't seem to be going anywhere. Now, with several new band members they have a more modern electronic sound without forgetting their roots. They've always straddeled the line between psychedelic progressive and rave, always leaning more towards the former, but with the new keyboard player they get a healthy dose of 90's electronics to make things exciting again. This ranks almost as good as Pungent Effungent or Strangetitude.

'Curious Corn' was the 1st album I heard by the Ozrics, and their heady and organic fusion of jazz as well as space rock, dub reggae, electronica, glissando guitar and exotic beats and percussion was definitely my cup of (mushroom) tea, being that Im also a big fan of bands such as Hawkwind, Gong, Shpongle, Farflung. I subsequently acquired 9 more of their CDs, including the excellent 'Live at the Pongmaster's Ball' DVD '. I would also recommend to fellow Ozrics fans an obscure band I recently found on Amazon: 'CoelacanthDance': 'Sonic Excursions and Audio Spasms', who I'd wager have been influenced by the Ozrics.

Curious Corn was released under the Ozric Tentacles moniker way back in 1997. The lineup consisted of Ed Wynne on guitar and synth, Seaweed on synth, John Egan on flute, Zia on bass, and Rad on drums. This album contains everything the Ozrics are known for, such as glissando guitar galore (Oolite Groove), a meandering synth-driven track (Spyroid, NOT Meander), a percussion-laden, world music-flavored xylophone-driven tune that segues into a timbale sample (Afroclonk), and a groove-driven jam (Oddentity) along with three other tracks. Given the variety of musical styles on this CD, it's hard to get bored with it even after repeated listens. Good stuff, if you can get your hands on it.

The Ozrics usually never made people wait for more than a year for a new effort, but this time they made an exception. Between 1995 when they released Become the Other (which turned out to be their final for Dovetail) and 1997 when they released Curious Corn on a new label (Madfish), there were no releases for '96. Curious Corn marks the second release with Rad and Seaweed. For me I thought the music has improved over Become the Other, the performances are more solid. It's also more techno-oriented than most of what came before (except for Strangeitude). The first four cuts are just nothing short of amazing, but the next two cuts sound like they were slacking, but they rebounded with a great electronic/ethnic piece called "Meander". The cover features more great artwork from Blim, and the CD copy I have has a pseudo-acid ink blotter (which if you look carefully is actually a psychedelic silhouette of the band performing live). If you're a fan of the Ozrics, then this will probably be in your collection, although I feel several of their other releases are better (Jurassic Shift, Arborescence, The Hidden Step, even Sliding Gliding Worlds, The Bits Between the Bits, and There is Nothing).

this is my maiden voyage into the land of ozric tentacles and i find it throughly enjoyable. you can turn this stuff up on high and it just refuses to grate on the ears. excellent space music.

Well, I picked up on the Ozrics 20 years too late......
They gigged locally in June '05 so I went to see them and, well, I still haven't really come back. Bought 'The Eternal Wheel'(Best of...) and as a result have now acquired over half their back-catalogue. Snapper do several albums as 'two-fer-the-price-of-one' God bless 'em, and Curious Corn is no exception, being combined with Swirly Termination, whose Steep and Space Out are beyond stunning.
Curious Corn is very much in their current synth-led psychedelic/trance rock style of things, with Afroclonk perhaps being a nod toward their earlier albums, though here the emphasis is on African polyrhythms rather than the Middle Eastern/Indian feel that permeates the earlier albums. Ed's blistering guitar solos are still there though for we six-string freaks! For the more analogue among you, Jumping John still blows through his 'sticks with holes in them' as good as ever. The title track is outstanding, the bpm being possibly hazardous to those with a heart condition! (perhaps the CD should come with a health warning?!!!) Oddentity, which follows is a stunner, also featuring on Live At The Pong-Master's Ball CD & DVD as the opening number. Oh, s-d it, just go out and buy it and keep the best band on the planet (and several other planets) touring and making stunning music for us for another 20 years!
Ozrics Rule, OK!

Having witnessed Ozric's first US performance at the Wet Lands, NYC, I feel a certain intimacy with the band. This link is important because when you listen to the music, that feeling of closeness allows the listener greater insight into the group's dynamic...and this group has plenty. I would like to comment only on track 7, Meander for now. With the exception of White Rhino Tea on Stangitude, Meander is my favourite Ozric track. It vaults me into a state of being I can only describe as Twisting Radiance. The build ups and flow within this song, alone, make this album a must for any Ozric fan. I found myself driving with all the windows and sunroof open, heat blasting at midnight last night, while Meander coruscated out of the speakers into me like the nectar of gods. There is one part after the first guitar solo that is sooo good, so eloquently orchestrated that my entire essence was thrust into the immaculate deeps of the night sky. I was aflame, radiant, twisting through the heavens, gazing at the stars who were winking at me like instances of perfection.

Yet another great psychedelic progressive trip fest from the masters of the genre. The album contains elements of techno, world music, African tribal beats, progressive rock, psych and general mayhem. Ed Wynn throws out some killer guitar solos, Rad lays down some great percussion groves and Seaweed's synths are always bubbling in the background. Fans of psychedelic instrumental progressive rock should enjoy this one as much as the any of the other Ozrics discs.

This band may not be well known, but they are a real treat. Lovers of psychedelic music and creative Rock should own at least some Ozric Tentacles. I own what I believe to be their best music. I have Erpland, Jurassic Shift, Strangeitude, Pungent Effulgent, Curious Corn, and the Floating Seeds Remixed album. Curious Corn is one of my favorites. But the others are great too. They utilize so many things to make their music. It is really interesting, and never offensive. Pick up some or all of the titles I just mentioned if you like their vibe. It's all good!