Big Wilson River – Octopus 8.0

                Big Wilson River makes me long for early indie rock, back when it was more rambunctious. Octopus delivers on providing a chaotic, rambling, and surprising take on the sound, reminding me strongly of early Modest Mouse. It is a bit of a shame more bands don’t follow this same energetic format. ‘Octopus’ is alone in how it veers between the quiet, meditative pieces and loud rants. Perhaps New Jersey offers the best incubator for this kind of sound. 

                Octopus climbs out of a heart, ready to grab whatever is within reach. The music works similarly. Every song appears to heave itself around, in a vaguely disorientated and frustrated fashion. It is quite a bit of fun to listen to something this bombastic. Drums, guitar, organ, and near-shouted vocals come together quite nicely on this short album. 

                I like the longer songs on here. My personal favorite is “Noah Goldstein”. This is the only song dedicated to an individual. Dan Scarpa does a great job on the keyboards, which adds without distracting from the singing. A few times the song slows down to let out a more playful vibe, tiny, quiet and fun. The guitars sound clean. Call me a sucker for a multi-part song, but this is good. It gives me hope that perhaps other bands will mine this more immediate sound, rejecting the icy coldness of 80s revivalism. 

                With ‘Octopus’ I’m convinced that someday we’ll have that 90s rock revival. Here’s hoping. And it’ll probably begin in New Jersey.