Octopus is the band’s 3rd release, but the first time I laid my ears upon them. The first song, “Who Knows What The Question Is,” intrigued me from the start – it’s quirky, an alt-folk-country sound with just enough classic rock thrown in, with wry lyrics and catchy rhythm. So…I listened on. The songs flow really nicely, and while they share a distinctive flavor in beat and mood, the album as a whole successfully avoids monotony. The next song that really had me boppin’ my head around and singing along within moments is “(This Is For The) Better Days.” This was the track that caused me to stop the album, just a few tracks short of the end – go back to the very beginning – and hit play again.

It’s just great fun. “Left Foot Stepdown,” “Listening Man,” and “The Ocularist” are also notable party favors. That’s actually another great bonus about listening to The Bees… Still being slightly under the radar (and deliciously British), if you slipped on this album at a party, people would inevitably interrupt their current conversations to say, “Who is this?” “I dunno, but it’s good“. So not only will you feel really light and happy due to the effects of the music itself, but… it will make you look cool.

If you look them up you may see words like “psychedelic,” “hippy,” and “Grateful Dead.” Do not be frightened. Here are some other words: “soul,” “punk” and “Beatles.” Octopus is a thoroughly enjoyable listen, and I will be investigating some of their earlier works.

Not to mention their newest effort: The Sound Selection was released 5/5/08. Their website seems to be currently under construction, but they have a pretty cool MySpace page.