Octane is the eighth studio album by American progressive rock band Spock's Beard, released on 25 January 2005. The first seven tracks form a complete piece of work, "A Flash Before My Eyes", that tells the story of a man involved in a car accident who relives his memories in the moments following the crash.[1]

Octane
Studio album by
ReleasedJanuary 25, 2005 (2005-01-25)
Recorded2004
GenreProgressive rock
Length55:49
LabelInsideOut
ProducerSpock's Beard
Spock's Beard chronology
Feel Euphoria
(2003)
Octane
(2005)
Gluttons for Punishment
(2005)

A special edition release contained a second disc which contained five new tracks, outtakes from "A Flash Before My Eyes" and a video documenting the making of the album.[2]

Critical reception edit

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic     [3]
Classic Rock     [4]
Rock Hard          [5]

With Octane, the band continued on a similar path as Feel Euphoria with a shift from progressive rock to a more straight-ahead rock sound.[6][7] As a result, Octane has received generally average reviews since its release.[3][4][5]

Track listing edit

Octane
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."The Ballet of the Impact"
I. "Prelude to the Past"
II. "The Ultimate Quiet"
III. "A Blizzard of My Memories"
Dave Meros, John Boegehold5:34
2."I Wouldn't Let It Go"Alan Morse, Boegehold4:53
3."Surfing Down the Avalanche"Nick D'Virgilio, Meros, Boegehold3:43
4."She Is Everything"
I. "Strange What You Remember"
II. "Words of Forever"
Meros, Boegehold6:46
5."Climbing Up That Hill"Meros, Boegehold3:31
6."Letting Go"Ryo Okumoto1:52
7."Of the Beauty of It All
I. "If I Could Paint a Picture"
II. "Into the Great Unknowable"
Meros, Boegehold4:53
8."NWC"D'Virgilio4:16
9."There Was a Time"Morse, Boegehold4:58
10."The Planet's Hum"D'Virgilio, Morse, Stan Ausmus4:42
11."Watching the Tide"D'Virgilio5:07
12."As Long as We Ride"D'Virgilio, Morse, Boegehold5:34
Total length:55:49
Special Edition Bonus Disc
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."When She's Gone"D'Virgilio, Meros, Boegehold5:41
2."Follow Me to Sleep"D'Virgilio, Boegehold5:39
3."Game Face"D'Virgilio, Okumoto4:10
4."Broken Promise Land"Morse, Boegehold4:45
5."Listening to the Sky"Okumoto3:08
6."Someday I'll Be Found" (String quartet, Flash #2) 1:04
7."I Was Never Lost" (Background vocals, Flash #2) 1:09
8."Paint Me a Picture" (Pipe organ outtake from Flash) 1:29
9."The Formulation of Octane" (Video)  

Sources:[8]

Personnel edit

Spock's Beard
Additional musicians
Additional credits

References edit

  1. ^ "Octane". Spock's Beard. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  2. ^ "SPOCK'S BEARD - High Octane Update". Bravewords. 29 November 2004. Retrieved 24 September 2015.
  3. ^ a b Jurek, Thom. "Octane - Spock's Beard". Allmusic. Retrieved 23 August 2011.
  4. ^ a b Ling, Dave (February 2005). "Spock's Beard 'Octane'". Classic Rock. Vol. 76. London, UK: Future Publishing Ltd. p. 91.
  5. ^ a b Rensen, Michael. "Rock Hard". Retrieved 20 May 2013.
  6. ^ "Sea of Tranquility Review". Retrieved 20 April 2022.
  7. ^ "Metalreviews Review". Retrieved 20 April 2022.
  8. ^ Octane (booklet). Spock's Beard. InsideOut Music. 2005. IOMCD 198.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)