Hidden Step
Those who've had difficulty spotting the differences between the songs on the last 15 Ozric Tentacles albums won't have any more luck with this one. On the other hand, those who feel that what the world needs now is a really happening amalgam ofTangerine Dreamsequencer riffs with free-formGrateful Deadguitars jamming over the top will be blissed beyond belief. This outing allegedly has an Egyptian theme, and there's certainly a North African feel to the beautifully structured "Ashlandi Bol," but most of the time it's just the Ozrics doing what they do best, with Ed Wynne's fluid guitar lines soaring free over his own (and co-keyboardist Seaweed's) ever-changing synths, occasionally augmented by John Egan's trippy jazz flute, and all of it anchored by one of the world's tightest rhythm sections, Zia Gelani (bass) and Rad (drums). Despite much snooze-worthy noodling, there are moments of sublime interaction, flashes of gorgeous melodic invention and, when the tempo picks up, the urge to dance on one leg like a whirling dervish is hard to resist.--Johnny Black