Osees | OFF COURSE [Deathgod Corp]
Garage Rock / Psychedelic Rock / Krautrock | 2026
John Dwyer has spent much of his career pushing Osees through increasingly aggressive forms of psychedelic rock, hardcore punk and electronic experimentation. Released without advance notice on June 5, 2026, OFF COURSE finds the band rediscovering the possibilities of extended improvisation. Five tracks stretch across 33 minutes, with intricate rhythms, distorted guitars and restless keyboards developing through repetition and spontaneous interaction. The record has an infectious sense of enjoyment, particularly when the musicians settle into a groove and allow its possibilities to unfold.
Dwyer developed the material through extended jam sessions, subsequently refining the recordings before returning to the studio to capture the arrangements live on tape. Additional work at Stu Stu Studio brought the vocals and contributions from keyboardist Tom Dolas and singer Brigid Dawson into the finished recordings. The approach gives bassist Tim Hellman and drummers Dan Rincon and Paul Quattrone considerable freedom. Their performances establish the album's rhythmic identity, maintaining tightly coordinated patterns while the guitars and keyboards explore increasingly elaborate arrangements. Dwyer's production preserves the immediacy of the performances, retaining the abrasive instrumental textures and occasional rough edges that give the music much of its personality.
The nine-minute opener "OFF COURSE" establishes the album's exploratory character immediately. Distorted guitar phrases develop above an insistent rhythmic foundation, with sustained tones and electronic effects introducing an uneasy psychedelic intensity. The arrangement gradually accumulates instrumental detail while the bass and drums maintain its forward movement. Around the six-minute mark, an unexpectedly bright melodic passage alters the composition's direction. The transition reveals the band's instinct for finding memorable musical ideas within extended improvisations. Despite its considerable length, the track maintains interest through changing guitar figures, shifting dynamics and the collective precision of the rhythm section.
"HECATE'S REFLECTION IS A TRICK" develops this rhythmic approach across another substantial eight-minute performance. Syncopated drumming and a muscular bass pattern provide the foundation for animated organ passages and angular guitar playing. Dwyer's eccentric vocal delivery introduces clipped phrases and repetitive chanting, including a recurring left-right refrain that gradually becomes part of the rhythmic arrangement. The keyboards supply flashes of melodic color while the two drummers continually adjust their accents. Brigid Dawson's vocal contributions add further character to the album's already unusual vocal palette. The track's extended duration allows the musicians to develop their ideas patiently, creating a dense and constantly shifting piece of psychedelic funk and experimental rock.
The instrumental "THE TRICK" brings a particularly entertaining change of character. Tom Dolas introduces a playful keyboard motif that repeats throughout the composition, supported by buoyant drumming and an energetic bass line. Its rhythmic shuffle draws on vintage garage rock and psychedelic pop while retaining the band's distinctive instrumental eccentricity. The keyboard melody is deliberately simple, giving the surrounding musicians freedom to develop variations through changing accents and additional instrumental passages. Over six minutes, the composition becomes increasingly animated without abandoning its central theme. The result is one of the album's most immediately enjoyable performances, driven by the interaction between repetition and improvisation.
At just over three minutes, "SYRINGE" introduces a sharper and considerably shorter experiment. Its repetitive motorik rhythm supports fragmented vocal sounds, unsettled synthesizer passages and abrupt changes in instrumental emphasis. The track combines mechanical rhythmic consistency with deliberately irregular electronic textures. There is an appealing nervous energy to the performance, although the arrangement ends before several of its musical ideas have been developed fully. After the expansive structures of the preceding tracks, its abbreviated conclusion feels slightly premature. It remains an interesting example of the band's willingness to preserve spontaneous ideas without forcing every composition into an elaborate structure.
The closing "THE BRUTE ON HIS KNEES" offers the album's most surprising change of direction. A prominent organ arrangement introduces a measured, theatrical composition with strong progressive rock characteristics. Dwyer adopts a deeper vocal register, delivering the melody with unusual gravity while sustained keyboard chords establish a distinctly somber tone. The central vocal refrain is immediately memorable, and the restrained pacing gives the melodic development considerable space. A forceful guitar solo subsequently introduces a familiar measure of Osees aggression, creating a striking dynamic contrast with the slower vocal sections. The track's combination of elaborate keyboard writing, dramatic singing and assertive guitar playing produces an unusually satisfying conclusion.
OFF COURSE also benefits from its relatively compact overall duration. Although the opening two compositions account for more than half the running time, the record moves through several distinct musical approaches without exhausting its central ideas. The extended improvisations emphasize rhythmic discipline and instrumental communication, while the shorter compositions introduce different melodic and structural possibilities. Occasionally, the band's enthusiasm for repetition produces passages that could benefit from tighter editing. "SYRINGE" also suggests possibilities that deserve further exploration. These limitations are relatively minor within an album whose strongest moments demonstrate considerable musical imagination.
Following the confrontational intensity of 2025's "ABOMINATION REVEALED AT LAST" and the compact aggression of the "CARA MALUCO" EP, this release gives greater attention to melodic development, instrumental interaction and extended psychedelic grooves. The double-drum arrangements remain central to the band's identity, but the keyboards receive enough prominence to influence the direction of entire compositions. Dwyer's guitar work moves comfortably between abrasive improvisation and clearly defined melodic passages, while his vocal performances contribute both humor and genuine dramatic weight.
OFF COURSE succeeds because the musicians sound thoroughly engaged with the material and responsive to one another. The arrangements allow unexpected musical developments to emerge while maintaining the rhythmic conviction that has defined Osees for years. "HECATE'S REFLECTION IS A TRICK" demonstrates the strength of their extended rhythmic explorations, "THE TRICK" captures their playful instrumental chemistry, and "THE BRUTE ON HIS KNEES" reveals an impressive command of melody and dramatic songwriting. Together, these performances make OFF COURSE a rewarding addition to the band's extensive catalog and a convincing demonstration of their continuing creative vitality.
Rating: [4/5]