Birmingham producer The Phasing Octopus has only been releasing music for a couple of years, but once he got started, he went at a steady clip. His most recent release came this past October, when he gave us the EP, inspired by a trip to LA: sounds. Now he’s back with an ambitious album, a long night.

Listening to a long night, it won’t take long to realize what a special talent The Phasing Octopus is. As you work your way through what he describes as a soundtrack to “one of those nights where u get a lil more action than u bargained for,” you’re not just getting generic boom bap or trap beats with some timely samples or audio clips to walk you through the narrative. Instead, you’re getting an album that bounces between free jazz, fusion, hip hop, jungle, house, and experimental electronic music to score the action of a night where the universe keeps pulling you in different directions. It’s the type of album that you really need to listen to one-on-one in one sitting, so that you can really let yourself go in the moment and let The Phasing Octopus’s music guide you as you go on this audible journey. While it is expansive and challenging, what makes the album work so well is that The Phasing Octopus never loses his focus – there’s always a plan to connect the dots and push the music forward. In doing so, it’s an album that might seem a little wild at first, but the longer you stick with it, and maybe give it a few repeat listens, the bigger picture will start to come into focus and you realize how intentional his compositions actually are.

A long night is another excellent effort from Birmingham’s The Phasing Octopus. It’s ambitious and challenging, but it’s also soulful and thoughtful as he takes you on the musical journey that won’t sound like most albums you hear in 2022.