A Quadropus is a fantasy creature. Quadropi are four tentacled en cephalopods similar to an octopus, but sometimes with magical powers.

'Quadropus' is the third full length album by Estradasphere

Estradasphere

Estradasphere was an experimental band that originated in Santa Cruz, California during the late 1990s. The band, which in its last incarnation was based in Seattle, consisted of 6 multi-instrumentalists from a variety of musical backgrounds trained in disciplines ranging from classical music and...

. It was released on October 28, 2003.

For Quadropus, Estradasphere made a conscious decision to isolate the genres for each track, instead of including many genres in a single song. For example, "Mekapses Yitonisa" doesn't stray far from its Greek gypsy roots while "Crystal Blue" is purely Beach Boys-esque rock music. For this reason, Quadropus is considered Estradasphere's most accessible album.

The CD is enhanced and contains a video of the song "Body Slam" being performed live and can be accessed by most computers. This video would later be used for the live DVD Passion for Life

Passion for Life

Passion For Life is a combination DVD / live album by Estradasphere. It was released on March 9, 2004.-DVD:#"Hardball"#"Ah Ya Bibi"#"Buck Fever"#"Nütch"#"Mekapses Yitonisa"#"Danse of Tosho and Slavi / Randy's Desert Adventure"...

 (at the end of the video it hints that an Estradasphere DVD would be released in February 2004).

Track listing

1. "Mekapses Yitonisa" – 4:22
2. "Dubway" – 3:39
3. "King Krab Battle" – 8:31
4. "Speck" – 4:34
5. "Hardball" – 13:40
6. "A Car Ride In Idealistic Ethiopia (Part 1)" – 5:47
7. "Crystal Blue" – 3:40
8. "Jungle Warfare" – 5:42
9. "Body Slam" – 3:09
10. "At Least We'd Have Today" – 9:40

The band

• Timb Harris
  Timb Harris
  Timb Harris is a violinist, best known for his work with the eclectic Santa Cruz-based band Estradasphere ....
  
   – violin, viola, trumpet, guitar, mandolin, Turkish mandolin, vocals, percussion
• Jason Schimmel
  Jason Schimmel
  Jason Schimmel is best known as the guitarist and co-founder of the eclectic Santa Cruz band Estradasphere. He is also involved with Don Salsa, Secret Chiefs 3 and the Santa Cruz White Album Ensemble. He can also play the banjo and piano. He is well known for his versatile playing style,...
  
   – guitars (electric, acoustic, baritone), banjo, organ, piano, synths, harpsichord, vocals, percussion, beatboxing
• Tim Smolens
  Tim Smolens
  Tim Smolens is an American bass player, most notably a contributor to the artistic output of bands such as Estradasphere, Secret Chiefs 3, and Fishtank Ensemble, primarily as a bassist and songwriter...
  
   – bass (electric, upright), bari guitar, piano, synths, violin/viola/cello, vocals, percussion
• John Whooley
  John Whooley
  John Whooley, now John Whoolilurie, is a California-based musician best known for playing the saxophone and other instruments with the band Estradasphere...
  
   – saxophones, flute, vocals, beatboxing, organ

Additional musicians

• String quartet on "At Least We'd Have Today" and "Speck"
  • Violins – Timb and Ben Blechman
  • Viola – Sarah Hart
  • Cello – Aria DiSalvio
• Horn section on "King Krab Battle"
  • Trumpets – Timb, Val Hall, Richard Karst
  • Trombone – Scott Harris
  • Bass trombone – Luke Kirley
  • Saxes – John Whooley, Joel Ford, Scott Norgren, Paul Tarantino, Wes Anthony
  • Tuba – John Thomas

Album Personnel

• Produced by Tim Smolens with help from Jason Schimmel except for:
  • "Speck" – produced by Jason Schimmel
  • "Dubway" – produced by Andrew Kapner
• Recorded mostly in our living rooms (George's too), plus Bear Creek Stuidios, Pine Forest studios, CC's recording studio and Angelhouse Studios
• Engineered by Tim Smolens, Jason Schimmel, Chris Parsons and Trey Spruance
• Mixed by Tim Smolens, Timb Harris and Jason Schimmel
  • "Dubway" mixed by Andrew Kapner
  • "Bodyslam" mixed by Chris Parsons
  • "Jungle Warfare" and "Speck" mixed by Trey Spruance
• Additional engineering by Chris Parsons
• Artwork and layout by Mike Bennewitz

Dedication

Quadropus was created in loving memory of Mary Aquinas McClafferty Whooley and John Patrick Whooley Sr.

Mekapses Yitonisa

• Composition – Greek traditional
• Arranged and transcribed by Tim and Timb
• Drums – Dave Murray
• Dombeks and percussion – Mike Shannon

Trivia

• Absolutely no keyboards, drum machines, guitars or bass were used in the recording of this song.
• A live music video for the song is included on the DVD of Passion for Life
  Passion for Life
  Passion For Life is a combination DVD / live album by Estradasphere. It was released on March 9, 2004.-DVD:#"Hardball"#"Ah Ya Bibi"#"Buck Fever"#"Nütch"#"Mekapses Yitonisa"#"Danse of Tosho and Slavi / Randy's Desert Adventure"...
  
  .

King Krab Battle

• Composition – Iron Chef Whooley
• Horn arrangement by John and Tim
• Drums – Theo Mordey

Speck

• Composition – Schimmel
• Lyrics by Schimmel, Smolens
• Lead vocals – Jason
• String arrangement by Trey Spruance
• Piano – Jeff Attridge
• Drums – Theo Mordey

Hardball

• Composition – Schimmel, Whooley, Harris
• Drums – Theo Mordey
• Percussion – Doug Smolens

Crystal Blue

• Composition – Whooley
• Lead vocals – John
• Organ and piano – Dale Ockerman
• Drums and tambourine – Mike Shannon

Jungle Warfare

• Composition – Schimmel, Smolens
• Lyrics by Dave Murray
• Vocals – Dave Murray and Youri Raymond of Unhuman
• Drums – John Merryman of Cephalic Carnage
• Guitar solo – Kevin Kmetz

Bodyslam

• Composition – Estradasphere, Dave Murray
• Lyrics and lead vocals – John
• Drums – Dave

At Least We'd Have Today

• Composition – Smolens
• Lead vocals – Tim
• Vocal bridge – Joel Robinow