| CD REVIEW TSM/SLW Promotion special August 2010, Part 2: Mike Campese, Fatiniza, Feeding the Fire, GHz, Lucid Recess, Mac Blagick |
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TSM/SLW Promotion special August 2010, Part 2: Mike Campese, Fatiniza, Feeding the Fire, GHz, Lucid Recess, Mac Blagick Wow, took e some time before I could get back to writing another of these specials (due to too many other releases suddenly falling on my to-do plate – in fact, I'm still behind as far as that is concerned...but I'm doin' my best, dear readers, and only a couple of days ago the editor-in-chief had the most wonderful news about two new people being added to the Concrete Web reviewers crew, so that should take some of the load off my back in the near future), and a whoppin' nicely diverse one it was too, with bands from several corners of the world! Bands/ artists: Mike Campese (NY, USA), Fatiniza (Colombia – Dubai), Feeding The Fire (North Carolina, USA), GHz (Washington DC, USA), Lucid Recess (Assam, India) & Mac Blagick (Stockholm, Sweden) ----------------------------------------- Having taken an education in music (well, actually the man continues to build his education on a private basis, learning from several renowned musicians) from Shaker High School and California's GIT (where he graduated with honors, having been taught by the likes of Paul Gilbert, Norman Brown, Scott Henderson, Keith Wyatt, and so many other teachers at the world-famous institute), Latham (New York) based Mike Campese is now himself a teacher of guitar and bass techniques to more than 60 students at a total of 5 schools. He's also written tutorials for on-line sites and renowned musician's magazines (such as Guitar World, Guitar One, and Guitar Player. As a musician, he's played with Mister Strange (recorded 2 albums), Starlight Theater, Jeckyl And Hyde (a self-titled album), Supa Cumba (one album), Nova, Miranda James, Mike Quashie, Monkee Madness, and Trans-Siberian Orchestra (for which he was awarded a Gold album). He also contributed to albums by Cole Keneally (Rain), Art Bernstein (Passages), and Johnny Lokke (The New Breed). He also made a contribution to the Jason Becker tribute album Warmth in The Wilderness, issued through Lion Music (and an album I reviewed back in 2001). Following the self-released(?) albums Total Freedom, Full Circle (which was played on NPR radio stations across the USA), Vibe, The New (2005), Hidden Treasures, and The Meaning Of Christmas (2008), the guitar virtuoso now comes with his 7th solo recording to date. Stylistically, the 14 songs on the album show different sides to the electric guitar, and with influences cited including Blck Sabbath, Al Di Meola, Niccolo Paganini, Beethoven, Mozart, Yngwie Malmsteen, Vivaldi, and many more (not listed), you can imagine a very versatile musician playing anything from Shred to Progressive, from Fusion Jazz to Neo-Classical, and even from Oriental (say Indian, perhaps) to Funky tinted stuff (check “Butterfingers”)...a diversity which really entices the unaware listener into keeping focus on the musical offerings. On top of which you'll also find Campese performing vocals on 3 tracks (the Indian tinted “Cruisin Across The Mojave”, the wacky synth-laden but truly epic “Kauai Blue”, and the real nice “Landshark”), adding even more to the diversity. Oh well, admittedly singing ain't Campese's strongest point, but with the wonderfully played music underneath, one couldn't care less! To find samples off most of the songs off this great guitarist's solo albums, check out the “Music” section at his own website (www.) mikecampese.com. For a couple of full-length tracks, surf to myspace.com/mikecampese. 95/100 -------------------------------------------- Originating from Bucaramanga in North-Colombia (the fairly big town is situated some 300 kms North from the country's capital city Bogota), Fatiniza (full name F. Gamarra Ponzon), is a Pop/ Rock singer-songwriter left behind home city & country to seek out a better promotion vehicle for her music. Somehow, that landed her on the other side of the world, in the Arab Emirate of Dubai. She and her band (of which I know absolutely nothing, except for the fact that it consists of 2 guitarists, a bassist, a drummer, a female backing singer, and an additional percussionist – you know, to bring in the occasional Latin Conga sounds) apparently made waves soon enough (part of that success certainly due to the act that the singer often performs in short hotpants, and is often accompanied on stage by a couple of belly dancers), with Fatiniza representing proudly her home country at the early annual Dubai Sound City festival in early November 2009 (if I'm not mistaken, she took time out from the studio, already in the process of recording her debut album after having been spotted by Dubai based label Daxar Music earlier in the year). In early October, she had also impressed at the 2-day Hatta Fort Events Arena (help apparently both at Hatta and Dubai), and Dubai's Rocktoberfest. Funnily enough, I've even read (in one of the concert reviews at her website fatiniza.com) of the Rock Chica making acoustic appearances, and still blow people away! Anyway, turns out she's already performed before none less than the infamous womanizer Tiger Woods, football giants AC Millan, and His Highness Sheik Mohamed Al Maktoum. In preparation for the album's release, a video was made for single “Out Of Control”, and released in January of this year. It immediately got raving reception from the local media (Dubai One TV invited Fatiniza to their 20 Something show to have her perform both the single and additional track “Babe Come On”; Dubai Eye 103.8 radio did an interview including track play from the album; Gulf News do an interview with her, including a rehearsal video of “out Of Control”; Time Out have an interview with her and include a video of the alternate acoustic studio version of “Out Of Control”)...and essentially, when the band did their album launch gig at Dubai's Alpha Club in late April, the house was packed from front to doors with enthousiast fans, music lovers, and music industry folk. Well, that's not so surprising. Although she has occasionally been compared to Shakira (whom also happens to be Colombian born), Fatiniza occasionally rocks out far harder than I've ever heard from her major label competition. Oh well, competition? Perhaps Fatiniza rocks out a bit too hard (check the shorter “Femtosecond”) occasionally to be truly appreciated by the more Pop-geared mainstream folks? Whatever! What you get on this album is a good combination of Hard Rock Pop, acoustic ballad (“Hard To Be Your Woman”), and the occasional ethnically charged tracks (obviously, the Latin vibe comes through here and there, but you've also got an occasional soft-Oriental touch – I suppose, one has to give Caesar his due when you're staying in his country). Due to the wacky element of the album, wherein Fatiniza brings a trio of songs in an alternate vocal version (“Confusion”, “Que Dificil Es Querete” and “Yo Querer Ser” are respectively Spanish versions of “Out Of Control”, “Hard To Be Your Woman”, and “The One”) prior to having a remix version of the track “Fortune Teller” ending the 11-track album...I kinda hisitate calling this a full-length. I mean, there's only 7 original tracks, ain't there?. Oh, but beggars can't be chosers, because what Fatiniza offers is actually really nice! Check it out for yourself by either listening to the full-length version of “Out Of Control” plus samples of 7 other tracks posted at myspace.com/fatizima...or check out the video section at her own website (more full-length tracks, see? Huh...that's a pun, I suppose!). 90/100 ----------------------------------------- Info lacking, I've no clear idea of when this Chapel Hill (North Carolina) based Progressive Rock quartet, currently consisting of singer/ keyboardist Ken Cannon, his drumming brother Keith, guitarist Andrew Sears Hoover, and bassist “Reverend Nappy” Johnson (the latter a recent addition to replace one Eric Smith, whom still plays on the recordings of the band's debut full-length) came into existence, but they've had a MySpace page since early Summer 2004...so that's somewhat of an indicator, right? Along the way, the band self-released their 3-track debut EP Naked To The Invisible Eye in late 2006 (which was reviewed at the time by one journalist as being a cross between Joy Division and Yes). Now if that title sounds somewhat awkward to you, know that the band has a sneaky way of incorporating subliminal messages and social commentary into songs that relate to such topics as life, love, and liberty. And that's something you can certainly find back again in the band's debut full-length's title, isn't it? And when you listen to the title track, the “social commentary” becomes a clear political criticism when the guys incorporate several politicians' vocal samples (taken from tv journal broadcasts). Now even if the Joy Division-meets-Yes comparison was a good one for the EP, I would say that overall there's a far broader range in the band's current music. Sure, when you'll check the list of influential bands on their MySpace page, FTF will admit to having an affinity to “old” bands such as Yes, Rush, Led Zeppelin, King Crimson, The Who, Depeche Mode (!), The Cure, and Jethro Tull, but they also cite more contemporary Progressive bands such as Bloc Party, Muse, Mars Volta, Radiohead, Faith No More, The Melvins, Spinal Tap, Ween, Primus and, top of the list, Tool...plus Motown, anything with Soul, '60s and '70s Progressive Rock, '80s electronic New Wave, and '90s alternative music. Well, in spite of those modern bands being cited and even if the band occasionally goes into a more “aggressive” mode (check “Ms. Brownstone” for the band's most adrenalized track), there's an overall serenity in the tracks that harks the band back to the Progressive Rock sounds of the late '70s and early '80s! A lot of that is due to the singer's awkward vocal signature: slightly nasal and limited in range, it has the advantage of giving the band a face quite its own (something which is often amiss in today's music industry). But the feeling is equally due to the sublime play of the musicians. Underneath the nicely interwoven music, you'll find each musician expertly plays the catchy melodies laid down for him (the guitarist occasionally doin' overdubs to make for a fuller sound), with the singer occasionally doin' some wacky things with his synths. Closing the album is the 3-part”The Life, Love & Death Of Sucio Sanchez” (total length of the 3 parts culminating to a 13-minute song), in which the guitarist also goes acoustic, the singer also plays “acoustic” piano, and additional musicians are brought in to play fiddle and horns, further heightening the “Spanish” vibe the band itself already very expertly laid down. There's a couple of wacky vocal interludes (“The Exchange”, “Vagrant Facade”) as well, and I can only guess (nah, I won't tell ya) at the possible reasons of why these were put on the album, but at any rate they incorporate a freaky yet nice weirdness. In essence, this is an album in need of multiple listening sessions before the listener can grasp all the subtle things goin' on underneath the apparent melodies...and it therefore makes for a nomination into my year-lists. Even if I cannot give it the time to fully analyze the music, DisInfoNation certainly deserves goin' back to at a later date, and not for just the one session either! Oh yeah, before I forget: you can find no less than 7 tracks off the 14-track album (that is, counting the 3 parts of that album closing track as separate tracks) at myspace.com/feedingthefire. Enjoy, my pretties, enjoy...engulf yourself in the attractive awkwardness that is this band, and then go try and find yourselves a copy of the album!!! I know I will, next chance I get to pass by the record shop in town. 98/100 Band : GHz Although the trio that makes up this band (singer/ guitarist Dan Hovey, bassist/ backing singer Scott Giambusso, and drummer/ backing singer John Zidar) are seasoned musicians of the Washington, DC area, the set-list they played at their first shows in 2005 was mostly made up of covers by the power trio of Cream, Hendrix, and Led Zeppelin (later, the set would also comprised choice picked covers from Frank Zappa, The Doors, Jack Bruce, Steppenwolf, and Blind Faith). Indeed, both Eric Clapton and Jimmy are on top of Hovey's list of favourite guitarists, and it's that love which brought him and Giambusso together after not having seen each other for over 20 years. During an initial jam playing covers (just for fun), they found their vibe and started thinking seriously about starting a band. Immediately Zidar (a Ginger Baker fan), whom is an old-time collaborator (the three even played together 25 years back) came to Hovey's mind...and the rest is futile historical details. Having played every nook and cranny in their town's vicinity and beyond, time came to put some tunes onto a sound carrier, resulting in the band's debut album There's Trouble Coming, a recording of 5 originals completed to full-length with covers by Cream, Hendrix, and The Doors. For their sophomore album the band decided to drop the covers, and go for the recording of 10 all-original tracks, two of which can be considered instrumentals (in actuality that definition only applies to “Mary Shelley's Troubled Sleep” - which I'm guessing also appeared on the band's debut – as “OMG” doés have the chorus “Oh my, oh my, oh my God” runnin' through it twice). Stylistically, I'd say the band's music is very close to the slightly Psychedelic side of Cream, with the advantages of modern recording techniques, and the addition of a slightly funky undertone here and there. Oh, admittedly, there's a definite Hendrix undertone in a couple of songs as well – check “In My Dreams”, for instance, and a couple of songs have a contemporary touch which somehow seem out of place here (check “Life On The Food Chain”). All very nice, of course, but somehow the vocals don't really fit into the whole. Don't get me wrong, nobody's singing off-key or anything, but somehow the vocals are just too...”normal” to add a positive jive to the whole. If anything, their “normality” is what holds the music back somehow! I have to say, the vocals dó work for me in the aforementioned “In My Dreams”, and the same can be said about the very Clapton remeniscent “Turn That Damned Thing Off” , but that's mainly due to the nice female backings, I guess! At myspace.com/ghzrocks, you can find a good host of songs to savour...I mean, 7 songs off the new album and another 4 off the debut, that ain't bad, is it? If you're into late '60s Rock, by all means check this out! 80/100 -------------------------------------------------- And now, ladies and gentlemen readers, for something completely different...for when did you ever hear of a Rock/ Metal band from such an awkward place as India? Still, and what's even more incredible, as it turns out India has a very thriving “Rock” scene...and there's even band contests in that far-away part of the world! News of Rock and Metal bands from that part of the world won't come our way too often, and I am therefore deeply grateful to the people at the TSM/SLW Promotion Agency (three cheers for Nicky Baldwin!!!) for making me attentive on the whole thing! Lucid Recess is based in the town of Guwathi in the Northerly province of Assam in East India (a part of the country situated above Pakistan) and was founded there by brothers Siddhardt (guitar, backing vocals) and Amitabh Barooa (lead vocals, bass, and occasional keyboards), whom had been playing their instruments for a long time before, but never in a band situation. Since 2009 their drummer/ additional backing singer is one Partha Boro. With another drummer they played their debut gig a the Assam Engineering College Pyrokinesis band contest in their formation year (2004), and came out first runners up. After some more gigs around their hometown, the band was put on hold until mid 2005 due to several obligations, but in June of that year their song “The Samurai Crab” was included in the compilation We Are The Scene Vol. 2, issued by Mumbai based label Ennui Bomb (hey...I've heard of that label before). Thanks to having their own studio, the band came out with their debut 7-track EP Carved (the songs of which had a wide range of socio-political lyrical topics, including aids, global warming, terrorism, and alcohol & drug abuse) in December 2007, to positive reactions from both music fans and press (the song “If I Could” was give a 3/5 rating in Rolling Stones India magazine). Late October 2008 then saw the release of a video for the song “Painstaking Obsession”, created and directed by Rueban Issac with a cast of post-graduate students in Theater Studies from The University Of Surrey in the UK. The EP, enhanced with a previously unreleased acoustic version of “Painstaking Obsession”, was distributed on a 42,000 copy rotation with the RSJ magazine in June 2009, leading (evidently) to a huge exposure for the band and a broadening of their audience. Since the (original) release of the EP, the band has taken part in various shows and festivals [among which the May 2008 RSJ PubRockFest (where they opened for Them Clones), the (Shilong leg of the) Great Indian Rock XII festival tour (playing alongside Norway's Sagh amongst others) and Picks N' Sticks 2008 later in the year, as well as the Kingfisher RSJ PubRockFest and Rock Chapel Vol II in 2009. “Painstaking Obsession” was given further lease as a promotional tool for the band, when the song was put on the August and September CD's of the Great Indian Rock XII compilation CDs. In November '09 the band announced that they were selected to participate in the Hornbill National Rock Contest 09 (possibly one of the longest living Rock festivals in that part of the world, the Hornbill Music Festival is a high-level, 7-day festival in Assam's neighboring province of Nagaland. In other words, here's an Alternative Metal/ Rock act with quite some name in India...and until now we hadn't even heard of it! Work on the band's debut full-length (12-tracks with a duration of 55 ½ minutes) was started in June-July of last year, and finished in Jan-Feb of 2010. Although “Alternative Metal” is a label the band uses itself, and while it certainly is correct in the case of such songs as “The Tribe”, “Purpose” and “Socially Active Warrior”, the band frequently indulges in a (Post-)Grunge Rock (check “Lost”, “Colourful Deja Vu”, “Feel Like Human” with its melancholic strings passage, and “Can't Help Me” with its minimalistic organ contribution)...but underneath it all there's also a Progressive touch which elevates the band's songs to a level the average music lover will not be able to ignore! The band however also shows a more sensitive side to themselves with the acoustic half of the semi-balladesque “B.Y.T.C.” (short for “Best Yet To Come”). Amitabh's vocals (enhanced with the other members' backings) are fairly accent-free and more than passing the test. Siddhardt is definitely a great guitarist, and his production of the album has given it a sound one expects to find only on major label releases. The lesson to be learned here today, dear readers, is for you to check out the songs posted at myspace.com/lucidrecess at your most convenient moment...hey, I'm kiddin' here: check it out a.s.a.p. (that, in case you don't know, means “as soon as possible” - which should be immediately after you've read the last sentences of this review, or earlier!) 93/100 ------------------------------------------------------------ Now based in Stockholm, this Swedish band has a rich history which goes back to the late '90s, when guitarist Nils Ekblad and bassist Karl Sjödin already collaborated. In 2002 they moved from their original hometown of Eskiltuna (some 90 kms West of Stockholm) to Uppsala (65 ms NNW from Stockholm) for studies. This led to new connections and the formation of the heavy trio Aska with drummer Ingo Blomqvist...whom was somehow disabled (the story gives no details) and the mutation of Aska into Blues band the Boom Boom Band, which performed in Finland and the Baltics for about a year. In that time many drummers passed the review, but only Kristoffer Widman distinguished himself enough to warrant the original duo wanting to continue working with him. After the demise of the Boom Boom Band, a new trio with a membership you can easily guess, was formed in the winter of 2006 under the name of Blues Magick. In May of the same year singer Martin Wiberg from Uppsala based Funk act was invited for some jam sessions, and immediately enlisted as the band's vocalist, since he shared the other members' vision of creating something new with influences from traditional Jazz, Hard Rock, and tenebrism (a term originating from the world of painting relating to a style using lots of darkness, said to be initiated by Italian painter Carravaggio). A name change was performed, and Mac Blagick was born! In 2007 the band released it's self-titled debut album, and I understand they're currently working on a third one...but before we can get into that, we're asked to turn out attention to the band's great sophomore album! For some wacky reason Mac Blagick's style immediately put the early '70s British Psychedelic Rock band the Pink Fairies to mind. Well, perhaps the PF were occasionally somewhat more raucous, and MB does keep up a somewhat same slower pace throughout...but this allows each of the musicians to shine as well! At any rate, they have that vintage sound on the guitar which is simply delectable. Seems to me the Psychedelics come through most prominently, and the Jazz influences will probably come floating up in live conditions. Indeed, some of the 11 tracks on the album are ready more than adept for jam sessions! The singer has a nice hoarseness in his semi-high pitched voice, which goes together so pérfectly with the played musical style, and for people such as me...who've got a connection to the Psychedelic Rock world of way back when (then)...an act such as Mac Blagick is a rare treat! Those who feel that bond should check out the band right now to convince themselves of the extraordinary qualities of this band, and order the album from the band. Oh, a couple of weird moments: in the closing passage of second track “Garden Of Apple Trees”, the band uses a sped-up section from earlier in the song, heightening te psychedelic factor; then “Venus No. 17” is a rather calm piano instrumental, and closer to neo-classical than to Jazz. Those among you not familiar with the '70s Psychedelics, but eager to hark back to the sounds of yesterday, feel free to check out the songs posted at myspace.com/macblagick. If you're into Good Music, you will undoubtedly recognize this band's worth! About the upcoming third album? Well, it seems it took the band about a year after finishing the recordings for Ramadawn, to get it out on the streets (all that time they were looking from a new label, not liking what happened with their debut album). In April this year the band posted an announcement that they'd been in rehearsals, and came out with enough material (which still needed some refining details) for a new album. As far as I'm concerned, I hope the guys find a distributor in Europe...because I'm afraid Ramadawn may prove to be a difficult buy outside of Scandinavia. I sure would want a copy of the album though, and regrettably my editor-in-chief has his name written on all TSM/SLW material which comes to the website. Here's a perfect rating for you, guys! 98/100 Tony. |
