Recording review: Joe Satriani, Unstoppable Momentum

Raise the prog-fusion flag and respect the axe!

There was once a golden age of progressive fusion. Back in the early ‘90s, performers like Eric Johnson, Steve Vai, and Joe Satriani astounded audiences with showy fretboard work and expressive melodies. The genre took its parentage from jazz fusion guitarists like John McLaughlin and Jeff Beck, but it borrowed heavy metal techniques like extreme whammy bar abuse, two handed tapping and speedy sweep picking. Largely instrumental, these songs followed jazz’s modal structure rather than relying on metal-style riffs or old school verse-chorus-bridge arrangements. After a few short years of public acclaim, though, the imposing style fell out of favor. Johnson became hamstrung by his own perfectionism after releasing Ah Via Musicom (1990) and Steve Vai’s followup to Passion and Warfare (1990), 1993’s Sex & Religion, got mired in band politics and ego clashes. Satriani had a good run of albums from 1987’s Surfing with the Alien through The Extremist (1992), but the next year’s release, Time Machine, didn’t fare as well. Like all but his truest fans, I lost track of his solo work around that time, but Unstoppable Momentum seems to pick up where The Extremist left off.
The songs run through a variety of moods from the introspective Gaelic feel of “I’ll Put a Stone on Your Cairn” to the funky electric boogie of “Jumpin’ In”. But Satriani’s ability to tap into the emotional well of each tune is a constant strength across the album. His playing mindset also separates him from his metal-head shred-meister cousins. Treating his guitar like a vocal track, he doesn’t burn through all of his technical tricks in a single song and he’s rarely repetitive or constrained by a collection of riffs.

On “Can’t Go Back”, Satriani’s initial guitar melody effectively sings a chorus, “Can’t go back/ Though you try,” which forms a recurring foundation for the rest of the song. The tune has a new wave feel anchored by Chris Chaney’s bass and Mike Keneally’s keyboard shimmers. The guitar takes on a reflective tone as it argues its point. The energy builds, capturing the frustration of looking back and fighting the past. His solo opens into that emotional turmoil with cathartic abandon that culminates in a dynamic drop to reset the song for a second pass. The band restates the earlier arguments, but never falls back into the same frustration, creating a sense of acceptance.

By contrast, “Shine on American Dream” is simpler and more direct. The throaty rock vamp of staccato guitar crunch supports a bluesy Americana vibe. The uplifting sense of pride lacks subtlety, but the earnest delivery gives the tune an anthemic quality. With the right set of words to convey the song’s optimism, this could be the breakout radio single for the album. Satriani stamps the tune with his imprimatur, adding a fluid, show-off lead that adds the perfect touch of pomp. The other radio-friendly cut, “A Door Into Summer” is less effective. Like “Shine on American Dream”, it relies on a less-developed structure, but the busier vocal line of the guitar doesn’t make the same impact.

Over several times listening to Unstoppable Momentum, it was the pensive darkness of “Lies and Truths” that gradually became my favorite. Keneally’s keyboard opening creates a sense of chill. This turns to tense calculation with Vinnie Colaiuta’s tight syncopation on the drums. The production ping-pongs Satriani’s detuned guitar from side to side, suggesting an argument. The next section lurches into a malevolent counterpoint groove reminiscent of Robert Fripp’s tense angularity, which represents the lies part of the title. In the “truths” section, the band comes into harmony, flattening the rough edges into a simpler forward drive. The layered guitars sing rising tones of affirmation before dropping the song back into the difficult question: which are the lies? A ripping two-handed solo vents its anger before the song runs through the lies and truths again. The interesting back story to this song is that Satriani played an experiment on the band with this track. Although he had already decided on the final title, the band was given a working title of “Fast Robot” during the recording sessions. He liked the effect this had on the band’s decisions about what to play. Colaiuta, for instance, gradually picked up complexity in his drum part until it built into the sound of a robot gone haywire. In the context of the real title, this helped drive the anger and tension of the song’s second half.

I’m glad to check in again with Satch and find that he’s still keeping the prog-fusion flame alive. While it’s not likely to spark a popular revival of the genre, Unstoppable Momentum is solid offering sure to please fans and impress guitarists of all levels of experience.

(This review first appeared on Spectrum Culture)

World music - on location

I recently got the chance to travel for my day job. My flight to India routed through Germany, giving me a chance to take some vacation time to visit old friends and favorite cities. One of my important stops was Bamberg, a beautiful city with a rich heritage. Aside from the fine rauchbier and comfortable atmosphere, I looked forward to visiting my favorite music shop on the Grüner Markt. My mission was to buy Die Ärzte's latest album, Auch (2012). I've been a fan for a long time, appreciating their humor and catchy songs. I could just buy their albums online, but the packaging is often a special treat. For example, Auch comes in a small box and the liner notes unfold into a board game where the CD is the spinner.

While I was there, I decided to discover some new bands. Otto, the shopkeeper, served as my guide. Given that I liked the pop-punk flair of  Die Ärzte, he suggested Wizo and Troopers. Wizo had a good punk sound and flashes of humor while Troopers had more of a metallic punch. Even though they lacked the polish of Die Ärzte, I enjoyed them enough to bring home. The only downside is that these were older albums from the '90s. Still, they'll serve me well for my German practice.

Continuing on to India, I spent the bulk of my time in Mumbai. While I know a fair amount about German music, my knowledge of Indian artists is limited to Ravi Shankar, although I am familiar with the instrumentation. Rather than trying to immerse myself in the roots of Indian classical music, though, I looked for cultural bridges. I found Get Recharged!!! by Anuradha Pal. Pal is a renowned tabla player and her band on this project merges Western elements of jazz and classical into her traditional sounds. "Energy" (a live version is linked below) begins with a lush keyboard and piano intro before bringing in a rhythmic chant of bol or solkattu syllables. The hybrid sound juxtaposes the familiar and the exotic, creating a heady groove.

Pianist Rohhan Patel comes from the other direction. His album, Aseem (Boundless), seems more rooted in a rock foundation, using sitar and tabla to broaden the sound. Unfortunately, I couldn't find any samples to reference below. Finally, I picked up Naviin Gandharv's album, Silver Lining. This album features a unique instrument, the belabaharr, which is something like a violin with droning sympathetic strings. Gandharv's music is distinctly Indian, but offers a hint of new age exploration.

All of these albums reflect the shrinking size of our world. Influences ignore borders and extend local expression. They bridge cultures and, regardless of whether we speak the same language, give both sides a path to appreciation.

Die Ärzte - "Ist das noch Punkrock"

Wizo - "Geisterfahrer"

Troopers - "Kopf hoch"

Anuradha Pal - "Energy"

Naviin Gandharv - "The Royal Touch"

Naviin Gandharv - "Raag Megh" (not from the album, but it shows the belabaharr in a traditional setting)

CD review - The Jonestown Potion, The Jonestown Potion (2009)

Capturing lightning? Earlier, the Jonestown Potion's live show blew my mind. How does their self-titled CD measure up? The jazz centric jam band mixes a tossed salad of styles and influences, both across the disc as well as within any given song. Those influences include Frank Zappa, King Crimson, Ozric Tentacles, and Miles Davis. At their roots, the Jonestown Potion are locked in on Davis' electric jazz fusion period. The other bits swirl by, waiting for some quick recognition, then drifting off. During their performance, this flowed naturally. While this often works on the album, too, some of the stylistic jumps feel a little rough and contrived. That shouldn't detract from this ambitious album, though.

The album is littered with clever titles that don't often provide much clue about the songs. So we have the short, Zappa-esque Beaux Flecks, the Emerson, Lake, and Palmer vibe of General Dogmeat, or Chocolate Warhead's tribute to Dave Brubeck's Take Five. This all reflects a band that doesn't take itself too seriously. Despite the meta-joke of the titles, the playing is all tight and focused.

A couple of tunes really stand out. Like most of their songs, Tumble Junky goes through a number of musical phases. It leads off with a bop groove into a Jeff Beck style song, sort of like Freeway Jam with a touch of horns from Zappa's Mothers of Invention. The bass line here is busy and rocking, I almost missed it because so much was going on around it, including some nice sax work. The changes, especially in the bop section are tight. After working the main theme, the song shifts phase again to grind down into a Charlie Hunter style slow blues jam. This gives Eli Cagen another chance to cut loose on a moodier sax solo. The organ solo during this section recalls Al Kooper's work on Super Session.

The moody and introspective Dancing Grannies also moves through its own set of stylistic hoops. It starts out with a laid back bass driven groove, backed by loose drumming in 7. That shifts time signature to a break section in 8. These parts alternate, with smooth transitions on the time change. There are some casual, noodling leads on keys and later guitar, while the horns throw in some nice texture. Maybe it's the interesting beat, but it reminds me of Brubeck again. After a couple of times around, it picks up some intensity, adding some fuzzed out guitar to the break. Back to the main theme, there's some easy call and response work between the strings and the horns. The song shifts into more of psychedelic rock jam ending.

Other notable tracks include Saint Jemima's Satanic Baby Shower, which mutates a rolling piano centered jazz jam into Ozric Tentacles style space psychedelia, Venetian Finger Trap, with its flip-flop mood swings, and Dish of Ants, which starts out experimental but settles into a straighter modal jazz sophistication.

Visit the Jonestown Potion's MySpace page to listen to a number of their songs.

My personal Jonestown potion would have to be my friend Kyle's "Mead For Mere Mortals", a Hatch chile infused sweet mead. Strange and challenging? Sure, but well worth the experience.