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WEEKENDER -
Wilkes-Barre
Gareth Peard
March 2003
One word.
Crazy!
Two Words.
Project/Object!
Of those
fortunate enough to behold last Thursday�s performance by one of the
most unique bands to ever grace the Murray�s Inn stage, some my have
also taken a chance on Project/Object�s first album of original music.
�The Dream of the Dog� doesn�t entirely consist of the same line-up
in last week�s show, but just the same features a rotating cast of Frank
Zappa alumni and special guests.
In addition to
guitarist Andre Cholmondeley, bassist Dave Johnsen, and drummer Glenn
Leonard, the band�s original line-up also includes guitarist Robbie �Seahag�
Mangano and keyboardist Jordan Shapiro, both of whom were not available
for the present tour. These five musicians are the core of the gritty and
complex improvisation that embodies the album.
Playing �The
Dream of the Dog� all the way through would have the listener thinking
the entire album was recorded live in one sitting, when in fact the album
contains fourteen songs and almost eighty minutes of live material from
ten different concerts recorded last spring. One could also assume each
song, with names like �Chicago Kong (2-22-02) Bad Frying Pan Memory�
or �LA Kong (3-14-02) West Coast Ya Gnome Saine�, to be based on
reminiscence of the tour.
The music can
at times be just as eccentric, but equally dynamic. Although only fourteen
songs, the band breezes through seemingly hundreds of different
progressions and styles.
The album
begins in much the same way through the first three songs, �Towson Dream�,
�Indy Dream� and �Indy Dog�, as last�s week�s show did: broken
up keyboard, synth and guitar tracks over scattered drumming
techniques.
It then fuses
into �Denver Dream� and �Denver Dog�, a groove with vivid and
strewn guitar chords, a funky distortion on the bass, and soulful keys and
synth that progress into a deep psychedelic jam before slowing into yet
more trippy music. These songs also include some random vocals from Ike
Willis, one of last Thursday�s luminary Mothers of Invention
bachelors.
�Towson Kong�
is rooted by an adrenaline bass line and features some jazz-fueled
saxophone playing by Greg Ridlington before a break into more keys and
synth and back into the original beat.
Beginning in
much the same way, �Chicago Kong� winds up producing everything from a
short reggae stint to swing and folk modes. Among some repeating
synthesized vocal excerpts, what cannot be heard in this song is Willis�
Zappa-style conducting in the same fashion he exhibited during last week�s
second set.
Other
techno-like vocals include excerpts of a George W. Bush speech about the
war on terrorism, littering songs like �LA Kong�. One of the most
intense jams on the album, �LA Kong� features extravagant sax playing
from Bunk Gardner in addition to Chris Opperman helping out on keyboard
and Kahil Sabbagh adding more drums and layering the sound with vibe
chimes. The song exemplifies the album and the band�s theme of
improvising and spontaneously delving into different sounds to see what
can be created.
Frank Zappa
would be proud.
Rating B+: The
best of both avante-garde and choreographic music.
website
www.projectobject.com
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