Yes, it's a bizarre band name, but boy can these cats crank out some seriously fiery instrumental insanity. More Light is the debut release from Swiss sax player Markus Stauss, bass player Damien Campion, and two members from Belgian act The Wrong Object, guitarist Michel Delville and drummer Laurent Delchambre. Together, they call themselves Trank Zappa Grappa in Varese?, or TZGIV for short, and yes, this is music heavily influenced by the late, great, Frank Zappa, especially The Grand Wazoo era. Recorded live in Belgium in 2007, the nine instrumental songs here feature plenty of white hot soloing, especially from Delville & Stauss, whose scorching guitar leads and hazy sax explorations really light up these tracks in a big way. "Little Fragments", one of the shorter tracks here, shows what this ensemble is all about, with tight rhythms providing some rock solid groove (check out the nimble bass work from Campion) while Delville and Stauss go wild with reckless abandon. The band mixes avant-garde with jazz on "Surinam", and lace up their funk and fusion chops on the upbeat "For Jean". They channel the magic of Zappa on the rocking "Kater Carlo", complete with Delchambre's tricky stick work and some incredible guitar soloing from Delville, who really is a monster player.
If you were impressed by the latest from The Wrong Object, there's no doubt that you'll also find this just as mind boggling. Part jazz, part fusion, part funk, part avant-garde, part RIO, and part rock, More Light shows a band that's not afraid to take some chances and go for the juggular. Whether in Varese or anyplace else, it's still damn good in my book.
Track Listing
- Opening With Objects
- Perpetuum
- OG
- More Memories
- Little Fragments
- Surinam
- For Jean
- Kater Carlo
- Alone At Lost and Found
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