Artist: Trey Gunn Title: Untune The Sky Format: CD/DVD Genre: Rock/Progressive, Art, Instrumental, World, Jazz-Fusion Label: Inside Out/SPV-www.insideoutmusic.com Website: www.treygunn.com Untune The Sky is a triumphant recording for renowned musician Trey Gunn. Gunn, known for his solo projects and work with King Crimson, reaches another level on this solo recording. A masterpiece of this magnitude deserves a lot of contemplation and study if you are a perceptive and curious listener. I was captivated with the CD and ended up playing it several times before finally popping the DVD in. It is not an easy task explaining what kind of music this is, it is in fact many different types of styles and genres all wrapped carefully into a homogenized progressive sound. Gunn is a multi-instrumentalist that uses a free form approach with his supporting cast. They create a remarkable blend of instrumental prog-rock and Middle Eastern jazz influenced sounds that have you shaking your head wondering what you just heard. It is very good music with many textures and flavors. The DVD is just as interesting as the CD. The tracks indicated as multimedia (see track listing) are the most attention grabbing with magnificent colors and imagery set to mesmerizing sounds. Gunn uses the Chapman Stick and a double-necked guitar that he employs a unique touch style of playing. He coaxes some different and at times odd sounds out of his instruments, giving each song a unique resonance and atmosphere all its own. The behind the scenes segments with the band members was very good as well, I particularly enjoyed the interview by guitar player Joe Mendleson with drummer/percussionist Bill Rieflin. Reiflin uses some intricate instruments that he explains in detail while setting up before a show. After listening to what he had to say, I had a better understanding of the complexity of the music I just heard. This is an excellent two for one set so do not miss it. ©"Keith "MuzikMan" Hannaleck November 23, 2003 CD 1. Sozzi - 4:41 2. The Glove (live) - 5:02 3. Killing for London - 6:26 4. The Third Star (Alternate Mix) - 3:42 5. Take This Wish (Alternate Mix) - 6:41 6. August, 1997 - 1:37 7. Rune Song - 5:40 8. Puttin' on the White Shirt - 7:59 9. Brief Encounter - 5:49 10. Arrakis - 5:20 11. The Cruelest Month - 9:00 12. The Gift - 4:14 13. Hootenanny at the Pink Pussycat Café - 2:10 DVD 14. Kuma (live) 15. Sozzle(live) 16. Hard Winds ([live) 17. Gate of Dreams (live) 18. Rune Song: The Origin of Water (live) 19. Brief Encounter ([live) 20. Arrakis (live) 21. The Cruelest Month (multimedia track) 22. Indiera (multimedia track) 23. Aquiring Canopus (multimedia track) 24. One Thousand Years (2nd Traverse) (multimedia track) Rating- 5 / 5 Credits: Joe Mendelson - Guitar, Mixing, Interviewer Trey Gunn - Guitar, Vocals, Producer, Mixing, Cover Art Concept, Chapman Stick, Video Editor Dave Douglas - Trumpet Bob Muller - Percussion, Drums, Tabla, Producer, Mixing Bill Rieflin - Drums, Producer, Mixing Serpentine - Vocals Tony Geballe - Guitar, Saz, Guitar (12 String)
Trey Gunn Band: The Joy of Molybdenum (CD, 46:55) DGM0001 2000 Discipline Global Mobile P.O. Box 5287 Beverly Hills, CA 90209 CYBERHOME: http://www.disciplineglobalmobile.com Robert Fripp disciple Trey Gunn has taken some time out from his King Crimson day job to produce his new release, the strangely titled The Joy of Molybdenum. The album relies heavily on Gunn's groundbreaking work on 8, 10, and 12 string touch guitars, and also features guitarist Tony Geballe and percussionist Bob Muller. Upon first listen, you will SWEAR that you've found a lost King Crimson disc or are listening to another one of Fripp's "ProjeKcts; however, upon further listening you'll realize that... well... actually you'll still think you're listening to Fripp or Crimson. If anything is to be gathered from The Joy of Molybdenum, it is that while you can take the boy out of King Crimson, you can't take the Crimson out of the boy. And that's both good and bad... The CD kicks off very impressively with the title track, which features some killer low-end touch playing by Gunn and a funky groove laid down by drummer Muller. As a matter of fact, the first four tracks on the CD continue with the groove assault - "The Glove" features some amazing Hendrix-style jams emanating from Gunn's touch guitar, "Hard Winds Redux" sounds like an updated and more danceable version of 80's Crimson classic "Disclipline," and "Rune Song: The Origin of Water" succeeds with some breezy drumming and Gunn and Geballe's tandem "math rock" guitar runs. While Gunn is obviously meant to be the main attraction on these cuts, it is actually Muller's drumming that drives the tracks and keeps the rhythm moving along. It's quite obvious that this band can pretty much throw down a funky groove at a moment's notice, and it is the tracks that take advantage of this asset that are the most successful on the album. Which is exactly why I was totally stunned that the band decided to devote the last two-thirds of the album to a non-descript string of repetitive and uninspired ambient compositions... Where the first few songs on The Joy of Molybdenum were examples of well executed future-rock tunes, the last batch of songs on the album are examples of plodding and uneventful experiments in noise. By taking Muller's effective drumming out of the mix, the songs lose a lot of their power, and instead become a string of bland trance-like cuts one right after the other. The album's closer, "Tehlikeli Madde" picks up the pace a little bit - but by this point the listener will probably have given up on Gunn and Co. or fallen asleep altogether. In short, The Joy of Molybdenum is a very uneven release. The faster and more rhythmic tracks that start off the CD are excellent showcases for the band's instrumental prowess, but the ambient compositions that round out the CD are musical wastelands that simply suck all the life out of the listening experience. Hopefully Gunn's future efforts will focus less on background ambient music and more on in-your-face funk grooves. Unfortunately, with Joy, this Gunn misses his mark. - Michael Askounes (michael@gscyclone.com) CREDITS: Trey Gunn: 8, 10, and 12 string touch guitars, mellotron, theremin, shortwave, smokey guitar Tony Geballe: electric guitar, saz, acoustic 12-string guitar, leslie guitars, UPS guitars Bob Muller: drum kit, tabla, bandir, darbouka, bodhran, dumbek, gamelan drum, rik, metals, shakers TRACKLIST: 1. The Joy of Molybdenum (5:27) 2. The Glove (3:57) 3. Hard Winds Redux (4:08) 4. Rune Song: The Origin of Water (6:13) 5. Untune the Sky (7:17) 6. Sozzle (4:53) 7. Gate of Dreams (5:22) 8. Brief Encounter (5:57) 9. Tehlikeli Madde (3:41) More information on Trey Gunn can be found at http://www.treygunn.com
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