AMG Review by Glenn Astarita (3):
This hard-driving fusion power trio packs a mighty punch on CAB, its inaugural release. On this outing, guitarist Tony MacAlpine renders his customary rippling sheets of sound along with electric bassist Bunny Brunel's sinewy lines and drummer Dennis Chambers' heavy-handed polyrhythms. There are no hidden agendas here as the soloists surge into the stratosphere with ominous intentions via blazingly fast unison choruses and Chambers' propulsive backbeats and hybrid funk-rock rhythms. The trio also engages in a few call-and-response type episodes in concert with intermittent doses of fiercely stated jazz-based passages. However, MacAlpine steers the charge with blistering lead soloing to complement his effective utilization of electronic keyboards. Essentially, the band abides by a democratic approach, where everyone gets ample breathing room amid a series of nicely arranged compositions and turbocharged improvisational sequences. Overall, this impressive 2000 effort provides the world of fusion with a much-needed shot of adrenaline.
Cab delivers an aggressive fusion Super Session, bringing together three of the most revered instrumentalists of our time. Featured are guitarist Tony MacAlpine, bassist and producer/engineer Bunny Brunel and drummer Dennis Chambers, blasting out incredible rhythms and delivering ensemble playing and great melodies to create a tight canvas for each player's phenomenal soloing ability. Shred-worthy guitar solos, dizzying keyboards solos (courtesty of MacAlpine), phenomenal bass solos and even some rock-solid drum moments drive the 10 compositions comprising Cab. Brunel handles the bulk of the songwriting, however MacAlpine contributes three numbers ("So There Is Love", "The Watcher" and "Elastic Man") while "Atamanahi" was co-written by Brunel and Kazumi Watanabe.
(guitar9)
This "Project" band raised more than a few eyebrows with this CD, so much so, they followed up with another outstanding release in the year 2001. On this you find what seemed like a strange combination of musicians, what with Chambers and Brunel being the heaviest of hitters on the jazz/rock fusion scene, teaming with neo-classical shred metal keyboardist/guitarist MacAlpine, one could only wonder what would happen. Well, sparks definetly started flying, as the energy of MacAlpines guitars set the tone for the others to follow. A new blistering style of fusion is the product of this trio, with songs that are perfect vehicle for the outstanding performances by each member, these guys are amoungst the genres elite, and show their wares with no apprehension whatsoever. Brunel made his way on the scene as the man that replace Stanley Clarke on bass, in Return to Forever, he has a liquid, fretless style that can remind of Jaco, Percy Jones, and he is showing his utmost on this recording. Dennis Chambers is now being considered one of the highest demand session men for the fusion scene, particularly the difficult and more technical varieties, his sense of rhythm dynamics, coupled with boundless improvisational skills, and the ability to feel the polyrhythmics within the song structures are simply second to none, his performances with this band only allow him to stretch out his already amazing gifts. MacAlpine has made a name for himself as a shred/metal guitarist, and has been doing it for longer than most, he is one of the first and still remains one of the best in this style, he also is a very accomplished keyboardist, and is equally adept on both instruments, here Tony shows a side many may not have known about, as his sense for fusion music is surely one to be reckoned with,he is also doubling in another powerful fusion band called Planet X, teaming with Derek Sherinian, and Virgil Donati. CAB also is another fine modern fusion release by the folks at Tone Center records, who have been offering up some fantastic progressive fusion project CDs.
© M.J. Brady / ProGGnosis |
