Western Hemisphere Orchestra Henry Darger CD

The focus is also on a tight group sound and a crisp dynamic. The solos stay short and tasty and always in the pocket. Cifelli's smooth shift of gears from a mainstream sound to groove/funk may come as a surprise to fans of his Nonet discs. The title tune opens the set with a cooking power trio groove, a whisper of organ before the horns blow in, the group sounding like it could be backing Wilson Pickett or Sam and Dave. "Chaotica" has a more modern feel, with Cifelli using the mute alongside guest Joel Frahm on soprano sax, with a sound that would fit right in with a Miles Davis/Marcus Miller arrangement. "Long Time Comin'" wails in on a bluesy, Albert King-ish guitar by Dave Phelps, followed by more of Cifelli's mute work; and "Sertao" slips some smooth Brazilian flavor into the ...

Andy West - BassWest says his musical career can be divided into four phases. First, there was the Dixie Dregs (later just the Dregs) era, which began when he met guitarist Steve Morse in high school in Augusta, Georgia. The two formed a band that played the usual Zeppelin and Cream covers and evolved gradually into the Dixie Dregs. The group released six albums and split up in 1983, when Andy entered his second phase. He spent a few years in Northern California giving bass lessons, doing occasional side projects, and attempting to form his own band. He was introduced to experimental guitarist Henry Kaiser and played in Kaiser's Crazy Backwards Alphabet, which recorded an album and toured California and Western Europe in 1986-'87. During this time he also performed on guitarist Vinnie Moore's Mind's Eye and recorded with Paul Barrere of Little Feat. Eventually, West met guitarist Joaquin Lievano; the two moved to Los Angeles and formed Zazen, an "eclectic new-age instrumental band." This was the third and longest period of Andy's career. Zazen released over a dozen albums on private labels and produced 4 commercial releases. In 1993, West took a hiatus from Zazen and entered his fourth, current phase. He moved to Chicago, where he formed his own trio "It was a mix of really interesting heavy, industrial, sampled, chops-oriented stuff," he says. Recent years work has been the recording of the Mistakes' eponymous CD, a reunion of the Dregs that resulted in 1999's 'California Screamin' album, and the Magna carta album 'Andy West with Rama - Rama 1' (featuring Rod Morgenstein, Mike Portnoy, Mike Keneally and others). He is fully occupied with the latest incarnation of Zazen and the formation of fwap with long time associate Joaquin Lievano. (parts excerpted from Bass ...