Mike Keneally – Dog [2007]

Mike Keneally é um desses caras difíceis de se rotular, o próprio alega não gostar de rótulos – Ele é um bandleader, membro de outras bandas, toca rock, jazz e também é um proeminente guitarrista, vocalista, tecladista e percussionista. Toca piano desde os cinco anos de idade e sua vida mudou radicalmente aos dez quando se transferiu de Nova York para a Califórnia e ouviu Frank Zappa pela primeira vez. Virou fã de imediato sendo fortemente influenciado por ele, passando os 15 anos seguintes se aprofundando de forma autodidata no estudo da guitarra. Em 1985, montou sua primeira banda, o Drop Control, se tornando um dos heróis musicais de San Diego. Dois anos depois realizou seu sonho ao substituir Steve Vai na banda do Frank Zappa, onde além da guitarra, ele tocou piano e cantou, participando de alguns álbuns clássicos como Broadway the Hard Way e The Best Band You Never Heard in Your Life, fazendo parte do último grupo de músicos que trabalhou com Zappa em turnês. Entre 1988 e 1991 dividiu suas atenções entre o Drop Control e o Z, Banda de Dweezil, filho de Zappa. Por esse período ele também trabalhou como músico de estúdio e se mudou para Los Agelis. Após trabalhar no disco tributo Zappa's Universe (lançado em 1993 e premiado com o Grammy), Keneally se iniciou em carreira solo e de lá para cá, já lançou 14 discos. Dog é o seu décimo trabalho e um dos meus favoritos, assim como os outros mistura uma série de influências, tendências que em princípio podemos rotular como um pop-rock alternativo, ou art-rock, não acho que é rock experimetal, ou prog, ou avant-prog. Pensando bem é melhor que vcs ouçam e tirem suas próprias conclusões, pois como eu disse no começo do texto, é um cara difícil de rotular. Certo mesmo é que tem muita influência do Zappa nisso aí!
Fonte -> All Music Guide

Mike Keneally – Dog


Mike Keneally obviously doesn't like to be labeled — he's a bandleader and bandmember, a rock and jazz fusion player, and also an outstanding guitarist, vocalist, keyboardist, and percussionist. Taking up keyboards at age five, Keneally's life changed when he moved from New York to California in 1970 and heard Frank Zappa for the first time at age ten. Woodshedding for the next 15 years as a self-taught guitarist, Keneally formed a band called Drop Control in his hometown of San Diego in 1985 and became one of the city's musical heroes. Keneally auditioned for Zappa's band in 1987 as a "stunt guitar" replacement for Steve Vai, and was hired as a guitarist, keyboardist, and vocalist. The multi-instrumentalist would appear on some classic Zappa albums like Broadway the Hard Way and The Best Band You Never Heard in Your Life, but little did he know that his lineup would be Zappa's final touring band. Between 1988 and 1991, Keneally performed with Drop Control and Zappa's son Dweezil's band Z, toyed with studio-musician status, and moved to Los Angeles.

After working on the Grammy-winning tribute album Zappa's Universe, Keneally started a solo career and Dog was released in 2004. Is your 10th album. Below the review from All Music Guide. Mike Keneally's growth as an artist has been a pretty amazing journey, from the manic enthusiasm of Hat through the sublime and subtle Wooden Smoke to the jaw-dropping brilliance of The Universe Will Provide. All the while, Keneally has continued to push himself as a creative person, and Dog shows him stretching still further. The biggest difference between Dog and Wooden Smoke, Keneally's previous album (obviously, an album written for orchestra is a different beast altogether), is that Dog just rocks. This is easily Keneally's most muscular recording to date, with snarling guitars all over the place, and the band just tears into the material. Even so, the production is nearly as detailed as Wooden Smoke, with successive listenings revealing little tidbits and guitar parts that slipped by the first time. The songs themselves are complex but catchy, with elliptical riffs and rhythmic shifts that should come off sounding much trickier than they do, but this band (Bryan Beller, Nick D'Virgilio, and Rick Musallam) is so dextrous that it all sounds completely natural. Lyrically, Keneally brings new meaning to the word obtuse, but the lyrics are entertaining if sometimes puzzling. After all, what does one make of a line like "Special bee stings and enigmatic power maidens eager to date ya"? In addition, some programming and almost techno sounds make their first appearance on a Keneally album, notably on "Physics," accompanied by some crazy envelope-filtered guitars and bouzouki, and on the mind-blowing epic "This Tastes Like a Hotel." "This Tastes Like a Hotel" is a strange, distant cousin to "Lightnin' Roy," but ranges even further, running through techno, phased orchestra samples, general weirdness, hard rock, and an almost bluesy section that gives Keneally another chance to amaze with his guitar prowess before a brief acoustic interlude leads to the rocking conclusion. The other songs are more conventional rock tunes, but only by Keneally standards. He's got an immediately identifiable, utterly unique style, and it's pretty amazing how it continues to shine through even in wildly different contexts. Dog is another winner from a wildly talented artist who follows his own muse wherever it takes him. It's a shame more musicians aren't as confident and adventurous.
By -> Bill Meredith & Sean Westergaard from All Music Guide









Mike Keneally – Dog