|
“Keep his music alive,” was Frank Zappa’s last request to his longest tenured sideman Ike Willis. Project Object is certainly keeping alive the vibrancy of one of the 20th centuries true genius' complex music. The vocalist/guitarist extraordinaire Willis says, “Project Object is the favorite extension of Zappa’s music.” When cats like Ike Willis, Napoleon Murphy Brock, and Mike Keneally sign on to play with a group, you know that that band brings some skills to the table.
Mystery Machine Productions presented Project Object at San Francisco’s Great American Music Hall on Tuesday, March 12. I was blown away by how well the group pulled off the intricacies of Zappa’s music; music that would test the skills of the most seasoned symphony performers. Moving through tracks that spanned two decades, the group was able to powerfully capture every period of Zappa’s music.
There were many highlights throughout the first set. “Montana” set the virtuoistic tone early on in the set, as the band nailed the fusion driven guitar lines with the precision of a seasoned heart surgeon. Later in the set came “Pygmy Twylyte,” the Zappa tune that gets me freaking harder than a Columbian soccer player scoring a game-winning goal. Seeing the original vocalist Murphy Brock on this song was a true treat for someone who was born after the tunes’ original release. The underlying rock groove coupled with the “out there” harmonies had the venue shaking. Later in the set “Outside Now” hit home forcefully as well. The song showcased Willis’ vocals, as the historical rock opera character "Joe," the character that he brought to life 22 years earlier on Joe’s Garage.
“Outside Now” led perfectly into the highlight of my night. A first set closer of “Andy”-> “Inca Roads”. Are you kidding me?! Possibly my two favorite Zappa songs segued into each other. The drum/bass interplay between bassist Rick Bartow and drummers Mumbo and Wes Paich on “Andy” coupled with Murphy Brock’s soulful vocals had the audience grooving hard. “Inca Roads” was highlighted by Jordan Shapiro’s keyboard work, which did George Duke proud.
After a first set that would have left me more than content for the night, the band followed with a second set to match. “Crew Slut” had the audience singing in unison about what it means to be a true “Roooooock Fan.” “Sy Borg” was also incredible to see. How often do you get to see Ike Willis sing about “oral sex with a miniature rubberized homo-replica?” When I asked Ike about Zappa’s biggest contribution to music and society he said, “His prolific creativity and humor. Also, his dose of reality. Everyone needs a dose of reality, whether it be musically or otherwise.” These two songs perfectly captured the way in which Frank Zappa mixed satire, social commentary and virtuoistic instrumentation like none other.
“Cheepnis,” “Village of the Sun,” and “Echidna’s Art (Of You),” three songs originally off of Zappa’s classic Roxy & Elsewhere, were the climax of the second set. These songs were performed flawlessly and were highlighted by original singer Napoleon Murphy Brock’s vocals, and the incredible guitar work of Robbie "Seahag" Mangano, André Cholmondeley, and Ike Willis. These songs wholly capture the quintessential “Zappa sound;” orchestrated guitar, synthesizer, horn, drum and bass lines that create possibly the most inventive sound that has ever graced popular music. The compositions go through constant tempo and time signature changes with harmonic orchestration reminiscent of Stravinsky. Project Object took these tunes and nailed them, one after another.
At many points in the night, I closed my eyes and just imagined that I was seeing Zappa. You’re right, it wasn’t Zappa, but for those of us who never had the chance to see the legend of all legends, why not take what you can get these days. That was my attitude going in, and I left thoroughly excited with the opportunity to have seen Ike Willis and Napoleon Murphy Brock leading an extremely talented group of musicians through the opus’ that make Frank Zappa my favorite musician.
Geoff Harrison
JamBase | San Francisco
Go see live music!
Set List
Set I:
Chunga's Revenge
Montana
Carolina Hard Core Ecstasy
How Could I Be Such a Fool
Pick Me, I'm Clean
Mom and Dad
Pygmy Twylyte
Idiot Bastard Son
Evelyn (a modified dog)
Outside Now
Andy->
Inca Roads
Set II:
Uncle Meat
Advance Romance
Sy Borg
Crew Slut
Evil
Black Page
Cheepnis
Meek Shall Inherit Nothing
Village of the Sun->
Echidna’s Art (Of You)
San Berdino
I'm the Slime
E:
Florentine
|
