Last year, Joe Deninzon & Stratospheerius released the killer live album, Behind The Curtain – Live At Progstock. The CD/DVD was a perfect representation of the energy, talent and drive that the band puts forth in concert. Following up on that album, we have the latest studio disc, Impostor!, and what a worthy successor it is. The band is newly augmented by Bill Hubauer (Neal Morse Band) on keys and vocals, and there are guest artists on nearly every song, including fellow ProgStock alumni Michael Sadler (Saga) and Rachel Flowers.
If an opening track is a sort of statement of intent, then Voodoo Vortex (Part II) is a fine “how-do-you-do”. An exercise in mind-blowing speed and precision while keeping melody to the fore, the less than two minute tune is filled to overflowing with ideas and chops. Separating the two pieces (Part I appears later in the album) was a masterstroke, as the impact of Part I is immediate and strong. Outrage Olympics is a total one eighty, a much more song-oriented piece which showcases the mind meld between bandleader (and Kansas violinist) Joe Deninzon and guitarist Michelangelo Quirinale, as well as the vocal talents of yet another ProgStock veteran, Randy McStine. The song is an exposition of cancel culture and the populace’s virtual need to be offended by someone else, with thought-provoking lines like:
Scan your past for small transgressions
Scared to death we walk on eggshells
Guilty ‘til we’re proven innocent”
Hubauer’s keyboard fills during the instrumental section are a beautiful example of a band who listens to one another. Headphone listening is rewarded by the layers of sound that vie for attention.
Impostor! is the first of several songs that appeared on the live album, but are given the studio treatment here. Joe proves his credibility as one of the top violinists recording today as he sings about the masks we wear to defraud both ourselves and others. Stratospheerius are no slouches either, their contributions both instrumentally and vocally invaluable. Deninzon’s name is at the top of the marquee, but there is no doubt that this is a BAND. McStine again lends his pipes again on Cognitive Dissonance. Circling back to our penchant as a race for tearing others down to lift ourselves up, rich lines like…
Poison the water and put up the walls
Safely behind our screens
Spewing, trolling, scapegoating”
…expose a harsh truth about ourselves. Storm Surge also first appeared on Behind The Curtain, but the full arrangement it is given here elevates the song. Based on nineteenth century composer/pianist Friedrich Burgmuller’s The Storm, it is a collaboration with ProgStock pals Michael Sadler on vocals and Rachel Flowers on piano and flute. ProgStock vet Fernando Perdomo adds a gorgeous acoustic guitar interlude over which Flowers lays down an equally sumptuous flute melody. The Romanticism of Burgmuller’s style shines through in the arrangement (which also features go-to cellist Ruti Celli), an exemplary case of incorporating classical into prog.
Yet another track covered on Behind The Curtain, King Crimson’s Frame By Frame is a respectful but not duplicative take. As with the live recording, the violin adds a new dimension to the song musically, while the voice of Val Vigoda does the same for the vocal arrangement. Paul Ranieri’s elastic bass runs would make Tony Levin smile. Guitarist Quirinale and drummer Jason Gianni each add new flavours to the stew. Still, it is Deninzon’s layers of violin, particularly in the closing minute, that are the pièce de résistance. Finally, we arrive at Voodoo Vortex (Part I), and it is perfectly clear why the pieces did not run together as originally intended. Part I eschews the manic intensity of Part II for a more controlled, Crimsonesque vibe (think Matte Kudasai). The effects Deninzon uses on the violin deepen the aural interest. I would have liked to hear the tuned percussion higher in the mix, but Gianni reflects the spotlight nevertheless.
Reaching into the classical toy box once again, Tripping The Merry-Go-Round relies on two cellos (courtesy of Dmitri Kouzov and Jennifer DeVore), Deninzon’s violin, and vocals to create a chamber piece. Deninzon describes the song as “if Gentle Giant wrote Eleanor Rigby”; I would have to agree, particularly with respect to the vocal counterpoint, but I would add that it contains more than a sprinkle of As The World-era Echolyn. The album ends with the epic piece, Chasing The Dragon. Growing from a seed of music contributed by Gianni, the themes for the song developed over a year into this twelve minutes plus, eight part, two hundred track effort following the dream of one kid who wants to become a rock star, devoting all his time and effort to the goal. Piano and bass set the stage before the violin and accordion take over to support the multi-layered vocals. While there is a definite Kansas vibe, no other band sounds quite like Stratospheerius. The comparative tenderness of the first four minutes give way to a harder edge, as the boy wakes up thirty years later in a dead end, nine-to-five job. More musical changes, and we are back in classical territory as the man’s partner begs him to let go of his childhood fantasies…
It’s all you need”
The man admonishes himself:
Stop living in the past”
…before an instrumental interlude rocks things up once more. If time changes and instrumental prowess are your cup of tea, here is a pot full. The song ends on a turbulent note, with a synth line winding down as if to say:
A powerful end to a magnificent album.
If thinking man’s prog that follows the muse wherever it leads is your sort of thing, then Impostor! is the album for you. Even with all the superlatives I bestowed upon it, Behind The Curtain was a teaser. Its studio follow-up is the real deal. When a band jumps several levels from one record to the next as Joe Deninzon & Stratospheerius have done, I am reminded of all the unsung artists toiling away, pouring their hearts and souls into the music, chasing the dragon as it were. In this case, I think Impostor! is an example of watching the band grab that fire-breathing reptile by the tail. Well done, gentlemen!
TRACK LISTING
01. Voodoo Vortex (Part II) (1:42)
02. Outrage Olympics (4:53)
03. Impostor! (8:16)
04. Cognitive Dissonance (4:56)
05. Storm Surge (6:20)
06. Frame By Frame (5:21)
07. Voodoo Vortex (Part I) (5:19)
08. Tripping The Merry-Go-Round (1:53)
09. Chasing The Dragon (12:22)
Total Time – 51:02
MUSICIANS
Joe Deninzon – Lead Vocals, Electric 7 string “Viper” Violin, Acoustic Violin, Viola, Chin Cello, Acoustic Guitar, Bass
Michelangelo Quirinale – Guitar, Background Vocals
Paul Ranieri – Bass, Background Vocals
Jason Gianni – Drums, Percussion, Background Vocals
Bill Hubauer – Keyboards, Background Vocals
~ With:
Randy McStine – Guitars, Sound Effects, Lead & Background Vocals (2,3 & 4)
Rachel Flowers – Piano, Flute (5)
Michael Sadler – Vocals (5)
Neel Murgai – Sitar (2)
Angus Clark – Guitar Sitar (2)
Rich Mouser – Drum Programming (3)
Anne Leighton & Rachel Gamin – Spoken Word (3)
Ruti Celli – Cello (5)
Fernando Perdomo – Acoustic & Electric Guitars (5)
Val Vigoda – Background Vocals (6)
Dmitri Kouzov – Cello (8)
Jennifer DeVore – Cello (8 & 9)
Steve Benson – Nylon String Guitar (9)
Chloe Lowery – Lead & Background Vocals (9)
ADDITIONAL INFO
Record Label: 7D Media
Country of Origin: U.S.A.
Date of Release: 11th October 2024
LINKS
Joe Deninzon & Stratospheerius – Website | Facebook | Bandcamp | YouTube | Instagram