Search - Dave Weckl :: Rhythm of Soul

Solid work.

Adam | Sydney, NSW, Australia | 11/03/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The Dave Weckl Band has produced (as in created) an album of great tunes and outstanding technical display with an ability to cover a wide range of styles. DWB is larger than usual for Weckl, (known as his 'Rhythm of the Soul phase') but they produce a great sound matched with some excellent solos. It is good to see the drummer demonstrating an ability to simply keep time, such as in 'The Zone' and 'Song for Claire' rather than overlay the music with unnecessary chops. Nevertheless, outstanding technique is an essential part of music and can make or break a particular song - in the cases of 'Access Denied' and 'Big B Little B' the drummer's amazing chops make these particular songs the ones which you want to listen to over and over. That being said, there aren't really any songs on this offering that are overly cheesy and compel you to skip to the next track. However, there are some questionable artistic choices that are evident - such as the typified 'fade-out' that is the format that closes almost every song and the hugely disposable 30-second tailpiece 'Goodnight' . Personally, I think fade-outs are fine for pop songs when you have the repeated riffs going on or for a last chord or similar musical situation, but when one has almost been brought to orgasm (feel free to change that if its too offensive) whilst listening to Weckl attack his skins with manic aggression and suddenly it begins to fade out, one does feel suitably frustrated. Nevertheless, the band play some great songs, such as 'Rhythm Dance' and 'Mud Sauce', and there's excellent work from all the musicians. Its worth listening to every track (except for Good Night of course) and it surely is a great sound that they make. Easily recommended to all those who love fantastic drumming and good funky fusion."

Hmmmm Interesting..........

Pat Hilton | Saint Louis, MO | 11/17/2000

(3 out of 5 stars)

"This one is a hard to grade album in the Dave Weckl era. Great Drumming in and out in this album as you can imagine. This album definately is a turn off though. I hate to say it but Dave is gonna have to pull some strings to get back ontop. The song's on this album are as cheesy as they get. It doesn't even sound like something Dave weckl would put his time into. Access Denied is a great song but that is the only real turn on about the album. A very poor exhibition for great talent."

Not Dave's Best

Jeffrey Battershall | Morton, PA United States | 11/08/2000

(2 out of 5 stars)

"Dave has great chops as usual and assembles some great players, but the result is disappointing due to the the also-ran compositions. They are simply unmemorable and formulaic compared with his other material. Synergy or Masterplan are much, much better albums than this. Frank Gambale does his signature amazing guitar solos (and they are amazing!) but they sound out of context with the rest of the band. I would much, much rather listen to Buzzy Feiten's funky quirky style - seems to suit Dave much better."