TRIBAL TECH

This is a fusion masterpiece! Willis and Henderson are the fusion equilivent of Lennon and McCartney. Very strong compostional material here. A must but. This will definitely stand the test of time. The best offering ftom this group.

I remember getting a copy of this album when it first came out. My Uncle is a huge jazz fusion nut (and an excellent musician in his own right) and with his recommendation I took my first foray into a larger world. This is fusion at it's best. Scott Henderson is an absolute monster on guitar (check out his blues albums all you SRV fans, like Dog Party). He not only has incredible technique and chops, he plays with a passion that is so often missing from other fusion guitar tech gods. Gary Willis was one of the finest bassists around. Combined, they could do amazing things.

Big Girl Blues is one of the heaviest blues songs I've ever heard (and I have 3500 albums) and Scott's solo is absolutely killer. It isn't the only great song on the album, far from it. There isn't a dud in the lot, and that's hard to find these days. Signal Path and Elvis at the Hop are equally excellent recording showcasing their amazing skills while never losing sight of making music that's enjoyable to listen. After all, what's the purpose of having all the technical skills in the world if your music is boring?

I don't like to give out 5 star ratings, but this is an album that truly deserves it. If you are new to jazz fusion and come from a rock/metal background like I did; you can't go wrong with this album. Not only is it Tribal Tech's best album, it is one of the best albums in the entire jazz fusion genre. It is easily accessable to rock fans that like good musicianship; yet has all the sophistication and jaw dropping artistry you'd expect from leading jazz musicians. Too bad Mr. Willis got married, went to Spain, and left this band. The world may never known just how much it missed....

In my opinion stars and then i want to explain what i'm writing:

1-Signal Path: every TT first songs are truly inspired and they want to comunicate album nature.This song is an energizer and Scott Henderson is the most talented guitarist in the world not only in fusion area.10\10

2-Big Girl Blues: noy exactly what i would be expected in a TT album but in of course in a Scott Henderson album like Dog Party or others.I don't like blues very much and in the whole album it's the weakest song,for me.6\10

3-Dense Dance: funny fusion with great groove and well done but not at its peak,however keyboards are great to create a jazzy-trumpet atmosphear.7\10

4-Got Tuh B: well well well!!!nothing to say to this song a masterpiece of fusion, really good stuff with a great Gary Willis on bass.10\10

5-Peru: classic TT soft-song well done. It can be found, in a perfect climax, all melancholic feelings mixed up with classical fusion changes of rhythm and extraordinary concentration of pathos in Scott Henderson guitar.8\10

6-Elvis At The Hop: this song is a vivid example of Funk Jazz in style of Chick Corea's Elektric Band (Beneath the Mask with Frank Gambale).Good, Very Good! 9\10

7- The Necessary Blonde: a jazzy input to Allan Holdsworth None Too Soon (with Gary Willis).In fact this song is a combination of a jazz structures. Not fusion at all and at its best but it misses the saxophone that is replaced by guitar.8\10

8-Wasteland: I love Gary Willis and his playing. It creates a groovy atmosphear with bass. Another great stuff! 9\10

9-Formula One: it's not my best song but acceptable. A great example of Scott Henderson talent. Nice idea to recreate formula one situation with Guitar, bass and keyboards solo.7\10

10-Sub Aqua: classical TT song in Dr Hee period, fusion at the end of '80s. 6.5\10

11-Fight The Giant: Good stuff really exciting funky song . Guitar seems a saxophone and keyboards a trumpet. 8\10

10+6+7+10+8+9+8+9+7+7+8=81.5:11=7.509=7.5 to do perfect counts

7.5:10=x:5 - 3.75 for me 4 stars

TRIBAL TECH are a very good band actually but I really don't know if they really deserve to be on this site...Their music consists of killer jazz/fusion with up- and mid- tempo songs full of changing moods but the prog elements just are not there so we can judge this album as a progressive one...The bass guitar lines are whatr I like the most along with some good keyboard work...The whole point is that I find this one trully interesting mainly for jazz/fusion lovers (a 4 star album for them) but of little interest for prog fanatics (2 stars for that category)...So the average is 3 stars...

Led by guitar virtuoso Scott Henderson and bassist Gary Willis. Tribal Tech is a jazz fusion band that is based on the talents of the former mentioned. If I were to define their sound , they seem like a cross between the jazziest Jeff Beck and Planet X. Their music is incredibly technical and mostly instrumental based on mid tempo songs and improvisations. While I find this album to be enjoyable for any music lover , sometimes their style leaves me cold. And that's due Tribal Tech output sometimes feels like background music to me ( Incredibly well played though).

That being said , there are some killer tunes on this album that deserve my attention. Got tuh B is the fastest song of the album and features some notable bass and drums interplay at the beginning and then has some synth lines on it. Making a complete contrast , the next song Peru is really laid back featuring a spacey feel with some smooth percussion. One of my favourite songs of the record is the funky Elvis at the Hop developed by some thick bass lines and Scott's amazing guitar skills. The rest of the songs here are based on the same pattern: Mid tempo drumming accompanied by guitar and keyboard solos. I can't say the musicians here are self indulgent though because this tunes ain't overlong but the record itself is: more than one hour of songs with the same jam session feel may be too much for some listeners.

Even though I don't think neither this record nor Tribal Tech are a bad proposal. Scott Henderson is one of the finest fusion guitarists around and the rest of the band accompaines him decently enough. But their music seems to lack the punch of some great fusion records like Mahavishnu's or Ponty's.

I totally agree with those who admit from the beginning that this album is a fusion masterpiece!This is the very logical,simple and pure truth about an album without any weak song!In fact each song is a hit,all album is a waterfall of rhythms and inspired songs and in the end we realise thet sometimes 60 minutes are far too few to admire the magic of one perfect album!Because this album is simply PERFECT!All the musicians here put with this album standards in today's fusion end even in a 100 years this album will be modern and actual!HENDERSON and WILLIS are 2 fabulous musicians of a tremendeous quality and they are surrounded by other sensational partners in crime-especially JOEY HEREDIA on drums smokes,but DAVID GOLDBLATT offers some sensational sounds at keys!!!Whan Ithink that this album has almost the respected age of 20....I realise that with musical jewels is happening the phenomenon that happens to an old wine!The older he gets the better he is becoming!And ,this is what is happening with this album!All the tracks of the album are so well balanced,mid tempos with the rapide ones and a crystal production offers to the album a very high sound quality!DENSE DANCE and FORMULA ONE are teeth breaking songs,where Willis really plays his instrument with a virtuosity that scares!A maestro of tapping and slap made at an atomic speed and produce impressive tecnical sparks!Henderson has on this album his best sound ever,sometimes sounding like ALLAN HOLDSWORTH or more recently with RICHARD HALLEBEEK or MARC GUILLERMONT!A very,very inspired album,in my opinion the best TRIBAL TECH album,from the componistic and technical point of view! 5 STARS without any compromise!