INERTIA

You may recognize Derek Sherinian more readily if you saw him standing on the cover of a Dream Theatre album when the group was in their prime. That was then, and this is now. With the ambitious solo project Inertia now under his belt, Sherinian steps into a spotlight designed just for him. The talented keyboard player has some of the best available talent in rock music join in to assist him in completing his greatest achievement to date.

The vaunted drummer Simon Phillips lends his expert drumming, engineering, and songwriting skills to the collaboration, while Zakk Wylde and Steve Lukather step in to conquer the world with their blazing and ballsy guitar work, and Tony Franklin (bass), Jimmy Johnson (bass), Tom Kennedy (bass), and Jerry Goodman (violin) are right there to contribute in a very effective way, and consistently throughout the run of this CD.

The track "Inertia" sets you up for the Edgar Winter classic "Frankenstein", which is given a high tech, gloss and polish. The jazz standard "Goodbye Porkpie Hat" is given a new twist, and then you get a change of scenery when the artist gives his ode to a boyhood idol on "Evel Knievel." The prog rock roller coaster ride is in full bloom on every song. It rocks steadily, and also has its gentler moments. The meeting point of the music comes to a zenith at various interludes, while the continuous ebb and flow maintains the permanence of each piece.

Words become obsolete as Sherinian lets his instrument do all the talking. He is totally focused and energized from start to finish. One look at whom he has surrounded himself with gives you a better understanding of how electricity must have been going on in the studio as they were laying down the tracks for this album.

Oh yeah, this progressive rock...it doesn't get any more progressive than this. The instrumentation is an awesome spectacle of aural intensity. What was the name of that group he was with?