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"When Gravity Fails" |
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HARDROCKHOUSE.COM / REVIEWED BY AL HAY:
"In my humble opinion “When Gravity Fails” is Neil’s best album to date. He has pulled out all the stops on this release. The production and sound is fabulous and he has captured his guitar tone perfectly. The melodies just pour from the speakers and licks and chops are of the highest quality. The overall impression as the album came to an end is that Neil is still driven and motivated by finding that melody that gets the listener and also himself inspired. Each play of this album will reveal more over time as there really is so much going on. The additional orchestration also adds a flavour to this album which one rarely hears in this genre and I know that I will be listening to this album for a long time to come."
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VIRTUOSITY ONE / REVIEWED BY ANDY CRAVEN:
"When Gravity Fails is a superb instrumental album. Yet to pigeon hole it to this category is possible going to stop narrow minded listeners from hearing it. I defy anyone to listen to this album and not be blown away. Zaza really has come up with an ace with this record, and whilst Melodica was a very good album, When Gravity Fails can be considered to this point Zaza's magnum opus. Stylistically it has all the right ingredients, yet there is an element of passion here that is often missing from instrumental works even from the perceived big name instrumental market leaders. On the basis of this album (not to mention Zaza's back catalogue), Neil Zaza deserves to be at the very top of the guitar elite. ESSENTIAL."
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SEA OF TRANQUILITY / REVIEWED BY MICHAEL POPKE:
"Unlike other instrumental guitarists, Zaza is smart enough to retain control of his playing. Sure, When Gravity Fails lifts off with lots of soaring, high-pitched arena-rock soloing (part of what makes the record so refreshing and endearing), but nary a single note sounds out of place. Nor does Zaza ignore his fellow musicians. In fact, “Cinematic” emerges as one of the album's prettiest and best songs precisely because Zaza allows Rudess a mesmerizing piano solo in the middle, accented by Frampton's classic-rock fretwork. The man's example is one that many younger players - and even some older ones - should heed. We need more musicians like Neil Zaza."
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ROCK UNITED / REVIEWED BY ENDRE 'BANDI' HUBNER:
"In case you are not familiar with Neil (then go and dig back right away), he is the Joe Satriani of the 21st century; the difference is that while Satch got pretty much lost in space, Neil kept his signature guitar sound and general songwriting approach on the ground. Other than that the comparison to Satch is more than appropriate. The disc is a must for fans and guitar freaks and a good start for all those not really into instrumental guitar music."
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"In every artistic endeavor, there are always forces that pull you away and make creating and expression difficult. But when that force (much like the gravity that
tries to keep us down) fails, artistic expression and creative fulfillment can rise.
So basically, when the CD is completed it is a testament to gravity failing to stop
the artistic process." |
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BEFORE THE THRONE
"Based on a traditional church hymn that I once heard and instantly wanted to expand upon.
The title comes from the hymn's name which was Before The Throne of God." |
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BLEED
"A straight-ahead rocker with a celtic melody. The title just fit the music." |
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CELESTINE
"A hauntingly-spiritual song. The title of this song was originally If but I changed it after seeing a
Hewlett-Packard ad campaign by the same name. Celestine came from a book I was reading at
the time, "The Celestine Prophecy" and it just seemed to fit perfectly." |
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CINEMATIC NOW PLAYING
"This is a song right out of the Golden Age of movies. It has a timeless 40's era feel and melody
and just begs to be at the end of a movie. I knew this song was special but when Jordan Rudess
and Peter Frampton added their solos, and Steve Smith added that driving beat that only he has,
it just took on a life of its own. I can't wait for the fans to hear this one."
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DANZA DELLA NOTTE
"A rock equivalent of Danse Macabre. The title means Dance of Night. This inspiration and title
stemmed from my love of the Italian language. The song, for me, evokes mental images of
dancing skeletons in cemeteries with pizzacato strings representing the jangling bones." |
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HEAVYOCITY
"I wrote this one in The Netherlands. It has a simple, heavy, plotting groove with a crazy solo
by Jordan Rudess and Michael Anthony's unique bass."
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IN MY DREAMS
"This one was written in a hotel room in Munich, Germany. The song has a break between the
bridge and chorus where the guitar plays a melody that sounds like the words in my dreams."
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MY DEAREST
"This is a minimalistic guitar and piano song. It has a haunting and sad, yet beautiful feel to it.
This one came from an intro that David Strieter wrote for last year's "One Silent Night..." show.
The song sounds very personal, and the title seemed to capture that feeling for me."
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MY ONLY SON
"A simple, heartfelt, lyrical song. The intro was inspired by a riff from the live version of Little Drummer
Boy and has a U2-The Edge feel to it. This is another standout song and a favorite of mine."
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PURPLE PLUSH
"The lead-off song on the album. A mix between Suffragette City and Jet. A straight-ahead rocker
with a 70's retro feel that T.M. Stevens and The GMan just pounded out! I was thinking about the 70's
and took the title from a staple of that era, purple velvet pants."
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SOMETHING, ANYTHING
"Modern-rock meets orchestra song based off a baritone guitar riff. This epic song is really going to
knock you out! It hits you on the first beat and never lets up 'til the last. I couldn't come up with a title
for this one and thought, I just need something, anything... and there it was." |
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ULTRA
"A Led Zeppelin 70's rock inspired tune. The original title was Ultra Rocket Science but this song
proved to be anything but rocket science. During the Steve Smith sessions, the song became Ultra Mod
after a unique swing beat that he came up with. But ultimately, it always came back to Ultra."
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AUGUST 15
After all these months of telling you about "When Gravity Fails", the release date is finally here! All preorders have been mailed and should be hitting mailboxes now. The response has been overwhelming with the first shipment almost depleted, even before the reviews hit! Speaking of reviews, we'll be posting yours on this page. Please email them to Melodik Records along with your name and location. |
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JULY 27
Final mixing, mastering and CD artwork are completed. "When Gravity Fails" is now in the capable hands of Discmakers. The CD cover artwork is now posted above. Preorder sales have been through the roof and we cannot thank you enough for your support! More news and events to come.
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JULY 12
Mixing is going amazingly well! We're in the third of what will now be four days of mixing at John Schwab Studios in Columbus. There has been some severe magic going on and we all feel that something VERY BIG is happening here. The new songs are big and powerful with sweeping strings, blazing horns, heartfelt piano and the most melodic and soaring guitar work from Neil that's ever been recorded. Each song has come through the mixing process sounding like a true masterpiece with "Cinematic" and "Something, Anything" as breathtaking standouts!
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JULY 9
String sessions are now complete. A late night horn session on Friday completed the long evolution of "Cinematic." Neil is now working feverishly to edit these parts. A final run through will be done at Melodik Studios on Sunday night and on Monday it will be onto John Schwab Studios for mixing. |
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JULY 3
Last week's string session went extremely well with one more to come for the epic song "Cinematic." There will also be a horn session later this week for the song. All guitar leads are now complete and are quite stunning. Everyone here at Melodik Records is over-anxious for the fans to hear these songs! Mixing is now less than one week away. |
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JUNE 23
Final string sessions have been scheduled for June 29 with Summit Strings, the same players from the magical Staring at The Sun sessions. Mixing is scheduled for July 11-13 at John Schwab Studios. Artwork is due by July 14th. |
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JUNE 13
The CD release details have been finalized. The release date has been set for August 15. Preorders will begin on
July 15 via the NZ Store. The first 500 CD's will be autographed. Preordered CD's will begin shipping on August 8. |
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Doug Johns' parts are complete. Bobby Rock added drums to one of the heavier songs in an L.A. recording session. Unfortunately, Edgar Winter will not be able to supply his part due to recent commitments for an upcoming tour with Ringo Starr. Album length was running long which regretably forced Neil to cut a couple of the more melodic songs. Gravity will now have 12 songs. Song titles will be announced next week. CD artwork is one element away from being complete (we promise you'll see it here first.) |
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JUNE 2
Solos from Peter Frampton and Roger Joseph Manning Jr. are in. Frampton's solo is very heartfelt and has that unique "Frampton Sound." It will follow Jordan Rudess' solo in "Cinematic." Doug Johns to record bass guitar on 6/3 at Melodik Studios. String sessions continue. Neil will have a recording session with Bobby Rock next week in
Los Angeles while in town for an IK Multimedia Clinic. |
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MAY 11
Neil has begun recording lead guitar and songs are starting to take shape, and some songs are evolving as guest parts are bringing them to new levels! Because of this, Neil has decided to move the release date back to August to give certain songs the attention they deserve.
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MAY 1
String arrangements are close to completion, with the recording session set for May 18th at Melodik Studios. All string arrangements were written by Neil. Roger Joseph Manning Jr. is recording this week. Parts by Peter Frampton & Edgar Winter are expected by June 1. Mixing, as always, will be done by Joe Viers. CD artwork is close to being finalized. Stay tuned to this page for a sneak peek!
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The new When Gravity Fails Page is born! Over the next three months, this page will be your source for news on the new album. Keep checking back as this is only the beginning of this page. Also, stay tuned for upcoming contests. |
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Neil Zaza - Lead, Rhythm, Baritone & Bass Guitars, Synth,
String and Horn Arrangements, Production, Engineering |
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Michael Anthony (Van Halen) - Bass Guitar |
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Bill Cioce - Drums |
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Peter Frampton - Guitar |
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Doug Johns - Bass Guitar |
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Scotty Kormos - Drums |
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Mark Leach - Hammond B-3 Organ |
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Roger Joseph Manning Jr. (Jellyfish, Imperial Drag, Beck) - Keyboards |
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Jordan Rudess (Dream Theater) - Keyboards |
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Steve Smith (Vital Information, Journey) - Drums, Percussion |
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T.M. Stevens (James Brown, Billy Joel, Joe Cocker) - Funky Bass Guitar |
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David Strieter ("One Silent Night 2005") - Keyboards |
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Garry "GMan" Sullivan (Bernie Worrell, The B52's) - Drums |
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Heidi Albert - Cello |
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Heather Gullstrand - Violin, Viola |
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Joe Miller - Brass |
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Joe Viers - Mixing, Additional Studio Engineering |
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Fc Bester - Mastering |
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Chris Auman - Artwork |
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GUITARS |
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Cort NZS-1, Danelectro Baritone, '72 Les Paul Deluxe, Music Man Eddie Van Halen Model |
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PEDALS |
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Keeley "The Lead Singer", MXR Phase 90, Fulltone Dejavibe, Vox Wah |
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AMPS |
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Plexi Marshall with 4x12, Mesa Boogie Road King, Bogner Ecstasy, Mini Dr. Z |
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MICROPHONES |
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Various Sennheiser and Neumann mics, Studio Projects C1, C3 & T3,
CAD T-8000, T-7000 & E300, sE microphones |
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MICROPHONE PREAMPS |
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Universal Audio LA-610, Presonus ADL 600, Peavey VMP2 |
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SOFTWARE |
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Ableton Live, Cubase SX, Motu DP4, Pro Tools, Notion, Amplitube 2, Guitar Rig 2, Sibelius Drums on Demand, Arturia Minimoog, Modular V, Prophet 5, NA UAD-1 Plugs |
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HARDWARE |
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Apple Macintosh Dual 2.7 Dual G5, 30" Cinema Display, Presonus Firepod, Various Digidesign Interfaces, Universal Audio UAD-1, Apogee Rosetta, Presonus Digimax LT, Mackie Control & XT Extender, Presonus Central Station, Fader Fox LV-1 & LX-1 |
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CABLES |
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George L's |
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