by Joe Deninzon | Sep 14, 2012 | Press, Reviews, The Next World
http://www.thecornernews.com/index.php/music_n_movies/comments/out-of-this-world-album/
http://www.thecornernews.com/index.php/music_n_movies/comments/out-of-this-world-album/
Out of this world album
Wildman Steve
For The Corner News
Published: September 5, 2012 1:32:17 pm
Joe Deninzon is a Russian violinist born to two members of that country’s leading Philharmonic Orchestra. He’s been labeled “The Jimi Hendrix of the Violin” by many, due to his extreme virtuosity on the seven-string electric violin. That’s right—seven strings. His style throughout his career has blended jazz, rock and gypsy music in ways no other could possibly imagine. He’s performed with an amazing array of musicians, including Sheryl Crow, Bruce Springsteen, Phoebe Snow, Everclear, Ritchie Blackmore, Smokey Robinson and Les Paul, just to name a few. He’s also performed as a solo electric violinist with the New York Ballet.
Deninzon leads the band Stratospheerius, who’ve just released their fifth album, “The Next World,” on Steve Vai’s Digital Nations label, and once again shows the world that Russians and Americans can make beautiful and exciting music together. Actually, exciting is too tame a word for this album, as it opens with the astounding “Release,” a smoking progressive rocker that will suck you into this album like an industrial vacuum. What follows is a thrilling array of songs that run the gamut from complex prog tunes to simple ballads, from Zappa-esque epics to alluring soundscapes. Deninzon’s acuity on the violin is multi-faceted and consistently over-the-top amazing, and always deeply musical.
You’ll hear nods to influences like Jean-Luc Ponty, Jerry Goodman, and Dixie Dregs’ Allen Sloane, but through it all Deninzon presents a unique personality and perspective on the violin. “The Next World” is an electrifying album, guaranteed to take you into the stratosphere and beyond.
by Joe Deninzon | Sep 5, 2012 | Press, Reviews, The Next World
http://www.seaoftranquility.org/reviews.php?op=showcontent&id=13257
STRATOSPHEERIUS: THE NEXT WORLD
REVIEW BY MICHAEL POPKE ON WWW.SEAOFTRANQUILITY.COM
The fact that in-demand electric violinist Joe Deninzon has performed with everyone from Bruce Springsteen and Ritchie Blackmore to Johnny Mathis and Smokey Robinson suggests that his band Stratospheerius has broad appeal. And does it ever!
This New Jersey-based outfit’s distinct hybrid of progressive rock, jam band, funk, jazz and Gypsy influences turns Stratospheerius’ latest album, The Next World…, into a formidable musical beast. The disc opens with “Release,” a track that evokes Kansas’ savvy use of violin, borrows a reggae-pop beat and boasts an elegant vocal arrangement akin to Spock’s Beard. The Yes influence begins showing up in “The Missing Link,” the manic “Tech Support” bounces along like something Umphrey’s McGee could have written, “Climbing” has a late-summer country-rock groove that would work on mainstream radio, and “The House Always Wins” is a sparse blues ditty.
Lyrically, Stratospheerius is just as adventurous, with Deninzon’s chameleon voice shifting on each song, not so much dominating these tunes as inhabiting them. And a trio of instrumentals — two wild ones (“Road Rage” and “Fleshbot”) and the mellowest track on the album (“Ballad for Ding Bang”) — showcases Deninzon’s prowess while not slighting his talent-rich band: guitarist Aurelien Budynek, bassist Jamie Bishop and drummer Lucianna Padmore.
Every Deninzon and Stratospheerius album is worthy of your attention, but if you’re new to these guys, start here. And if you’re not — well, you know you want this…
Track Listing:
1) Release
2) The Missing Link
3) Tech Support
4) Climbing
5) Fleshbot
6) The House Always Wins
7) Gods
8) Ballad for Ding Bang
9) Road Rage
10) One Foot in the Next World
11) The Prism
Added: August 29th 2012
Reviewer: Michael Popke
Score:
Related Link: Official Stratospheerius Website
Hits: 159
Language: english
by Joe Deninzon | Jul 9, 2012 | Reviews, The Next World
http://progulator.com/reviews/bite-size/bite-size-prog-the-rock-oratorio/
Stratospheerius – The Next World
I’m just gonna say it, no one stop me, please: This album drove me absolutely nuts. So, why the good rating? It’s well done, I simply can’t argue with that. Stratospheerius is a unique band, melding blugrass, rock, prog, jazz, and funk. It’s really hard to describe. It’s got great violin happening all over the place, it breaks down to these blugrass and country moments all of a sudden, then this weird electronic bit, and all of a sudden there’s a funk guitar going, followed by classic rock guitars and vocals. Then, of course, there’s the prog elements on a variety of tracks, which prove to be quite well done (check out “Fleshbot” and “Road Rage” great instrumental driven violin rock madness). I’m not gonna lie, this violinist is really good, and really fun. If I were supersticious, I’d have to say that the devil came down and made a deal with Mr. Denizon for sure. Stratospheerius is all over the map on The Next World. Great band, not my style, but still a great band. This one’s worth checking out to see whether you love it or hate it.
-Matt Di Giordano
by Joe Deninzon | Jul 3, 2012 | Reviews, The Next World
Stratospheerius
The Next World
Review by G. W. Hill
You just can’t go wrong with this outfit. Nor can
you assume what you are going to hear when they
release a new disc. While the fusion elements of
previous releases are still present, this one has
more pure rock in it, too. Frankly, this might be the
best Stratospheerius disc yet. At least until the
next world, err time.
Track by Track Review
Release
Starting in a fusion way, this turns out to a killer, accessible prog rock tune.
It’s very much in an AOR motif and the peace lyrics are cool. There’s a great
non-lyrical vocal section as a bridge. There’s also a bouncy sort of section
that reminds me a bit of the reggae influenced period of Rush. There’s also
an intriguing space rock meets jam band instrumental section later. As one
might guess, there is also some tasty violin playing on this.
The Missing Link
The early sections of this have an almost modern alternative rock texture.
From there, though, it turns more unusual. Perhaps the most obvious
reference is King’s X, but it has more of a fusion element than that conveys.
As this cut continues the vocal arrangement becomes very noteworthy. In
addition, some of the changes start to feel more like some classic progressive
rock from the 1970s. This is another awesome tune on a disc that’s turning
out to be exceptional by this point.
Tech Support
Frantic and funky, this is a short song, but what a monster it is. It’s definitely
more like jazz, but there’s even a vibe to it that feels almost like Red Hot
Chili Peppers. While this might not be the prog powerhouse that the first two
cuts represented, this thing is full of energy and the instrumental section is a
real killer.
Climbing
While this cut is good, and presents a definite change of pace, it’s not nearly
as strong as the rest of the disc. The bulk of this fits somewhere between an
alternative rock sound and country music. Still, there is a smoking hot
instrumental section that’s more prog meets fusion and manages to save this
from pure mediocrity. Honestly, the problem isn’t weakness with this
particular number. It’s just that compared to the rest it’s a bit lackluster.
Fleshbot
After a gong blast, the violin heralds a killer fusion jam. This is angular in its
progression and mid-tempo in its pace. Its shifts this way and that and really
rocks like crazy. At times I’m reminded of some of the most adventurous
music from Yes. They take it out into some world music after a while. Then it
becomes more pure jazz for a short time. They drop it to a weird percussive
bit and then move back into the song proper. It gebit and then move back into the song proper. It gets pretty crazed after a time. Other than some found sound type voices, thie tune is an instrumental.
This one is certainly proof that the disc is back on track after the last one.
The House Always Wins
While this cut is a big change, it’s far from a let down. It’s sort of like a jazz
ballad with a lot of New Orleans and some blues in the mix. It’s a weird little
tune and features some small oddities in the arrangement. It’s also very
tasty and has loads of charm and style. It’s probably not really a progressive
rock number, but there’s enough fusion here to make it a close call.
Gods
What a powerhouse this one is. It comes in hard rocking with a modern
progressive rock sound. As it continues it just gets more potent. The vocals
are among the best on the disc and the music also stands out. At times this
leans towards metal. At other points it’s closer to fusion. There’s almost a
Jimi Hendrix goes fusion feeling to it at times. The guitar solo is especially
powerful as it soars over the top of the mix. There’s a full on progressive rock
interlude that serves to link the instrumental movement back to the song
proper. This is arguably the standout number on show here.
Ballad for Ding Bang
This instrumental starts out much more like pure jazz. It gets more rock
infused as it continues and it has some particularly inspiring musical interplay
and soloing. It suffers from having to follow the masterpiece that “Gods” was,
but it manages to pull it off very well by not occupying similar space.
Road Rage
The frantic jam that opens this allows Joe Deninzon lots of room to simply
scream out his violin soloing. This is a high energy cut that’s part Charlie
Daniels and part Kansas, but all Stratospheerius. The guitar also gets a
chance to shine and this thing is a crunchy crazed progressive rock meets
fusion instrumental that’s another highlight of the set.
One Foot in the Next World
While the first parts of this have that alternative rock turned modern
progressive rock sound and seem a bit lackluster compared to some of the
rest of the music here, this includes plenty of powerhouse jamming later. It’s
another standout tune. It’s got strong vocals, killer instrumentation and a
powerful arrangement.
The Prism
They saved a winner to close the set. The progression of this cut includes
some Eastern tones, and I’m a sucker for that sound. It’s also powerful and
features some killer instrumental work alongside the vocals. This is another
that has a bit of a Kansas element to it, but it also seems to lean on some
modern epic metal in some ways. Still, this is Stratospheerius, so it’s got
plenty of prog and fusion built into it. This is definitely a great way to end the
disc in style and power. There’s even a little symphonic turn that actually
closes the track.
by Joe Deninzon | May 13, 2012 | The Next World
John Wilcox Progsheet review The Next World 5/11/12
http://progsheet1.hypermart.net/cdrz.html
Stratospheerius – The Next World… (Fiddlefunk Music)
Take violinist / vocalist Joe Deninzon, add guitarist Aurelien Budynek, bassist Jamie Bishop, and drummer Lucianna Padmore and you get the genre-busting quartet Stratospheerius. One moment you get a Police vibe; another song might fit in with that gonzo Tubes feel; the next some Jeff Beck-ish; yet another would be at home in the Zappa family. Sometimes all at once. The one common factor is that every number is full of invention and feels alive.
The biggest jump since the last Stratospheerius album is the depth and maturity Deninzon’s voice has gained. His vocal on The House Always Wins is playful and a bit of a tease. On Gods it’s got an urgent edge. Earthy and open on Climbing. As for the playing, every member plays with passion and invention. Budynek is tight and bright in rhythm mode and soars when the song calls for it. Bishop, who prog fans might recall from stints with the Syn and with Francis Dunnery, is a flat out low end monster and perfectly matched with the fiery Padmore. She is that drummer every musician wants in their ensemble: a player that can blow your mind one moment, then tenderly hold your hand the next. As for Deninzon – the sounds he gets out of that violin are inhuman. His speed, precision, color, and character are just off the charts!
Not a bum song to be found here. Today Ballad For Ding Bang, the Morse-era Spock’s Beard-ish One Foot In The Next World, The House Always Wins, and Tech Support win the highlight honors. If you dig funk/prog/rock/jazz/jam/fusion/pretty-much-everything-but-opera – it’s all right here. The Next World… is a disc you’ll never get tired of spinning! Much love to dear departed Stratospheerian Bob Bowen who also provided the cover art.