Joseph Benzola   -  Profile

Artist/Band Profile: Creative Improvised Music: Acoustic and Electroacoustic

Similar Artists: Sun Ra, Art Ensemble, Coltrane, LaMonte Young, Stockhausen, Cage, Xenakis

Music Style: Creative Improvised Music

Reviews: " ...The variety of exotic atmospheres that Benzola creates is quite impressive, and his use of hollow and nasal reeds and percussion to design African or Mideast imagery is often compelling. There certainly is a trippiness to Benzola's best work....he is a capable sonic architect and an imaginative drummer." Walter Horn; Cadence

"Dig The New Breed is the latest release from the Benzola sonic foundry. On this CD, Benzola continues his ongoing project of "Portraits of the Dead" paeans, this time with tributes to Lester Bowie and Tony Williams. The remainder of this very introspective work becomes almost tantric at times with sounds that transport you beyond what you know to be true. If you can possibly imagine LaMonte Young writing music for Cecil Taylor performed by a Tibetan drum orchestra, you will have some idea of this music. Some have tried to label this as "Free Jazz Psychedelic" but don't get tripped up on this. To do that will cause you to miss out on some extraordinarily mind expanding listening."

Philip Egert; Drimala Records

Influences: Sun Ra, Art Ensemble, Coltrane, LaMonte Young, Stockhausen, Cage, Xenakis

Studio / Music Equipment: My studio consists of Acoustic drums and percussion, gongs, whistles, bird calls, tabla, bells, piano, bamboo flutes, and shenai. Electronic instruments include Proteus World, Vintage Keys, Nord Lead,Drum KAT, Casio Wind Controller, Reality, Reaktor, Acid Pro, Audio Mulch, Moogfooger Filter and Ring Modulator, and a host of plugins. Recording is done with Cakewalk Pro and Vegas Pro. Mixing done in Sound Forge. Live recording done with a Denon DAT.