2016 – Frankenbacker
Music
By Phillip Smith; Aug. 13, 2016
I heard JRZ System for the first time last week, with my first visit to the
Tommy Bolin Music Festival in Sioux
City, Iowa. Hailing from Lincoln,
Nebraska, this extremely talented trio is composed of guitarist Mark Zavon, bassist Troy Johnson, and drummer Todd Roberson. During these past seven days, their latest
release Teazer has rapidly become one
of my all-time favorite albums. This ten
track tribute of instrumentals is one stellar testament to the music of the
late great Tommy Bolin, capturing
each song off Bolin’s Teaser album in their original sequence.
In addition, they also include “Crazed Fandango”, originally recorded for Teaser, but not released until 1996 with
the release of From The Archives, Vol 1.
From the beginning at “Grind”,
I knew I was in for a treat. Johnson’s monster bassline, Zavon’s ripping guitar, and Roberson’s crushing performance on
drums are synchronized until the end. I
can’t help but think of my first impression of Joe Satriani, when I heard Surfing
With the Alien, and how much it knocked my socks off. “Homeward Strut” is crazy good too. Each person shines bright and takes up the
slack for no one. “Savannah Woman” is
another sparkling gem, artistically highlighted by a Santana-like aura and a smooth Latin beat.
Johnson
spins a funky groove on title track “Teaser” for Zavon to weave his psychedelic licks through. It sounds amazing. “Marching Powder”, my personal favorite Bolin track, is played ‘balls to the
wall’, in an onslaught of melodic metal. I love the way they gently ease into “Wild
Dogs” and take off running.
When it comes to Rock and
Roll, it really doesn’t get much better than this. I am so looking forward to hearing more from JRZ
System in the future, because Teazer is
fantastic!
