Andy West with RAMA: Rama 1 (2002)

Glenn Astarita

Senior Contributor since 1997

Longtime contributor to AAJ and Downbeat, Jazz Review, EjazzNews, Radio DirectX.

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Published: December 26, 2002

Known for his longtime affiliation with the Dixie Dregs, bassist Andy West assembles an all-star prog-rock/jazz-fusion based band here. Supported by high-octane guitarist Mike Kenneally, Dregs drummer extraordinaire Rod Morgenstein and other notables, West lays down the booming bass patterns for this rather boisterous affair.

Notions such as Intelli-Metal come to mind, as the musicians meld raucous soloing endeavors with blistering rhythms and shrewdly coordinated shifts in strategy. And while the compositions are somewhat nondescript, this outing is more about burgeoning, in-your-face type riffs and compactly executed solo spots. In fact, the liners divulge that each player composed their respective parts.

At times, the music seems bonded in titanium, due to the silvery sound sculptures and bone crunching rhythms. Overall, West and associates have engineered a genial production, as they get to the point in expeditious fashion via a series of relatively complex passages amid the lead soloists’ power-packed exchanges.

Magna Carta

Track Listing: 1.Mad March 2.Meetings 3.Herd Instinct 4.Bloomsday 5.Old Meat Frame 6.Memento Mori 7.Qubit 8.Government 9.Resonate

Personnel: Andy West: bass, guitar, keyboards, synths

Record Label: Magna Carta Records
Style: Fusion/Progressive Rock