Customer Reviews

Meet the Meatbats

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Chad Smith's Bombastic Meatbats are all that & more. This CD kills with some heavy hittin' instrumental funk rock. It's the best way I can describe it. I actually got to see this band "live" at NAMM 2010 in Anaheim as part of the Sabian Live concert and they tore the roof off. Buy this disc. Great players all around. A +++

dafunkydrummer

I really enjoyed this cd when I got it. With the silly sounding song titles, I wondered how serious it would be. But it really suprised me.Im not as big a fan of instumental cds as I used to be. Now Ill only buy stuff like Jeff Beck, Steve Hunter, Jan Ackerman. Most instumentals are ussually alot of " widdly, widlly" stuff. To much speed, and not enough feel. This reminds me of Wired and Blow by Blow era Beck.
Chad Smith has got to be the busiest man in rock music. Hes on everthing!!I would highly recomend this cd.

Silly band name. Drummer leading a band. Half-hearted cover. Even though I know better, I almost judged a book by the cover..glad I put preconceptions aside and listened to it! If you like Jeff Beck's 'Blow By Blow' or 'There And Back', this will hit you right in your wheelhouse. I fear calling it "Jazz-Fusion" cause I know that's a bad word to lots of folks, but this is a classic addition to the fusion cannon. This will get played to death for years to come in my household!

Being a huge fan of Kollman and Cosmosquad lead me to this. Wow. This reminds me a bunch of Jeff Becks older stuff, but with more of a solid groove to it. Too much to say about it, it's solid all the way through with absolutely amazing recording quality. I've got an audiophile system in my vehicle and this disc sounds incredible and spacious. The last track 'Into the Floyd' is really cool, and it's funny to hear Kollman trying to restrain himself. That's not meant as any kind of negative Jeff. You, Gilmour, Govan and May are my favorites EVER!

Of course we know that CHAD SMITH is an extraordinary drummer through his work with the CHILLI PEPPERS, but this puts a huge exclamation point on his resume. He takes the drumming to a new level and the band and the music challenges him and pushes all 4 musos to greater hights. Could have been a noodle fest, but the music stands on its own and everyone plays to augment the composition. Amazing skills from JEFF KOLLMAN on guitar. If you like fusion or strumental virtuosity 2nd to none, buy this now......many jaw dropping moments

This is a great disc. Jeff Kollman is at peak form. Tasty tunes with great Kollman shredding.

I was surprised that I loved every song on the CD - it was a new sound with a throwback feel. I would recommend it to anyone for their CD collection. It was great and I can't wait for the next release.

I'd give this a 4.45 rating rounded down to 4. Masterful playing without, ironically, being bombastic. The blurb above says it well:

"Remember the good old days, when jazz-fusion wasn't all about showing off your chops, and was more about creating sweeping moods, and the importance of songwriting?"

On the other hand, guitar-wise, I'd say there is more funk and rock than jazz here though references to Jeff Beck are apropos. Anyway, this is precisely the kind of music that gets me through long episodes of grading papers. No crescendos like classical music. No bombastic feats of guitar virtuosity that demand one's complete attention. Instead, these guys are like four ingredients that play off and complement each other creating a hearty, tasty whole. It really is about the groove and mood.

My only criticism, and I am nitpicking here, is with some of Jeff's tones. I am used to those found on his Cosmosquad albums. In fact, on average, I find Jeff's live sound superior to those found on this recording with the exception of Into the Floyd. Remember, I am being ridiculous here. If I had to chose one favorite guitarist it would be Jeff Kollman.

All in all, I am very glad I have met the Meatbats.