Theo - The Game Of Ouroboros (2015)

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Theo - The Game Of Ouroboros (2015)

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Formed by world reknown keyboardist Jim Alfredson (organissimo, Dirty Fingers, Janiva Magness, Greg Nagy Band, Root Doctor) Theo harkens back to the keyboard-centric superbands of the 1970s like Yes, Genesis, and Emerson Lake and Palmer, but with a distinctly modern and bold approach. Theo also represents a return to the concept of the keyboardist as a vital and irreplaceable part of the group, rather than a mere sideman. The intrepid and dynamic music is paired with auspicious lyrical themes of corporatization, consumerism, loss of innocence, exile, and the obsession with celebrity. Lead vocals are handled by Alfredson himself. Usually relegated to background duties, Alfredson's surprisingly flexible baritone voice shifts from soaring muscularity to intimate falsetto and everything between. The eponymous debut album features six tracks including an epic three song opening suite comprising 24 minutes.

A note on Theo by founder Jim Alfredson:

"My love of progressive music was fueled by my dad's eclectic LP collection and my older sister's musical tastes. He got me into Pink Floyd, ELP, Deep Purple, The Beatles, and early electronic music like Wendy Carlos, Tomita, and Vangelis. My sister got me into Genesis, Peter Gabriel, and Yes among others.

The thing I still love the most about that music is the experimentation with musical forms (odd time signatures, symphonic arrangements, non-standard lyrical subject matter) and the sounds, specifically the keyboard sounds. My love of the Hammond organ began with Rick Wright's thick sustained chords through a Leslie speaker on "slow". Later, I was blown away by Keith Emerson's raw power and technical ability, Tony Kaye's amazing tone and musicality, Rick Wakeman's sheer prowess and creativity, and many others. But my favorite was and still is Tony Banks. His melodicism, his compositions, his arrangements, even his lyrics are the pinnacle of the art form, in my humble opinion.

Those were the days when keyboardists were gods among mortals! Or at the very least as important in the band as the guitarist! Progressive music suffered in the 80s and 90s only to re-invent itself within the framework of prog-metal. While there are new bands appearing with keyboards, the role of the keyboardist has shrunk immensely.

The primary goal in the creation of this group, THEO, is to bring keyboards back to the foreground of the music. And not just any keyboards. Those that are familiar with my work know that I am a stickler for good tone. I don't care if it's analog or digital, mechanical or electronic, as long as it sounds good. Too many modern progressive bands use cheesy keyboard sounds, trying to sound like a lead guitar, or super pristine digital sounds from modern workstations. My inspiration is Tony Banks. And not just his tones but the sophisticated yet accessible nature of his compositions, his melodicism, and taste.

Of course the band is only as good as the other musicians. To that end, I approached the best musicians I knew and thankfully they were all very excited to be a part of the project. The drummer is Kevin Depree, a young phenomenal musician who is incredibly creative and fearless. On bass is my friend and bandmate in the touring band for Janiva Magness, Gary Davenport. Gary is playing standard four string bass, fretless bass, and Chapman Stick on this record and doing it all with grace, originality, and incredible musicianship. On guitar is Jake Reichbart who understands this music inside and out and created the perfect guitar parts to weave around it. He also played some wicked leads.

Special guests include Zach Zunis on lead guitar on one song and Greg Nagy doing auxillary guitar parts on a few tunes as well as thickening up the background vocals. I'm very excited about this band and this album. It is vastly different from all the jazz work I'm known for but in many ways is a return to my roots."

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Theo - The Game Of Ouroboros (2015)

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Theo - The Game Of Ouroboros (2015)

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