ASYLUM 9 "Just Visiting": new CD released featuring Vince DiCola

[Vince DiCola]

Hello to all,

I realize it's been a while since I posted anything but I wanted to make my fans here aware that a new CD is being released very soon to which I've made some major contributions (as producer and co-writer).   As with PITY THE RICH and DPI this new music is a bit of a departure from my usual movie/prog fare, but I hope fans will give it a chance and support the idea that artists (and writers, producers, arrangers, etc.) need to stretch their horizons from time to time by embarking on a slightly (and at times even radically) different musical journey from one release to the next.  I think it's fair to say that most of the time the artist and his/her fans stand only to benefit from this, and I believe that to be the case here.  This CD began when a friend of mine named Michael Fleischman approached me about the idea of taking some of his musical 'sketches' and recording and producing them in my home studio.  I ended up becoming more heavily involved in the writing of this material than either of us originally envisioned, mostly because I was inspired by the material Mike was bringing to the table and felt I could make some valuable contributions that would help take the music to the next level.  The process was very rewarding for both of us and I'm proud of the final result of our efforts.

The name of our duo is ASYLUM 9 and the CD is entitled "Just Visiting".  Stay tuned for an announcement from Travis as to when this release will become available (should be very soon).  In the meantime here's a quote from one reviewer who was given an advance copy and listened to the new disc from top to bottom...


"THE END OF THE DAY...

The best way to listen to music, besides 25 feet from the center of the stage, is with headphones. Blasting a car stereo is fun but I've reached the age where I'm not exactly thrilled to be sharing my music at 90 decibels with a nice, upstanding, clean-cut family of four at a stop light who's wondering if the Gates of Hell had just opened.

Particularly if a band like Magma is firing out of the speakers. I don't take enjoyment watching everyone roll their windows up as if a tidal wave were approaching. A child's confusion and fear while compelled to stare at me and endure the beautiful cacophony of prog rock doesn't do it for me anymore.

It did in my twenties. Back then, if I could get some old geezer to wince and give me an, "I'd like to get out of this car and kick your ass!" look, I would have considered myself victorious. Of what I was never sure. And if the elderly failed to react in any way, or far worse, refused to react, I took that as a personal challenge. Maybe a little more volume was in order. I'd keep inching the knob up until they turned a "What kind of a knucklehead are you?" glance my way, or until I couldn't bare the loudness any longer. There were wins and losses. Mostly wins.

All of that childish behavior is of course no way to listen to music. Not only do you get zilch from the experience, you distract yourself from concentrating on keeping your rolling metal box away from other rolling metal boxes. It increases the odds of you winding up in a stationary wooden box. The kind without a bitchin' stereo.

Headphones have always been a mainstay for most of us. It's one listening device you can't go cheap on. After all, you have to hear every single note at the end of Karn Evil #9 swooshing from ear to ear for as long as possible until the vibrating waves resemble an acid trip. Everyone knows it's true; if you aren't listening with a good quality set of headphones, you're not hearing anything.

It had been a long time since I wore mine. I bought them in the mid-nineties and have found no reason to buy new ones just yet. So despite the fact that bits of plastic are peeling off exposing the sponge insulation, and that this plastic finds it's way into my hair, ears, and somehow gets down my shirt, it was time to wear them again.

The clock was approaching midnight. My wife was fast asleep so I closed the pocket doors separating our living and family rooms to muffle the noise coming from my beloved headphones. And there was going to be a loud noise tonight.

I looked out my window at the trees swaying in the early fall wind. The moon was nearly full, but shaped in this weird three quarter circle making it look like it hadn't been fully inflated with air. Several leaves splattered the window as a strong surge of wind swallowed the neighborhood. Nature was telling me what should be the evening listen. It was going to be an old traditional favorite, 'You' by Gong. But I had just received in the mail that day a cd from a member of Asylum 9, a Los Angeles band's first album, and although I had planned on listening to it the next day, I knew I shouldn't put it off any longer. This was the moment.

Asylum 9 consists of Mike Fleischman and Vince Dicola, both accomplished musicians who have flown under the radar far too long. It's a familiar story in the art world, every medium is overloaded with so much talent and even 10 times more crap it's next to impossible for artists with unique ability and aptitude for their trade to break in. Before Mike sent me the cd he told me it was something totally different than what I was used to hearing from him, and what to expect. He was right on both counts, and ultimately the music exceeding my expectations.

The CD is called "Just Visiting" and can only be described as a symphony of horror. In parts it reminds me of modern day Goblin with a little Eddie Jobson thrown in. But that is by no means the whole story. The songs were written by Mike and Vince, and they're quite unlike anything else going on in the prog world today. This is music written for those who are reckless enough to want their senses rattled and don't care where the journey leads. The songs range from sonic complexity to profoundly simplicity."Stone Ghosts" is an example of that simple kind of song that sticks to your ribs, having an easy but mystical melody that summons a Gothic atmosphere. It's truly a welcomed relief toward the end of the disc after all the frantic interplay between dark and light themes one has to travel through.

Vince's vast experience as producer is such a bonus to the music it feels like you're watching a movie as well. Indiscriminate sounds spring from nowhere, incomplete phone calls add tension, world leaders offer a facade of empty promises meant to soothe our fears... all are perfectly placed within the music's dark structure. He's created a rough, heavy edge to the sound, and during the delicate passages there's a ambiance of dread you know is looming in your future. He's a master composer as well.

About halfway through the listen I was thanking my headphones for doing their usual outstanding job. That was the only time my mind strayed even remotely from what my ears were hearing. As if to punish me for taking even a few seconds reprieve from the madness, my body was brought back to attention by a passage that infused me with such shock and intensity it went above levels I had experience listening to Present. But "Just Visiting" all is not all doom and gloom. There's a subtle sense of humor here and there giving more depth to the experience. Vince and Mike understand full well the idea of contrast and proper execution. It's music with tremendous balance.

It was sad to read recently that prog rock festival giant Nearfest was disbanding after 12 years of excellence in providing fans with the highest caliber of progressive music we can hope to have assembled in one place for one weekend, year after year. I'd like to thank Rob LaDuca, Chad Hutchinson, Kevin Feeley, all the devoted Nearfest personnel behind the scenes for giving us a stretch in time we'll always remember. Events such as this ought to last forever, but nothing does. And in light of that fact, we need to turn to other avenues to get what we need, which is new worlds in music, no matter where it comes from, no matter how hard we have to search for it. I'll be doing that forever, and my headphones better be up to the task."[/i]


Stay tuned for release date info!

Vince

[In Search Of The]

Long time no see! Exciting news for sure.

[Mantisaur]

good to hear from you, Vince!

I cannot wait to hear the new disc - sounds very promising!

[Mixmaster]

Hello Vince. Wow... it has been so long since I've heard from you and this news brings a sigh of relieve to know that you're still out there making music.

A question, you're talking about writing and producing, but are you also performing on this new album? I've been playing every album I own of you so many times that I can allmost see right through them... LOL... only joking. I hope to hear this new record soon cause the way you are writing about it, make the flame of music burning brighter inside of me.

Greetings from accross the globe, Niels Berndsen, The Netherlands.

[Travis]

I should have the new CD available in the store in the next two days. I'll post an announcement here then.

[Mixmaster]

Good news, very good news. I'll keep my eyes out.

[Travis]

Sorry Folks for the delays, this album is now available in the store. I'll be adding it to the front page soon as well.


http://travisdickersonmusic.com/shop/#ecwid:category=818121&mode=product&product=11497577

[Mixmaster]

Hello Travis. After a minor error on the webpage, I've been able to order Vince's new album and it's arrived in perfect order.

Can you give my regards to Vince? I used to mail with him, but since the hack on his e-mail adres, I haven't been in contact with Vince.

Thanks in advance.

Niels Berndsen, Nieuw-Venep, The Netherlands