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The first CD release
from electronic artist Dennis Melton, Forever is a
Lie, is the realization of a half-forgotten dream.
Dennis has been a professional musician for 41
years (retired from performing in the muddled
middle 80's). Based at the time in Minneapolis and
having played in a variety of groups throughout
the Midwest since age 14, Mr. Melton grew tired of
the business end of the music industry and focused
all of his creative energies on visual arts and
his equally distinguished career as an
independent illustrator and graphic designer.
What anyone who's
achieved any level of accomplishment as a musician
knows, it doesn't go quietly.
The digital age
brought possibilities to the creative process that,
like the music itself, couldn't be ignored. With
the current state-of-the-art synthesizers
operating at full tilt from a slightly beefy CPU,
Dennis Melton the composer/musician found a
rebirth of passion for music. This time around
without the business end robbing the process of
its joy.
Now located in
Las Vegas, fueled by the musical energies that
abound in the "Entertainment Capital of the
World", and armed with a half-dozen soft
synths and nearly 300 VST audio effects, Dennis
Melton is now able to take the creative process
from concept to polished completion as a real
"solo act". Writing all of the parts,
playing all of the instruments, accepting no
excuses, making no
compromises and taking no prisoners. No road crew
to pay, no trucks to insure, no pseudo-democratic
band politics to endure, or anything else that
gets in the way of art and the creative process.
Just an accomplished musician and his imagination,
brought back to life by modern technology.
Being foremost a
drummer, the arrangements are percussion-laden
instrumental jazz-fusion (for lack of a more
accurate category) that tend to dwell in the
darker realms of melody. The influences are
evident and openly embraced. Having been favorably
likened to composition and performance powerhouses
such as Chick Corea, Bill Bruford, Prairie Prince,
Keith Jarrett, Lenny White, Al Dimeola, Frank
Zappa and others, Mr. Melton wears his openly-
acknowledged respect on his sleeve as a
tribute to their genius.
As the composer
himself describes much of his music as
"Soundtracks to the movies in my head",
from one piece to the next you can
expect the unexpected. With utter disregard
(disdain?) for convention, melody hooks and timing
changes abound.
It may also be of interest that the album cover
illustrations and jewel case graphics for all
three albums are created by Mr. Melton as well.
Charlene Davis
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