With bands like Creed selling millions of records, I wonder why a band with the talents like Vast is not dominating North America. In ’98, Vast’s freshman debut, Visual Audio Sensory Theater, showed a lot of potential, enough so that this band should be making records worth keeping in your collection until you’re old and gray. Rock genius Jon Crobsy (songwriter/guitarist) is proving to be of the best-unknown songwriters in rock music. Music For People is constructed with devastating guitars and captivating modern and classical musical arrangements.
The contributions of Andrew Mackay and The New Bombay Recording Orchestra add vibrant brilliance to most of the recording. What you normally hear from a rock band’s bass, drums, and amplified guitars is completely changed with the addition of the orchestra. Music For People extends in several compositions, from the heavily rocked induced “Free” to the swing string serenade of “Blue”. “The Last One Alive” and “The Gates of Rock and Roll” are the only songs that do not incorporate the symphonic sounds of The New Bombay Recording Orchestra, but wait until you hear the sweet strings of Crobsy’s guitars. How good of a guitar player is he? At the tender age of thirteen John Crobsy was named to be a guitar prodigy by numerous guitar publications and is now maturing into a true rockstar guitarist.
Moving to the deeper and passionate “Song Without A Name”, Crobsy and company do not waste a single note from start to finish as the intensity builds into a climactic finish. In fact, there is probably not a wasted note or arrangement on this whole record. Upon listening to it you can tell that the members of Vast grew up listening to the Beatles. “I Don’t Have Anything” and “Land of Shame” show songwriting traits that can be traced back to signatures of Abbey Road.
Music For People gets stamped and filed with a solid seal of approval. Vast will be out on tour with Eve 6 this spring.
+ l.sarzyniak
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