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MJBrady
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Published on: 7 Mar 2008
What a treat, when every few years guitarist Wolfgang Zenk, and his quartet of fusion explorers consisting of: Klaus Engl on drums, Marlkus Grutzner on bass and Markus Froschmeier on keyboards, take on a new challenge to deepen the 7 for 4 discography. 2008 sees the release of the band's newest addition, with their third recording with the aptly named Diffusion, which in physics means, an intermingling of molecules, and yet another definition:To become widely dispersed; spread out. Which in regards to musical genres is very fitting of the bands' overall sound.
Start with the vibe that is 7 for 4, they are all musicians that have spent a lifetime of dedication to their instruments, each player shares in the musical direction by injecting their personal touch to these elegantly written compositions. Granted, Wolfgang Zenk's guitar is at times the voice of the band so to speak, but each players is important to what the band achieves compositionally. Unlike many fusion bands that set up grooves or progressions for the sake of showcasing individuals' solo skills, these songs are much more intricate and cinematic in style. What they are creating are graceful songs that set a perfect backing for imaginary scenarios and would be cinema soundtracks.
It's that rare marriage of talent and writing where progressive music meets fusion's high standard of musicianship, no ideas or styles are excluded, as this music can be soft or heavy, calm or stormy, contemplative or extravagant. It is the music of extremes, yet never dull or dispassionate. What I hear with 7 for 4 is the same feelings I had when hearing Return to Forever's - Romantic Warrior for the first time, not that the bands sound at all alike, but having four greatly skilled musicians creating composed music that mixes rock, jazz, metal, latin, etc, yet with such a natural chemistry that it all comes out sounding like only something 7 for 4 would do. That is what I love about the band so much. They have a personality, no cloning, no derivative comparisons really, but a band that has a gift that exists between them that allows the magic to sort of manifest without pretensions or formulas.
My understanding is that this cd was over two years in the making, and as intricate as this music is, that is very understandable, as any great production should be, taking the time to perfect one's craft typically produces a desired result. 7 for 4 have yet to produce anything short of excellent, each of their cds is an adventure into the future of instrumental progressive fusion, this being the latest cd, I can hear some familiar sounds, and some new ideas, yet as always, launching the band boldly forward from where they were in 2004 with the release of Time.
In this day and age of what seems like an endless array of musical clones, we have a band that has taken on an identity all of their own, the power of metal, the elegance of jazz, the sophistication of progressive music, and the flavor of various ethno rhythms, and a great presentation of these themes, paired with a fantastic production quality, and what you have is what is proving to be a frontrunner for my favorite cd of 2008, it will certainly be a hard one to beat.
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