Innovative Guitarist Jon Durant Releases Solo Guitar Album "Parting Is"

Boston, MA - Following three acclaimed CDs with his group Burnt Belief, Jon Durant has returned with his first solo album since 2011's “Dance of the Shadow Planets.” Unlike his previous solo albums, however, “Parting Is” is a completely solo guitar album.

A deeply emotional and personal record, “Parting Is” takes the idea of a solo guitar album and transforms it into a stunning sonic landscape of texture and color. Many of the sounds on the album bear no relationship with traditional guitar, but there are no synthesizers employed at all. Everything is played by Jon Durant on guitars (with Durant also playing fretless bass on four pieces).

Durant commented: “In recent years, I have been spending a lot of time away from people and places I love very much. My two boys are out of the house, one graduated college and the other is a senior in college this year. We have a wonderful time when I get to see them, but then they go away and there is a bit of a pang as we part. Also, we have a second home on the other side of the country (Portland, OR) where I spend a fair bit of time, and is also where much of this album began. Frequently my wife will join me for a long weekend, and I will stay on for another week or so, and of course there's the sadness when we part. What is reflected in this music is the sweet sorrow that comes from this parting - recognizing that it's temporary but still longing for more time together.”

About the music, Durant stated: “On most days, one of the first things I do is grab a cup of tea or coffee, and begin to experiment with my guitar. The music that comes out is not done with any intention of becoming a composition, or a recording, but is rather more of a meditation. However, a friend heard a brief recording of one such piece and asked why I didn't record more of them. When I began to do so, I felt a pattern was emerging that might be worth exploring.

“Many pieces begin as loops that I would play a melodic lead over. I recorded several of these, then began to deconstruct the loops and record the various parts as separate components which could become less loop like and more dynamic and flowing. The track, 'Open Window' is a perfect example of how that played out.”

That track, “Open Window” also provides an opportunity to explore the unusual sound and textures that Durant creates. The primary guitar which began as a loop is an electric 12 string. From there, multiple electric 12 string parts were layered in a minimalistic way. The melodic guitar is a fretless electric guitar, and the low tones (which sound a bit like the old Moog Bass Pedals) are generated from the fretless guitar. Also, swirling around in the background are Jon's unique cloud guitar sounds, notes which hang in the air like clouds with no discernable beginnings or endings.

There are three solo cloud guitar pieces (“Clouds in Advance”, “Before the Rain Falls” and “Willamette Fog”) and two pieces which remained as a loop with lead guitar over the top. “The Room Where She Waits” is a loop of electric 12 String and the lead is fretless guitar. On “Evolve in Place”, the loop is an electric guitar with fretless guitar over the top.

Guitarist Jon Durant brings a unique sense of texture and melody to his instrument. His distinctive “cloud guitar” soundscapes and engaging lead work have graced numerous CD recordings and film soundtracks. As executive producer of Alchemy Records, he produces recordings for internationally acclaimed artists in his small home studio. Alongside Durant's six solo albums and three Burnt Belief records (with Colin Edwin of Porcupine Tree), Alchemy has also released albums by artists Michael Manring, Gary Willis, Leni Stern/Wayne Krantz and others.

To Purchase Jon Durant's “Parting Is”:
https://www.amazon.com/Parting-Jon-Durant/dp/B077319LXV
https://burningshed.com

Video for Burnt Belief, “Ghosts Aquatic”:

Video for Burnt Belief, “Dissemble”:

Video for Burnt Belief, “Semazen”:

Jon Durant's official website: http://www.jondurant.com

Press inquiries: Glass Onyon PR, PH: 828-350-8158 (US), glassonyonpr@gmail.com

Sound of Contact's Dave Kerzner Releases New Studio Album "Static" Feat. Members of Genesis, Big Big Train, Porcupine Tree and others! OUT NOW!

Miami, Florida – Dave Kerzner, co-founder of the progressive rock group Sound of Contact, has released his second solo album “Static” with a physical CD version available in mid-October. “Static”. The album is the follow up to his highly acclaimed debut album “New World”. Joining him are special guests Steve Hackett (Genesis), Durga McBroom (Pink Floyd), Nick D’Virgilio (Big Big Train), Colin Edwin (Porcupine Tree) and more in addition to his core group consisting of guitarists Fernando Perdomo and Randy McStine, fellow SOC band mate Matt Dorsey and drummer Derek Cintron.

“Static” is a “progressive rock opera” about the clutter and chaos in modern everyday life. It boldly navigates through subjects ranging from noise in our heads of ego, jealousy, technological distractions, substance abuse and narcissism to profiling the hypocritical and corrupt characters in politics, media and society today.

With a bit of dark humor, sarcasm and a retro-future dystopian view, with rich imaginative artwork created by Ed Unitsky, “Static” merges elements of a twisted Broadway musical with familiar vintage rock flavors like that of King Crimson's “Red” or Genesis' “The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway.” Other strong detectible influences include The Beatles, Queen, Radiohead and Kerzner's late band mate from “Thud,” Kevin Gilbert.

“I aim to bring forward some of my favorite qualities of classic rock and prog albums and blend it with something new that feels right today. “ Says Kerzner “I like creating memorable songs that tell a story in a melodic musical way. This is what I love about the timeless rock albums in my collection and my goal is to contribute to other people's collections in the same way.”

About working with Steve Hackett: “Having Steve Hackett guest on guitar again is a dream for me because I grew up listening to Genesis and wanting to play with a guitarist as innovative and melodic as Steve. I also love these sort of cross-generation collaborations where we meet in the middle of modern and retro,” says Kerzner.

Dave Kerzner and his band embarked on a US tour starting with headlining the ProgStock festival on October 14th in New Jersey where they performed all of the album “Static” live and then headed over to Chicago for the Progtoberfest at Reggie's on October 20th. From there the Dave Kerzner Band and fellow American proggers District 97 continue on their “Static-Vaults Tour” playing in other cities around the East Coast. In February 2018, the Dave Kerzner Band will be performing on Yes's Cruise To The Edge for the third time with plans to do a short tour of Europe in the Spring.

Dave Kerzner's “Static” is OUT NOW!



BIO:
Dave Kerzner is a singer, keyboardist, songwriter and producer from the US. He co-founded the Prog-award-winning rock group “Sound of Contact” with Simon Collins, son of Phil Collins, in 2009 and over the years has worked with artists such as Kevin Gilbert, Steve Hackett, Keith Emerson, Alan Parsons, Billy Sherwood, Jon Anderson, Steven Wilson, Joe Lynn Turner and more. His debut solo album “New World” featured the song “Stranded” which was nominated for “Anthem of the Year” in the 2015 Progressive Music Awards and it featured Durga McBroom (Pink Floyd), Steve Hackett (Genesis) and Jason Scheff (Chicago). Kerzner has released both a standard 1 CD and deluxe 2 CD version of his concept album “New World” as well as a live album and now a second studio album called “Static”. He continues to write and record with Sound of Contact as well as other musical projects.

To purchase: http://geni.us/Static

For more information: http://www.davekerzner.com

Press inquiries: Glass Onyon PR, PH: 828-350-8158 (US), glassonyonpr@gmail.com

10cc/Godley & Creme Legend Kevin Godley Begins PledgeMusic Campaign For New Solo Album "MUSCLE MEMORY" & Seeks Musical Collaborators

London - 10cc/Godley & Creme legend Kevin Godley is starting a PledgeMusic campaign for his highly anticipated new solo album “MUSCLE MEMORY.” What makes this album special, along with being his very first solo album, is that it will be comprised of collaborations between Kevin and, as yet, a cast of unknown musicians submitting instrumental tracks that he can turn into songs.

Kevin Godley's PledgeMusic campaign will have digital, CD and LP versions of the album available plus other merchandise and live experiences in the form of a workshop, video shoot visit and listening party/Q&A.

View the project here: www.pledgemusic.com/projects/kevin-godley-muscle-memory

Write and record with me:

Recently something happened that eclipsed any songwriting techniques I'd learned in 10cc or Godley & Creme. Out of the blue, I was sent 2 recorded instrumental tracks with requests to write melodies and lyrics and turn them into songs. Both tracks came from people I'd never met and still haven’t. 

We communicated by email and all I did was load their tracks into Garageband and react to them vocally. Experiencing this kind of remote collaboration and its results has been transformational for me, as I believe I've recorded 2 of my best ever songs and “MUSCLE MEMORY,” as I'm calling the album, will be about opening this collaborative door a lot wider. 

It's my first time out fronting a record so it's exciting and daunting in equal measure but it's something I've wanted to do for a long time and with your help I intend to make it count. The idea is to work on 10 new tracks that inspire me and share the copyright 50/50 with each writer or co-writers. It's that simple.

Please send me your music:

That's any genre, any tempo, any mood, but please don’t send me anything too predictable! I thrive on unusual structures and sounds. Tracks must be original, instrumental recordings, ideally lasting between 3 and 5 mins and should be uploaded as stereo mixes to: musclememorysubmissions@gmail.com

Just to be really clear…submissions are open to anyone. That's new and emerging acts through to established musicians. I've already had interest from a few significant artists but my selection process will be totally democratic so I won't be revealing any names until I've listened to everyone and everything and begun to select my 10 collaborators.  

The timeline of the release will depend on the submissions, but I plan to have the album released in the first half of 2018 and will be posting regular updates along the way to keep you informed of its progress.

Around the album's release I'll be opening the door for both creatives and fans to be a part of the album recording process, with live events taking place which you can Pledge to be a part of.

Thanks for reading!

Kevin Godley

Terms & Conditions for submissions:
- Each submission must be an original recording made by the submitter in a stereo WAV format and ideally be around 3-5 minutes long.
- All submissions must consist of 100% original content, composed by the submitter. No covers or samples are to be included.
- The submitter must have retained and own all rights associated with the composition and must have sole rights to the material submitted.
- Audio stems must be available.
- The submission must not have previously been published or included in any other published work.
- The submitter agrees that any submitted work may form the basis of a joint collaboration with KG.
- KG does not guarantee working with any particular party with regards to their submission, but in the instances that he does, the revised/reworked “Collaboration Composition” (CC) will become the joint property of both KG and the submitter.
- All publishing copyrights to Collaboration Content will be owned 50:50 between KG and the owner/submitter of the original material.
- Any publishing income derived from the publishing of or any use of the Collaboration Content, will be split 50:50 be-tween the parties.
- The submitter agrees to allow any and all collaborative compositions to be used by KG for the purpose of creating an audio track and/or album.
- The level of collaborative interaction between KG and collaborators will be down to KG’s discretion.
- All submissions must be made via WeTransfer.com to the email address musclememorysubmissions@gmail.com with your name and contact details in the message. Please do not approach KG directly.

Live Experiences: 
Workshop: Join Kevin Godley part way through recording the album and add your own voices and sounds to some of the tracks. He will record you, demo his studio techniques and talk guests through the record’s progress. The evening will conclude with an informal Q&A session.

Video Shoot Visit: Visit the set or location during the shooting of a video for a key album track and maybe get the opportunity to appear on-camera as an extra.

Album Playback and Q&A: Attend an exclusive Album Playback with Kevin Godley to hear the finished record before anyone else and take part in an informal Q&A session about the recording of the new album. Date and location TBC.

Album Formats:
- Download
- CD
- LP (180g vinyl)
- CD plus name in album credits
- LP plus name in album credits

Merchandise:
- T-shirt
- Signed print
- Handwritten and Signed lyric sheet

For more information: www.pledgemusic.com/projects/kevin-godley-muscle-memory

PledgeMusic contact: julian.wall@pledgemusic.com

Kevin Godley's official website: http://www.kevin-godley.com/

Press inquiries: Glass Onyon PR, PH: 828-350-8158 (US), glassonyonpr@gmail.com