"The Official Chad Smith's Bombastic Meatbats MySpace"
Pin this one on rock legend and former Deep Purple bassist Glenn Hughes. 5 years after first working together on Hughes 2003 release, 'Songs In the Key of Rock', long-time Red Hot Chili Peppers drummer Chad Smith, guitar star Jeff Kollman, multi-faceted keyboardist Ed Roth, along with Motor City bass ace Kevin Chown, are now striking out on their own, together as one, in what is easily one of the most accomplished and exciting instrumental outfits to emerge some time: Chad Smith’s Bombastic Meatbats. Four master musicians joining forces, each bringing to the table a unique background and a plethora of influences, creating a new sonic experience that fuses everything from classic rock, old school funk and 70's R&B, to vintage fusion and even oriental flavors.
The group's forthcoming debut album sounds as uncalculated and spontaneous as are the MEATBATS' accidental beginnings: "Whenever I would jam with Ed and Chad at Glenn Hughes rehearsals, we would mess around and warm up with some Jeff Beck kind of stuff", recalls Kollman. "One day Chad said, "hey, we should do something like this!" Next thing you know we're in the studio making a record! I called my buddy (Kevin) Chown on the day of the recording session. Kevin came in and saved the day - we got five tunes down that first day! And the rest is history!"
With more than half of the albums' 11 tunes written in the span of only two days at Chad Smith's pool house in Malibu, and then tracked live in a mere two days, songs such as 'Need Strange', 'Battle For Ventura Blvd', the hauntingly beautiful 'Night Sweats', 'Big Feet', 'Lola', and 'Roller Girl' exude the kind live of wire feel and excitement no longer found in the new world of digitally induced perfection. It is instrumental music with a soul. "This was the least amount of time each of us has spent agonizing over a record, and the beauty is that it doesn't sound that way! It’s feels natural. It's funky, melodic, and compositional. The melody is king", notes Kollman. " It's very much live in the studio - we never played to a click! It's totally old school that way" Adds Roth: "Nothing feels as good as a record cut with four guys playing together, listening, and playing off each other. Even without a vocal, you can sing almost everything everyone played on this record. That is real soul."
With the MEATBATS' inaugural live performance, a smoking set at this year's NAMM Show in Anaheim, CA, already in the books, as well as their first sold out public performance in Los Angeles, the fearsome foursome are looking forward to taking things nationwide and beyond. "This band has a thing!", insists Kollman. "Chown and Chad - you can tell they both did their time in Detroit. They come from the same place musically and geographically. Chown's a mix of Detroit Rock and Motown, and Chad brings that sick rock/funk groove that's helped sustain the Chili Peppers for all these years. And Ed's got the gritty funk and 70's R&B thing going on - his clavinet playing is genius, and he's so great with space. He doesn't overplay like so many pianists with chops. As for myself - I protect and defend the rock guitar! " Look for THE BOMBASTIC MEATBATS' debut CD in early spring and stay tuned for upcoming tour dates.
Chad Smith’s Bombastic Meatbats's Friend Space (Top 20)
Thanks for the add, Chad and the Meatbats. I'm diggin' that funky sound. BTW, Chad tore it up at the Buddy Rich Memorial concert last night! Loved it! Chad and Neil Peart are my two favorite drummers, but if anyone asks me who my main influence is, I always say Chad Smith. I love that fusion of rock, punk and funk. So killer... Take care and God Bless!!
