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I was knocked out by your writing and playing.
The music always takes a nice unusual turn when you least expect
it. Very interesting with lots of nice colors. Great, engaging
music. Very best wishes,
Don Harper
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Jazz fusion
updated for the 21st century is what comes to mind when
listening to Carl Eichman. There are tinges of Latin jazz or
some rock influences, but the main impression this talented
composer gives is as a kid he had a lot of Weather Report albums
and worshipped at the shrine of David Sanborn. For
crossover-symphonic, easy-listening jazz that can be a very good
thing indeed. -C/Net Download.com Editor's Pick & Review
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Your music is like a breath of fresh air! I'm
so sick of the "smooth jazz/acid jazz" out there! Your music
shows great technique, imagination in composition and
arrangement, and a very fearless approach. Kudos to you on your
fine effort!
P.S. Please keep me posted on any new projects you have
underway. I'll be picking up a copy of your current
masterpiece.
Jazzdoorman (jazz keyboardist)
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Absolutely wonderful, I had
first found a couple of your jazz pieces about two years ago
just doing random downloads of fusion artists I had never heard
before and I've been carrying them around with me since
then....you're quite versatile. Thanks, C kopko
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I just want to
thank you for creating music that I have been enjoying more
intensely than just about anything I've heard in a couple/few
decades! I've been listening to all your tunes and I'm just...
well... ecstatic that somebody got around to advancing
the arts of "prog" and "fusion"; I've been a disciple of each
since the early 70s (I've also been a keyboard player since I
was a kid; played in a full-time local band with progressive
aspirations through the seventies..)
I'll be watching for a CD, 'cause if there's any
justice, it/they should be very "well-received" (to put
it mildly.) I'll definitely be insisting that my ol' gang buy 'em,
too. (I can't believe that some label hasn't snapped you up
yet!) The production alone is magnificent! -Dan Platt
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Very nice material. Lots of genuine
musicality, plus a liberal dash of complexity for interest,
great lyrics (meaningful even!) intelligent vocals, and super
guitar, bass, and synth work. All the right elements. I can hear
all the influences. These are keepers. Steven Miller of
Neon Egypt
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Anytime you come
across a piece of music in 7/4 time these days, you know you are
dealing with someone who is proudly and defiantly staying out of
the easy-to-digest mainstream of jazz. It takes some very
talented people to pull this kind of tune off properly, and I am
happy to report that guitarist/composer Carl Eichman and his
internet-based trio (with Bill Lawrence on bass and Filippo
Bertacche on drums) have the goods to deliver.
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"Crooked Mile" is
the kind of music we used to call "art rock" back in the days
when Gentle Giant, Yes, and Peter Gabriel-era Genesis were the
newest and coolest things out there. With the more liberal
definitions of jazz we use these days, the "jazz fusion" label
works just as well to describe this fine piece of music. Eichman
layers dense, processed chunks of Metheny-esque guitar with
cleaner acoustic riffs, soaring electric cascades and varied
synth textures. Combined with Lawrence's robust bass lines and
Bertacche's active but tasteful percussion thrusts, the mixture
is rich and satisfying to the ear. The band rides through the
odd meter time fluidly and comfortably, and Eichman establishes
some solid melodic themes which stay with you long after the
track ends.
The composition is well considered, with rhythmic diversity,
changing dynamics and thematic development keeping things
coherent and evolving. The improvisation is clearly very skilled
(in particular the gymnastic bass solo which occurs around the
4-minute mark), but always the chops highlight and accent the
music (instead of the other way around, as is sometimes the case
in the fusion genre).
It should also be pointed out that this recording is an example
of the increasingly popular "internet collaboration" trend, made
possible by sophisticated music recording/processing software
and high-speed internet access. Eichman is able to work in
Connecticut, and send his partially completed recordings (in
digital format) across the internet first to Bertacche in Italy
to add his drums, and then to Lawrence in upstate NY for the
bass part. The finished recordings end up back with Eichman for
final mixing and production. The process is so seamless and the
musicians so skilled that there is no hint in the finished
product of the distributed nature of its recording.
Ultimately, the success of a complex piece like "Crooked Mile"
is judged by how well it works at both the intellectual and
soulful levels, and for me, this piece delivers on both counts.
This is a first-rate composition, performance and production -
bravo! -Chris Aranosian
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"Cintra" by Carl Eichman is a
pleasant trip through a landscape littered with jazz piano and
fusion powered guitar. The bass drives along setting up a
rhythmic underpinning and defining the mood for the piece while
the drums support, define, and punctuate with just the right
amount of off beat accents thrown in to unsettle the constancy
of the 4/4 time the music is set in.
At 3:22, the tune never gets boring. There is enough to listen
to in the short duration to keep the ears from wandering. I
found that when I listened to the track, I could not help
comparing the mood and feel to some of the work by Larry Carlton
and The Jazz Crusaders. The piano is solid and fluid with a
nice, almost Latin feel. The guitar is well played and fits in
to the overall style very well. The tones chosen for the parts
are perfect for the genre.
The tune is an Internet based collaboration. I have little to
offer this artist in terms of what to improve on. I would love
to hear something by this group done in a traditional recording
scenario. Though I can certainly appreciate the need and desire
to use every tool available as an artist, for the good of the
art in question, more physical presence could add the spark to
really ignite the work.
I enjoyed reviewing "Cintra" and if you like jazz, be it
fusion, smooth, contemporary, or perhaps even the lighter side
of avant garde, you will enjoy it too. I look forward to hearing
more by Carl Eichman and his roster of cyber-side-men. -Peter
Lauda
Thanks for the all kind words! -Carl

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