Most well-known for his repertoire of collaborative efforts, Marcus Rezak has released his debut solo album, Gateway to the Galaxy.
You may remember him as the shreddy guitarist from the late, great, Digital Tape Machine, a jamtronica supergroup featuring Joel Cummins and Kris Myers of Umphrey’s McGee. Or perhaps you’ve seen him with Katharsis, Shred is Dead, or Supernatural Beings more recently. Hailing from the Chicago area, Rezak has made a name for himself nationally as a versatile, progressive guitar player amongst peers, and felt called to share his own art.
“I wrote all the parts for the album,” Rezak explained. “In a way this was a little bit of a different process for me, since (my past efforts) involved bands or other people. These were all my choices, my writing, and just done completely organically in the studio.”
Taking his work to his friends, he called on some of the best in the business to lay the tracks down and make the album whole. Cummins and Myers provided keys and drums tracks, while legendary saxophonist Bill Evans (Miles Davis group) offered up some brass, and Arthur Barrow (Frank Zappa) covered the low end on bass.
Here are a few music trivia nuggets about this legendary personnel:
Saxophonist Bill Evans is not related to the Bill Evans who played piano with Miles Davis back in the ‘50s. He played on We Want Miles and Decoy, two of the more prolific 80’s offerings from Davis. His list of collaborations will blow you away; check him out.
Arthur Barrow played bass (and some guitar and keys) on Joe’s Garage, You Are What You Is, and about ten more Zappa records. He actually used the same bass on Joe’s Garage that he used to lay the Gateway to the Galaxy tracks! A multi-instrumentalist dating back to 1975 when he got a B.A. in music, concentrated in composition and electronic music. At that time, analog synth was pretty new technology, as the first Moog was introduced in 1964. After Zappa, which was always his goal, he went on to work with electronic dance music pioneer, Giorgio Moroder, on both the Scarface and Top Gun soundtracks.
We already know Cummins, Myers, and Rezak rock together based on their years in Digital Tape Machine. Throw in these musical legends, and you get Gateway to the Galaxy.
“These compositions were pretty challenging!” Cummins said of the music Rezak wrote for the record. “I was so grateful our friend Joe Hettinga was there, who was the other keyboardist in Digital Tape Machine. He really helped me out, since it’s a pretty progressive album, and each song is really different. Each track kind of has its own vibe to it. It was just a lot of fun to get in there and have the freedom to create.
That’s something I loved about working with Marcus. He just said to me, ‘I want you to get in there and do your thing. Use whatever tones you want, and let’s see what happens.’
Everyone who has heard Marcus play knows that he’s this badass, versatile guitarist. But I hope people really get to hear (through this record) that he’s a great composer as well. This album really showcases his songwriting as well as his playing, so I was really happy that I could contribute and help get that side of him out to the world.”
As improvisational musicians who have played together for years, all these guys know how to play to each other’s strengths, and it’s clear that doesn’t just end when they leave the stage. When asked about how he got linked up with his Gateway to the Galaxy bandmates, Rezak responded with genuine excitement.
“I was already close friends with Joel and Kris, who both lived in L.A. at the time,” Rezak shared.
“Arthur I met in L.A. about three or four years ago now. I was working on another project with somebody, and we decided to put a show together. It was a smash. We stayed in close contact and he started teaching me all the Frank Zappa material he learned when he was in the band. Just spending weeks and weeks, hours each day, and that went on for years.
We started doing shows of all Zappa music with other original members of (Zappa’s) band including Chad Wackerman on drums, and Robert Martin on sax (FrankenZaps Monster). Arthur had me record on a bunch of his original music, too, which is out now, and we kept doing more and more shows together. I also kept bringing him more into ‘my scene;’ you know, a younger crowd. We just kind of really developed a close friendship.
We went to Mount Wilson Observatory (Los Angeles) together with our astronomy friends to look at planets and stars. We’ve done some really cool stuff.” Rezak went on to explain that their experience at Mount Wilson is where he got the name for the album, in fact.
“Gateway to the Galaxy is the name of the album, but it’s also the name of my band, The Gateway to the Galaxy band,” Rezak explained. “The experience of going to Mount Wilson with Arthur, and the way things were aligned at the time with playing a lot of music that I was really happy with, and learning and feeding off of Arthur’s energy and his friends’, who are all really smart people.
Robby Krieger (guitarist, The Doors) was up there, and we played guitar in the dome that was pitch black while looking up at the stars. It is just this really amazing space, you know. Being where Einstein and other famous scientists had been to discover planets, and seeing what else is out there in the world. Thinking about just how much is still left out there to discover in the galaxy. In the whole universe. And it makes you think of how small we are. One of my songs, ‘We are Specks,’ was about this exact thing.”
In discussing the generations at play, it does seem like Rezak’s history in a younger demographic will expose younger people to Zappa’s music. When asked about it, he agreed.
“I’d say we had an impact, and maybe even introduced a lot of Southern California jam music fans to Zappa. We gave them a one-of-a-kind experience hearing the music from Arthur, who is a total legend, and before that they weren’t getting any Zappa at all. So yea, I think it did introduce people to the music.”
As far as meeting Bill Evans, Rezak credits Myers with the connection through a band he started called Kweko. The three all played together with Hadrien Feraud (French jazz bassist), Jason Hann (percussion, String Cheese Incident) and Ben” Smiley” Silverstein (keys, The Main Squeeze). Even though they only played a handful of Southern California shows, the relationships stuck, proving you never know what can come of a project.
Gateway to the Galaxy is unique and innovate with tracks that add up to tell a whole story. As Cummins said, each track has its own vibe.
“Each track is a mini story that equates to the big story, especially the ones with lyrics. The ones that don’t have lyrics are kind of segue-type songs, conceptually. They’re all their own moods. They’re representations of time, my own experiences, life, you know, the whole thing. I haven’t really been able to go into detail about what each song means to me. So this is really special to be able to talk about.”
The first few listens of the album felt like Rezak was guiding me on Rainbow Road the whole time, helping me navigate hairpin turns with staccato rhythms and seriously fast fingers. His guitar prowess cannot be mistaken, but is not to be outshined by his complicated compositions that deliver something fresh.
The last track, “Fortitude,” comes in hot with uplifting opening guitar riffs over Myers’ signature rapid drum fills, determined to inspire you whether you’re ready or not. When the words come in, “We want you, to be free,” it just feels so right. Because, yea, man. We really do. (CAUTION: Driving to this track may make you drive over the speed limit…)
“I’ve had these experiences and put them into a conceptual album,” Rezak says of his experiences at Mount Wilson and beyond. “I hope the same way these experiences have shaped me, people will think of my music as a portal to the rest of what’s out there.”
Click here for an hour-long podcast with Weird Music’s Cam Elkins and Marcus going deep. Stay tuned on more from Marcus and his band regarding an upcoming tour. Stream Gateway to the Galaxy here:
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