ONOFFON

[onoffon]

Yes, it's time once again for the ONOFFON SSP of the Day. IndieGrow.com featured ONOFFON from August, 2001 to February, 2002 -IndieGrow.comSmiley Reviewsreviewed by CaveDog"ONOFFON present an excellent taste of smooth jazz with very unique stylings. The song "Shadowglass" is an excellent pick!"RECOMMENDED LISTENGENRE: Smooth Jazz ARTIST: ONOFFON SONG: "Shadowglass"SMILEY METER: 1 to 4RATING1) Composition = 42) Performance = 43) Sound recording = 44) Originality = 45) Overall impression = 4"The true measure of a smily review is the amount of praise one receives. After reviewing over 300 songs on mp3.com to date, I find there's one great benefit to the task. You get to find some real gems, and "Shadowglass" is one of them. On occasion, there's a rare artist who pegs the Smiley meter and ONOFFON today joins those much honored ranks.I have no criticism whatsoever. This critic is humbled."Well...likewise...much thanks to CaveDog's wonderful review....

[onoffon]

Today, the ONOFFON SSP of the Day comes from Donald Donofrio and his Music Views page - Don's Music ViewsONOFFON - Surrender Nowhttp://members.tripod.com/~djd3/onoffon.htmlreviewed by Don Donofrio"ONOFFON is a California band that’s hard to put into any one musical category. I guess they’d best be described as progressive-jazz but they also cross over into several other genres. The band consists of Don Lake on guitar, harmonica, and vocals, Von Babasin on bass and keyboards, and Dave Goode on drums and percussion. They’re also supplemented by other musicians, as needed, on some tracks. The band covers a lot of ground on this release. "Weekend In Montreal", which features guest saxophonist Glen Garrett, is a magnificent flowing piece of jazz with just a small touch of progressive styling. "Rock Garden" has more of a guitar-driven progressive rock feel to it. "Please Baby Please" is an interesting track that features bluejeans, a fannypack, a newspaper, and fingersnaps as credited instruments. "The Gift Must Always Move" is a great progressive instrumental, and another of the many highlights here. "Letter Received" is another interesting track that takes a humorous jazzy look at receiving a letter from the Internal Revenue Service. Overall, ONOFFON has a lot to offer and does so in interesting ways. The band’s very talented instrumentally and smart enough to realize when they need to supplement their own sound with an outside musician. "Weekend In Montreal" couldn’t have been pulled off without the guest saxophonist. The band knew that and did something about it. There’s a certain maturity to the creative process here and it shows. ONOFFON has a lot to offer and I look forward to hearing more from them."Thanks to Don for his great review of Surrender Now and the excellent review of Your Mind, that appears earlier in this thread...

[onoffon]

Another international review, the ONOFFON SSP for today comes to us from Belgium -L'Entrepot - A Subdivision in MusicONOFFON - Surrender Nowreviewed by Tom Wilms"ONOFFON is from California and exist of; Dave Goode (Drums, percussion), Von Babasin (Bass guitar) and Don Lake (Guitar, vocals). Those three gentlemen are definitely talented musicians who can create a good sound. The guy's together as "ONOFFON" bundle this talent and their knowledge of the Blues and Jazz and wrap it up as progressive tunes with a strong Jazzy touch. I must say that in general this album remains me a lot to those 70/80'ties rock bands (Yes, Rush, .............) but I mentioned this certainly not as a comparison, but it is a feeling I get while listening to "Surrender Now". For my taste are the songs sometimes to bombastic, the choruses with the backing vocals made it sound to showy. But with songs as "Weekend in Montreal" and "Remember Only" they prove that they don't shun the experiment. People who are into the progressive rock gonna love this CD certainly the Jazz influences made it a unique in the genre."Our gratitude to Tom Wilms for his take on our music...

[onoffon]

As today's ONOFFON SSP of the Day, Here is a trio of reviews left by listeners on our InterConnected page -ONOFFONhttp://www.ic-musicmedia.com/ONOFFONrecoLiN orthographix wrote:"Wow!! an amazing journey into music. Very talented collaberation of artistic jazz and cooperative fundamentals. Mr. Saxophone you are a master of melody. The talent described within the music is significant in the way it blends in with the rest of the band members. This is a band with a very bright future. Unstoppable. I have listened to jazz my entire life and i think i have finally found a group of jazz rockers that please my ear to the fullest. I play in a band myself. I will tell the rest of my band to visit your website and check out the mp3's. They will be greatly inspired. Cheers ONOFFON and keep up the good work." - RecoLiN from Canada John Ray wrote:"The Gift Must Always Move - Man this is a calm but powerful tune. Composition shows a high level of sophistication. This is the kind of stuff I would love to be able to write."Evan Paul Kozaris wrote:"I'm gonna make this short and sweet. This band has the musicianship and talent to take it to a higher level, and with every new track they produce, they do just that. Mardi Gras, what a beautiful funky slick and smooth track, love the timing, and Shadowglass, a mellow flute that beggins more and more listens. I will be buying the CD with these two tracks. Spyro, Weather, and many others, the age of ONOFFON has arrived." - EvanAs an artist, one can only hope to inspire people to express views such as these. Thanks to each one of them...

[onoffon]

Today's ONOFFON SSP comes from the beautiful state of Colorado -The Record Reviewer (formerly Popular Music Reviews)ONOFFON - Surrender Nowreviewed by Brent Lennox"An interesting, upbeat band. The singing is good quality, but the listener needs to listen to it a few times to appreciate their work. Their melodies sometimes appear to be trite, but on the whole each track is unique and interesting. The backup is above usual standards. There is an entire track devoted to a saxophone solo, great guitar playing, and excellent harmonica playing in the background. There's a blues influenced rock approach, as the guitar backup is unique and funky. The more I listen to them, the more I like the approach. The counter melodies are intricate, and the music keeps you moving. There seems to be a quality that suggests that their musical approach resembles that of Phish. High musicianship with average and at times great vocals. It's a strong c.d. with a lot to offer to a fan of the softer side of rock and blues. It's a strong c.d. that's worthy of an investment. Check them out!"We heartily thank Brent for his kind words...

[onoffon]

ONOFFON's SSP of the day is a female perspective -Xenon RecordsONOFFON - Surrender NowDebbie Osborn"The ONOFFON CD "Surrender Now" is a collection of contemporary jazz mixed with standard jazz sounds such as the track "Weekend In Montreal". Standout tracks "Inside My Soul" has a r&b feel while "The Gift Must Always Move" has a nice Pat Methany finger style. The track that really caught my attention was "Your Reality" which blends Jimi Hendrix guitar riffs with a laid back Pat Travers sounding groove. The members of ONOFFON are stellar musicians as is the production on this CD, this is a good choice if you like light guitar oriented jazz. ONOFFON is currently recording a followup to "Surrender Now"."Thanks to Debbie for the interesting and complimentary view of our music...

[onoffon]

This morning's ONOFFON SSP of the Day is another from the archives of GOM -Gods of MusicONOFFON - "Opus"reviewed by Chris K. "Opus is defined as a "literary work or composition, or as a musical composition, especially one that is numbered to show its place in the composer's published work." Such says the Random House College Dictionary.Opus, by Onoffon, is neither numbered, nor a literary work. It is, however, a musical composition. And, it is a musical composition worth consideration, especially for fans of music that transcends both jazz and new age. Onoffon sets the stage nicely, layering textured keys over the top of exquisitely played guitar. It is the guitar work of Don Lake that entices us; moody, ethereal, and longingly passionate tones offered up as a sort of spiritual vision. Each of the performers in this vision shares the same, and offers us his part with the highest level of accomplished skill.Onoffon is, without any doubt, a superbly professional and musically accomplished gathering of players, composers and engineers. They are one hundred percent independent; they do everything that is involved in the creation and marketing of their music. And, they do it with skill, determination, and professionalism.It is often a challenge to describe music that reaches beyond the reviewer's ability to conceptualize. This is the challenge I face. What I do have to say is that this is an incredibly nice piece of music to listen to. The guitar tones are luscious. The synth parts come in unexpectedly; (something I wish had been gradually introduced) the basic theme drawn out for one more approach before beginning its ascent to a higher level of improvisation by guitarist Lake. This is not unlike something I would have heard from Pat Metheny years ago.The recording it meticulously done, from beginning to end. My only thought as I sit here is that I wish the places where the synths come in had not been quite so abrupt. But, that is a minor issue and perhaps I will be the only one who thinks that way.Bottom Line: New age jazz worth listening to with a glass of wine, while in a contemplative state of mind."Even though there are no synths in this song, we appreciate Chris' opinions and compliments to our sound...

[onoffon]

Today's ONOFFON SSP comes from right here on these boards. It was left yesterday while I was meeting with Michael Laskow at the L.A. TAXI seminar at the Musician's Institute -"Man, you are really incredible! I use to hate Jazz most of the time with some exceptions, you know, Michel Camilo is from my country, Dominican Rep.1. - Your sound is *clean*2. - You really have melody (what most jazzists lack, they only play scales)3. - You have variety. I'm listening to shadowglass right now and I think is beautiful.4. - Although Taxi is not the perfect place for you to be I think if they need some Jazz group you can be in their top five listing, so keep riding with them, nobody knows!5. - Ha!, now I'm listening to "The Gift".... Have you ever think in putting words to your music? you can put Norah Jones out of the business ha ha ha.your music makes me happy.Domi D'Orientwww.Dorient.com"What a GREAT review - "your music makes me happy" - THAT'S what it's all about! We have received a handful of very nice reviews since I have joined this bulletin board - it's all an independent artist can hope for - to inspire someone to say such things makes it all worth while... Thank you Domi for such inspirational words...

[onoffon]

The ONOFFON SSP of the Day is a review we received in an actual print magazine called LUKE, out of Leicester in the U.K. We have made four appearances in this magazine, with reviews of both of our CDs and a two page interview with me. Here is their review of Your Mind -LUKE 'zineONOFFON - Your Mindreviewed by Rob Forbes"I like ONOFFON and although I’m rarely impressed when I get to hear new progressive rock, there’s something about this bunch that really appeals to me. I think it’s probably because, however ambitious they get, they never lose sight of the fact that music is about tunes. They remain accessible and thoroughly entertaining whether they’re exploring a Latin rhythm or on a wigout jazz trip to who knows where. 'Your Mind' continues where 'Surrender Now' left off, though experimentation and eclecticism have become priorities. This enables straight blues rock to sit comfortably alongside ‘50’s lounge pop, and no-one bats an eyelid. As before, the core trio of Don Lake, Von Babasin and Dave Goode play it tight, with no shortage of enthusiasm, and are wonderfully complimented by Glen Garrett’s flute and sax. It’s really a must for anyone who used to have long hair and a duffel coat circa 1972, together with anyone who has ever been impressed by a Phish bootleg cassette."I'd like to thank Rob Forbes for understanding there can still be a continuity of sound within the framework of versatility... it's a rare commodity and one the music industry should appreciate more...

[onoffon]

Today's ONOFFON SSP of the Day is from Italy - posted on a website called Ars Gratia Artis -ARS GRATIA ARTISONOFFON - SURRENDER NOWreviewed by Bruno Anastasi"Primo capitolo discografico di un interessante trio californiano, composto dal chitarrista-cantante-autore Don Lake, dal batterista Dave Goode e dal bassista Von Babasin, quest'ultimo figlio d'arte, essendo il rampollo di Harry, bassista, violoncellista e pioniere dell'auto-produzione durante la meravigliosa stagione del cool jazz californiano (fondò la coraggiosa etichetta indipendente Nocturne). Anche Surrender Now è frutto dell'impegno economico dei titolari. In effetti, una musica così poco in linea con le tendenze del mercato poteva approdare alla pubblicazione solo in virtù di uno spiccato spirito d'iniziativa. Per via della formazione ridotta, l'atmosfera dei brani è piuttosto omogenea, e tuttavia vi sono alcuni titoli che maggiormente colpiscono l'attenzione: la title-track è introdotta da un interessante dialogo ritmico tra i tre strumenti, cui segue un ossessivo e semi-psichedelico refrain vocale; nella delicata Rock Garden la voce di Don Lake richiama quella, indimenticabile, di John Wetton nei King Crimson Œ73/174, anche se l'armonica a bocca, presente lungo tutto l'album, restituisce a questa insolita forma di progressive del 2000 il suo inequivocabile gusto americano; Weekend in Montreal ci riporta agli albori della tentata contaminazione tra jazz e new wave (John Lurie etc.), ma è comunque una bella vetrina per il robusto sax di Glen Garrett; The Gift Must Always Move è un altro ottimo strumentale, e chi si ricordasse degli esperimenti solistici di Phil Manzanera negli anni Settanta può farsi un'idea abbastanza precisa; l'unico pezzo cantato da Babasin (Inside My Soul) è una ballad caratterizzata da eleganti accordi di piano elettrico e da una buona voce. Le lunghe If A Thief Were I e Remember Only ... confermano la capacità dei tre di creare ampie volte musicali, sorrette dagli spaziosi arpeggi della chitarra. È un'opera che va giudicata dopo ripetuti ascolti." - B.A.I'm not sure of the direct translation of everything Bruno has to say here - but I can tell it's quite complimentary. Our sincere thanks to Mr. Anastasi for his eloquence...