Zappa.com

Did you attend the ZPZ show with Dream Theater at Hard Rock Live in Orlando?

Dweezil and the band love reading your reviews.

Please do not post in this thread if you did not attend the show.

Mikey
Zappa.com Webmeister

Alas, i would have preferred a 2 1/2 hour headliner show to an 80 min backup show, but had to take what was out there. The set list was a bit eclectic, and the playing beforehand of some FZ stuff did little to prepare my wife and son for the concert, except zombie woof. I still enjoyed the songs and setlist, though would have preferred one a little more mainstream- NOT that i mean valley girl or such!
None of the band are former FZ/MOI members this go around, though as Frank would say- they're pretty good musicians...
Dweezil is doing an admirable job of hitting his dad's chops, and even tried his hand at conducting the band a little. I thought the set came off well, and Outside Now, Village of the Sun, Inca Roads sounded very good, not to mention the last song Willie the Pimp.
PLEASE come back to Orlando and do a headline show!!!

Seeing the Zappa Plays Zappa band was the high-point of the evening in Orlando! I attended Progressive Nation last year at the same venue. As a Dream Theater fan, I was personally a little disappointed by their show this year. Bad sound and other problems prevented it from being great.

But seeing Dweezil and the band was awesome. It really brought back some great memories of Frank Zappa's music. I recognized several songs from the set, even remembering all the words to Village of the Sun. I couldn't remember from where, and then it hit me! An old cassette tape I'd long since lost.

The band - what a great group of talented musicians! Solid, solid rhythm section, loved the sax, piano and xylo. I thought Dweezil and the other guitarist did a great job of stepping outside their own styles, and doing their best to emulate the creative, unpredictable style Frank Zappa had. Oh, the vocals were fantastic! Sheila and Ben can really bring the energy and performance to this material. I really felt the spirit and fun of his music.

So thanks a lot you all. It really made driving to Orlando from Gainesville worth our while.

hello zappa plays zappa ! i have now seen all 4 tours 3 in orlando and 1 in ash ville nc 2007 the year they did not come to orlando.all shows were superb! and i have seen frank in the 70s and 80s. zappa plays zappa is one hell of a performace musicianship-quality-sound-showmanship-all are at levels that bands could only pray for.this paticular evening my group of friends (6) total had front row seats.musicans/studio owner/and me/ they also have seen all tours.we all said the same thing we are spoiled and need the 2.5 to 3hr show!however we totally loved this show and understand the purpose of this tour to expose the music to a new generation and seen the results . zappa plays zappa did capture and suprise this crowd.now just a little about the sound the 2 opening bands sound was horrible distorted low end feed back rumbling.we said surely zappa is not going to sound like this.then zappa took the stage and a miracle happened ,when zappa sound man took over you could hear every thing clearly and clean great job! i could not say the same of dream theater they were muddy-overdriving-drums to loud-i think every song was in the same key and the entire set sounded like one continuos song. my friend said it best -a little bit of that went a long way!

How about that Jamie Kime..guitar to the right and his use of the sustaained notes during his solo on enchidna. Very cool indeed I say.. He doesn't start out with a bunch of really fast notes but rather uses the tone to embelish what the chords are saying. Speed is there if he needs it but taste takes control. Sheila is unbelievable and when she shoots out those harmonies on the Sax and Keyboard at the same time.....WOW...jaw dropping. Joe is incredible and makes it look so easy...(Joe please make some Mick Fleetwood faces so they won't think its easy!)...Pete shreds that bass for sure...him and Joe offer a great foundation for these complex rythems. Billy really is the Real Deal on percussion and thanks to Franks music there is a place where we can witness a human playing the vibes at all but not just that, but to see them played like that, along with all the other sounds bells gongs etc..in all the right places..And what can you say about Dweezil...he is definately his Fathers son..the way those fingers move...The way he can be himself and bring out the Frank at the same time...just "F"ing amazing...And the fact that he can assemble this whole thing is awsome....Thank you very much Dweezil for making my summer more exciting....Ben you are doing a fine job don't stop!.....PW

Simply the most incredible show I have ever seen in my 40 years on this planet. My brother turned me on to Franks music when I was 12 and 20 years later I had amassed 50+ albums and cd's, but never saw either frank or zpz live. I am one of the biggest Dream theater fans but when I heard ZPZ was on the bill I knew it was going to be a good night. My 15 year old son (who I intruduced to FZ) had his jaw on the floor over the technical abilities of all the musicians. Ben was amazing on vocal, sheila just FN mindblowing on keys, horn, etc.
Dweezil, thank you with all of my being for doing what you do bringing your fathers music to us with such proficiency that you make it your own. I believe in the concept of channeling music thanks to you.

At the end of the set my son said to me "That was NOT necessary" which is slang of the younger generation for a mind blowing experience.

The Orlando show from ZPZ did not disappoint. All members were on their game. Schiela is just amazing and so full of energy, Ben is a good addition to the ZPZ experience. Can't say 75 minutes of ZPZ was what I had in mind. (This should have been made clear BEFORE the tickets went on sale) I would have preferred to head to the ZPZ only shows. The set was made up of songs Zappa virgins might remember the next day, perhaps this was the plan. The Orlando crowd was fine, enough tourists to offset the entire Dream Theater dominated audience. I was watching from the 8th row on the left side near the center aisle, the mother and son in front of us, obvious Zappa virgins, really got into the music and you could see by the glances they were on to something new, amazed by the talent and extraordinary attention to detail and craftsmanship of the artists. Scale the Summit, nice young band with songs that pretty much all sounded the same, good lads trying to make it with a 5 or 6 song set. Bigelf took the stage next, thankfully the painful and ugly set was short and over quick. Enjoyed what I came to see, ZPZ and to hear the new singer, awesome good time. Left 2 tunes into the horrendous Dream Theater experience, you've got to be kidding me. I though my ears were going to bleed. At least I got a jump on the 120 mile drive back home. Too bad for the people in front of me that had been so impressed with ZPZ, I am sure that memory quickly faded into nothing as the angry fist shaking music took over the night. This will be the last time we spend good hard recession cash on multi band lineups. ZPZ can and should play as they did the last three years, as the only band on the stage. No hand shaking, no autographs, none of the intimacy that has been a part of the show in all prior tours. tsk tsk Dweezil. Two more shows to go, Clearwater and Chicago, at least I know when to leave, right after ZPZ.

Over on holiday in Orlando with my family I was given time off going round Universal Studios to see ZPZ having seen them back home in Scotland back in June.
The show was great and there were a lot of Zappa fans there (hello to the guy and his friends who I met in the Hard Rock Cafe studying Franks college year-book)I knew the band were playing for an hour or or so and was pleased with the set in a way that it would be easy to play all the better known Overnite/Apostrophe stuff.Ben is great fun as a front man/singer and the band gets better every time I see them.Highlights for me were Dweezils guitar work on the piece after Echindas Arf (?Packard Goose) and the brilliant Willie The Pimp.I am sure the Dream Theater fans enjoyed seeing the band the folks next to me sure did.
This is fantastic complex music,played with skill ,heart,and a real sense of fun which is rare mix in the curent musical climate and thanks to all for a special night ,and thanks to Billy for talking to me after the show even though he was trying to seek out his friends at the hall entrance,come back to Scotland when you can.
All the best
David