Four Eighteen
Pleasant Tension
© 2006 John Montagna (634479399459)
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Thought-provoking pop dominated by John Montagna's fiery bass guitar playing.
tracks
- 1 Firesign Blues
- 2 Always Judgement Day
- 3 Golden Garden
- 4 Big Man
- 5 Internet Song
- 6 Saying Yes
- 7 Have You
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FOUR EIGHTEEN is the brainchild of New York City bassist/vocalist/songwriter/producer John Montagna. The “Pleasant Tension” CD is John’s attempt to capture the spirit of the classic rock and jazz he grew up loving, while bringing the concept of the “rock band” into the future.
“I wanted to make an album with a rock band that felt like a classic jazz album,” he explains, “where you can really feel the chemistry between the musicians because they’re in the same room together, playing together as a group. I know it sounds like a simple concept, but these days it seems to be the exact opposite of how most people do it, for some reason.”
To that end, John, along with guitarist Joe Montagna, percussionist Alfredo Hidrovo and drummer Rich Zukor, entered the studio and recorded most of “Pleasant Tension” in roughly 48 hours! “We set up in a tiny rehearsal space in Harlem, turned on the machine, and went for it like it was a gig,” he says. “Two days later, the basic tracks were finished.”
A minimum of vocal overdubs, sweetening and mixing were required; But ironically, John’s frenetic schedule as an in-demand bass guitarist and vocalist prevented him from hunkering down and finishing the project as quickly as it started (he has toured the world and elsewhere with legendary producer/recording artist Alan Parsons since 2003, in addition to providing world-class groove maintenance for a host of Gotham-based artists). Fortunately, effective time management prevailed, and now “Pleasant Tension” is making its way into the homes and ears of discriminating music fans worldwide!
If you still can’t get enough of John Montagna’s music, do check out his 2 other solo CDs, “Enjoy Your Dessert” and "Senza" (also available right here on CDBaby). John also produces Radio418, a musical podcast featuring anything and everything he's ever been involved with. You can subscribe to the podcast (or just listen) by visiting http://foureighteen.podomatic.com, or by visiting his official website (http://johnmontagna.com). In the meantime, dive in and bring yourself to the point of “Pleasant Tension.” You’ll be glad you did!
Tom Walsh
Autumn 2008
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Studio "Pleasant" without sacrificing the "Tension" of a live band!
author: Parrish HighleyPleasant Tension marks a quantum leap in recording technique from John Montagna's first solo outing, Enjoy Your Desert. Rather than playing all (or most) of the instruments himself, his band Four Eighteen performed all the material together, OLD SCHOOL! And the result is something you hardly hear anymore; that little bit of magic when musicians actually respond to one another within the structure of a song. Firesign Blues, Always Judgement Day, and Internet Song are all terrific examples of musicians who know one another inside and out and play off of one another as a result. For those, like myself, who really enjoyed John Montagna's approach to writing lyrics and weaving good natured humor into his songs, then "Saying Yes" is likely to be a huge favorite. (chuckling) I couldn't help but think of it as a sales seminar in Alice's Wonderland :) And while "Internet Song" takes on the social ills of Internet addiction with a bit more of an edge, I find myself in complete agreement with most it's assertions. Pleasant Tension by Four Eight is money well-spent!