on pop 13: mike keneally & the zappa legacy

Back in 1994, a year or so after his father's death, Frank Zappa's son Dweezil toured Europe. He performed at some Dutch venue that doesn't exist anymore and with an old, fifty pound Nagra recorder, by public transport, I got there just in time to see Dweezil's tour bus arriving. A scruffy road manager told me: "Look, pal, I don't know if we got time for you." I remember thinking, "Why act like an asshole when it's only mid-afternoon?" I sat around and waited. After an hour or so - my sad, young journalist routine must've worked - I was finally ordered upstairs for my interview.
Dweezil was sitting at a table, unfortunately accompanied by his brother Ahmet, the lesser talented of the Zappa family, therefore acting like a dickhead throughout the whole interview. Apparently entitled to scream daft things like, "Beans rock the world" and other statements that might be of interest when your brain's replaced with a cauliflower. Frankly, he messed up parts of an interview that otherwise touched upon interesting subjects like their father's legacy and the fastest route to stardom.
I hadn't really noticed the other guys in the room, but they must have felt for me. One said, "Ahmet, why don't you shut the fuck up?" This, I learned later, was Mike Keneally, the former Zappa sideman. And well-respected, since Ahmet started staring in his beerglass, and the rest of the Dweezil interview went as planned.
After the concert at the bar, another one of the guys came up to me and we started drinking. This was Scott Thunes, the bass player, and the second Zappa sideman who had teamed up with the maestro's son. Mr. Thunes told me - being somewhat of a novice to Zappa's work - exactly what editions of what albums to buy. "No, not that cd, but the UK import version on vinyl" et cetera. Needless to say we got terribly drunk. To this day I can't remember what Zappa albums Mr. Thunes considered essential.


Twelve years on, and who's carrying the Zappa torch? The guy who came to the rescue during one of my first interviews, guitarist Mike Keneally (above, with his bass player Bryan Beller). Among fans, Mr. Keneally's solo output is considered the most interesting of all former Zappa employees. Blending classical, pop and jazz, switching from quirky prog to sweet ballads, the man delivers what Zappa aficionados crave. Best heard on the superb The universe will provide (below), the album Mr. Keneally and the Metropole Orkest performed live, yesterday at Philharmonie in Haarlem.


I'm afraid only 150 people showed up. And with a ticket price of 25 euro this should just about cover the heating of the place. Luckily, NPS announcer Co de Kloet said his employer - the Dutch radio & tv station - had commissioned Mr. Keneally to write another great work of art - I'm sure the guitarist was thinking, "Oh well, the NPS will provide."
This said, the concert was stunning. Before the break a small ensemble performed two new songs, called Chee and Ack, both with an improvised prologue, that Mr. Keneally instructed his band "to sound beautiful". I think he meant no jazzy wanking, please. And it worked.
After the break, I was expecting to hear another new song called 4S - Force, maybe? - but it seemed to have been pulled from the set at the last minute. Or perhaps I dozed off - nah. So it was on to the richly textured The universe will provide in its entirity, with the Metropole Orkest giving their all on a Sunday afternoon.
And yes, seeing and hearing Mr. Keneally playing his instrument, I pondered never to touch my guitar again, ever. I also noticed a pregnant violin player in the back, looking slightly uncomfortable. Right then and there I decided to buy her an island off the coast of Brazil, where she could frolick around on the beach with her baby. In real life, this probably won't happen, but they're the kind of thoughts that pop up when great tunes are performed live, providing a soundtrack for silly fantasies. Also, a few scenes from The lord of the rings kept playing in my head. But who needs Frodo? Just when I tried concentrating on Mr. Keneally's songs again, the concert was over.
Down in the lobby, two older guys were discussing Frank Zappa's work. What albums to buy and all. I thought, "Been there, can't remember it." This wasn't gonna happen to me a second time. Outside, I quickly walked past all bars and kept Mr. Keneally's concert playing in my head for as long as possible.


Yesterday's concert (below, Keneally in blue shirt) will be aired on April 2 at 22.30 hours on Radio 4FM's NPS Output.