Enjoyed listening to ‘Sherinian/Phillips Live’ so much that I must have played it over a dozen times… Reminiscent in spirit to early Mahavishnu Orchestra… What struck me immediately were the similarities in style of Simon Phillips and Billy Cobham… Most obvious visually are both lead with the left hand playing on large double bass drum kits. The CD is garnering many positive reviews. So, rather than present additional commentary, I’ve included a few quotes from other writers.
This album gets a big thumbs up from me. I’m listening to it on Spotify right now. Simon Phillips has been one of my favorite drummers for a long time. He is in rare form and has not missed a step. The drum solo performance of Barnacus is immaculate. Classic Simon. It’s a live performance but sounds like a studio recording. Simon’s recordings are always so clear. The drums sound great. The songs on the album are reminiscent of the early Jazz-rock-fusion pioneers like Billy Cobham, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Jean Luc Ponty, etc. with a nice tinge of Dream Theatre prog-rock. Very dynamic. Meticulously composed ensembIe sections but with lots of improv/jamming. I will listen to this album repeatedly.
-George Lawrence
Sherinian/Phillips Live is pretty much what you’d expect from players this good, with the added wonderful surprise of solid compositions along the way, and what sounds like four guys really enjoying how they often set into a deep blistering groove.
-- Ralph Greco, Jr.
Simon Phillips can bring in the big guns and channel the audience to clap along to the beat. He’s not like Keith Moon, but there are elements of Neil Peart, Bill Bruford, Buddy Rich, Elvin Jones, and Nick Mason.
-- Zachary Nathanson
The music is excellent, extremely well recorded, and delivered. I just wish it was either a double CD or had a DVD of the events with rehearsals and interviews and other extras added for completeness.
-- John Wenlock-Smith
SHERINIAN/PHILLIPS is the musical alliance of Derek Sherinian and Simon Phillips, whose parallel reputations in virtuosic sonic inventions combine on the backdrop of instrumental genre fusion. Though the two had written and recorded together in the past, commitments to other projects had kept them busy in their own circles for a time. Upon their reunion for the recording of 2020’s The Phoenix, the duo has been going strong with consistent new releases ever since.
Now, they are pleased to announce the release of SHERINIAN/PHILLIPS LIVE, which exhibits the pair uniting once again for a collaborative effort, documenting a special concert recorded at The Grape in Ventura, California on August 29th, 2022.
Joining Sherinian/Phillips are fellow creatives Ron ‘Bumblefoot’ Thal on guitar and Ric Fierabracci on bass to round out the lineup of the evening. Several tracks from the latest studio album offering, Vortex, made their way into the set, such as the title track “Vortex”, “Seven Seas”, and “Aurora Australis” (the original recording of which featured Bumblefoot), alongside other instrumentals.
Check out their performance of “Aurora Australis” @:
https://DerekSherinian.lnk.to/SherinianPhillips-Live
The album will be available in the following formats: Black Vinyl | Ltd. CD Digipak | CD Jewelcase (North America)
“Sherinian/Phillips:"
1. The Vortex (04:43)
2. Empyrean Sky (04:20)
3. Temple of Helios (06:17)
4. Inertia (04:32)
5. Alpha Burst (04:01)
6. Barnacus (03:32)
7. Seven Seas (05:51)
8. Ascension (02:48)
9. The Phoenix (04:55)
10. Introduction (00:31)
11. Aurora Australis (11:27)
Line-Up:
Derek Sherinian (keys/synth)
Simon Phillips (drums)
Ron ‘Bumblefoot’ Thal (guitar)
Ric Fierabracci (bass)
Sherinian’s background as a composer and keyboardist extends well beyond his familiar Dream Theater run, with a notable solo career creating a landscape for contributions from an array of acclaimed musicians, alongside performance credits with the likes of Alice Cooper, Black Country Communion, Billy Idol, Whitesnake, Kiss, Black Label Society, and Sons of Apollo (doubling on production credits), among others.
Phillips has equally rooted himself as a well-respected drummer and composer in the rock, metal, and jazz worlds, with credits ranging from Toto, Judas Priest, Jeff Beck, The Who, Whitesnake, and Joe Satriani, to a discography in jazz fusion with Protocol, movie soundtracks, and beyond.
The diverse range of this pair’s individual talents collectively emerges through each work they craft together; Sherinian and Phillips continue to evolve their joint musical endeavors in new directions.
DEREK SHERINIAN online:
https://www.facebook.com/Derek-Sherinian-Official-361589234010473/
https://twitter.com/DerekSherinian
https://www.instagram.com/dereksherinianofficial/
SIMON PHILLIPS online:
https://www.facebook.com/SimonPhillipsMusic
https://twitter.com/kingcannonsimon
https://www.instagram.com/simonphillipsofficial/
INSIDEOUTMUSIC ONLINE:
www.insideoutmusic.com
www.youtube.com/InsideOutMusicTV
www.facebook.com/InsideOutMusic
www.twitter.com/insideouteu