- November 15th, 2023 –
Created By One Of The Band’s Fans
Band’s 11th and final video off of debut release
Watch/Listen to”Sometimes” HERE
Hard rock band A-Z has just released the 11th and final video for the band’s debut, self-titled release, for the song “Sometimes“.
Mark Zonder had this to say about the video and how it came to be:
“When we did our 9th video for the debut A-Z album, ‘Run Away’, we asked fans to send in clips that we would incorporate into the video. We thought this would be a cool way to see how the fans were interpreting the songs.
One of our fans, Ryan, turned in all kinds of clips that were very well thought out and he put a lot of time and energy into it…Really good stuff.
We became friends and he asked if it was cool to create an entire video for the final video from the album, ‘Sometimes’. We said ‘yes!’ and Ryan came up with a very, very cool concept that really has a lot of cool hidden gems within it. This is not a Spielberg production, but an absolutely impressive video from a dedicated fan.
We really appreciate all of his effort and hard work and we hope our fans enjoy the video as much as the band does.“
A-Z‘s current self-titled album can be streamed in its entirety at: metalblade.com/a-z – and videos for each of the songs can be seen below.
‘A-Z‘ tracklist:
01. Trial by Fire (Official Video)
02. The Far Side of the Horizon (Lyric Video)
03. The Machine Gunner (Official Video)
04. Rise Again (Official Video)
05. Window Panes (Lyric Video)
06. Run Away (Official Video)
07. Stranded (Official Video)
08. At the Waters Edge (Official Video)
09. Borrowed Time (Lyric Video)
10. Sometimes (Official Video)
11. The Silence Broken [Bonus Track] (Official Video)
“With the prog metal pedigree here one might expect that style to rear its head on occasion, but it really doesn’t. Restraint is key across A-Z, with the band displaying a high level of talent while keeping overt noodling in check. Wolters drops a number of excellent guitar solos, and Zonder’s fills remain complex but not distracting. The key to A-Z’s success isn’t the musical complexity, though; in fact, it is the relatively simple yet effective arrangements combined with the classic, memorable vocal hooks that will keep listeners coming back. With Zonder producing the overall album, and each member responsible for recording their own parts (the members live in different countries), the songs sound excellent and the mix is aggressive and engaging.” Angry Metal Guy
“What this is NOT, in the strictest sense, is prog. What it IS can certainly be classified as “prog adjacent” or at minimum, a great sounding melodic hard rock album with progressive undertones. And given the band members’ pedigree, it’s not surprising that it contains at least some of those elements…Rounding out the lineup you have the supremely talented, and 3 time Grammy nominated Philip Bynoe (Steve Vai) on bass, the namesake & keyboard wizard of French prog band Lalu, Vivien Lalu and the Dutch prog/jazz fusion guitarist Joop Wolters. If not yet household names, each one is certainly highly regarded in the prog genre. The musical chemistry between all these players is undeniable on the A-Z debut.” Prog Report
9.3/10 review on Sonic Perspectives
“The band’s self-titled debut certainly is a far more digestible and accessible trip than anything Zonder (or even Alder) has done before.” Blabbermouth interview
“Now, we really don’t like to use the term “supergroup” these days, because doing so often invokes works that come across better on paper than they do drifting from our speakers, so let’s simply refer to A-Z as… A very auspicious gathering of powerful sorcerers.” Last Rites
“A-Z is a brand-new band (not project) featuring former Fates Warning members Mark Zonder and Ray Alder on Drums and Vocals (respectively,) Philip Bynoe on Bass (former Steve Vai and Warlord,) Joop Wolters on Guitar, and Vivien Lalu on keyboards. One would expect a line-up like this to be a powerhouse Prog Metal buffet of awesomeness, and though there are some moments of Prog on their s/t debut, for the most part, this is a straightforward Hard Rock album but handled in a massively unique way. The first thing I noticed, and as a lifelong fan of Ray Alder, was that the usually melancholic Alder is inspiring and upbeat for the most part on this album. The best part of that? It is perfect!!…Zonder has always been one of the tightest and most skilled drummers on the scene so it’s no surprise that his skills are on point, and since he and Bynoe have previously worked together with Warlord they have built-in chemistry that is clear on the album. Wolters, a name I am unfamiliar with until now (he’s a Dutch multi-instrumentalist who has done mostly solo work and worked with Lalu on his project,) is a brilliant guitarist! His solos work for the song and his solos are liquid gold and so smooth. Lalu adds perfect keyboard accents to the songs that again accent the music perfectly.” 10/10 My Global Mind
Follow A-Z at:
https://www.facebook.com/athruzband
https://www.instagram.com/athruzband
https://twitter.com/athruzband
https://www.metalblade.com/a-z
https://visionmerch.com/a-z
https://open.spotify.com/artist/3QT22KmhvHfeyuNzVbiSMM
https://music.apple.com/artist/a-z/314430622
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