Fuzz Nasty

There are some crazy funky grooves being created in the small college oasis of Lawrence Kansas. The name behind the funk... Fuzz Nasty. Composer of the band Luke Stone is focusing on providing undeniably danceable grooves. The rhythms and melodies tend to be skewed and sometimes angular, put together in a funky syncopated way making the music very unique, having it's own flavor of funk. The "Rev's" lyrics tell a story with rhythmic, funky, poetic structure. The rest of the space is filled by the horn sections tight funky melody lines and solos, backed by the rhythm sections super funky grooves and phrasings. Fuzz Nasty will be coming out with their first album "Greasy All Over" in the spring of 2011 and will be performing at the Bottleneck in Lawrence, KS on December 30th as well as the Jazzhaus on January 21st. Find them on facebook. - Stone Lab Records

2006 Release. Hailing out of Lawrence Kansas, Luke Stone is a solid multi instrumentalist that has done a heck of a job on Science Friction. Original writing , blending funk, jazz, soul and rock, this is a much recommended record for fans of Scofield's Bump, Garaj Mahal and George Clinton among others. Check out his David Byrne style vocals on a few cuts as well. Great Listening!! Stone Lab Records ©2006 --reviewed by Abstract Logix

- Abstract Logix (abstractlogix.com)

If you are looking for a funky instrumental progressive rock experience with a hint of jazz fusion, pick up this album. Elaborate Mess is the complex tangle of brainchildren delivered by local artist Luke Stone. It is composed of a barrage of rhythmically varied riffs, breakdowns, and traditional but memorable solo sections.
Some songs feature the talents of other local musicians. Eric Levy of ‘Garaj Mahal‘, Brian Baggett of ‘Dojo’, and Todd Wilkenson of ‘Boko Maru’ all make guest appearances and add an interesting color to the music’s overall atmosphere. There are moments that combine dissonance and polyphonic clarity, helping to achieve a series of dynamically successful arrangements. “Dandiego” is on of the few tracks with a vocal melody. It reminds me of Frank Zappa when Steve Vai was playing for him, minus the over-the-top subject matter. With it’s dark chord progression and mysterious saxophone melody, another track named “Robot Picnic” is reminiscent of King Crimson if the drums were played in reverse. On “Minor Organ Donation” the instruments enter into a harmonic cal and response, babbling persuasively until they find a thick groove as a resolve. With songs like these Elaborate Mess manages to say something interesting with minimal lyric usage. On the whole, this album is far form laconic. The songs are allowed to transform enough to give each it’s own individual character-arc. For more information and to purchase copies of Elaborate Mess, visit Luke Stone’s new website: www.lukestonemusic.com -Oliver J. Good Lawrencian


- Oliver J. Good (Lawrencian)

Somethin’s Gotta Give
(Stone Lab Records)

Luke Stone is up to something different with his latest effort Somethin’s Gotta Give. He’s singing. Not to say that vocals are entirely new to his music, on past albums he has used sparse phrasing to punctuate his mostly instrumental work, but the greater part of this nine song album has singing. And its catchy, maybe not at first but it grows on you, like the music.
Often Stone’s melodies mirror the bass, guitar, and drum phrasing, which on songs like “Reveal” where he has help from Jason Hubbard, presents an overall feeling of focus and an intent to move towards a more accessible sound. And the sound I’d say something akin to stoner rock but more transcendent. The riffs seem calculated but natural. Unforced. The same goes for Stone’s voice, which is laid back and often drenched in an interesting vocal effect. “Time to go” is perfect example of this. Then there is a song like “Insane”, which has an early 90’s ballad quality that might have been on action movie sound track like Batman Forever. “Insane” seems more about the mood ambience backing up the lyrical content rather than guitar tangents on a certain riff.
Overall, Stone still uses a lot of notes but somehow there is more space in the record. It’s easy to listen to and some song sections are even danceable. The addition of vocals make his music seems more rock; ala Faith No More meets Mahavishnu Orchestra. If you can dig it, check it out. It’s cool.



- Oliver J. Good (Lawrencian)