Screaming Headless Torsos

On the strength of last year’s Code Red, David Fiuczynski’s Screaming Headless Torsos, a 25-year- old border-destroying ‘rock’ band from Boston, is experiencing a revival, their recent premiere at Rockwood Music Hall (Sep. 4th) proving the point. Fronted by operatic soul singer Freedom Bremner, fired by the eclectic pyrotechnics of Fiuczynski’s double-necked (one fretted, one not) guitar, backed by bassist David Ginyard and the too-tough rhythm team of drummer James “Biscuit” Rouse and percussionist Daniel Sadownick, the Torsos delivered their highly intelligent, incessantly morphing originals with a punk edge. Opening with a cover of Miles Davis’ “Smile in a Wave”, which featured a fast bebop scat melody with a Stevie Wonder-style B-section, a theremin-like guitar solo with swooping slides and Jimi Hendrix-inspired psychedelic lyrics, the Torsos soon set heads a-bobbin’ across the SRO hipster crowd. And that was just the first number. The set was a study in contrasts and paradoxes: somehow the band’s beat stayed funky-to- the-bone even as it sped up, slowed down or modulated through relentless textural shifts; and, in spite of its quirky ethos and frenetic pace, the music was steeped in soul. Three songs were reprised from the group’s debut disc, but most came from the new album, plus a cover of Hendrix’ ballad “Angel”. Was it jazz? Does it matter? It certainly wasn’t what Duke Ellington would have called “the other kind” of music.
—Tom Greenland - The New York City Jazz Record

John L Walters
Friday November 19, 2004
The Guardian

Looked at baldly, the Screaming Headless Torsos are just another rock'n'roll band with chops: a power trio plus vocals and percussion. But the leader is superb guitarist Dave "Fuze" Fiuczynski, who knows every axe trick (and every chord) in the book, and the singer is the charismatic, soulful and technically brilliant Dean Bowman.

They kick off the first of two storming sets with Mind Is a River, with drummer Skoota Warner playing four-in-the-bar snare before Fuze and bassist Fima Ephron relax into some heavy, Led Zeppelin-ish riffing. Faith in the Free moves into funk-metal, with chanted vocals and rap-bebop interludes: Bowman moves effortlessly from in-your-face front man to hipster beat poet. Ran Blake's tune Arline becomes a space-reggae odyssey.
Several numbers recall the looseness of early rock - Hendrix, Cream. Fuze plays a nice solo bebop passage to introduce the funk-bop of Word to Herb, which detours into a vocalised snatch of Dizzy Gillespie's Night in Tunisia - "and the melody still lingers on".

Screaming Headless Torsos are relaxed about music: they have reached the happy stage where every lick at their disposal is focused solely on the band's repertoire. Fuze's solos are as outrageous as you could want from a guitar hero, but he rarely outstays his welcome. Daniel Sadownick's percussion is a vital part of the sound, with roasting conga parts that acknowledge the Cuban roots of rock: "Do his hands really move that fast?" gasps a girl nearby, wide-eyed in admiration. The powerful way Warner and Ephron knit together is what makes the band seem bigger, bolder, louder than the small venue and PA could actually handle, and Bowman is a star. Screaming Headless Torsos are just what the world needs right now: another rock'n'roll band. - Guardian, London, United Kingdom

"Cutting edge sounds that define today’s musical landscape." ÐBillboard

"Fuze sends the bulk of today’s jazz fusion scurrying into the shameful holes whence it came." Ð Jazz Times

"Guitarist David "Fuze" Fiuczynski has created a unique organic/electric fusion style... a lush landscape of acoustic colors that creates a spiritual depth beyond basic grooves. The overall vibe is complete creativity." - Modern Drummer

VOTED "RISING STAR - ELECTRIC JAZZ GROUP" BY DOWNBEAT CRITICS POLL AUGUST 2004

"...Fiuczynski's prodigious technique (uses) a myriad of processed tones. He percolates, warbles, wails, melts and generates, in the end, some jaw-dropping moments. (The music)... offers extended exposure to Fiuczynski's expressive and often sensitive use of electronics and distortion, which he employs without fear." -Jazz Times

"Fuze has ideas oozing from his digits." Ð Downbeat

"Screaming Headless Torsos... is considerably more edgy - compositionally and improv-wise- than your average rock-funk-fusion band." - Jazz Times

"(Fiuczynski) reveals a sense of humor that few true virtuosos dare to show. For sheer chops, imagination and raw abandon, no one can touch this Fuze." - Pulse!

"Chops up the wazoo... and a surplus of fire and intensity." Ð Guitar Player

"Intense simmering turmoil revealing (the) uncanny ability... of this contemporary guitar giant" ÐJazz Wise (UK)

- Varied