Dweezil Zappa Zappa Plays Zappa – Royal Festival Hall – 18/10/2015

Zappa Plays Zappa – Royal Festival Hall – 18/10/2015
I am a massive Frank Zappa fan, but never got to seem live. Despite a few earlier exposures to his music, it was only when I heard “You Can’t Do That On Stage Anymore” that I finally got it. That was in the week after his last tour to the UK in 1988. The next few weeks saw me scouring London for Zappa CDs (and LPs to fill in the gaps). “One Size Fits All” is one of FZ’s great albums – a bit of everything – classical, spoken word, blues, rock, tour folklore and spaceships. If you were going to start anywhere with FZ, this is probably the place. Dweezil’s band is probably the most technically proficient of the FZ cover/tribute bands out there, although not exactly the most fun. Dweezil lacks his father’s charisma and sense of absurdity. But then any opportunity for hearing Zappa’s music played live is worth grabbing with both hands…
I love the Festival Hall – comfy seats, good sound and it doesn’t feel as big as it is. The audiences tend to be great as well – there for the music, not the selfie.
The gig kicked off with Dweezil announcing they would do “OSFA” straight through. Whereupon, they launched into a meticulous, spirited rendition of the theme from Star Wars! When you’ve got a band that can play anything, then make ‘em play everything! From there it was into “Inca Roads” and through the album. Every track a gem, but kept tightly to thee record, so little room for solos. They came in the second half, during the wonderful rendition of “The Grand Wazoo” with the best bit of conducted improvisation I’ve seen the band do, featuring a guest clarinettist (Sioned Eleri). The line-up has been fairly consistent over the years, so they work together really well at moments like that. There was also a lovely moment when Dweezil started talking to a young boy in he second row, as he likes to address the next generation of fans. The boy was maybe 12, and admitted that he played the drums. Whereupon, he was cajoled on to the stage and behind the drum kit. Poor kid was terrified, but he eventually started playing and the band joined in for a rickety piece of music. But he got to play the Festival Hall, and that’s pretty bloody awesome for anyone…