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Steve Morse Band
Stressfest
BMG, 1996

Although stress is not associated with creativity they seem to work in perfect harmony with the SMB. A lot of the songs came out of jams, which made them perfect to play live.  I remember playing around on my drums with a strange beat. The kick and snare had a half time feel but the hands were playing a quadruple time on the ride cymbal bell and the bell of the hi-hat with the butt end of the stick. What Steve came up with sounded like some twisted form of metal blue grass. I wanted to call it “Slam Grass”, but “Stressfest” best described the over all atmosphere at the time. Songs like “Rising Power” and “Brave New World” have taken on a new life of there own live and have become regular members of our set lists over the years.

I remember having to work hard to get the right take for “Eyes of a Child”. It seemed difficult do to its simplicity and space. I fell in love with this song when I heard it, which made me even more determined to find the right grove to support the song. What we ended up with is sort of a Ringo meets U2 feel. “The Easy Way” is a cool blend of Steve Morse Band on top of a hip-hop groove that was different then anything we had done in the past.