The founders of noted progressive rock band Unified Past have always been pleased and proud with the music they had crafted over three albums since the band came together in its current incarnation in 2009.
But as artistically satisfying as that year’s album Tense, the 2011 follow-up Observations and 2013s Spots, or how critically acclaimed they were, guitarist Stephen Speelman and drummer Victor Tassone knew something was missing. Wanting to take the band to the next level, another well-respected and pedigree-rich member of the upstate New York rock scene was brought on board to bring his distinctive songwriting and vocal stylings to the project – and to help flesh out what is now a dynamic and musically impressive live roster.
This reconstituted and rejuvenated Unified Past is set to release its latest album, Shifting the Equilibrium, through Melodic Revolution Records on Sept. 15, with a slate of live shows in the works to accompany the release, marking the first time Unified Past will perform live.
Speelman and Tassone have known each other for more than a quarter of a century, first coming together in the well-reputed Long Island prog-rock outfit Labyrinth from 1991 to 2001. Both went on to other musical projects, before coming back together as Unified Past in 2009.
“We decided to get back together but realized that the music scene had changed quite a bit and felt that it was time to get back and start doing the music that we’ve always loved and appreciated. We started this off as just a studio project to get out name back out there and to see what happened from there,” said Speelman.
“By the time we released the second CD Observations in 2011 we had a better feel for what we wanted to do musically and were really getting excited about the project, but it was still just going to be studio centred. We added bassist Dave Mickelson when I was doing some work with Joey Belladonna of Anthrax and he joined the band, which was still an instrumental project. But then I started to add a couple of songs where I was singing again and we got such a good response from it that we felt we were ready to play live again at some point.
“But what became quickly evident was that although I can certainly sing in key, we felt that if we were going to turn this into a proper live band and take it to a more serious level, we needed to have a singer who is as vocally proficient as we felt we were musically. So that’s where Phil came in.”
Naro has been an in-demand studio collaborator and live artist for a similar length of time, working with the likes of Billy Sheehan, Lawrence Gowan, Kim Mitchell, Queen’s Brian May, Peter Criss, former Foreigner frontman Lou Gramm and many other rock notables, as well as in a number of his own bands.
“I really dug the songwriting and the playing was really good on the material I heard. It was their commitment to really good music and high quality production that brought me into the band. I remember talking to Nick Katona who runs Melodic Revolution Records about the band and he had nothing but praise for them and I was like ‘yeah, I really like where they’re going with this project,’” said Naro.
“And I’ve always wanted to be in a prog band. So they called me up and we started talking and they sent songs to me and I started putting my ideas on it and that’s how we worked together and released this record. I was pleased to be fully involved in the process. I came in with some lyrics and the melodies and suggestions here and there, so it was a good collaboration.”
It was also at a propitious stage in the band’s evolution for Tassone and Speelman to add a third dimension to what is already a productive and prolific songwriting team.
“On this album, a lot of it is me coming up with a riff or a melodic idea and sending it to Victor. So we work through the songs that
way. And this is what’s great with working with Phil; previously, being a guitar player, I’d write the musical structure to the song and then we’d fit a melody into the song. So it was always the music written first and there was no idea as to what the chorus was going to sound like. So the melody was always being squeezed into the music,” Speelman explained.
“Now with Phil we had some ideas and we could get them to Phil and he would come back with some melodic ideas of his own and I would hear them and think, ‘well that would work really well with our song Today’s the Day, for example.’ He would send me back a couple of new ideas and I would feed off them and start expanding and adding and going full steam developing these new variations on the songs that I would never have come up with.”
Speelman also said that Naro has added an element of positivity to the band’s vibe, especially lyrically.
“I was more dark. When I looked at things, especially life issues and stuff like that, it was always more of a glass half empty type feel – a little bit of a darker tone to the lyrics. With Phil’s lyrics, you really walk away feeling a little more spiritual: they are very positive lyrics. Today is the Day and Peace Remains in This World have a more upbeat down and different angle than I originally had. I really felt that this was a really new, fresh thing for the band and I think the fans will love it,” he said.
‘Prog’ can be defined different ways by different people. For most music fans it means musical virtuosity, intricate, sometimes complex songs that bring in elements of classical, jazz fusion, hard rock and metal together into a melange that appeals to fans who love musicianship alongside a memorable melody.
“I tell people that I hate to pigeonhole what we sound like. But if you need a definition I would say picture 1970s Rush with 1980s Yes and throw in a bit of today’s edge from bands like Dream Theater and Tool and you get an idea of what we sound like,” said Speelman.
And it makes sense, considering Naro, Speelman and Tassone have a number of similar influences.
“For me, I like Dream Theater and things like that, but what really got me going in my early days was bands like Gentle Giant, Genesis, Yes and King Crimson. I was really into the whole 1970s prog sound. And it works well because Stephen is new school and I am kind of old school. So it works well to combine both things together,” Naro said, with Speelman talking about the heavier influences of Tassone and Mickelson.
“Our drummer Victor was influenced by Neil Peart from Rush and Alan White from Yes without a doubt. But then he was also a big fan of Vinny Appice and the music of Ronnie James Dio and also Iron Maiden. Our bass player Dave plays in a side project with Joey Belladonna from Anthrax, so he totally brings a metal approach to bass playing to a progressive rock band. Between the two of them, our rhythm section is one of the things that make people feel that they need to label us prog-metal. But then when you listen to Phil’s voice and some of the things I try to do on guitar, I really think we’re more melodic and have more subtleties that prog-metal. I usually tell people we prefer to be called prog that rocks,” he said.
For more information on Unified Past, and the upcoming release of Shifting the Equilibrium and tour dates, visit www.unifiedpast.com
* Jim Barber is a veteran award-winning journalist and author based in Napanee, ON, who has been writing about music and musicians for a quarter of a century. Besides his journalistic endeavours, he now works as a communications and marketing specialist. Contact him at jimbarberwritingservices@gmail.com.
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