According to Wikipedia, vitamin B3, also known as niacin, is the timbral foundation of the Hammond B3 organ. I didn't know that before today and I'm too lazy to look up why that's true. All I know is that the members of this vitamin's musical namesake have chops that would make Hugo Weidel proud.
Before you read any further, and in the interest of full disclosure, I feel obliged to admit that Niacin's music is full on, prog rock wankery at its finest. I was raised from an early age on my dad's Emerson, Lake and Palmer collection and am still blown away by Keith Emerson's keyboard skills. This fact easily explains my recent fascination with the works of Niacin.
The similarities are there. They're a power trio consisting of a drummer (Dennis Chambers), bassist (Billy Sheehan) and lead (yes, lead) keyboard player (John Novello). That Emerson-esque Hammond sound is prevalent throughout and, most of all, the music critics' favorite prog rock descriptors like "pompous" and "bombastic" apply in full.
But that, folks, is why I like it. So have a listen.
Barbarian @ the Gate
Elbow Grease
Both of these are opening tracks for the albums "Organik" and "Time Crunch" respectively. Now if those song and album titles don't scream "progressive neo-fusion" then nothing ever will.
But seriously, the technique and instrumental proficiency are there in spades and that, at least for me, makes up for any lack of "soul" this music may have. For greatest effectiveness, shift your focus from the ridiculous keyboard playing to the background bass lines. Do you hear that? I know right?!
And so, I've made my case. If you want more, you can check out these Niacin albums and more on lala.com.
Would these guys lead you astray?
Those guys wouldn't lead anyone astray!
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