PROJECT/OBJECT ... current state of affairs 2005

Dave Johnsen - bass, vocals, effects
(photo courtesy Laura Wilson)

In the words of Robbie "Seahag" Mangano: "When Rick Bartow decided to leave P/O, I was on a mission to find a bassist who could fit into Bartow's monster shoes. I saw Dave play with his band Wavetaster and noticed he had all the chops  he needed to play the fast riffs and runs for P/O.  When i asked him to play in the band, he thought i was nuts, actually cause he didn't know any of Frank's tunes. The next month we spent hours and hours rehearsing parts in my living room from hours like 12am to 7am about twice a week. Now he is a superchampion of the bass. Killing Everybody. Hear him shred with his awesome band from Bethlehem, PA The  Insidious Rays"
 

Eric Svalgård - keys, moog, vocals
(photo courtesy Laura Wilson)

Born in the Bronx, NY in 1955. Berklee College of Music Alumnus. Eric first saw The Mothers of Invention at the Felt Forum in NYC during the Overnight Sensation tour and then followed Frank  and Napoleon and the troupe around the greater metropolitan area for two weeks during the Roxy tour. He was out on the west coast playing with a new wave band in the early eighties called Hoopla,  and was the keyboard player for Mudboy, a harmonica heavy blues band in Chester County PA for 3 years. In 2002 he began teaching at the Paul Green School  of Rock Music in Philadelphia, working with Paul on the Zappa show. It was through his work there, teaching high school age kids to play Frank’™s music, that he met Ike, Napoleon and André. He is currently the Music Director/Manager at the Downingtown branch of The Paul Green School of Rock Music."
 

Eric Slick - drums, vocals, assorted

Eric Slick started playing drums at the age of two when first heard a Jimi Hendrix song and immediately beat out the correct rhythm on his crib. He was given a set of bongos which were bigger than he was and caused him to topple over but he kept on playing even while flat on his back. By the time he was age four, he sat behind a real set of drums and over the next fifteen years, Eric, who honed his skills at the Paul Green School of Rock as their very first All-Star drummer, performed with Napoleon Murphy Brock, Ike Willis, Jon Anderson of Yes, Eddie Vedder, Ann Wilson of Heart, Adrian Belew, John Wetton, Carlos Alomar, and Project Object.
 

André Cholmondeley- guitar, vocals, samples
(photo courtesy Sue Terzian)

Hello - I write all this pablum. I arrived in this body in February 1965. It's been a struggle, but I try to somehow get it "everything" done in less time than possible..I'm also in two other projects - spacey experimental  percussive/electronic stuff with Jfk's  Lsd Ufo we've got a new CD out - ALIEN CONCEPTS - check out our show schedule.  In the fall of 2000 - I released a new CD " Spirit, Magnetics and  Entropy..." - it's a set of weird-ish, ambient guitar centered  music.More 'trapped in the basement' insanity. And blatantly ripped off from Fripp, Eno and Summers.. I'm about to do the second run of  CDs ! Check out Andre’s Awesome Ticket Stub Collection
 (all attended)
 

Napoleon Murphy Brock- saxaphone, flute, vocals
(photo courtesy Laura Wilson)

If you thought one legend on the P/O stage was mindblowing, imagine... TWO?! Napoleon first graced the P/O stage in 2001 at the Irving Plaza Halloween show and joined our touring caravan in 2002 to our amazement, enlightenment and eternal gratitude! See it all at www.napoleonmbrock.com
 

PROJECT/OBJECT ... past and occasionally returning members 1990-2005

Glenn Leonard - drums, vocals, assorted noise makers

At the age of 4 (somewhere around 1965) his mind was made up to be a drummer when  witnessing Ringo having such a great time on the Ed Sullivan show. He shook his hair, the girls screamed, Glenn was sold. At 5, the real drums came along & the boy never looked back. This was unfortunate because  he set up on his father's bandstand backwards. As the years rolled  by, Glenn played with North Star and Gongzilla guitarist Bon Lozaga  to name a few. Various studio sessions yielded a number of discs in styles ranging from industrial/classical to prog/jazz. Playing with Project/Object and various FZ alum is the realization of a lifelong dream for Glenn. He's also appeared at the Zappanale with the Grandmothers. Glenn teaches private students in piano and percussion near his home in the Philly area.
 

Robbie "Seahag"  Mangano- guitar, vocals, impossible guitar
(photo courtesy of Laura Wilson)

I met the hagster thru the wonders of the internet - and soon enough he was sitting in, he has even done Project Object gigs on BASS ! In Ancient Tibet, land of legend - there is a saying --"Keep your eye on the Hag".You can surely email him - treb_c_moon@yahoo.com.  Seahag is a constant source of amazement and inspiration to the whole  band and all of the lucky fans who see him tear up the most bizarre of  musical passages , often the ones never intended for the guitar!! He is also in The Great Atomic power - check them a review of their debut CD on our nifty press page. He is also playing gigs in NYC area with singer/songwriter Esme Montgomery,  as well as various transcription and studio work.....NEW > Check out Seahag's site
 

Jeff "Boxy"  Breedlove-honorary keys, vocals
(photo courtesy Bob Mode)

Boxy is a graphic designer by day, graphic designer/musician/transcriber/studio cat/bassist by night. Email him at boxy@monmouth.com. And somehow squeezes in enuf time to learn all these squiggly zappa notes - and show us the right parts - Boxy has become too busy to tour or play full time - these days he sits in on the occasional NYC area gigs. In fact he played at the big Halloween 2001 extravaganza. But we thanks him for being the 'musically literate wacko' he is - he doesn't know it but he is responsible for this band surviving the hard tunes, early on!! THANKS BOXY!!
 

Rick Bartow- bass, vocals
(photo courtesy Abe  Scott)

Rick has been writing and recording lots of new music at home as always.. and he has a great band called LOVETESTER --Rick has also released a cool CD - "ASSTRAVAGANZA"-  for info/to order one - email rickbartow@aol.com for show dates and tapes (what are those..??), and any other info. LOVETESTER features not only Rick, but P/O's own Wes and Boxy - check 'em out - look out for a new full length CD soon! Rick is a MONSTER web designer, check out his site at www.rickbartow.com
 

mumbo- drums, vocals, keys, percussion
(photo courtesy  Steve Brown)

The drummer formerly known as John Cochran -increasingly formidable on the keyboards - makes log drums along with Wes. I've played in bands with Mumbo for a million years - so i'll tell ya he's playing some awesome shit right now! Check out 'filthy habits' on the live CD....He is the powerhouse of the band - and in true Zappa style - he drives the improvs and solos when he's back there. He loves really insane music, and has  a very small chihuahua. Check out Mumbo's  Fall '99 Tour Diary. Apparently you can email Mumbo at mumbolina@onebox.com
 

Wes Paich- drums, vocals, keys, percussion

Carpenter supreme and high falutin sidekick of mumbo - multi instrumental  madman- wes is the chief engineer and tape-op at Rancho Relaxo Studios. Wes has the 'pop' as Ike say about the snare hit he loves so well. But yes - the logical yin to mumbo's yang - this way we have all the Zappa drum styles with two guys -- A deal and a half. Wait -- he's also The other half of GRINGO BLANCO - the drum boyz side project.AND of course  - also in Rick's shindig. Check out the cool wooden slit drums Wes 'n Mumbo make at highfalutindrums.com Fall '99 Tour Diary of Wes. email Wes at wespaich@att.net
 

Jordan Shapiro- synth, Fender Rhodes, vocals
(photo courtesy Spackle)

Jordan actually played the ENTIRE Joe's Garage albums with Ike Willis at the U. Of Michigan...from this we met him, thru Ike, in NYC at a show. A year or so later - we drafted young Jordan to handle the always formidable Zappa-keyboard chair. He is a in a bluegrass band ASTROGRASS (playing guitar and mando sometimes) and wrote a Rock Opera called Fortune  Cookie Dreams. He can really shred up a guitar as well - so look out -- we may have to do 'stevie's spankin' with 5 guitars or somethin' ..NEW!! - you can get the ASTROGRASS cd at www.cdbaby.com/astrograss. Email  -jordan_shapiro@hotmail.com
 

Stan Lachiewicz - bass, vocals
(photo someday)

Stan was our original bass player - and played all the early basement and living room gigs ! If you saw some early shows at the COURT TAVERN you may have seen him. We hear he is playing bass and guitar again - he's a great player. Hopefully he'll get something recorded or get back on the stages of NJ soon. Until recently - he owned an aquarium store in aberdeen NJ.
 

Previous Guests

2002
Mar-Apr- Napoleon Murphy Brock (27 shows!), Ed Mann(2), Don Preston(2),  Bunk Gardner(2), Mike Keneally, Chuck Garvey (moe.), Jon Fishman (phish), Sitar Joe, Eric/violin in SF. Kahlil Sabbagh - vibes/LA, Elliott Levin  sax/Philly

2001
May - Don Preston, Bunk Gardner, Ray White, Arthur Barrow

June - Al Schnier and Jim Loughlin (of MOE.)

October - Napoleon Murphy Brock, Don Preston, Bunk Gardner, Billy Mundi (GrandMothers), Jerry Outlaw (Bogus Pomp - FLA Zappa trib  band)

2000
Mar, Aug -Gary Lucas - guitar

Jun, Aug -Joe  Deninzon - violin

Summer - Denny Walley - mid 70s Zappa alumni

Aug - Jimmy Carl Black - Mothers Of Invention alumni

1999
Jun 16-20 minitour - Jim Ruffi,drums

Jun 10,11,13-20 - Robbie 'seahag' Mangano

Jun 11,20 - the Whornz -Sean Moore/trmpt,Joe Flanagan/sax,Dave  Hollander/sax

Jun 10,11 - Elliott Levin,sax

Jun 20 - Carl Restivo, bk vocalsNov - Laura Wilson-Violin, Lions Den NYCp> 1998
June - (tour)-Ted Kooshian-keys (of the Ed Palermo Big Band)

1997
Jerry Cucurullo-drums
Al Malkin (Yes, from JOE's GARAGE)-onstage exhibitionism, possible molestation
Ed Palermo-sax

Apr 96,July/Aug 98
Mike Keneally-guitar

Dec 98, Mar 99
"Zappa Pickup Project" Jim Ruffi-dr, Seahag-gtr+bs, Dave Hollander-sax,  Carl Restivo-gtr, voc

1993-1996
Robin Renee-v, Dave Lawson-conga(!), Curtis Hasselbring-trombone, Melvin McKnight -gtr, Dan Gibson - voc

SPECIAL GUEST, JUNE 1999, MAR 2000, AUG 2000
Ike Willis - guitar, vocals