For Acts of God:
Glenn Snelwar - acoustic and electric guitars, e-bow, mandolins, synths
Damon Trotta - vocals, bass guitars, e-bow, synths, didgeridoo
Mark Sunshine - Vocals
James VonBuelow - Electric Guitars
Manfred Dikkers - Drums
Steve Decker - Drums
Dave Archer - Synths
For Torn Between Dimensions:
Glenn Snelwar - electric and acoustic guitars, e-bow, mandolins, synths
Michael Manring - Bass guitars
Mark Zonder - Drums and percussion
Influences
Voivod, Pink Floyd, King Crimson, Yes, Slayer, Emerson Lake and Palmer, Kevin Gilbert, Michael Hedges, King's X, Bela Bartok, Meshuggah, Alberto Ginastera, Frank Gambale, Kansas, Fishbone, Nickel Creek, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Chick Corea, Faith No More, Dillinger Escape Plan, Alice in Chains, Bach, Queens of the Stone Age, Rush, The Beatles, Univers Zero, Crosby Stills and Nash, the Deftones, Allan Holdsworth, Soundgarden
At War With Self - "sounds more like a psychological diagnosis than a band..." an appropriate description in the biography for the debut of the project and its first release, Torn Between Dimensions, led by Glenn Snelwar (Gordian Knot), featuring Michael Manring (Michael Hedges, Attention Defecit) and Mark Zonder (Fates Warning, Temple Within). The instrumental trio created an amalgam of tight-knit compositions encompassing progressive rock, metal, jazz, ambient and classical stylings, often within the boundaries of each composition. The end result was critically acclaimed and continues to grow a following as word of mouth of the project expands.
For Acts of God, the second release from the At War With Self project, Snelwar has desired to create a set of compositions with the intentions of living up to the label 'progressive' by dramatically changing almost every facet of the project while staying true to the underlying inspiration of the project's inception - to combine disparate styles and create music with no boundaries. No better choice than Damon Trotta as a co-writer and bassist to create what is sure to be as intriguing a release as Torn Between Dimensions. Trotta's background ranges from co-founder of metal acts Non-Fiction and System Addict, to the funk outfit Vehicle and has worked with the likes of Bernie Worell and Isaac Hayes. Prior to that, Snelwar and Trotta were in a progressive hardcore/metal trio together.. Trotta and Snelwar are back to their roots, with some added influences. With Trotta on bass, vocals, synths and programming and Snelwar on guitars, mandolin and synths, the duo is assisted by Sluggo's Goon Music labelmates James vonBuelow (guitars), Steve Decker (drums), Mark Sunshine (vocals), Dave Archer (synths) and Manfred Dikkers (drums) to create some truly stunning, inspired progressive music.
Torn Between Dimensions had a warm, organic feel as the all-instrumental interplay of Snelwar, Manring and Zonder created a complex, but introspective, set of related compositions. For Acts of God, that introspection is turned outward in the form of a cold stare at conflicts and resolutions prompted by recent world events. From the intensity and imagery-invoking 911 and Martyr, to the elated solace present in No Place and Ursa Minor, to the desolation of End in Blue and Refugee, Acts of God has managed to strike a balance of emotions that once again run the gamut from elation and warmth to fear and horror.
Snelwar describes his collaboration with Trotta as the latest incarnation of At War With Self: "What's so amazing to me about Acts of God is that the vocals lend themselves perfectly to this set of compositions. To change focus from an all-instrumental project to a set of songs mostly containing vocals has strengthened the idea that At War With Self can successfully morph, live up to its name and push the boundaries from one release to the next. That, together with the heavy intertwining of funk and electronic styles with metal and progressive ideas really make this something unique - add to that the ability to get all of the musicians from the label to contribute tremendously in their own way without limitations on what they do - who all come from different backgrounds with vastly different styles - the project took on a life of it's own, yet stayed true to the original idea of combining disparate styles effectively and with incredible intensity".
glenn, i must say that...your album torn between dimensions, to me, is by far, the best music ive heard since years!!!! specially "coming home"....this is unbelieavable, its so beautiful. this is wonderfull. thank you so much for that innovative music! more!!
Hey! When you'll have the time,you can check my latest project called "Catharsis Trinity rmx" up at my space.It's basically tree songs from my second album totally redone in collaboration with Jesse. Hope you'll dig it.
Hey! Big thanks man!I guess you know by now how much I appreciate your kind words regarding my music :) The fact alone that artists like yourself dig my stuff makes me a happy man. My cd is doing O.K. I guess. As expected:musicians love it,women hates it haha... Seriously,I'm not doing this for money and stuff like that,so I'm cool with the response I get. I take it you're finishing your album too since you're working on cover design?Awesome,it's one of the few things I'm looking forward a lot to hear. laterzzz... Grega
Thanks for the add, Glenn!! I've gotta say, it was incredible to hear a band (AWWS) capture such a smooth dichotomy in their playing style. It's my life in music!! (Especially "Run")...That's a typical day of work followed by school followed by practice. Are you fellas going to be playing in Michigan (or close to it) anytime soon? Oh, glad to hear you also appreciate "Losing It"; the time changes on such a dramatic/slower song will forever trip me up on drums...ok, maybe not FOREVER :-)
Man I think your music is pretty cool. Like the different elements put together and your arrangements and chords. Are you using that Fly for those heavy metal tones? Sounds gnarly. Yep I'm just a couple hours north, by Ft. Wayne. :)
Hey man I just ordered acts of god, can't wait for it to come in the mail! so what villa-lobos etude is on the upcoming disc? is it strait or more like the way Steve Morse and Manuel Barrueco's etude 1?
Hi Glenn, thanks for the add! Your album is really wonderful, one of the finest pieces of music I heard recently. Greetings from Italy, William ------------------------------- I'm working on the new GARDEN WALL studio album (the seventh one). In the meantime our label has released, after some years of various troubles, "Aliena(c)tion", which consists of some unreleased material from 2000 plus some later live recordings. You can hear some samples on Mellow Records and Garden Wall Myspace pages. Cheers, William
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