Mark Vickness Interconnected (MVI), the brainchild of composer and fingerstyle guitar wizard Mark Vickness, has just unleashed their latest album, “I Will Find My Way,” today, July 25, 2024. This release comes hot on the heels of their singles, “The Four” and “Icarus,” which hit the airwaves earlier this July.
This album is like the final piece of a puzzle in Vickness’s musical journey, bringing to life his vision of music that weaves together different styles and cultures. “The Four” and “Icarus” which fans have been grooving to for a couple of weeks now, gave listeners a tantalizing taste of the rich, layered compositions on the full album.
MVI didn’t just appear out of thin air. Born in 2019, it grew from Vickness’s solo projects into a collaborative powerhouse. The current lineup is a who’s who of talented musicians: Matt Renzi blowing minds on soprano sax, Joseph Hebert making the cello sing, Mads Trolling weaving magic on violin, Dan Feiszli laying down the law on upright bass, and Mark Vickness himself on guitar. And when they really want to shake things up, they bring in some extra percussion firepower.
The full MVI ensemble can expand to include oboe/english horn/sax, tabla, and additional percussion, showcasing an even broader range of musical influences.
Vickness didn’t just sit in a stuffy studio to write this album. Nope, he drew inspiration from the breathtaking vistas of Owens Valley, nestled on the eastern slope of California’s Sierra Nevada. He’ll tell you himself how those ever-changing mountain views worked their way into his music. For instance, ‘Three Bridges’ was composed almost entirely while hiking one of his favorite trails in the area.
Recording this album was no walk in the park. The team was dead set on capturing live performances without sacrificing an ounce of audio quality. They holed up at 25th Street Recording in Oakland, California, for two grueling ten-hour days. But it wasn’t all work and no play – they also managed to film the whole process, giving fans a behind-the-scenes peek at the magic.
Dan Feiszli wore two hats for this project – not only did he lay down some killer bass lines, but he also worked his magic as the recording and mix engineer. To put the cherry on top, they brought in Grammy-winning engineer Adam Ayan from Portland, Maine, to master the album.
“I Will Find My Way” is a myriad of impressive numbers, featuring nine tracks that’ll take you on a journey: “The Four,” “Squall,” “Three Bridges,” “Icarus,” “More Hot Apple Stuff,” “Higher Desert,” “Cloud Shadows Revisited,” “Alluvial Fans Revisited,” and “In the Rain Shadow Revisited.” These tracks range from quick 3-minute jams to the epic 6-and-a-half-minute “Higher Desert.” Fans are already showing lots of love to “The Four” and “Icarus,” with play counts skyrocketing.
Vickness’s composing style is like a musical cocktail, mixing classical training with improv flair. He often gets his best ideas while noodling on his guitar or out on a hike. Then he’ll take those sparks of inspiration and flesh them out using tried-and-true composing techniques before bringing them to the band to really make them shine.
Try to pin down MVI’s style, and you’ll find yourself scratching your head. It’s a melting pot of world music, classical composition, jazz, and cutting-edge acoustic styles. Vickness calls it “Instrumental Progressive Acoustic Fusion Music,” which is a mouthful but spot-on. Take “The Four,” for instance – it’s got a violin solo that sounds like bluegrass, rock, and jazz had a baby, all over a cello part that’ll make you think of West African drums. Meanwhile, the cello plays a repetitive rhythmic part derived from traditional West African Ewe drum ensemble music, showcasing the true interconnectedness of MVI’s sound.
This album sees Vickness and the gang stretching their wings a bit, letting loose with more improv and free-flowing performances. “Three Bridges” is a prime example, with a section that’s pure, unadulterated improvisation. The track also features an inspired bass solo at its start. Similarly, ‘The Four’ and ‘More Hot Apple Stuff’ boast impressive improvised violin solos.
At its core, this album is all about connections – between instruments, between styles, between people. Vickness hopes that when you listen to it, you’ll feel a little spark of joy and maybe even be inspired to spread some kindness around. Some pieces, like ‘Three Bridges’ and ‘Cloud Shadows Revisited,’ particularly lend themselves to quiet, focused listening, preferably with a good set of headphones.
MVI is riding the wave of a growing trend in instrumental acoustic music, alongside heavy hitters like Hawktail, Punch Brothers, and The Vision Quartet. Vickness sees this style as the next big thing in music and is stoked to help grow its audience.
For MVI, dropping “I Will Find My Way” is like reaching the summit after a long climb. If you’re itching to hear more or see what these folks are up to, you can catch them on their official website, Instagram, YouTube, and even TikTok. Trust me, you won’t want to miss what they do next.
