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Zappa plays more Zappa on upcoming tour
Dweezil Zappa and company have rolled out a full slate of dates for another round of "Zappa Plays Zappa " shows this summer, following up on last year's tour of the same name.
The second go-round for the "ZPZ" project follows the same plot as last year's inaugural edition, with Zappa, son of late rock icon Frank Zappa, playing his father's music on tour with a backing band that features several members of the elder Zappa's various touring units, including drummer Terry Bozzio, guitarist Steve Vai and multi-instrumentalist Napoleon Murphy Brock.
This year's version of the tour, which kicks off July 18 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, will feature a new set list, with Zappa delving deeper into his father's vast song catalog. "We are learning over 25 new songs from a wide range of material," Zappa wrote in a May 1 posting on the Zappa family website. "I'm extremely excited about some of the rare selections and some of the video surprises we have in store for you."
The "video surprises" are likely to be along the same lines as last year's appearances of Frank Zappa himself on-screen, playing along with the band via synchronized audio/video technology.
A DVD of last year's performances is also in the works, according to Zappa. The DVD shoot captured the band's shows in Seattle and Portland, OR, last December.
"It goes without saying that this whole ZPZ tour and DVD project has been a labor of love of for me," Zappa wrote in his recent post. "It has always been and always will be about presenting Frank's music to all of you in the finest and most authentic way possible."
