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Mike Keneally obviously doesn't like to be labeled -- he's a bandleader and bandmember, a rock and jazz fusion player, and also an outstanding guitarist, vocalist, keyboardist, and percussionist. Taking up keyboards at age five, Keneally's life changed when he moved from New York to California in 1970 and heard Frank Zappa for the first time at age ten. Woodshedding for the next 15 years as a self-taught guitarist, Keneally formed a band called Drop Control in his hometown of San Diego in 1985 and became one of the city's musical heroes. Keneally auditioned for Zappa's band in 1987 as a "stunt guitar" replacement for Steve Vai, and was hired as a guitarist, keyboardist, and vocalist. The multi-instrumentalist would appear on some classic Zappa albums like Broadway the Hard Way and The Best Band You Never Heard in Your Life, but little did he know that his lineup would be Zappa's final touring band. Between 1988 and 1991, Keneally performed with Drop Control and Zappa's son Dweezil's band Z, toyed with studio-musician status, and moved to Los Angeles.
After working on the Grammy-winning tribute album Zappa's Universe, Keneally started a solo career with his 1992 debut album, Hat. Quirky and hard to categorize (with Zappa trademarks like classical undertones, stuttering, jazz-like rhythms, and humorous lyrics), the debut was a big hit with critics. But the next year would claim both Keneally's father and Zappa, leading to the moody yet brilliant 1994 CD Boil That Dust Speck. Ranging from intense rock ("Skunk") to ballads ("Blameless [The Floating Face]") to Keneally's closing percussion tribute saga to Zappa, "The Old Boat Guy," the disc showcased every facet of his array of talents. Leaving Z in 1996 and naming his solo touring band Beer for Dolphins, Keneally released the riotous double CD Half Alive in Hollywood, featuring one disc of live-in-a-studio originals and one of live stage performances (including covers of Jimi Hendrix's "Power to Love" and Led Zeppelin's "Immigrant Song"). He also formed a band called the Mistakes, with Henry Kaiser, Andy West (Dixie Dregs), and Prairie Prince (the Tubes), who released a self-titled album.
The same year, Keneally joined fellow Zappa alumnus Steve Vai's band, playing on the G3 Tour over the next year with Joe Satriani, Eric Johnson, Robert Fripp, and Kenny Wayne Shepherd. Playing classical piano-like keyboard lines, percussion, and intricate harmonized guitar lines with rock virtuoso Vai, Keneally helped the band steal the G3 show often (as evidenced by the G3: Live in Concert CD). Between releases by Beer for Dolphins (1997's Sluggo!; 2000's Dancing) and solo albums (1999's Nonkertompf, on which he played all of the instruments), Keneally also found time to record two CDs with Vai, 1999's The Ultra Zone and 2001's Alive in an Ultra World.
In 2001, Keneally got a new acoustic guitar, which led to the release of the largely acoustic-based and mellow Wooden Smoke, which showed yet another side of Keneally's musical personality. For another interesting detour, in 2002, Keneally was approached by Co de Kloet, commissioning director for Holland's NPS Radio, and was commissioned to write music for electric guitar and orchestra. The resulting music and live performances with the renowned Metropole Orchestra were such a success that de Kloet started the NPS Output label to release The Universe Will Provide in 2004, just a month after Keneally turned around and delivered his hardest-rocking album to date, Dog, with the newly christened Mike Keneally Band. Just a few months after that came Piano Reductions, Vol. 1, an album of Vai songs played solo on piano that was actually recorded in 1999 at Steve's request. As if he weren't busy enough, around the same time he got involved with Henry Kaiser and Wadada Leo Smith's Yo Miles! project, appearing on both Sky Garden and Upriver.
The Mike Keneally Band hit the road in 2005, playing across the U.S., with Guitar Therapy Live appearing as the tour document in 2006. That same year, Keneally acquired the rights to his early catalog on Immune with plans to re-release it in deluxe editions in 2007 on Exowax (each of Keneally's Exowax recordings has been available as a limited-edition package with lots of bonus material). With his wide-ranging talents and ability to be creative in almost any musical situation, Keneally is the leading progressive rock genius of the post-Zappa era.
from Wikipedia:
Michael Joseph Keneally (born December 20, 1961) is an American guitarist, keyboardist, vocalist and composer. Allmusic says: "With his wide-ranging talents and ability to be creative in almost any musical situation, Keneally is the leading progressive rock genius of the post-Zappa era."
Born on Long Island, New York, he moved to San Diego, California, at an early age and has been a fixture on the local music scene there since 1985 when he formed the local cult band, Drop Control. Although a well established musician in his own right, Keneally is probably most well known as former Frank Zappa "stunt guitarist" and a Zappa 1988 tour band member on both guitar and keyboards. His ascendency to that position is legendary in certain musician circles, based on Keneally's command of Zappa's vast and difficult-to-play repertoire.
Keneally's stint in the Zappa touring band was short-lived with the early cancellation of the 1988 tour and Zappa's death in 1993. Keneally moved on from the elder Zappa's band to work with the eldest Zappa son, Dweezil on his solo albums and work released as the band, Z.
Keneally has also released 11 albums of solo material since 1992 and has guested or acted as sideman on a wide variety of projects, most notably as part of Steve Vai's touring bands. He has played guitar and keyboards with Yo Miles!, Wadada Leo Smith, Norwegian legends Ulver and Henry Kaiser's Miles Davis tribute band as well as recording the 1995 album The Mistakes with Henry Kaiser, Prairie Prince, and Andy West (formerly of Dixie Dregs). He has also produced albums for several bands, including Chris Opperman's debut album, Oppy Music, Vol. I: Purple, Crayon.
In 1998 Vai requested that Keneally arrange and perform an album of Vai's music on acoustic piano. Recorded in 1999, the album was finally released in 2004 as "Vai: Piano Reductions Vol. 1". According to liner notes, Vai selected the songs, produced the album, and mixed it, releasing it on his own Light Without Heat label. As of 2008 Keneally has arranged from multi-tracked guitar parts to single-track piano the 12 songs selected by Steve and begun work on a second volume of Vai "Piano Reductions".
On May 1, 2007, Keneally's Exowax label re-released his debut album "hat." and "Boil That Dust Speck" as deluxe, remastered double disc versions. Exowax has obtained Keneally's entire back catalog from Immune Records. Planned releases included "Half Alive In Hollywood" and "Sluggo!" as well as The Mike Keneally and Beer For Dolphins 1996 VHS release "Soap Scum Remover," which will be remixed and remastered for a DVD release, and The Mistakes, his 1995 side project with Henry Kaiser on guitar and Synclavier, bassist Andy West and drummer Prairie Prince), along with a live Mistakes recording that has been held on the side until Keneally was able to re-acquire the rights to the original album.
On November 28, 2006, Keneally announced that he was hired as National Music Director for The Paul Green School of Rock Music.
He has also toured with Dethklok as a guitarist and back up vocalist.
On July 20, 2008, at El Cajon, Calif., Mike played a concert as part of "the most exciting power trio in years," Keneally • Minnemann • Beller (KMB), consisting of Mike, drummer Marco Minnemann and long-time collaborating bassist Bryan Beller. The band undertook a full tour in 2009.
In August 2009, Keneally released a video for a new solo track, "Hallmark," from Scambot 1, the first part of a planned three-album series.
In June 2010, Keneally entered Skywalker Sound as part of the studio band for Joe Satriani's new solo project, along with regular Satriani drummer Jeff Campitelli and bassist Allen Whitman (of San Francisco's surf/psychedelic group The Mermen). This same lineup is scheduled to tour in October and November 2010 in support of the album, however Keneally was replaced by English keyboardist Jem Godfrey for 2 dates on the UK leg of the tour.
