Credit: Diane Lynn
Credit: Diane LynnLongtime Uriah Heep keyboardist Phil Lanzon will release his second solo album, 48 Seconds, this Friday, August 9.
Lanzon, who joined the famous U.K. prog-metal group in 1986, explores a variety of genres and styles on his new record. The 11-track collection includes hard-rock tunes, ballads and classical-influenced songs, while incorporating orchestral elements and a children’s choir into many of the tracks.
The album’s title track focuses on the story of the 1906 earthquake that devastated San Francisco. Lanzon has posted a promo video on Uriah Heep’s official YouTube channel in which he discusses — and plays snippets of — various tracks.
In the clip, he describes “48 Seconds” as “a bit of a prog song,” adding, “There’s a lot happening, lots of bits and pieces in it. It’s a cool journey to listen to this one. The children’s choir have the last word at the end.”
Lanzon also discusses a song titled “Face to Face,” which is about how people today don’t communicate directly as much because of technology.
Regarding the musical aspect of the track, Phil says, “I thought it needed a middle section that moved to another level, so I got the orchestra to play an interlude that had that film score feel to it, that sort of luxurious movement that takes you through to different emotions and takes you to another level.”
Lanzon collaborated on the 48 Seconds album with producer Simon Hanhart and arranger Richard Cottle, who also worked on Phil’s 2017 solo debut, If You Think I’m Crazy.
The new album is available on CD, as a colored-vinyl LP and digitally. You can order it at PhilLanzon.com and MusicGlue.com/phil-lanzon.
48 Seconds arrives a few months after Lanzon published his first novel, Curse of the Mudchalk Devil.
Here’s the album’s track list:
“Azura’s Theme” (Instrumental)
“In the Rain”
“Forty Line”
“Rock n Roll Children”
“Blue Mountain”
“Look at the Time”
“Road to London”
“You Can Make a Living”
“Face to Face”
“48 Seconds”
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