Four years ago, legendary drummer Simon Phillips was asked by email to produce a record for an artist by the name of Darwin. Inspired by the person and the ideas of DarWin, Simon made an arrangement for the first track of the album For Humanity and they recorded it at his Phantom Recordings studio.
Fast forward into 2019, there are 17 songs that Simon produced, engineered and mixed on DarWin's debut album 'Origin Of Species'. It gets even better: the album is accompanied by 7 videos of Simon playing the drum solos on the album, including drum tutorials of these solos and videos in which Simon takes you through the entire process of this project.
The massive musical and creative explosion on 'Origin Of Species' proves that the power of music and art on the environment is more important than ever. Not in the least because of the documentation and insights in a project - or musical fantasy like this, taking place in 2028 when climate change is wreaking havoc on the world.
Here is the entire project explained in this longread and huge video article, including all the drum solos and tutorial videos with Simon Phillips.
DarWin's 'Origin Of Species' - The Concept and Story The 'Origin Of Species' takes place roughly ten years from now into the future, 2028. The year in which an exhausted ecology and global conflicts have led to a huge upheaval of the world order, straining and diminishing human populations. The lives of everyday people and families have been turned upside down by the intense ecological pressures related to climate change. No longer just a theory discussed by scientists and politicians, climate change is wreaking havoc on the world. Chaos and confusion reign as fighting for basic resources continuously escalates. "Day Zero" has occurred, when nuclear attacks punctuated what had for many years been a civility between nations and people. As Earth rejects life, those of us who remain struggle to survive.
The story of 'Origin Of Species' is represented through music, graphic storytelling and videos. The style is Prog Rock with at times evoking hard rock virtuoso shredding, alongside grand orchestral compositions, warm harmonies and soaring choruses.
"We have 12 years to limit Climate Change Catastrophe." United Nations IPCC
Simon Phillips - Introduction to DarWin A personal introduction to the world of DarWin in the words of the legendary drummer and producer Simon Phillips (Toto).
DarWin - Escape the Maze The fourth track of the album, Escape The Maze, is the first video in an evolving saga that addresses the challenges of mankind in our coming era. It depicts the role of a changing planet, and the potential, as well as limitations, of technology to help solve mankind's greatest challenges. The music seeks to capture the listener in the spirit of the greatest concept albums that have helped to define the history of rock.
Simon Phillips - The Making Of 'Origin Of Species' Great insights from Simon about recording vocals, harmony, strings at Abbey Road Studios in London. He reflects on his experience learned from working with for instance Mike Oldfield. Also on more drum related topics like tempo.
Simon Phillips - Forever (Drum Solo) Simon Phillips performing the drums for the single Forever - playing in 5/4 and Transitioning Between Meters.
Simon Phillips - Forever (Drum Tutorial) Simon Phillips' tutorial of the single Forever.
Simon Phillips - For Humanity (Drum Solo) Simon Phillips performing the drums for the opening track For Humanity
Simon Phillips - For Humanity (Drum Tutorial) Simon Phillips' tutorial of the single Forever.
Simon Phillips - Tracking 'Origin Of Species' Simon gives an in-depth behind the scenes insight into the drum tracking of DarWin's debut album.
Simon Phillips - Mixing 'Origin Of Species' A detailed conversation with Simon on mixing 'Origin Of Species' with DarWin.
Personell 'Origin Of Species'
Simon Phillips - drums, percussion, keyboards, engineering, mixing and production
Matt Bissonette - bass, vocals, and brother of Gregg
DarWin - songwriting and conceptual vision, various guitars
Guest performances
Jeff Babko - keyboards and quartet arrangements
Greg Howe - blazing lead guitar solos
Dennis Hamm - keyboards
Ernst Tibbs - bass
Katisse Buckingham - Flute, Soprano Sax
Samuel Sim and Peter Nickalls - orchestral and quartet arrangements
The Origin of Species Quartet - Los Angeles
The Reykjavik String Quartet - Iceland
The Chamber Orchestra Of London - Conductor Matt Dunkley
Ordering 'Origin Of Species' D2C Store (Pre-order the CD)
25th February 2019 is the physical CD release date on D2C and Amazon.
