Newly-unearthed Frank Zappa music includes over three hours’ worth of material and will be presented on an official release as a compilation called Funky Nothingness. The compilation is due June 30th, 2023 via Zappa/UMe, the music is believed to have been intended for a sequel to Hot Rats, the avant-garde rocker’s 1969 solo debut.
According to Consequence of Sound, freshly dug out from the Zappa vault, Funky Nothingness will include 25 unreleased and rare tracks, as well as compositions, covers, and miscellaneous jams from 1970 studio sessions with Zappa’s core group: Aynsley Dunbar, Don “Sugarcane” Harris, Ian Underwood, and Max Bennett. Physical copies will arrive on double-LP or triple-CD formats, and pre-orders are ongoing.
“Funky Nothingness delivers on all fronts, showcasing Zappa’s love for rhythm and blues, picking up where Hot Rats left off with extended instrumental workouts fusing rock, jazz, and classical elements into music that can only be described as Zappa,” reads a statement from “Zappa vaultmeister” Joe Travers, who also compiled the collection along with Zappa’s son Ahmet Zappa.
