New Album Release For The Band "PLATE"

  CLERMONT, FL. - 12/28/2017 (PRESS RELEASE JET)

From Clermont, Florida, we find PLATE, a cracking heavy rock quartet, who have a superb new nine track CD out now called 'Tectonic Planet' which runs in at just over forty minutes long and is the bands seventh album.  Plate are: Craig Fraley on guitar, synth, vocals, Mung Parker on bass, Noel Switzer on drums and Phil Hannon on drums.

Multi-instrumentalist and signer Craig Fraley was raised around music all his life, and his mom started him out on piano lessons around second grade.  His parents were medical missionaries in East Africa and the budding young musician was raised there on and off since fourth grade. He started listening to bands like Eagles, Styx, Pink Floyd and Kiss live on eight track and cassette tapes. Tampa was originally their home city in America, and they ended back in Tampa when Craig was in tenth grade.  That’s when he decided to pick up the guitar which he then learned to play, self-taught with a few lessons from a professional guitarist at a music store in Tampa. "I have played guitar and piano ever since then.  I was fourteen years old, and now I am fifty-two years old," he tells me. Fraley played with cover bands and played out off and on until he was twenty-four.  "That’s when I decided to major in music.  I ended up at South-eastern college in Lakeland, Florida (1989).  Started an all original band called Jaded Heart and have been playing original music ever since.  Our first CD was released in 1994 with a band I formed called Theory," he says.             

'Tectonic Planet' is restoration album for Fraley.  "Plate was my call sign back in the nineties and my stage name since the band Talizmen I was jamming with at the time.  The guy’s thought I had a plate in my head which actually had been in my arm after a motorcycle accident," he explains. After hitting bottom five years ago, Craig started again with God’s help, and so he named the band Plate offering his talents to God on a plate since he had saved and has restored his life with the help of the Salvation Army and Celebrate Recovery.  "Five years clean and sober. This Album is more of a project for me and the musicians who volunteered to record it.  Other friends helped with the title and artwork of the CD.   The title goes along with Plate since tectonic plates make up our planet earth.  And this music is meant to be played loud and hard much like the tectonic plates move mountains."

Fraley was inspired by a lot of bands and guitarist’s such as Eddie Van Halen, Randy Rhodes, Tonni Iommi, Joe Satriani, Steve Vai to Andres Segovia as well as bands from Judas Priest, to Led Zeppelin, Ronnie James Dio, to Black Sabbath and Blue Oyster Cult, Bach to Beethoven, who were all important figures in music to him. "Because of the power of the music, the feelings and emotions that rock, hard rock, heavy metal had, impressed me very much.  So, I learned the music theory behind it all and started composing and recording.  I also have been inspired by the original band’s and musicians throughout the years I have jammed and recorded and played out with," he expresses.

The songs on 'Tectonic Planet' each have their own meaning, and most of them are about nature’s divine revelation of God and the Apostle’s creed, and about the truth behind God’s word in the Bible.  "Pretty deep stuff I must say but also just to have fun be free and rock on!  Music gives me the ability to express myself in way’s only God knows. And bring hope to the people.  Family friendly hard rock as I would say," he points out.

In his down time outside of music Craig enjoys everything from social networking and web building to be a missionary kid, world traveller, ordained minister, and private music instructor.  "I like going to amusement parks to roller coasters and thrill rides.  Watching movies and video gaming," he adds. "Photography is a hobby and I like making videos for my YouTube channel.  Family also is very important to me and God has brought much restoration in that department since my new life clean n sober."

As a band, Plate has evolved through the years with different musicians helping Fraley bring his music to the audience.  "I also play solo gigs with tracks.  My main importance is to step out and show the music field how God has brought me back loud and heavy with a touch a class.  Making music with meaning, music that matters, my best phrase is Plate moves mountains," he explains.

Craig's highlight of the album is the fact it got done. "It gives reason for the rescue of my life and one of my statements in the music field," he says with pride. "A lot of practice and originality went into the songs and the album and a lot of great people are to thank.  Included in the credits on the CD itself."

The live shows for Plate are going on well, and Fraley makes sure that each show is recorded so that he can make videos and broadcast them on his website and YouTube channels.  "A lot of the audience comes from the internet these days.  I am slowly getting more attention locally here in central Florida, and I have been doing the original scene since 1990 both secular and as a ministry and there a lot more bands doing this than there used to be," he explains to me. Craig dropped out of the scene for some time having a lot of problems with the law and drugs and alcohol.  "The life style caught up with me and I went down hard financially and health wise.  But now I am playing out once a month maybe twice taking off during the summer to get with family and reunions.   I hope to just keep on jamming the rest of my life no matter how many people show up to the event.  God is good," he smiles.

'Tectonic Planet' was recorded and produced at his home studio and in Clearwater, Florida at A/V productions owned by Alex Vincent who is the actor who play’s Andy in the Chucky movies.  "The sound engineer and the person due credit for the final mixes and bass playing is Mung parker.   The album took one year to complete.  I released the album on August 21st which was when the total solar eclipse took place in America," he adds.

The future of the band is to keep on jamming and rock on. "It evolves as God sees fit and it is my way of helping the world, helping other musicians to be able to jam and serving God with my talents and passion.  Part of the proceeds from the album go to help the world a non-profit organization which my dad has formed being a retired medical doctor in East Africa.  Only we hold the key to our future and one of my favourite key’s is C.  Middle C, centre of it all," concludes Craig, bringing an end to our conversation.

Check Plate out at www.centropymusic.org / www.facebook.com/centropymusic.org/ https://plate.hearnow.com / https://store.cdbaby.com/Artist/Plate2/ www.youtube.com/centropymusic/ https://twitter.com/all4plate / https://plate1.bandcamp.com