With Art of Survival, Gary Alt Makes Another Firm Stand on the Road of Musical Independence

Online, May 26, 2011 (Newswire.com) - As the cliche says, a picture is worth a thousand words. The picture on the cover of Gary Alt's new album, "Art of Survival," speaks volumes about this independent artist's attitude, confidence, nonconformity and passion to his musical influences from the past. In the photo he stands in the middle of the road with his electric guitar by his side and a look of determined self-reliance on his face. But you have to actually listen to the CD in order to appreciate the musical embodiment of all that attitude, confidence, nonconformity and passion.

Alt, who writes, arranges, produces, sings, and plays guitar, keyboard and percussion on most of his compositions, has followed up his last CD, the hard-rocking "Gift of Projection," with the multi-genre "Art of Survival." The new album features 13 new songs that move from the hard rock "Valkyrie" and the country-oriented "Fall In You," to the funk-tinged "Jimi's Bolero" and the social commentary of "Disappearing Mind," as well as nine additional cuts that range from rock and pop to heartbreak ballads and several other musical moods.

As one industry observer noted upon the release of "Art of Survival," the sophistication of the Alt's music on this disc once again shares equal billing with the thought-provoking and intelligent lyrics.

"I've been writing songs for many years now, tapping into new and old emotions that are sometimes based on memory, sometimes on entirely new muses," says Alt, who has performed solo and with bands at clubs in New York, New Jersey and throughout the Southeast. He has also appeared on several radio programs, most recently the Artist First Radio Network and WGHT-AM in New Jersey.
"Occasionally I think I'd like to take a break-but just as soon as that thought occurs, a new muse comes along that prompts an entirely new set of memories and emotions, which in turn prompts an entirely new set of tunes. That's how 'Art of Survival' came to be," Alt says.

Consistently finding intriguing ways to pay tribute to those who influenced his life and art, Alt often calls to mind the work of John Lennon, Eric Clapton and Led Zeppelin, both on this album and his last.

The independent artist, who lives in Northern New Jersey, has been composing and performing music since his pre-teenage years. Prior to "Gift of Projection," Alt released "Not for Sale to Minors," noted by one reviewer as an album that "rocked my world one minute and soothed my soul the next... Something for everyone." Before that was "Tribute," an homage to three dozen of his most important musical influences, including Steely Dan, Burt Bacharach, The Beatles, Carole King, Stevie Wonder, The Allman Brothers and others. One reviewer called it "an exuberant and inspiring tribute."

Alt also wrote and produced the albums "It's About the Kids," "Alien's Heart" and "Open Road."

"Art of Survival" is available at cdbaby.com and at garyalt.com, where there is much additional information about the artist.