Attention Deficit

Given the résumés of certain players within the supergroup Attention Deficit -- drawn from Testament and Primus -- metallic prog rock might seem the inevitable result. Yet the fully instrumental threesome, featuring Alex Skolnick on electric and acoustic guitars, Tim Alexander on drums and percussion, and Michael Manring handling four-, six-, and ten-string basses plus loops, proves far more rooted in funk rock and its appetite for extended grooves, even while maintaining impressive technical rigor. The unit coalesced during the late '90s, though the three musicians already shared a history: Skolnick and Alexander had both appeared on Manring’s 1994 solo album Thonk. They soon aligned with the respected prog metal imprint Magna Carta and, to date, have released two recordings: the self-titled debut in 1998 and The Idiot King in 2001.