The second release from Carlton Walker, “Going Off the Map,” traverses some of the same musical landscapes as his 2007 release, AVERY A ROCK OPERA. Showcasing Peter Gabriel-influenced vocals and percussion, “The Tribe” is the first of five tracks on the EP. As he did with the rock opera Avery, Carlton Walker takes the listener on a sonic excursion with music that is intelligent, yet accessible. This time around, it’s a journey into tribal areas, off the map, and along the Silk Road.

Accompanied by Stan Lassiter on guitars and electric violin, Dale Armstrong on drums and percussion, and Terry Mohn on saxophone, Carlton Walker has made a record that is both tasteful and radio-friendly. In addition to vocals, Walker played bass, keyboards, and flute. He also wrote and produced all the tracks. The five-song “Going Off the Map” EP is available on CD and digital download.

​Looking back several years, Carlton Walker’s debut release, “AVERY A ROCK OPERA about a guy who writes a rock opera” is an ambitious effort that came out in the fall of 2007. Avery is the story of Avery Mann, a musician and composer who writes a rock opera based on the medieval morality play Everyman. When a major record label drops him and the rock opera is shelved, Avery heads off for a rainforest trek in Belize, a tiny Caribbean nation in Central America. Just as he receives word that an independent record label is willing to release his rock opera, things take an existential turn when Guatemala invades Belize and Avery is caught behind the lines. It’s eco-tourism with a twist!
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Although described as a rock opera for simplicity’s sake, Avery actually surveys a broader musical landscape. It shifts from rock to prog rock at random, with acoustic songs providing a buffer zone. And, like a play within a play, there’s even a rock opera within a rock opera. Ultimately, Avery is a triumph of the human spirit with underlying parables on globalization, free speech, and the environment—all that in about an hour and fifteen minutes. “AVERY A ROCK OPERA” is available on CD and digital download.​