Zappa.com

Are there any artist out there like frank zappa in style and content?

A modern day warrior
Mean mean stride,
Today's Frank Zappa
Mean mean pride.

(I got nuthin')

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Steve Vai definitely has a lot of Frank-ness passed on to him....

Although not really 'similar', Robyn Hitchcock is comparable on some levels.
System of a Down (when they were good) had zappa moments.
Mr Bungle?

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and I know, I think

No one can replace anyone, and every one is an individual, some more individual than others, but Steve Vai is by far one of Frank's most able students... and that's really as far as I thought about considering there being 'another' Frank. Which there isn't. Nor will there ever be. But it's perfectly alright if you think this is a dumb thread, so I'll sign offa this subject now...

omar rodriguez-lopez.

Mike Keneally carries on some similar snark and the chops to match.

Artist with Zappa influences

Les Claypool or anything Primus

Mr. Nutmeg and his band Weapon of Choice come to mind as well

both include two of the vital elements music & humor

I would second Omar but not in terms of style and content. I've often considered Omar akin to Zappa in terms of his unfailing commitment to the music he wanted to make (including an esoteric and wide-ranging palate of influences) as well as his superhuman work ethic. I admire Omar's ouevre for many of the same reasons as I do Zappa's but I would not say content wise they are too similar. One could argue that Omar shares certain general tendencies: like prominence of the guitar (in a large number of compositions), willingness to explore guitar effects (although Omar uses them far more liberally), etc.

Forget "modern day". Is there any one like Zappa period?

Jersey Band http://www.jerseyband.com/
This band has some of the intensity of FZ's rock band stuff. Lots of staccato horn parts and wild guitar solos. Rapidly changing arrangements..... Just great.

Albert Marcoeur http://www.marcoeur.com/news/
More of an influence from Frank's classical material, but very original.

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Everytime we picked a booger we'd flip it on this one winduh. Every night we'd contribute, 2, 3, 4 boogers. We had to use a putty knife, man, to get them damn things off the winduh. There was some goober ones that weren't even hard...

Is there anyone in Zappa's overall caliber? I'm not talking about anyone who sounds like Zappa or was inspired by Zappa specifically, just somebody who had the same level of compositional ability, regardless of style (though i suspect anyone with genuine classical leaning will probably sound relatively avant-guardish. That seems to be inescapable in the post-Webern generation).

No.

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Everytime we picked a booger we'd flip it on this one winduh. Every night we'd contribute, 2, 3, 4 boogers. We had to use a putty knife, man, to get them damn things off the winduh. There was some goober ones that weren't even hard...

That's disheartening.

Frank influenced a lot of bands and music, very few have tried to be like Frank other than covers and alum bands...

But by way of Franks influence on Danny Elfman and Danny's influence on the entire movie soundtrack industry, many movies scores are heavily influenced by Frank and through of all things, Franks legacy will live on in movie scores…