The Inner Road – Ascension

Taking the listener on a compelling and expansive journey through soundscapes which evoke and provoke thought and imagination, Ascension the new album from The Inner Road, is a vibrant and classy adventure which incites personal invention and interpretation to its narrative whilst equally creatively directing thoughts into a proposed direction. It is an enveloping kaleidoscope of instrumental progressive rock with each movement and moment drenched in a full blaze of sonic colour and inspirational craft from its creators for the deepest pleasure.

The Inner Road is a project founded by keyboardist/multi-instrumentalist/ songwriter/producer Steve Gresswell as an outlet for

Steve Gresswell

his more symphonic style of  instrumental progressive rock, sounds and ideas which do not find a place within the creativity of his other band Coalition. The Inner Road also finds Gresswell collaborating with other musicians who bring something special to fit the need of the music. 2011 saw the release of debut album Visions, a record made with renowned guitarist Phil Braithwaite which was met with strong acclaim, and here for Ascension the musician has teamed up with one of the UK’s finest guitarists and rock songwriters to emerge in recent years, Jay Parmar. Fresh from the release of his own stunning album Circle of Fire via Steve Vai’s Digital Nations label, Parmar brings a style to the new album which sets tracks on fire with passion and evocative invention, his striking style drawing out the same hunger as inspired by his previous solo work for this album As well as his own releases and Ascension, the guitarist is also recording the new album from Exorcism featuring Csaba Zvekan and Joop De Rooij (both also in Ravenlord) as well as again joining up with Zvekan in new band D.O. Messiah, showing the appeal and impressive reputation Parmar has earned over recent years, which will only grow further when, after being invited by Gresswell, he joins Coalition who record their new album later this year.

Ascension wastes no second of its inventive presence to light up the senses and thoughts with full and extensive atmospheres, their embrace consistently fuelled by the sonic skill and grace of Parmar’s melodic incisions and alchemy; sounds and imagination which comes more often than not with a breath and caress of eastern influences and suggestion within an almost exhausting creative temptation. Set alongside the equally captivating and warmly invasive keyboard enterprise and ingenuity of Gresswell  the union makes for a release which leaves visual and emotional alchemy in its enthralling wake.

Jay Parmar

The title track opens up the adventure, a piano aiding a sun of melodic enticing to introduce the first steps on the departure into the vast realms of the album. Its company comes from crunchy riffs slowly bringing their voice to the brewing unveiling of this beckoning expansive landscape. With the sounds of both musicians coming together to sculpt the view there is a sense of depth and long passage ahead in the exploration of the immediately majestic world. The song appears as a travelogue of textures and sonic exhilaration instantly in league with the wonderful orchestral seduction at work , and their unity finding itself in tandem with the melodic weaves and wash already igniting the passions. As in all songs the music is like a ‘travel guide’, a provocateur to beauteous scenery and imagination whether visual or reflectively emotive, an investigation which is enjoyed physically and imaginatively.

From the immense opener the album takes flight through The Steel Sky; sinewy almost cold riffs from guitar and bass guiding the listener through shadowed clouds and imposing structures to find the sonic rays of light and melodic coating of sun brought from the keys and the stunning persuasive guitar commentary. It is then followed by the equally powerful Two Worlds Two Tomorrows, the track seemingly the sister to its predecessor as deeper in to the heart of the emotive terrain we go. Every song within the album feels connected to what came before and follows, for a fulfilling and ear widening melodic peregrination.

The smouldering and sizzling sonic traverse of Altered Reality and the provocative Troubled Memories step forward next to raise the temperature further. The first has fire to its intensity and creative sonic discharge whilst ensuring a continually evolving surprise in its presence with a compelling regal mid-section with potent and sirenesque strings, their orchestral embrace stepping in to temper the heated insistence of Parmar and set celestial cascades of melodic glory falling upon the ear, whilst the second is a dazzling candescent of melodic and harmonic craft leaving again only rising emotion towards its enthrallment

The biggest highlights of the thrilling album come with the final three tracks starting with A Fleeting Dream, a piece which triggers an unbridled flood of thoughts and ideas with furnace bright melodies and descriptive paint box rich sonic colouring. Parmar wrings out every emotive drop of incitement with his playing whilst the keys of Gresswell especially when he flows through a stunning sea of floral melodic expression which reminds of Dave Greenfield at his best, inciting the fullest ardour for what is the best track on the album. The outstanding and riveting The Awakening has its say on the final choice of top dog though with its initial colonial call moving aside for another poetic and provocative voyage of shifting gait and imagination whilst the closing Flight through Eternity simply lures the last of any passion still sheltering out with its strongest Eastern sultriness and inflamed closing sunset.

Ascension is an excellent and continually giving album, a release which just gets better and more potent with each travel of its ambient hot pilgrimage. The Inner Road has produced a release which is not only progressive/ instrumental rock at its best but melodic enterprise of any description.

http://www.inner-road.com/

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Steve-Gresswell/442768909088975

https://www.facebook.com/jayparmar

9/10

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Sam Thomas – I’m Gonna Be A Witch

The debut single from multi-instrumentalist Sam Thomas, is a song which from its first play right through numerous others, and even now, brings a provocation to thoughts and emotions as well as opening up visions and imagination to go along with its evocative sounds and ideas. The initial lingering thought is do I like it to just how good or impressive is it and in some ways that question is still in the air but the bottom line is that the song is a wonderful piece of composing and realisation incorporating a rich soak of invention and thought. Yes it still niggles at the passions for undefined reasons but in the best kind of way pushing doubts ultimately aside.

Thomas, the son of a former Opera singer, was soon learning the craft of percussion at the age of four which inevitably brought the drums into sight for the youngster. Attempts to learn more classical instruments were not as successful due to, in his assumption, his dyslexia but moving into his teen years Thomas was teaching himself guitar, piano, and bass whilst playing in his school’s swing band and orchestra as well as singing in the choir. Growing up on a diet of classical music for his ears as well as Elvis, Beatles, and Beach Boys through his mother’s record collection, Thomas has evolved the perfect merger in his music on the evidence of the single, the song alone forging a classical touch in a hungry union with rock power and energy as well as pop flavoured warmth. From school Sam undertook a commercial music course at the University of Westminster, learning about the music industry. It also gave him free access to its recording studios which Thomas embraced and eventually composed and recorded an eighteen minute track to which he recruited folk/grime duo iAm1 to add vocals; a piece they played live for a while under the name Samandiam. Further projects for Thomas included a 3-piece heavy instrumental group called Saiga and composing a 27-minute solo instrumental piece. Using the track as extra temptation the musician applied for jobs within the music industry, sending out cut down slices of the track with applications to over 200 people. He received just one reply, that of studio owner and Barber Shop production company honcho Chris Smith which led to an unpaid work experience, which in turn led to meeting Just Music’s John Benedict who fascinated with Thomas’ highly-individual style gave a go for him to record an album, this was just the second day of the work experience. Placed alongside producer Mark Sutherland, work began with the single the first emerging results.

     I’m Gonna Be A Witch begins with a dawning of evocative piano and brewing ambience, its voice haunting and ominous. The track though soon settles into a gentle caressing of the ear with a sample of a child talking about what he would do if he became a witch with his friend. It has to be said the sample takes some time to get used to within the potent and descriptive sounds wrapping it, the guitar flames scorching the sky around and above the children whilst the bass and drums cage all with a firm yet unimposing presence. The guitars dominate the middle section enflaming and riling the intensity of the song to smother everything else but it only goes to spark a stronger imagery and reaction. Eventually with continued listening everything slips into place within thoughts and though still that sample leaves unsure intrigue at times its childlike innocence and imagination within the burning skies of the music is powerful and evocative.

The strong lead track is a single edit and it has to be said the following album version is a far better encounter, the fullness of the piece revealing the whole intent and depth of the invention with an equally fruitful result. The opening to the track is far longer than the single version and perfectly paints an enveloping scene for the sample to lie within and feel organically part of. The playground sounds within the classical piano canvas as well as the female (mother like) vocal caresses broadens the emotive and almost nostalgic air of the music, finding a crescendo of passion right before the children open up their imagination. The latter explosion of guitar invention and fire also brings a more dramatic impact and almost furnace like intensity to elevate the track beyond that initial powerful encounter. Though almost nine minutes in length our suggestion is bypass the single edit and head right for this stunning version to truly find the riches of the song and the invention of Thomas.

The final track on the release is North; another piece of music rising from a distrustful ambience with a phoenix energy and enchantment to unveil another openly emotive and accomplished piece of musicianship and aural narrative. Offering a new imagery with each play the track is a stirring and thought coaxing delight with its orchestral breath simply seductive and as dangerous and evocative in textures as the rhythms and sonic painting alongside.

Sam Thomas is destined to make a major impact, his creativity transcending and inspiring so many genres and flavours, and I’m Gonna Be A Witch an impressive start.

http://samthomasmusic.com

8.5/10

RingMaster 15/04/2013

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Goatcraft: All for Naught

    All For Naught, the debut album from Goatcraft certainly caught us by surprise, the release an introduction to a band which from name alone we had made inaccurate assumptions about. The name, song titles, and to some extent the cover art brewed thoughts of a band unleashing either or a mix of black, death, and occult metal with a serpentine breath as toxic as its sound. What strikingly emerged was an instrumental album which certainly moved through the insidious breath of those genres but is a neo-classical bred feast of key sculpted tracks soaked in and breeding the most compulsive shadowed ambiences.

The album does not take long to make those preconceptions a distant thought as track by track it ignites and inspires thoughts, imagery, and emotions which relish and feed upon its inciting sounds. Elegant and intensive, the release is an intrusive and captivating tempest of passion and creativity from a project borne from the frustration of its creator in regard to the state of occult and other extreme and imposing genres at the time. Formed in 2010, the solo project of San Antonio based Lonegoat was soon creating strong impressions as it began playing numerous shows opening for underground metal bands across Texas. From initially a sonic keyboard attack the sound evolved and was refined into an enveloping encounter of neoclassical piano layers wrapped within atmospheric cinematic ambiences and noir whispers. Released via Forbidden Records, All For Naught is a truly unique encounter, the result of Lonegoat creating music in isolation overlooking the dark suggestive waters of Texas which leaves the listener bristling with vivid colourful questions and scenarios which can only be resolved and explored through further involvement with the album.

Opening track Call Me Judas slowly immerses the senses in a brooding velvety ambience which offers rich menace and satanic seduction. Immediately one is thrust into thoughts of seventies/eighties Italian horrors films, the piece a dark hearted dramatic wash which would have perfectly suited and driven on a Tenebrae or Suspiria. The resonating voice of the off kilter piano is sensational and with the throaty lure combines for an enthralling and emotion igniting fire. The track is the perfect example of each individual and distinct track and their ability to provoke feelings and mental situations, its personal journey sparking images of encroaching shadowed corners and beckoning dark temptation reaped from a malevolent yet tempting insistence.

The intense and emotionally pressuring enticements continue with compelling and skilled imagination through the likes of Infinite Death, the intricate weaves of synths and keys which deliciously haunt Journey to the Depths, and Isolation Ripens, a track which embraces the first cinematic efforts in tone and innocence yet driven by a blackened melancholic passion which opens up a multitude of emotive investigations.

Across its whole expanse, the album ensures every note and breath of the release is impacting, emotively and mentally incendiary, the composing and playing of Lonegoat stunningly innovative and impressive. Its classical seeds ripple and engross not only musically but also with the literary and cinematic essences which pervades each piece of passion enslaving music. For music which is devoid of everything but keys of numerous descriptions and a production which allows them to breathe and tell their narrative with an honest and raw yet refined craft, the intensity it bears upon the senses is immense and again startling, a presence which numerous full on black metal albums would fail to blossom within the listener.

Some tracks are mere whispers in time and others with a prominent stance, all of which holding the deepest attention. Further exceptional highlights come with Laconism of the Cosmos and Consciousness is a Disease, but to be fair every piece of music is sensational and richly inspiring to thoughts and emotions. All for Naught is an album which will surprise, maybe even shock and wrong foot, but it will also bring rewards unlikely to be found or felt elsewhere, rewards which incite the fullest fires.

http://www.goatcraft.net

8.5/10

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Mel-P: Anima Asylum

    This is a retrospective look at a release which though it has only just ventured before our gaze it was released almost a year ago. Thank sin it has stepped into view though as Anima Asylum is one delicious and incredible triumph of creative insanity and emotive mastery. The album comes from Mel-P; a French band that creates schizophrenic progressive metal which is staggeringly powerful and  borne from an inventive and majestic imagination which with its pure uniqueness ignites nothing less than passion in heart and mind. The release is just incredible, ten tracks of visionary invention which are aurally painted before the ear to incite the fullest emotive and visual experience possible.

From Le Mans, the band is a quartet of musicians who from their shadowed persona musically walk and investigate the darkest emotions and states of mind as evident on the album. There is little to be sourced about them but they are a band who formed in 2004 and take influences from the likes of Deftones, Watcha, Rage Against The Machine, Flying Pooh, Mr Bungle, Machine Head, Psykup, Fantomas, Threat Signal, Gojira and many more, and one suggests also have a healthy admiration for Parisians 6:33 too. Anima Asylum follows debut EP Nouvelles de la Jungle of 2007, and musically it and the band fuse the most compelling essences of progressive metal, experimental dub and electro, and washes of evocative ambiences into explosive canvases of beautifully crafted instrumental arrangements and derangements. The tracks wrap themselves around the senses tightly and magnetically, their passages fluid and organic yet sculpted with an understanding and craft which only enhances the delirium of free and imaginative creativity at untethered play.

The album starts with Anima I the first of three brief and disturbing ambient intrusions throughout the release. The opening one is a whisper of sonic corruption from menacing shadows with a chilling caress. It leads into Nyourk Reliquus, a mesmeric track with a loping gait driven by a smouldering weave of ska rhythms and a seductive melodic jazz like narrative. Here as for all the tracks each listener will explore and discover their own imagery from the unpredictable and disturbed sounds but feel and see they will. The piece is the first gentle touch of a shadow borne bedlam, its presence becoming animated in intensity the further into its mania it dives. The metal riffs and energy crowds the ear magnificently whilst the melodic manipulations spark fires within the brewing tempest which ends on a furnace of a climax. It is stunning and alone makes band and release something impossible to move away from.

It is not alone though as the likes of Otium and Sollicitudo unravel their psyche splendour and innovation to equal heights. The first takes one into a solitary confinement of thoughts, its initial defiant riled energy evolving into a calm yet blistered grace soaked in irresistible guitar enterprise before exploding into a contagious squall of confusion brought through scarring sonics and intimidating rhythms. Sollicitudo unleashes its own neurosis and nightmares in sensational style too. Again the band fuses light and dark into a provocative tapestry of emotive and musical grandeur beneath an imposing confining shadow which never lets a moment rest or lie without a challenge from a psychotic breath.

The intensive Cheewed Arbor emerges next to cast the heaviest presence of the album, an intrusive encounter the likes of Meshuggah would be proud of. The song again is just outstanding and another instigator of thoughtful reflection and imagery with a haunting mania to its fearsome presence.

The album continues to thrill and stretch the listener through the ‘off worldly’ Persequor, a track which is a mouthwatering venture into a realm seemingly offering an escape complete with an irresistible welcome brought through an infectious Specials like ska haunt, and Intermuralis with its persuasive Middle Eastern lures within a barren landscape, though the track is not empty in impressive sounds and invention.

Ending on Letabilis, a track which encapsulates every one of the immense attributes of the band in composition and its remarkable realisation, Anima Asylum is one of the most compelling and imaginatively ingenious releases in a long time. It may be a year old but it and Mel-P deserve as much attention as is possible, simply insanity at its creative best.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Mel-P/47495839339

http://www.melp-music.com/

10/10

RingMaster 07/02/2013

Copyright RingMaster: MyFreeCopyright

Derek Buddemeyer: Afterthoughts

   Afterthoughts is one of those albums which needs numerous plays to explore its many diverse corners of sound as well as the thoughts and emotions it incites during its engagement. The release from rock guitarist Derek Buddemeyer unveils a little something more within its expanse of instrumental pieces with each encounter whilst lighting different imagery each time too and though it is not always as consistently successful, it is a rewarding and enjoyable engagement which is easy to return to and often.

Originally from Kansas City, Missouri, the musician moved to San Jose, California at an early age and found musical influences which included The Beach Boys, Hall & Oats, and Barbara Streisand. As a young teen, Buddemeyer then discovered the likes of Van Halen, Def Leppard, and Stryper, inspirations which led him to buying a guitar at 15. Another move this time to Southern California drew him to the sounds and skills of George Lynch, Steve Vai, Warrant, Scorpions, Skid Row, Metallica, Megadeth, Testament, Anthrax, and many more. Taken by the heavier and rawer sound, as well as the melodic imagination borne from such artists, he evolved his own blend of melodic hard rock with sinewy veins and pop metal warmth. Debut album Afterthoughts, which is released through the Jerry Dixon and Erik Turner of Warrant owned Down Boys Records, is the vibrant result of his inventive ideas and honed craft, a release which breathes with enterprise and rich and full sounds.

The album starts with a storm of a track in the mighty Wicked Little Sister. The track immediately fires up the heart with flesh grazing riffs, insatiable energy, and a melodic teasing which smoulders with skill and sonic manipulation. It is an adrenaline soaked piece which is unrelenting in its purpose and inspiring in the open invention driving its course. Amongst the ten tracks which make up the release there are a trio which stepped to the fore instantly upon first listen, the opener heading that impressive first thrill.

The album is a varied little pleasure which investigates and ventures into numerous premises and soundscapes of sound. From the metal rush of the first song the album strolls into the progressive and metal expression of Breathing In The New, the powerful guitar adventure an invigorating and expressive heat supported by electro showers of sound. Then the title track takes over, it another of the great  pinnacles within Afterthoughts. It is a symphonic wrap with emotive keys and a brewing epic atmosphere which surges thoughts and senses through a striking escapade of melodic elegance and lush imagination. Whereas the previous songs were guitar driven this song is a delicious weave of keys and sonic beauty which leaves one basking full of content in a flush of strings and dramatic grace.

As the likes of the magnetic New Groove with its gentle and sunny coaxing of the ear, the classy and refined Morning After, and the fiery Lift Off with its burning temptations, reveal their creative and distinctly individual gaits, the album is a continuing captivation. Occasionally as with the brief presence of the last of these three songs, it feels like a track is written with the thought of soundtracking a cinematic moment so often depart without a defined climax but it only adds to the imagery incited during their usual dramatic breaths.

The third of the previously mentioned greatest heights attained by the release closes the album up. Sandstorms is an immense piece of writing which seduces the senses with its Eastern promise and intrigue setting imagination. Completed with coarse riffs and snarling guitar rubs shadowing the majestic melodic whispers, the track is an evocative delight.

For personal tastes and no other reason, there are moments on Afterthoughts which do not quite rise up to spark the same enthused ardour as at other times, like the mechanical rhythms and shallow electro  drizzles in some places, but it is a minor niggle in the overall quality of the album and does not deter from offering the recommendation to check the album if you are looking thoughtful and inventive instrumental melodic rock.

https://www.facebook.com/DerekBuddemeyerFanPage

RingMaster 20/11/2012

Copyright RingMaster: MyFreeCopyright

Stinking Lizaveta: 7th Direction

US instrumental rock band Stinking Lizaveta have returned with an album in 7th Direction, which is arguably the best instrumental release in a very long time and is easily one of the best albums to be unleashed this year if not the very best. It is magnificent, a masterful vision of imagination, artistry, and storytelling. It is a collection of pieces which tell tales, but your tales, the band offering all the tools and emotions along with an irresistible invitation to write your own script, 7th Direction the perfect vibrant and inciteful canvas of sound and evocation to individual visions.

This their seventh album, follows on from the acclaimed Sacrifice and Bliss of 2009, though all their releases since forming in 1994 have generated an eagerly growing respect and following. Formed by then partners, guitarist Yanni Papadopoulos and drummer Cheshire Agusta, in the basements of West Philadelphia, the pair soon enlisted Alexi, the brother of Yanni, on upright electric bass. Together the trio have created, conjured, spawn, call it what you will such the uniqueness of their sound, a mesmeric and provocative blend of rock, fusing everything from classic, stoner and punk rock to jazz, progressive rock, heavy metal, and so much more. The years have seen them sharing stages with bands such as Corrosion of Conformity, Clutch, Rollins Band, Fugazi, Zeni Geva, Today Is The Day, Weedeater, Hidden Hand, Don Vito, Antikaroshi, End of Level Boss, and Beehoover with each undoubtedly being given a run for their money.

7th Direction is an album which takes infectiousness into addiction status and plays thoughts and emotions like a harp, gently provoking and stroking but at times twanging them for near orgasmic responses. The band writes music which is so fluid it feels like it is simply on the spur of the moment composing, the tracks organic and instinctive as they tease and ignite total captivation. They are also perfectly formed, compact or expansive when the time is right without any unnecessary flamboyance or indulgence at any point. Each song has a facet which is sirenesque whether the flaming guitar invention of Yanni, the heart firing bass strokes of Alexi, or the minimal yet expressive and relentless rhythms of Cheshire, though generally it is all three at the same time, their union a delicious and stirring feast to devour greedily.

    Stinking Lizaveta open the release with the title track and immediately has the passions swelling with its thumping build to an opening crescendo…which is basically the whole song though they repeat the climb a few times to get the juices flowing first. In to its stride or rather emotive sci-fi/noir stroll, the track pulsates with a melodic shimmering which blisters the air on touch alongside the watching basslines and cagey rhythms. It is stunning, a thing of beauty speared with burning flashes of impassioned guitar and tension raising climbs once again.

From the opener alone one would be shouting from the rooftops about the release but this is just the beginning and things just sizzle and brand new memories into the mind track by track. The likes of the following View From The Moon, a heated journey through celestial atmospheres, and the evolving Moral Hazard leave one gasping in pleasure and hunger for more. The first transports one to the theme of the title and easily would make the perfect soundtrack to seventies TV shows like Space 1999 or UFO, without diminishing the quality and stature of the piece. The second is a crumbling upon the senses its flight twisting into a schizophrenic squeal through sonic fires.

Every track deserves a mention but the greatest personal highlights come with the kinetic fury of Dark Matter, a song where shadows and incendiary energies crash and burn whilst a dark snarl prowls as overlord, the hypnotic aural puppeteer that is Z which has limbs and feelings dancing a satanic tune, and One To The Head, another track to fire up every one of the senses with its moody bass tones, tingling beats, and electrifying sonics. Oh there is also the unbelievably magnetic Ten Thousand Hours, a piece which beckons and seduces with a kaleidoscope of persuasive melodic caresses, sonic kisses, and rhythmic wonder.

To say 7th Direction is brilliant seems an understatement, the songs mentioned and every one of the six not covered simply ingenuity from the deepest well, it is that good. Stinking Lizaveta show they are still the true heart and leaders of rock n roll and if after this album there are still those unknowing or disbelieving there is no justice in music for sure.

http://www.stinkinglizaveta.com/

Ringmaster 17/09/2012

Copyright RingMaster: MyFreeCopyright

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Guano Padano: 2

Like a soundtrack to a disturbed world drawn from the imagination of Sergio Leone, David Lynch, and Robert Rodriguez, 2 the glorious new album from Italian band Guano Padano, lights up every aspect of the body. The release awakens the senses, incites thoughts and imagination whilst using feet like a puppeteer with their contagious heated sounds and rhythms. The album is outstanding, a release which fits nowhere but has a feast of delights for all.

The new album follows the 2009 self titled debut album from Guano Padano which had a limited release in Italy. Released through Ipecac Recordings, 2 gives the band a needed and deserved wider canvas to recruit from and it is hard to imagine their following not increasing dramatically as the album reaches many more ears. The trio of guitarist/multi-string instrumentalist Alessandro Stefana, Danilo Gallo bass/piano/organ and Zeno De Rossi on drums, unleash a series of cinematic instrumentals which evoke individual moments and lives within this golden world which dazzle and transport thoughts to new yet familiar soundscapes. Musically the band combines the fine flavours distilled from jazz, bluegrass, surf rock, country, folk, rock and more, to conjure a smouldering journey with a spaghetti western film noir breath. To be honest it is wonderfully hard to explain but very easy to immerse within and enjoy to the full.

The album opens with the short Last Night, a piece of music which is emotively elegant but comes with a blistered background and increasing intensity as it moves into the waiting heat of Zebulon. The second track gallops into view with an eager swagger and shimmering spaghetti western melodics. You can feel the heat sliding off the atmosphere which wraps the music and visualise sceneries of sand and bristling activity. There is also a slight surf spice to the composition which wakens the taste buds for the full flavour a little further on within Gran Bazaar.

The track is stunning, a sultry presence within the ear and a seductive temptation for the senses. With guitars either picking at notes to find their limits before snapping  or sending flames of sharp melodic  passion through the air, the track is an insatiable infection offering a fluid feast of Middle Eastern promise and surf romance within its mesmeric world. It is a near wanton tease which no one can or would refuse.

The album as each track passes into the imagination, shows fully eclectic sounds and ideas, the likes of the slow pacing Gumbo with its pulsating jazz whispers and evocative melodic showers, the excitable hoe down Bellavista, and Miss Chan with its hypnotic oriental kiss, all offering  new detours and experiences within the expansive journey. The last of the three starts off with a scratchy mesh of oriental radio voices and the plunking of traditional eastern strings before erupting into another sizzling fire of surf and Japanese sounds veined with acidic sonic guitar manipulations. As seemingly everywhere one is transported into an enveloping weave of picture telling emotion and sonic sights soundtracked by great provocative sounds.

2 is an album with every track leaving nothing but deep pleasure in their wake but as always personal tastes finds ones which stand out from the crowd and alongside Gran Bazaar there are two which ignite the fullest fires. Firstly there is Lynch, a track borne from the dark shadows and empty solitary street corners with just a lone jazz musician for a friend.  The track has a film noir breath but behind it there is a sinister and almost unworldly pulse, a hungry discord waiting to misdirect the melodic enterprise. It is glorious, arguably the most powerful of all the tracks and one which lingers in the mind well past its expiring notes.

As with their first album, the band brought in the talents of others on 2 letting the craft of the likes of Marc Ribot (John Zorn, Tom Waits), Chris Speed, and Paul Niehaus (Lambchop) grace the release. The other great highlight of the album Prairie Fire, the only track with vocals. It also features a guest, the inimitable Mike Patton. The track is brilliant, a song with the wicked grin of the devil and the mischief of, well Mike Patton. It is slightly schizophrenic with more than an air of a Gotham City villain to the vocal character. It is a rock n roll contagion of the purest sin brought with a wholly unique and inventive majesty to have one dribbling lust. If this song does not take Guano Padano in the ears and minds of the world nothing will.

The album ends with a cover of the Santo & Johnny track Sleep Walk, a song which has had numerous versions made of it and it has to be said Guano Padano do not do anything to make it their own. Against the excellence before it is just a pleasant kiss goodnight from the album to be honest and the only time the album drops its levels.

2 is a vibrant dream and escape rolled into one stirring and immersive journey. It gives only pleasure whilst inspiring thoughts to create their own landscape and companions for the trip alongside your aural tour guide Guano Padano.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/GUANO-PADANO/128526000583127

RingMaster 23/08/2012

Copyright RingMaster: MyFreeCopyright

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Feorm: Feorm

 

The debut album from UK band Feorm is remarkable, not just in sound and quality but its ability to inspire and draw out images and emotions through each of its twelve pieces of pure and emotive music. The Norfolk based instrumental collective with their self titled release explore and reach deeper with their organic and instinctive sounds than most other bands who labour over them in time and effort. Not that Feorm has rushed or brought a complete focus and attention to their work, they just grasp the essence and spark of their compositions immediately. Feorm bassist, Allan Murray quoted about the recording, “A musical idea is never more pure than the very first time it is expressed, and that is what we tried to capture.” Tried and succeeded in doing as proven by Feorm.

The quintet of Allan Murray (bass), Brett Cooper (drums, percussion), Paul Corcoran (electric guitars), Andrew Lynch (acoustic & electric guitars), and Pete Warren (synths, samples , fx), over a series of recording sessions in a barn deep in the East Anglian countryside came up with the tracks that make up the album. Simply the band played, inspired by and exploring their existing appreciation for the art of improvised and unrehearsed music. Their deeply varied musical backgrounds genre wise were merged without planned definition as they met the challenge of bringing their diverse sounds into the emerging brew of music and its evolving life. It sounds so simple and only the band knows how easy or intense it was but the music that flows through the album is an impressive outcome and that is the important knowledge.

Released via Fen Tiger the release does not come over as something openly experimental which maybe with its premise and idea one would imagine, instead it flows with pieces of music that feel like they have always been and were meant to be. Maybe there has been plenty of production applied after the recording but if so one can sense that the essence and core of each song has grown from the initial seed and idea with a pure organic breath and heart. Many artists try to improvise and many succeed but it is hard to remember those that have borne music as instinctive and complete as the songs here. There are no loose flapping edges or uncontrolled unwilling elements that stand out, each piece is a seamless impactful and emotional discovery which one can immerse within to varying depths and results.

Each piece deserves a mention and investigation but we will choose just a few tracks to try and bring forth the excellence of the album and leave the rest for your own discoveries. The opening Munc The Grover begins the album with a warm and inviting series of melodies and vibrant sounds. It is slightly withdrawn in that it does not leap out at the ear but chooses to envelope and persuade with a full and firm charm. It is persistent without being demanding and though it does not light up the thoughts it ignites the desire to dive deeper into the album.

Man Is An Island follows with a totally different approach. The track begins with a disturbed ambience that evolves into an almost estranged atmospheric soundscape. The music strolls across the senses with a surety and confident air but behind it there is always a distilled menace seemingly lurking, a haunting shadow that waits and picks at thoughts. As with many of the songs and maybe inspired by the recording location, there is a sense of solitude either in place or heart seeping out from the music. Definitely people with find different thoughts and feelings being instigated by the album, but it is the fact it does no matter their experience is the wonderful thing.

The album’s best track The Long Drop is another that suggests solitude though not loneliness. The tanned harmonica melodies send shots of warmth through the ear whilst the guitars caress and coax the heart into a full engagement. The song basks in thoughts of an evening sunset, golden with burning skies that inspire and chase off any thoughts of being alone, the sound and emotions wrapped in a tender emotive glow.

Tracks like Sun Dogs with its seductive melancholic bass sound and the powerfully atmospheric The Sea as well as the hypnotic Cyclick with its unrelenting pulse, all stir up and evoke feelings and imagery, though that can be applied to every song in varying degrees. Taken as a whole or split into individual pieces Feorm works wonderfully and is a fulfilling and welcome release that stays inside long after its sounds depart.

RingMaster 18/04/2012

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Stephan Forte: The Shadows Compendium

© Perrine Perez Fuentes.

To be honest The RR is not one to offer up time for indulgence and music that ultimately is just showing off no matter the skill and undoubted talent on show.  No matter the ability and sound guitar led instrument rock generally seems to end up long winded and over played to levels that has lost our focus long before. Now that is our preference and possible lost but that is how the land and personal taste lies. Just sometimes though to reinforce the ethic of still checking things out before assuming there is a release that steps away from past history to offer something different and intriguing. Such is the case with The Shadows Compendium from French guitar maestro Stéphan Forté. The album still steps into areas that push our limits but it is impossible to deny the stunning and impressive sounds and creativity within its vibrant walls.

Stéphan Forté first drew attention his way with his first instrumental demo Visions of 1997, the neoclassical-oriented sounds soon bringing him to the notice of the guitar community. The following year saw him opening for Yngwie Malmsteen and more sponsors, endorsements and industry attention accumulating. 2001 saw the first Adagio album, a band of musicians he recruited to help realise his compositions. Sanctus Ignis drew further acclaim in his homeland and further afield as did the following darker and orchestral/ choral powered Underworld of 2003. After a further two albums Dominate and Archangels In Black and well received concerts and tours, Forté decided to stretch and push his own musical limits which has become the solo project The Shadows Compendium. Three years in the making the album is an intense, diverse and deep exploration that is musically astonishing.

Forté takes influences ranging from Bartok to Meshuggah, twisting his play and sounds in ways and into shapes no lesser mortal can imagine let alone produce. It really is hard to state how powerful and uniquely distinct the music and ability within the compositions are; only the ear can give true representation. From the opening title track and its dark atmospheric intro the album never ventures into predictable even if at times the expected rears its lengthy head. With tower high riffs and melodies that scorch the ear Forté mesmerises with his string play and caresses with wonderful piano expertise. The piece buzzes around the ear at times constantly insistent and eager before making way for truly inspired work from the composer. An array of guests feature on the album with Jeff Loomis of Nevermore aiding here though for these ears which parts he or the others add elude against the mastery of Forté, and these are talented guys.

The aggressive intense metal fuelled elements connect the deepest with these tastes but there is no doubting there is plenty for rock fans of all preferences on The Shadows Compendium. Tracks like the senses twisting De Praestigiis Daemonu with guest Mattias IA Eklundh of Freak Kitchen and the provocative probing of Duat with Glen Drover of Megadeth leave the ear and beyond happy but exhausted. These are power driven though never are the intricacies and elaborate melodies and ideas left to the side. Spiritual Bliss and Prophecies Of Loki XXI dazzle with a lighter but no less staggering manipulation and control of notes, harmonies and any other musical aspect you can imagine from Forté.

The Shadows Compendium is immense and any musician and especially guitarists will have wet dreams over the album. Personal taste stops it being an album to return to often, at times parts are still overblown and overlong, and dare one say even Forté treads the fine line of indulgence. Then again should it not be that way, the man is a genius whom very few can touch, and it would be crazy to keep such flair and ability restrained. If you want to hear an artist make his guitar squeal and sing with a technique and skill that any woman would pay to feel then Stéphan Forté is your first destination.

RingMaster 21/02/2012

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Destroy The Evidence – Phantasm

Writing about and reviewing different releases and bands offers up many treats but it is always special when something unexpected and startlingly different comes into view. Such is the case with Phantasm from Destroy The Evidence, a release that offers something new, slightly unexpected and is just wonderfully different from the bulk of things that grace and at times accost the ear.

Destroy the Evidence is the solo project of US experimental electronic gothic rock band Dimension Zero frontman Monty Singleton. The band found success and acclaim with singles ‘Live In Excess (Excess Is Best)’ and ‘RePLiCa’, their 2007 album Scythe, plus remixes of artists such as Public Enemy and Nine Inch Nails. Singleton started up Destroy The Evidence as a project to focus on writing music for film, TV, and video games or as the official website states music that is “Industrial rock dressed in tuxedos attending the symphony while the world is being invaded by Martians. Somewhere between Nine Inch Nails, Hans Zimmer, Danny Elfman, and mid-1900s SciFi.” That just about sums it up; it just forgets to say how vibrant and refreshing it is.

Phantasm is the follow up to Genesis from 2009 and is a dazzling array of striking sounds. Whether staying around for mere seconds or multiple minutes each track leaves a mark and inspires images and emotions which is one of the impressive things about the album. Opening track ‘Elite’ strikes for eighteen seconds whilst its successor ‘Wildcat’ a scant seven  but both grab attention to announce the album’s intent, to trigger a sense of drama, and lead into the brilliant hustling theatre of ‘Renegade’. Like a rampant beast rampaging along scorched paths it is a predatory impending force that even with its moments of quiet beauty has full control and intimidating strength. To bring in a film reference it bristles with the independent thought and determination of a Mad Max or Logan’s Run

The pieces are clear and definite compositions that would work cinematically or within games but also as distinct tracks as the album shows. They are wonderfully varied, well crafted and without exception the inspiration for emotions and provoked visual thoughts. Many instrumental albums weave soundscapes and aural worlds from their creations but Singleton’s compositions work with emotions and feelings, touching upon and provoking responses and ideas individual to the listener but within his intended theme.

The dazzling and unsteadying ‘ACiD’ with crystalline melodies and sinister menace, the edgy and intense fusion of beauty and dark energy of ‘Oblivion2’, plus the complexities and senses stretching provocative flow of ‘Vision-X’, and the cold and over bearing walled stark mystery of ‘Citadel’, all impress deeply and engage the senses long after they depart the ear. It is the stunning ‘USSR’ that takes top acclaim though on the album. It’s incessant repetition of keys, bass, rhythms and vox is a completely hypnotic and irresistible manipulation and pleasuring of the listener. The song offers siren like melodies and an insistent charge that is fuelled by a combative and militant might.

Phantasm is an excellent release that offers siren like sounds, delicious ideas and inspiring imagery that makes frequent returns a different experience each time, though always a thoroughly pleasurable one. Whether Destroy The Evidence’s creations will find their way onto soundtracks time will tell but as an addition to anyone’s personal soundtrack they are a definite success and joy.

Grab your free copy of the album @ 
http://www.destroytheevidence.com/

RingMaster 03/02/2012

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