Although
Greg Rappaport has released three
more albums, I haven't heard any of
his works up until now. As his bio
states, his focus is to combine progressive
metal with fusion jazz, a pretty accurate
description i might add.
So in this instrumental
release Greg mixes -always through
a prism of pure rock energy- 7string
riffs with jazzy chords and a twist
of funk, especially in the bass playing.
The end result is a wide variety of
sounds and styles, while each progression
smoothly succeeds the other in every
song of this album, leaving you with
a "what did just happen??"
expression. And for some that might
question him as a guitarist, be warned,
for he will shred your ears with his
lightning fast playing and mastery
of techniques. His jazzy leads reminded
me more of Allan Holdsworth, while
his shredding solos bear the sign
of modern rock guitarists like Joe
Satriani.
What’s also
worth mention is that all bass and
keyboard parts are played by Greg,
who is also responsible for the programming
of the drums and the awesome production
(home made by the way). Of course
these parts are very good too, but
again the guitar is what monopolizes
every song.
My only complain
about this work -as well as lots of
other records from virtuosos- is that
there are moments where Greg shows
off and repeats himself with his technical
abilities, instead of making a more
productive use of it. Good thing is
that happens only a few times, keeping
the record interesting for the average
listener.
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