| # | Artist | Song (click to play) | Album | Year | CD label | My Gnosis Rating |
| 1 | Leger de Main | Crystal Fortune | A Concept of Reality | 1995 | PMM | 15 (Alan's) |
|
"LdM is a band/project from Pennsylvania, USA that
started as an outgrowth from the band Drama. It
features the Rodler brothers on guitar/keys and drums
respectively, and the captivating vocals of Melissa
Blair. Starting points would obviously be Rush, but
the tracks here are long and engaging with many twists
and turns, with much more technicality than Rush uses.
At times the music gets heavier approaching progmetal
territory, but doesn't quite cross over. Vocals are
lovely, with captivating and meaningful lyrics. This
is one of my top favorite albums, and I play it
regularly without getting tired of it. Highly
recommended!" - Alan Mallery
Progressive Music Management | ||||||
| 2 | Geno White | Army of the Gone | Standing in Stereo | 1996 | Lolo Records | 10 |
|
On this album, Geno White plays a hard-edged instrumental guitar fusion
with Hansford Rowe on bass and guest guitarists Harvey Mandel and Bon Lozaga.
The music is pretty similar to other things like Ronnie Montrose's
late 80's & 90's fusion albums, and Gongzilla. Geno also has an
acoustic solo guitar album "Music from Inside the Lighthouse",
and is due for his 2nd release on Lolo Records soon.
Lolo Records | ||||||
| 3 | Strunz and Farah | El Jaguar | Americas | 1992 | Mesa Records | NA |
|
Strunz and Farah are flamenco/spanish style guitar who also
blend in elements of folk and world music. I am reminded of
some of the duets of Al DiMeola with Paco DeLucia, though,
Strunz & Farah augment the music with other acoustic instrumentation
throughout. Jorge Strunz was also the guitarist for the fusion
band Caldera in the 1970's.
Strunz and Farah | ||||||
| 4 | Doctor Zero | Onde Crepusculaire | Unsettled Scores | 1993 | Cuneiform | 12 |
|
"Unsettled Scores" is a double-CD collection of Cuneiform
artists playing cover songs, interpretations, and tributes
to other Cuneiform artists. Artists include Forever Einstein,
Peter Frohmader, Philharmonie, Birdsongs, Hugh Hopper,
Happy Family, Djam Karet, and many more. This is an essential
slice of progressive music and a great introduction to many
interesting bands on the Cuneiform label. And you do not have
to worry about having duplicate material as all tracks here
are exclusive to this collection. The song here began as a
composition written for Univers Zero that was never performed
or recorded by them. Some of this track was fleshed out in
Belgium by musicians I am not familiar with, then later
taken over by Steve Gore of The Rascal Reporters and Nick
Didkovsky of Doctor Nerve who completed the track with
additional musicians. It's quite an interesting piece that
almost seems to parody Univers Zero at the same time as
paying homage to them.
Cuneiform Records | ||||||
| 5 | John Scofield | You Bet | Grace Under Pressure | 1992 | Blue Note | 11 |
|
John Scofield is a very prolific guitarist having released at 25
solo album, in addition to lending his distinctive style to probably
hundreds of studio sessions as a guest player. On this album, Scofield's
flat-out in-your-face style is contrasted with Bill Frisell's
squelched, compressed and ethereal guitar style. This is a very good
album to start checking out Scofield's large repertoire. You can
also hear Scofield & Frisell together on Marc Johnson's Bass Desires.
John Scofield | ||||||
| 6 | Mike Keneally | Egg Zooming | Sluggo | 1997 | Immune | 11 |
|
Mike Keneally first saw his musical career take off as a guitarist
with Frank Zappa in the late 1980's, and the influence of that
experience can be heard throughout all of Keneally's music since.
Overall, Mike's music has an optimistic uplifting vibe in a modern
jam rock style that reminds me mostly of Phish. Many of his songs
have a sing-a-long character while other manifest complex song
structures and guitar virtuosity similar to Zappa's music or
Steve Vai's instrumentals.
Mike Keneally Page | ||||||