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Showing posts from January, 2021

Review: Apparitions by Joe Hodgson

As someone who has played guitar for close to two decades, I understand that the relationship with the instrument can run deep. There is something both beautifully elemental and wildly creative about the guitar which makes it such an endearing medium. But you don't have to be a wizard with the six strings to make amazing music, and those who do verge on the conjuring side often fall into a trap, losing the inherent soulfulness of the instrument for the sake of technical mastery and virtuosic ability. That line can be a fine one to balance on, and getting the equilibrium right is something many a musician has struggled with when putting the guitar as their centrepiece. From the shredding of Steve Vai, Joe Satriani or Tosin Abasi, to the electric blues of Albert King, Gary Moore or Buddy Guy, it can be all too easy for compositions to end up sounding like one big guitar solo. It takes the ingenuity and skill that all these artists possess to elevate guitar instrumentals into somethin