Copulating blues with metal, guitarist
Ian Ashley Hersey shows prowess for being more than just a Hendrix or even an SRV clone. He melds with that low mood vibe with his axe with melodic metal production tendencies on
The Holy Grail, going into the same territories that Pat Travers,
Ritchie Blackmore and Robin Trower explored, and literally created for blues based metal.
He lives by the motto "
Nothing beats a vintage Strat powered by an old Marshall," which is not bad considering he really brings out the most of his Fender axe without out the often "twangy" sound it provides (OK, I have that Les Paul bias), providing a more plectonic, but yet thick sound.
There are four lead vocalists fronting Hershey's axework. First off you have the tracks represented by the soulful singing David 'Swan' Montgomery, who adds a high melodic stake with his vocal heroines of "
Blood of Kings" as well as bringing a hierarchy of R&B flavor to "
In the Light;" whereas both tracks could have been long lost cuts from Robin Trower's
Bridge of Sighs record. But as vocalist change, you have a different vibe presented here, where each singer brings their own presence to the record. Randy Williams brings an
AOR style to "
Blink of an Eye" while Carsten 'Lizard' Schultz brings forth a classic rock ala-Bad Company/Zeppelin atmosphere to the forefront with "
Empty Planet."
Obviously the big attraction as far as vocalists go is the appearance of
Graham Bonnet who sings on three of
The Holy Grail's cuts, putting the Deep Purple/Rainbow mark all over both "
Walking the Talk" and the title track, really bringing the best out of the Blackmore influence that is in Hersey's playing. There is even a classical cut, "
Toccata in D Minor" which proves that this guitarist is highly versatile when it comes to shredding the freeboard.
In the end, when you mix the vocalists, the soul, the Hammonds, the songs, the vibe, and of course Hersey's phrasing & overall technique, you have
The Holy Grail, which is one of the strongest blues-metal records to have hit the racks in a long time, surpassing many of those who have tried to meld the metal with the blues.
Written by
Hashman Tuesday, January 17, 2006
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