THE RICK RAY BAND (Into The Hands Of Sinners) CD
I was totally overwhelmed by the amount of informations I received about Rick Ray with this CD. This mysterious guitarist had not only issued about 26 years albums since 1999. He had toured in the past with bands like The Lizards and Frank Marino & Mahogany Rush and when I surfed through the net, searching for more about him, I was again blown away by the information overload. This is his newest release on Neurosis Records, and though I'd listen very often to the CD, it's still hard to define his style. One thing is for sure, this man is an excellent guitarplayer with an unusual style and sound. The base of his sound his definitely heavy rock and prog, but here's so much more to find. Sometimes, the band throws in a bit of Hawkwind or comes up with instrumental acoustic themes or 12 bar blues turns into jazz. That sounds wicked and it is.
But not only Rick Ray is a great talent. Three of the five musicians are excellent singers, too, while Phil Noch is only singing on four of the here included twelve tracks. The music got a free floating spirit and Rick's guitar is doing a lot of crazy things. He plays all kind of stuff, which still leaves me speechless. Smoking power-chords change into mesmerizing jazzy guitar-parts, where his instruments tells inexhaustible electric stories, and although I'm not the greatest fan of endless guitar-solos, Rick Rays playing knows to impress and entertain in an unobtrusive way. And his playing is well integrated in the song. Every song got nice and interesting changes, and if I would describe all twelve songs to you, this review would become a neverending story. I better give you the advice, to check out the world of Rick Ray, if you're looking for something outstanding and special.
(KK)