With a surname like DeTone, which sounds an awful lot like "detune," I wasn't expecting the exhilarating sonic whirlwind that is Guitar Noir. But Ray DeTone took me by surprise, his fluid playing and diverse palette stemming from his work composing more than 80 instrumental pieces in nine months for various production companies' vignettes and short films. The gig has served him well, as DeTone seems to be striving to cram as many musical genres as he can into 54 minutes — from atmospheric prog ("Lights Down"), heavy prog ("March of Grind"), groove metal ("Funk You Too!"), flamenco ("La Bomba Beautiful"), fusion ("Jazzy Blues Bop"), neoclassical ("Twilight Suite") and old-west style ("Spaghetti Score"). He even spoofs Zakk Wylde ("Zak Label") and Black Sabbath ("Dirty Sabbath"). Most of the instrumentation comes courtesy of DeTone — who, it's worth noting, played guitar in the AOR band Drive, She Said and took high school music classes under Vic Talerico (who happens to be Steven Tyler's father). That alone isn't reason enough to spin Guitar Noir, but the guy's dexterous chops and melodic sensibilities make it worth seeking out.
Track Listing:
1) Lights Down
2) Sexy Heavy
3) Guitar Suicide
4) Tequila Funk
5) La Bomba Beauty
6) Funk You Too!
7) Jazzy Blues Bop
8) March of Grind
9) Zak Label
10) Spanish Gypsy
11) Twilight Suite
12) Dirty Sabbath
13) Spaghetti Score
14) En-Twangled
15) Spaghetti Score Redux (Bonus Track)
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