TIMEQUAKE

4.5 stars for sure

Ronny Heimdal is a norwegian jazz musician who released his first solo album in 1999 named Timequake. He plays a really great and up tempo jazz fusion with superb progressive arrangements who remind a lot of one of the greats in this field, Allan Holdsworth, but as well, elements taken from Tribal Tech or Bill Bruford (solo works) are to be found here. The guitar sound of Ronny is very delightful with cheerful moments, complicated twists and turns combined with superb synth keys, nice bass chops and busy drums all the time (the drumer Zsolt Meszaros is also present on Waste Lagoon album), all this moments from Timequake gives a real treat to all jazz fusion/progressive listners. Pieces like Zone 98B, Timequake, Music Box or Tiaatte shows how talented this musician is and how impressive original ideas has, really impressive musicianship overall. He also is invited as guest on Shadow chaser album from 2001 of Norwegian progressive metal/rock band Waste Lagoon and aswell producer and enginner of the band. Excellent musician who never made it big in this genre, sad, because he is one of the most talentated and competent jazz fusion guitarist I've ever listen and this album Timequake is one hell of solid release in this field. Highly recommended, one of the better examples how must sound a jazz fusion album full of progressive elements thrown in.

I am very impressed and delighted with all of my listens to Timequake by this Norwegian fusion band. (If memory serves me theterm "timequake" comes from the time travel, sci-fi movie Millenium where screwing up the past would cause major upheavals in the future.)

Anyway . . . the musicianship and compositions on this release are fusion bliss. There is of course loads of jazz fusion but there are bits ofprogressive metalloid rock as well. Many very wonderful things are happening here.

If you dig Allan Holdsworth, Tribal Tech, and Houston, Texas' unknown fusion by Stratus or the far East's Kenso then do grab Timequake. The songs are not mere structures for guitar whankery but hold up as songs that happen to feature virtuoso fret work coupled with very competent keys and assorted synth embellishings for great atmospherics. After thirteen tracks of excellence I began to be amazed at the cohesiveness of this Heimdal's creative download onto this CD.

Heimdal rips it up on guitar, synth keys, and programming. Bass work and drumsare also very tight and pro all the way. This is one very hot trio of guitar-driven fusion excess in the way we fusionheadz like it! There are quietmoments, dreamy sections but all roads lead to high energy chops and technically precise crunch amidst many a tornado of notes. Heimdal even pays a tribute to music from the flik The Fifth Element, a campy, Bruce Willis sci-fi action-adventure outing that I have watched on video and now DVD way too many times.

Final analysis: "A solid winner! High recommendations! More Ronny, more." And as Willis said, "Anyone else want to negotiate?"