HELD TO THE LIGHT

Killer instrumentals! Gamalon is alot better live if, see if you ever get the chance, but you probably won't because...this is buffalo. Gamalon replaces alot of the studio stuff and world instruments with badass guitar work live. I still think Tony Scozzarro can take any 'guitar god' on. Jack Kulp isn't bad either. It is too bad Bruce Bruccatto has to play next to Tony, because tony can make Steve Vai look bad. Bruce Bruccatto is still a fine guitarist.

"Held To The Light" is Gamalon's most mature work to date. At last, a Gamalon record that features Bruce Brucato's amazing talents throughout. Ethereal, haunting...a gem hidden away in Buffalo. Maybe someday the rest of the world discover what it's been missing.

And what can one say about an institution? Ted Reinhardt has been a mainstay of the western NY music scene for 30 years. As a drummer and percussionist he is among the best that ever was. Ever. Certainly the best enigma on drums.

And someday soon we'll have the results from the addition of the newest member of Gamalon, virtuoso guitarist Nori Bucci. Considered by many to be the finest musician in western NY today, her playing defies description. Influences abound...certainly Tony Scozzaro...even flamenco. Check her website at www.noribucci.com.

Rumor has it Ted's brother Tom Reinhardt has rejoined the band on bass. For longtime fans, this is very good news. We are all anxiosuly awaiting the new CD.

WOW!What an album,and unfortunatelly this one is a very underrated musical product !It's unbelieveble to see how a bad distribution and a weak record label didn't had the possibilities to promote correctly an album of such high quality!HELD TO THE LIGHT is a very mature and so well composed album that after an audition we ask ourselves if there is any justice in the world of music?And the answer is so simply and it's absolutelly NO!!! We don't find here any boring composition or a song without personality!The production is excellent and the succession of the songs is so pleasant and nice ,not only a second of feeling that this album has something made to be ina decent time of almost one hour of music!Scozzaro and Brucato are two outstanding guitar players and the diversity of the album is astonishing!African rhythms sometimes,great percussion instruments used,different and challenging tempos and many ways of artistical expression here,that make HELD TO THE LIGHT a very,very enjoyable audition!Unfortunatelly HELD TO THE LIGHT was the swan song for GAMALON,which had their minute of fame in music and let as legacy some excellent albums in fusion style that will prove the tremendeous talent of this underrated American band,in my humble oppinion!4 ,5 STARS for something excellent!

3.5 really

Gamalon's last studio testament to jazz fusion/rock lovers was Hled to the light from 1996. This was their forth album and is a more then decent one in this field. I know this band for some years, I reviewed previous two albums Aerial view and High contrast and I was amazed of the excellent quality of the music offered byt his overlooked band. I personaly think that Aerial view is their best album and one of the better releases in this filed in last decades. Held to the light is a fairly decent release, in some parts the album doesn't have that energic arrangements of previous albums but still worth to be discovered. Bruce Brucato is one hell of a great guitarist, he really knew to make some spelendid acrobatics on guitar, aswell some intricate passages are present here that at least to me, is one of the most unknown jazz fusion guitarist ever, is so so underated musician. Overall, all pieces has same level, no one particulary is in front. Nice complicated druming, solid bass work, maybe if there was some more energy in some compostions, is to much laid back in comapartion with absolutly awesome Aerial view. 3.5 stars to me. Very unnoticed band, definetly one of the best exponets of jazz fusion/rock scene.