EROTIC CAKES

When jazz rock and heavy metal get together

When I first saw this album, I had absolutely no idea what to expect. I have never eve seen the name Guthrie Govan in my life and the album's name, Erotic Cakes, only signed to the worst expectations and even more confusing was seeing Erotic Cakes' cover on the jazz tray of the store. To my surprise, whne I first checked it, the album was not only good, but was spectacular!

Govan's music is something of an oddball. It sure is jazz rock, but not the normal kind that you would expect. Starting from the jazz part of the music, it is so fresh, vivid and emotional that you can easily relate to it. It feels like flowting in a calm, placid spot or place, wile witnessing how everything around that place is moving and changing. The rock (or metal) part of the music give it a completely different level. It gives the music more power and colour than your average jazz rock band.

Just to give an idea of how this album sound, imagine a mix of Derek Sherinian's Planet X and Inertia albums and his Planet X band, plus Fromuz's Overlook, Exivious' debut and Cynic's Traced in Air.

Grade and Final Thoughts

Maybe I have this album in such a high regard because I was caught completely off guard when I had my first listen of it, but this Guthrie Govan's solo effort is worth the masterpiece rating by its own merits. When you have the opportunity, get this album and you won't be disappointed.

'Erotic Cakes' - Guthrie Govan (9/10)

Even half a decade after this has been released, there has still been some buzz over this virtuoso guitarist's work amongst friends and acquaintances. Being a guitarist myself, I can always appreciate the talent and skill- not to mention the time and effort- that it takes to become a truly great guitarist, but with all too many instrumental rock guitarists, I find myself frankly bored by much of their one-sided, overindulgent music. Enter Guthrie Govan, an English fusion guitarist who- much like Tosin Abasi of Animals As Leaders- seems to be revitalizing the scene of instrumental rock guitar. A rare masterpiece of this sort of music, Guthrie Govan's incredible skill at playing and tasteful tact of songwriting makes his debut, 'Erotic Cakes' essential listening for its style.

As the label of 'instrumental rock guitar' would imply, the center of this music is Govan's axe work, which shows him dabbling in a number of styles, including hard rock, blues, but most notably; hard-edged jazz. Throughout all of these, Guthrie Govan manages to harness his tone and give a clear, fitting sound to all of these different avenues, all the while drawing in seductive melodies and themes into his lead playing. Guthrie could be the phenomenal guitarist that he is, and still end up making a boring album if it weren't for his clever use of melodies and atmosphere in the songwriting. While there are plenty of less structured 'solo' sections where he effortlessly impresses with his beautifully flowing improvisations, each song gives the definite feeling that it is going somewhere, and that the listener isn't merely sitting by idly while Guthrie gives his virtuoso musician's equivalent of a child calling out and saying "hey, look what I can do!" 'Erotic Cakes' shows a satisfying balance of necessary showboating and quality composition. On a less positive note, these songs don't necessarily compliment each other on an albumwide scale, but each song is consistent, despite the fact that he is drawing from a number of different styles.

Making 'Erotic Cakes' an even better listen is that this is not merely a 'guitar' album; believe it or not, there are actually other musicians at work here as well, and talented ones at that. Bassist Seth Govan (Guthrie's brother, I will assume) makes some great slap bass fills here that fill out the sound beautifully, ensuring that there is always something else out there for a listener to focus on, if they want a change from the guitars. The drummer here is best suited for jazz, but manages to fluctuate based on whatever style Guthrie is leading the band into. A really excellent performance here from each member of the band.

I would really love to see Guthrie Govan churn out a second album, because without a doubt, 'Erotic Cakes' is one of the best- if not the best- instrumental rock guitar album I have ever heard. I went into it not knowing what to expect, and came out of it dazzled. A masterpiece album from a style I do not normally enjoy much. 'Erotic Cakes' has me turned on.

Guthrie Govan's exceptional jazz fusion solo album hits a higher batting average than many fusion guitar heroes' outputs. The secret seems to be that Govan has maintained the highest standard of quality control when it comes to what compilations deserve to win a place on here, with some of these compositions dating back a decade. With a solid band behind him, good compositions, and a keen sense of where the line lies between quality, impressive technical fusion and empty guitar noodling, and a thoroughly modern sound which shows no inclination to wallow in nostalgia, Govan has crafted a truly impressive fusion album here - a triumph of quality over quantity.

According to the bio here Guthrie won a guitar competition put on by Guitarist magazine back in 1993 which opened some doors for him as he would go on to teach guitar in schools as well as doing session work and becoming part of several bands. I became aware of this British guitarist through Steven Wilson as he played on his "The Raven That Refused To Sing(And Other Stories)". The guy can play, no doubts about that. This is an all instrumental album with the focus on the guitar and there's a strong Jazz flavour. We get a trio of guitar, bass and drums.

"Waves" opens with the faint sounds of waves and guitar before it kicks in much louder with drums, guitar and bass. Guthrie starts to light it up around a minute in then it settles back to the previous soundscape as this contrast continues. I really like how this sounds before 3 1/2 minutes. "Erotic Cakes" is heavier followed by some complex guitar soloing. Check it out 2 minutes in. "Wonderful Slippery Thing" is a jazzy, lighter number that's quite catchy. Some nice bass here as well. "Ner Ner" opens with strummed guitar but then he starts to solo as the bass and drums help out. He's ripping it up before 2 1/2 minutes. There's a good acoustic section around 3 minutes then it turns heavy. Some stop and start action before a relaxed sound takes over. Back to the main theme before 5 1/2 minutes. I like the drumming 6 minutes in then a guitar solo follows. "Fives" can be heard on the site here. I like the guitar expressions here and I like the drum work. It then kicks into gear and Guthrie is lighting it up after 2 minutes.

"Uncle Skunk" is an upbeat and pleasant ride. Nice bass especially 2 minutes in where he becomes the focus. A feel good tune. "Sevens" features a heavier sounding guitar which I like. It changes though with some intricate soloing then back to the heaviness as contrasts continue. The mellow parts are uplifting. "Eric" starts out reminding me of PT strangely enough. It changes though as this relaxing guitar joins in and I like the bass around 1 1/2 minutes. Some shrill guitar bits come and go. "Slidey Boy" has a rockish start but before 2 minutes it becomes much more relaxed including some welcomed atmosphere. Back to that heavier sound after 3 minutes. "Rhode Island Shred" sounds like a Blue Grass tune or maybe a DIXIE DREGS track. Very fast paced. "Hangover" is possibly my favourite track on here. I like the way the guitar soars and also the outburts of speed from Guthrie. I also like the way it winds down to end it.

This just hasn't grabbed me much at all. Sure there are many enjoyable moments but overall it's just not bringing much satisfaction. Maybe if it was more of a band thing instead of a guitar album, who knows? Good album though.