ALIEN GUITAR ABDUCTION
"My Beliefs"
(Self-produced; 2018)
Reviewed by R. Scott Bolton
When Alien Guitar Abduction's "My Beliefs" showed up in my mailbox, my first thought was "Oh, no. Not another instrumental guitar solo album." It's not that I don't enjoy instrumental guitar solo albums ... it's just that they're so goddamn hard to review. There are only so many different words for "shred," you know what I mean?
So, I was pleasantly surprised when I plugged the CD in and almost immediately heard not only guitars but vocals. (I could have saved myself this concern had I looked at the CD cover and the list of vocalists on the back, but I digress). I was also pleasantly surprised to find a variety of songs on this CD. "My Beliefs" contains brutal heavy tracks, classic rock style tracks, raw garage band tracks and, shockingly, even one track that sounds like it could have come out of an Andrew Lloyd Webber stage play.
And there is some amazing guitar work here as well but it is well-balanced with the tracks herein and not the focus of each and every song.
I don't know if the variety of rock'n'roll on this CD is a bad thing or a good thing. The diversity of tracks on "My Beliefs" might turn some people off. It worked for me. Although I can't think of a single track that broke any new ground, I truly enjoyed each and every one of the ten tracks on the CD. The songwriting and the performances captured here are solid and hard-rocking. I didn't reach for the NEXT button on my CD player at anytime.
Bottom line here is that, if you like your rock'n'roll hard, heavy and a little theatric, Alien Guitar Abduction is for you. And if you like what you hear here, there are a ton of other Alien Guitar Abductions available, too.
According to the CD insert, Alien Guitar Abduction is Stan Rose! (his exclamation point, not mine). Vocalists appearing on "My Beliefs" include Chris Hodges, Chris Clancy, Chandler Mogel, Stan Rose, Jei Doublerice, Eric Castiglia. Drums are performed by Jason Bittner, Nate Barnes, Mike Kosacek, Michael Kolar.
For more information, check out https://www.facebook.com/alienguitar/.
Rating Guide:
A classic. This record will kick your ass.
Killer. Not a classic but it will rock your world.
So-so. You've heard better.
Pretty bad. Might make a nice coaster.
Self explanatory. Just the sight of the cover makes you wanna hurl.
Copyright ? 2019 by R. Scott Bolton. All rights reserved.
