With the help of new generations of guitar synthesizers and samplers, The Infinite Desire finds a mature, lyrical, more expressive Al di Meola casting his lot with Telarc, which until the late '90s had concentrated its attentions upon aging acoustic jazzers. Indeed, he makes marvelously musical use of the new devices, creating sensuous, exotic layers of sound that lie easily upon the ear, without much of the usual harshness of digital instruments generated by those who haven't bothered to master them. "Shaking the Spirits" in particular is a fascinating piece, loaded with dazzling Middle Eastern and African colorations, and the sampled trumpet sound he gets on "Valentina" is astoundingly lifelike.
Legendary rock producer Bob Ezrin is at the helm on In2ition, the second release by the Croatian classical crossover duo 2Cellos. Similar to their debut release, In2ition features a wide array of restructured cover versions including "We Found Love" (Rihanna), "Highway to Hell" (AC/DC), "Bang Bang" (Sonny & Cher), and "Orient Express" (Jean Michel Jarre). The guest appearances on this date are just as eclectic as the choice of material. Helping out are Steve Vai, Lang Lang, Naya Rivera, Karl Jenkins, Zucchero, and Elton John, who is such a fan he had the duo open for him on his 2011 summer tour.
Live performance from the Graham Bonnet Band recorded at the 2016 Frontiers Rock Festival in Trezzo, Italy. The performance includes tracks such as 'Eyes of the World', 'All Night Long' and 'Island in the Sun'…
After an exceptionally long year of personal change and near-manic creative activity, Canadian musician Devin Townsend releases the follow-up to his highly acclaimed album "Empath" in 2019. Compiled from a flood of material written during the pandemic, 'Lightwork' represents a new level and has become one of the most accessible, yet ambitious releases of his storied career. A project Devin has had in mind since his teenage years (and has flirted with throughout his career), it's a more melodic and direct album with a great producer backing him up. That's where Garth Richardson comes in: a Vancouver-based producer with a long CV and a long-time friend of Devin's. And the goal? To create something beautiful, cathartic, powerful and clear. A sense of optimism and strength in a time that can commonly be described as "depressing". It's about strength, love, acceptance, fear and overcoming together.