Album of the month January 2013
I would be very happy to recommend these releases to those who are looking for that extra something in their electric guitar collections. Tom Geldschläger aka Fountainhead with his incredible fretless playing and musical landscapes. Jason Sadites, excellent fusion featuring the talents of Adam Nitti, Tony Levin, Bryan Beller, Marco Minnemann,Martin Motnik and Kenny Aronoff! Plus fanally, Richard Hallebeek's RHP II. I had the god fortune to see Richard Hallebeek and Lalle Larsson before the Aristocrats gig. The guy has sublime fusion chops, but modest too boot! Richard's album might likely go on to be Album of the year! The band is just magnificent and chock full of special guest musicians: Alex Machacek, Greg Howe, Andy Timmons, Kiko Loureiro, Eric Gales, Guthrie Govan,José De Castro and Lalle Larsson.
Also looks like I am not alone!
Yes! RHPII is album of the month on the Radio Xymphonica website! It received a great review
With RHP (2004) Richard Hallebeek put himself solidly on the jazz-rock map. Firmly located between the borders of the syncopated rhythms of Tribal Tech and the virtuoso melodic nature of Allan Holdsworth he made his status, partly obtained through CDs including Antti Kotikoski and René Engel. On RHP there were world-class musicians onboard like Shawn Lane and Brett Garsed, but for the successor 'Pain In The Jazz' the guitarist wanted to make it even bigger. Up to seven string artists steal the show, and besides that, regularly duel with Hallebeek and his band: Greg Howe, Alex Machacek, Guthrie Govan, Andy Timmons, Jose de Castro, Eric Gales and Kiko Loureiro. An impressive list, although it is mainly the base which ensures that these guys can shine. The compositions were written partly with the distinctive playing style of the soloists in mind to emphasize and sometimes to excite and push them. Furthermore, the steady band is in top form. Bassist Frans Vollink shows us a nice aggressive variation of the dexterous work of Jeff Berlin. His own Scott Henderson-like composition 'Wristkiller' and the superfunky Jaco Pastorius cover 'Amelia', with trumpeter Randy Brecker and saxspeler Ada Rovatti, are good examples of this. Drummer Sebastiaan Cornelissen also produces a powerful drive, in where he quickly touches various parts of his kit while yet playing with a sense of understatement. His bluesy ballad 'Think Of Something' is surprisingly one of the more quiet moments on the album. Lalle Larsson, whose Weaveworld trilogy featured Hallebeek prominently, also contributes significantly to the coloring of the arrangements, but is also one of the designers of the catchy themes. Of course he has his flashy solo moments, like in the complex 'Speed City Blues' that was written by himself and the progressive 'Bring It On'. Finally, it is particularly Rich himself who is at the center of it all with deceptively accessible melodies, a versatile sound palette including guitar synthesizer sounds and beautiful chordal work. With 'Pain In The Jazz' he has therefore strengthened his position on the aforementioned jazz-rock map in a stunning fashion.The album can be ordered through his own website www.richardhallebeek.com
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