• New Music Reviews
• |
• Archives
• |
• News
• |
• Submissions
• |
• About
• |
• 
• |
• 

January 2025

• Bonfire: Higher Ground
• The Big Deal: Electrified
• Landfall: Wide Open Sky

December 2024

• After Lapse: Pathways
• Illusion Force: Halfana
• Powell-Payne: Voilá

November 2024

• Sunstorm: Restless Fight
• Storace: Crossfire
• Voodoo Circle: Hail To The King
• Lionville: Supernatural
• Starchaser: Into The Great Unkown
• Empires Of Eden: Guardians Of Time
• Lonerider: Down In The Dust
• Seventh Crystal: Entity
• Neal Morse & The Resonance: No Hill For A Climber
• Beardfish: Songs For Beating Hearts
• Impellitteri: War Machine
• Brothers Of Metal: Fimbulvinter

October 2024

• Casandra's Crossing: Garden Of Earthly Delights
• DGM: Endless
• Daytona: Garder la Flamme
• Fate: Reconnect 'N Ignite
• Frost*: Life In The Wires
• Aries Descendant: From The Ashes Of Deceit
• Fans Of The Dark: Video
• Radioactive: Reset
• House Of Lords: Full Tilt Overdrive
• Cleanbreak: We Are The Fire

September 2024

• Sinner's Blood: Dark Horizons
• Serious Black: Rise Of Akhenaton
• Eclipse: Megalomanium II
• SteelCity: Reverence
• Hydra: ReHydrated
• Heartwind: III
• Gabrielle De Val and the Dragonlords: Tiger
• Find Me: Nightbound
• The Nail: The Nail
• Timeless Fairytale: A Story To Tell
• Stryper: When We Were Kings
• Phil Mogg: Moggs Motel
• Pure Reason Revolution: Coming Up To Consciousness
• Jordan Rudess: Permission To Fly

[ More Music Reviews ]

Dylan, Brennan: Bullet Ride

Instrumental Guitar

4.0/5.0

Independent/Self-promotion
www.myspace.com/brennan.dylan
www.tunecore.com/music/brennandylan
By Craig Hartranft,  01.03.2011

Expect the unexpected with Dylan Brennan's Bullet Ride. The CD's back cover shows Mr. Brennan striking a pose with guitar, his trusty musical weapon of choice. But don't expect another guitar virtuoso merely burning up the fret board with his magical widdling. Well, there is that: Brennan has wits and licks to both impress and stymie any neo-classical guitar whiz. So what makes Bullet Ride so unexpectedly different (at least for me)?

Brennan successfully merges his thrilling fret work with a tapestry of techno/industrial music equal to anything playing in a German or French rave club. Frankly, for someone like myself who generally cannot stand that techno shit, Brennan is not only brilliant, but convincing. I enjoyed Bullet Ride and Brennan's loving, nearly mystical, presentation of his guitar skills on this work, with nods to War Parade, Derailed, Bullet Ride, and I Am Me. Most songs are deceptively brief, little over three minutes each, betraying the power and intensity within. Conversely, the dense electronica and heavy techno beat, sometimes disguises, overwhelms, or even discourages, Brennan's fine guitar work. You must listen carefully to hear his studied nuances. If you're a lover of pure instrumental guitar works, you may be frustrated by Brennan's Bullet Ride. Otherwise, Bullet Ride is a real pleasure, a stroke of inventive creativity.

Note: All Amazon advertising in this review first benefits the artist, then Craig Hartranft also receives a residual. Click, and thanks for your support.

If you're a lover of pure instrumental guitar works, you may be frustrated by Brennan's Bullet Ride. Otherwise, Bullet Ride is a real pleasure, a stroke of inventive creativity.

Alphabetical Index

The Powell Payne project, created in 2022 is the collaboration of Mark "Penfold Powell (ex-drummer of Psycho Kiss) and Adam Payne (former vocalist of Airrace). With guitarist Adam Davies and keyboard player ... [ Read More ]