It has been awhile since I have listened to an all-instrumental album that wasn't a soundtrack and even longer since I have listened to one that wasn't from an artist such as Steve Vai or Joe Satriani, or even a side-project like Liquid Tension Experiment.
Now, along comes Bushwhack, a Connecticut based quartet that has chosen to take on the challenge of instrumental progressive rock. It is an arena where there is no safety net and a long shot at gaining any type of mainstream popularity. This has to make you wonder why they chose this particular path when they were forming and deciding on what music they wanted to play. Those thoughts disappear the moment you start up the disk. This is impressive music, by the time you realize that no one is singing it won't matter.
The four piece is made up of Jamie van Dyck on guitars, Frank Sacramone on keyboards, Brandon Green on bass, and Ben Shanbrom, on drums. Together they have brought numerous influences to the table and forged a sound that is instantly familiar, welcoming, and fiercely original. What makes their achievement even more surprising is that they are all between 18 and 19 years old! It is not that age should really have anything to do with it, I have heard amazing young musicians before, but it always seems to be more the exception than the rule. As for these teens, the music they are making sounds like the work of artists much older. It is clear that they are well on their way towards making a name for themselves and becoming a force to be reckoned with.
Frankly, when the album arrived in my mailbox I was unsure of what was going to greet me when I pressed play. The name Bushwhack conjures up a certain image, and for me it was certainly not prog metal. I imagined something a bit more chaotic and out of control. It was dispelled as soon as the opening notes of "In Solitude" made their way from my speakers.
As I continued to listen, more was revealed. The music did have a sort of controlled chaos to it, but it was very finely structured and arranged. I like to call the sound structured organics, meaning that even though you know each song was carefully planned out, there is a touch of the jam band sensibility at work. You really need to hear it to understand what I am saying.
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