Music Reviews
Shaw-Blades

Shaw-Blades

Influence

VH1 Classic

Formerly members of classic hard rock bands Night Ranger, Styx and Damn Yankees, Tommy Shaw and Jack Blades outline the music that inspired them to pick up a guitar on Influence, their first album since the pair’s 1995 effort, Hallucination.

Like that album, Influence showcases the duo’s softer side, with organic production values and copious amounts of acoustic guitar the order of the day. Tackling standards such as Simon & Garfunkel’s ‘The Sound of Silence’ could have been a disastrous plan – is there really a need for another cover of “California Dreamin’”? – but for the most part, Shaw-Blades offer interesting variations on the originals.

New life is breathed into “Your Move,” originally by Yes, while The Hollies’ “On a Carousel” is one of the standout tracks and “Summer Breeze” is injected with the laid-back California vibe that characterizes the majority of this record.

Fans of Shaw-Blades’ earlier work will be disappointed to note that there is hardly a widdly-widdly guitar solo in sight, but for anyone of a slightly nostalgic hue who wants to hear a fresh take on some classic material, Influence certainly delivers.

Shaw-Blades: http://www.shawblades.com


Recently on Ink 19...

Rampo Noir

Rampo Noir

Screen Reviews

Phil Bailey reviews Rampo Noir, a four part, surreal horror anthology film based on the works of Japan’s horror legend, Edogawa Rampo.

Garage Sale Vinyl: Eddie Money

Garage Sale Vinyl: Eddie Money

Garage Sale Vinyl

In this latest installment of his popular weekly series, Christopher Long finds himself dumpster diving at a groovy music joint in Oklahoma City, where he scores a bagful of treasure for UNDER $20 — including a well-cared-for $3 vinyl copy of Life for the Taking, the platinum-selling 1978 sophomore set from Eddie Money.

Incubus

Incubus

Screen Reviews

Both bold experiment and colossal failure in the 1960s, Esperanto language art house horror film Incubus returns with pre-_Star Trek_ William Shatner to claim a perhaps more serious audience.