Blood of the Snake

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Customer reviews

review by: vs3 date: 2006-08-24 rating:
Work of genius V.
This is Derek's fifth solo album, as far as he is concerned his best one so far. To release a record better than Planet X, Inertia, Black Utopia and Mythology requires lot of skills, invention, creativity and luck.

The album kicks off with Czar Of Steel featuring John Petrucci on guitar. Very good song, good opener, some great guitar and keyboard solos towards the end of the song.

Man With No Name has an Ozzy feel to it, with Zakk Wylde's vocals. It's one of the more commercial songs on the album. Not really my favourite. I'd call it a weaker link if there wasn't the middle part. It's very simple but really good.

The peak of the album for me is Phantom Shuffle with saxophone playing over mad and massive drums and keyboards riffs. If I were to choose the best instrumental song of the year for Grammy, this one would win it. Excellent composition. When you start thinking, that it's time for a change, Derek puts in an unbelievable solo, one of the best keyboard solos I've ever heard! You have to buy this CD, if for nothing else then for this song!

Been Here Before could be on any of Satriani's recent albums, no keyboard solo, just chords and guitar on top of it. It fits nicely between Phantom Shuffle and the title track. But it's not any special.

Blood Of The Snake is the song on the album, where things start to change. After some great keyboard solos at the beginning of the album, you'll now hear more and more guitar and Derek is very much in the background. Maybe too much. At the end of the day, it's his solo album. This song could be better.

On The Moon doesn't stand out, but thinking of it it's a very nice tract, one of the better ones.

Next three songs should have been on Yngwie Malmsteen's CD. The whole sound of it, structure of songs and ... hmm ... solos. Yngwie knows very well what he is capable of and will play it awake or asleep, ... The "Hammond B3" solo in Viking Massacre is a disaster.

Last song is In The Summertime. Bad miss. It's maybe a good fun, it might earn the guys some money, it's good for the summer, BUT it's one of the songs you get fed up off after second hearing. So I don't even play it anymore.

This means that you've got prog metal song, Ozzy metal song, fusion, balad, another prog metal, fusion, 3x Yngwie madness and at the end crazy In The Summertime. That's maybe too much, too many genres, too many styles. Derek recorded what he wanted to, but it's not his best. There are some great keyboard solos, some good songs, some good piano work. Overall a bit chaotic. But there is also Phantom Shuffle and that song is simply brilliant. Derek has proven again that he's a genius.

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