Search - Fourth Estate :: See What I See

Wailing, Not Shredding

El Kabong | 08/31/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Dave Beegle, mastermind of the now-defunct Fourth Estate, is hardly what you'd call a shredder. What he IS, though, is amazingly good in an understated & unassuming way. All through this (second and final) cd of guitar-driven instrumentals, Beegle makes sure each track has a focused vision and strong melodic framework: you're waist-deep into the music here long before the soloing comes, and when Beegle does let fly, he plays cunningly-conceived solos, saturated with feel and fire, that always hit the precise spot and never dawdle a moment past their welcome. Beegle seems too intelligent and principled a musician to phone in a generic speed-lead when the moment calls for restraint, although the breadth of his playing on SEE WHAT I SEE indicate this guy could easily keep up with G.I.T.'s phenom-of-the-week any time he chooses to. Each composition here incorporates musical ideas from outside the generic-metal provinces - world music, blues, prog and jazz (among others) make memorable cameos here, adding depth and color to Beegle's craftsman-quality heavy rock. "Poet's Lament", "Blue Flame", "From Here to There" and especially the awesome Arabic-rocker "Kara Kum" are four highlights from an album full of them that sets out to impress you with its diversity of approaches rather than ripping your face off with pure aggression. Apparently Beegle dissolved the band (Dave Spurr & Fred Babich are the excellent sidemen here) to concentrate on his indie label Hapi Skratch Records, who've released some other worthy cds to date - most prominently Danny Masters' ELECTRIC BABYLON, a similarly excellent guitar-virtuoso opus that's more shred-oriented but equally rewarding a listen. Check em both out."

Great Instrumental Rock

El Kabong | 11/07/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I have to be honest I got this CD as a free promotion and I found that I liked it more than the other CDs I bought. This is great instrumental rock that is very moving and powerful. I highly recommend this CD to anyone that even remotlfey likes any form of rock."