Mattias IA Eklundh - Freak Guitar The Road Less Traveled (23 tracks) +Album Reviews

It's about time

J. Russell | Vancouver | 12/24/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Shred has been dead since day one. Wether it's Malmsteen or Vai (who was good when Zappa told him what to do) or... it's been nothing but amazing guitar licks over bad, bad rythm sections. But didn't we all hope that one day those techniques would be used to a more interesting effect? Shawn Lane's work with Hellborg did it, Buckethead did it, and now... Mattias IA Eklundh, killer player. but most importantly he has great taste. This disc is very Zappa inspired and sounds alot like Buckethead, but with tighter compositions and more of a European influence (gypsy scales and what not). Definitely worth picking up, and what a sense of humour. I haven't laughed this much at someones guitar playing (laughed in a good way I mean) since the day's of Danny Gatton. Hellborg has just picked this guy up for some power trio work with Jeff Sipe. I am really looking forward to hearing what they do together."

Psychotic, Quirky...and great

Daniel S. Upton | Charlottesville, VA USA | 09/06/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I had no idea what to expect when I got this CD, except that it was probably going to be crazy instrumental stuff, since it's on Steve Vai's label. In that respect, this CD definitely fills expectations. Mattias has a great command of the instrument, although undoubtedly many people (the same who bash Tom Morello) will think his sense of humor in composition is little more than unfocused noodling. The hyperactive covers of Smoke on the Water and Minor Swing are excellent."

Humor and chops

J. Weissman | 02/18/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Never have I heard musical "humor" conveyed so well as on this breakthrough album. The production is seamless, and Eklundh's high-level chops are not threatening, that is, his humor and musicality buffer the typical "macho" delivery of shred-guitar playing, and indeed evolves it into, dare I say, ART."

Entertaining to say the least

M. Ryan Fairbanks | Cleveland, Ohio | 09/14/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Being a huge fan of "outside" sounding guitar players like Buckethead and John 5, many people were recommending Mattias Eklundh to me. I finally picked up Freak Guitar: The Road Less Traveled, and I have to say there is some pretty impressive stuff on this disc. A song where the guitar is played on with chopsticks, a dance version of "Smoke on the Water", a rythme track comprised of printer sounds, drum sounds mimicked with saliva sloshing...the list just goes on and on. Also what I found cool was that the CD booklet has a page for every track explaining its origins or how the sounds were made. Within these pages we are also treated to Mattias's great sense of humor and a few stories.

Although there are a few serious compositions on this album, the bulk of it is extremely experimental. The experimental tracks usually clock in at around two minutes or less, which suffices in most cases. While this doesn't make for the most cohesive or consistent album, The Road Less Traveled is a super fun collection of experiments with some killer tunes and guitar playing thrown in the mix. I highly recommend picking this CD up, it is a great adventure in experimental guitar playing."

Not for the musically timid

B. Liang | Champaign IL | 01/04/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Up until this album, I had been on a steady diet of mainstream rock and metal. Sure I had heard of the likes of Satch and Vai, but I never got around to listening to them. Suffice to say, instrumental guitar music was something I was most definitely NOT familiar with.

This all changed when my Art teacher had me listen to The Road Less Traveled. I was hearing sounds that I never knew were possible. I was hearing music done in a totally different way! Mattias seems like a funny guy to me, and you can hear it in his compositions. Songs like There's No Money in Jazz and One String Solo are hilarious, and Print This is a humorous take on a device many of us are familiar with.

Overall, from this album I learned two important lessons. One is that it is ALWAYS cool to be able to shred, and two is that being a musician doesn't mean you have to be serious. Definitely a good buy for any guitarist looking for a dose of fresh air."

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