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Tony Harnell (of TNT fame) and company return
with their sophomore effort, Skin, and it's a great
one as the guys in Westworld have really matured and come
together as a band. The result is a killer collection of
heavy, yet catchy melodic songs that just flat out blow
you away.
Mark Reale (of Riot fame) is one of the most
talented and grossly underrated guitarists out there, his
work on Skin is downright stellar, perhaps the best
of his career. The man can shred with the best of 'em, but
he can also carry a groove, has killer rhythm and a mean
sound. As far as songwriting goes, the Reale/Harnell team
is a definite winner as it's responsible for creating classics
in the making such as "Skin", "Uneasy", "Limbo" and others,
as a matter of fact the whole album is good.
Tony Harnell's voice is one of the best in
Rock N' Roll world, and he showcases it very well on Skin.
Tony wails away like there's no tomorrow and proves that
he hasn't lost a step, if anything, he's gotten better.
Just check out Westworld's cover of Alanis Morrissette's
"Uninvited" in which Tony's voice is at it's soaring best.
By the way, this version of "Uninvited" is much heavier
and blows away Alanis' version.
Both bassist Bruno Ravel (Danger Danger) and
drummer John O' Reilly contribute more to the songs this
time around than they did with the first Westworld release.
O' Reilly's drumming features a more fine-tuned, heavier
sound. And Ravel, well he's just so completely talented.
Rounding out the unit is violinist Mark Wood, a much-welcomed
addition to the band.
With Skin, Westworld shows signs of
a band who has come into it's own as a unit and is ready
to take over the music world. Let's hope the world opens
its arms and embraces the melodic onslaught that is Westworld.
Shred Pick - "Black Shadow Symphony"
(5:22)
Reviewed by Henry
Bocanegra
For more info on Westworld check out the official
site at www.westworld-web.com.
Check out our interview
with Westworld singer Tony Harnell, conducted in March of
2001.
Also see our in-depth interview
with Tony Harnell from the year 2000.
Click
to order Westworld's Skin from
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