Musical Influences

What music inspires me? Ask that of any player and signs of hesitation cross their face. I’m no exception — but here’s my honest attempt to round up the artists that, one way or another, have marked me over all these years.

Past my early days of Venom and Destruction, the band that stole my soul and has never loosened its grip is Morbid Angel. With mainman and guitarist Trey Azagthoth turning up in the popular guitar magazines back when death metal was badly under-rated, the cubistic rifferama and twisted solos of this act are remarkably singular — and seeing them live many times has only deepened it. In New York I got to meet Trey in person, and there we bonded over our shared love of Dead Can Dance and Lisa Gerrard‘s voice: pure sirene music that carries you to other worlds. Listen in a dark room, one candle lit in the corner.

Away from metal

Another name worth a mention is Al Di Meola. His Latin roots fused with jazz have given me hours of listening pleasure — and his instructional books and video sharpened my string-skipping no end. Then there’s Egberto Gismonti, that arranger and composer who’ll go and live in whatever corner of the world he wants to capture on record, treating his 8- and 10-string classical guitars and piano as if they were nothing but percussion, or wood-boxes speaking for their habitat.

The Rancid Soup years

Back in metal, my Rancid Soup years — editing a zine and presenting a radio show — kept me constantly meeting new, talented ideas. So many, in fact, that rather than pile on more words I’ve listed some records below I’d recommend any day, and that I reckon shaped me one way or another. For some artists I’ve picked my favourite release; a few of these aren’t metal at all — but if it’s good music, it’s in my books.