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Chris Caffery’s resume is a long and impressive
one which spans decades and even if you don’t
recognize the man’s name, you will more than
likely have heard his work before. He’s lent
his various talents (including guitar, keys and vocals)
to a myriad of metal names, most notably SAVATAGE
and TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA, but also including WITCHDOCTOR,
DOCTOR BUTCHER, METALIUM, JOHN WEST, and CIRCLE II
CIRCLE. And that’s not even considering his
own solo work. Caffery is one of heavy metals most
prolific and talented individuals, who gives 110%
regardless of what he’s working on.
Passion and precision combine with a flair for expression
and a fierce individualism in his latest solo album
entitled “Pins and Needles”. The album
features 15 tracks (plus two bonus tracks if you’re
lucky) which display Caffery doing what he does best,
and that’s shredding away on a six string with
machine precision, and surgical skill. Oh, and not
only is the man a guitar virtuoso, he’s also
credited with “bass, percussion and saxophone”
as well as handling vocal duties. He’s a jack-of-all-trades
and master of damn well all of em. His lyrics combine
aggressive, world savvy cynicism, as well as some
decidedly sharp witted humor. Just listen to the track
titled “Pisses Me Off (2007)” (which is
an updated version of the “Faces” track
of the same name) and you’ll have your face
ripped off with fierce metal while simultaneously
getting a laugh out of the lyrics. The song is a scathing
tirade against the evils of modern life as diverse
as Wal-Mart, Jihad, American politics and Caffery’s
own web site.
While tracks like “Chained” and “Pins
and Needles” will appeal to fans of SAVATAGE’s
classic material, other tracks, such as “Worms”
and “Walls” display a more experimental,
occasionally jazzy approach to modern metal. Now,
I could do without the saxophone, but one things for
sure, Chris Caffery is not afraid to push the boundaries
of metal and to tread uncharted musical wilderness.
You can not deny the man’s work is expressive,
complex, and refreshingly unique. There is no one
who sounds like Caffery with his mixture of avant-garde
experimentalism and classic metal, which can only
be described (albeit somewhat unsuccessfully) as SAVATAGE
on an acid trip. But don’t let the “weird”
frighten you. There’s always a method to the
man’s madness, and he never meanders too far
away from a solid foundation of metal.
Bottom Line: Chris Caffery delivers exemplary metal,
both eclectic and powerful, with wit, skill, and a
touch of madness. “Pins and Needles” is
arguably his most impressive work to date
Key Tracks: “Pins and Needles”; “Chained”;
“The Temple”; “Pisses Me Off (2007)”
Reviewed by Farron Watson
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