Valence is a four piece instrumental progressive rock band from New York and ‘Sleepwalker’ is their first forayinto the studio – a fact that reveals itself as the album progresses.
‘Sleepwalker’ is a 34 minute epic conveniently broken up into eight bite-size chunks and as a first effort is not at all bad.
Essentially a wig-out for twin guitarists Michael Buonanno and Geoffrey Schaefer, the album certainly has its moments (the title track being a standout) but has a tendency (as many instrumental albums do) to get a tad repetitive. Part of this, I’m sure, is the over-use of effects pedals (or lack of a variety of them) – resulting in the overdrive and fuzz getting more than their fair share of punishment. Can’t help but think they would sound much better with a keyboard player too.
Whilst there is no danger of Joe Satriani looking nervously over his shoulder, there is no doubt that Valence can play and with a little more light and shade, a little more variety and a little less reliance on the overdrive pedal this could have been an excellent first effort.
As it stands – a good listen. **
Review by Alan Jones
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Power Plays w/c 9 December 2024
In this sequence we play ‘The Best of 2024′ GRTR! reviewer selections
Featured Albums w/c 9 December 2024
09:00-12:00 The Best of 2024 (Melodic Rock)
12:00-13:00 The Best of 2003-2024 (Melodic Hard Rock)
14:00-16:00 The Best of 2024 (Singer Songwriter)
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