Review: Steve Howe – Guitarscape
Steve Howe – Guitarscape
Format: CD – Vinyl LP – Digital / Label: HoweSound
Release: 2024
Text: Tom Wouters
British guitarist Steve Howe gained great fame as the star guitarist of the symphonic rock groups Yes and Asia. He was also very productive as a solo artist and yet the solo album ‘Guitarscape’ is a striking album, because Howe emphatically speaks of “this is the Steve Howe of 2024”.
Howe has expanded his compositional skills by purchasing a Novation Summit keyboard. The possibilities that instrument offers him opened new doors for Howe, who until now has mainly concentrated on his guitar playing. On Guitarscape, Steve Howe plays almost all the instruments himself, all the guitars of course, but also keyboards and bass guitar. Only for the drums he called in his son Dylan Howe, who had been on the road for years as a drummer with ex-Dr. Feelgood guitarist Wilko Johnson.
‘Guitarscape’ has a large number of compositions that fall under the heading of symphonic rock, such as the classically themed acoustic guitar track Distillations and the oriental-sounding Suma. Even more beautiful are the atmospheric Up Stream, Secret Mission, in which Howe rises to great musical heights, the flamenco-like Passing Thoughts and the orchestral Equinox. And then we haven’t even mentioned the typical Yes-like tracks Touch The Surface, with a beautiful bass-drums interplay, the rocking Spring Tide and Steel Breeze, which shows Howe in all his glory.
‘Guitarscape’ by Steve Howe is an absolute must have for all guitar freaks and symphonic rock lovers.
Tracks:
01. Hail Storm
02. Spring Board
03. Distillations
04. Up Stream
05. Secret Mission
06. Passing Thoughts
07. Touch The Surface
08. Spring Rhyme
09. Equinox
10.Seesaw
11. Gone West
12. Suma
13. Spring Tide
14. Steel Breeze
Website: https://stevehowe.com/