Andrew Roudny (http://www.andrewroudny.com) is smoking, but it's not something that'll give you cancer or make you high.
Roudny's vice of choice is his guitar, which should be referred to as Guitar because it plays the starring role on his "Zero Words or Less" CD. Instrumental rockers haven't been prevalent since the Golden Age of Steve Vai and Joe Satriani. The grunge explosion, with its emphasis on angst-ridden lyrics, raw screaming, and dirty production, pretty much destroyed the market for it.
From a critic's standpoint, it's been ages since I received something like this in the mail so it's definitely a refreshing change of pace. "Bols Blue" (don't bother trying to understand the enigmatic titles) opens up with deceptive acoustic guitars that explode into scorching yet melodic riffs. Roudny's switch from unplugged to electric adds unexpected flavor to the piece. On "Metal Chicken," he even strips down completely, creating a folksy number that is nothing like its name.
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Unlike other rock instrumentalists, Roudny isn't afraid to take steps forward, giving "Z Axis" a techno backbeat.
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