Most reviewers view the prospect of reviewing a guitar instrumental album - baring those from Satriani and a very few others - with abject horror.

This CD is not one that truly evokes bile but it is not far off. It is clear the bloke is good at what he does but was it really necessary to record fifteen tracks of it?

This is for hard core guitair afficianados only and not for the rest of us. If you are not listening carefully, trying to study what he is playing, it will quickly blend in the background and become a form of hard-rock muzak.

As it's called Melodica it is a rather melodic set of tunes, if you can call any of them that. It is sometimes very hard to tell where one ends and the other begins. Yes, this guy is a great guitarist but one wonders why he left the need to record this set of abject boredom.

It's not rubbish but tedious in extremis. Guess it beats Katie Melua in the background. Maybe he should have just included this with his signature guitar line that is soon to be released.

**** (for guitarists) or * (for the rest of us)

Review by Marty Dodge

Related>> Album review

***** Out of this world | **** Pretty damn fine |
*** OK, approach with caution unless you are a fan |
** Instant bargain bin fodder | * Ugly. Just ugly