PETE OXLEY & NICOLAS MEIER - The Alluring Ascent
Meier Group: MGPCD021
Pete Oxley: guitars; Nicolas Meier: guitars; Raph Mizraki: acoustic bass, electric bass, darbuka; Keith Fairbairn: percussion
Recorded December 2018 by Mark Lee at Blue Moon Studios, Oxfordshire and January 2019 by Nicolas Meier at MGP Studios
Oxley and Meier have been working together for a number of years now, and this is the fourth instalment in their series of their combined guitar project. All of the tracks are originals (except for ‘The key of klimt’, track 8, which also featured on their last set). What they do here, as on their previous outings, is to explore the guitar duo in all its many settings. So, the opening track begins with a tinge of Americana and solos that, on 12-string guitar and sitar, counterpoint a Western feel with something very Eastern.
The helpful liner notes indicate which guitars are featured on each track and who takes each of the solos. Broadly, Meier’s delicate touch on the acoustic guitar is complemented by Oxley’s electric guitar. There are differences in the ways in which each guitarist approaches their solos. For example, on ‘Manzanita samba’ (track 4), on which both players use nylon string acoustic guitars, Oxley takes the first solo with a jazz inflected interpretation of the theme while Meier takes the second solo incorporating a greater Latin tinge. What works so well here is not simply that both players are masters of their instruments and styles of playing, but that the two voices offer complimentary interpretations of the music. The music itself travels around the world, taking in not only the folk and Americana but also Middle Eastern and Flamenco influences.
Across all of the pieces, you have superbly talented guitarists clearly enjoying each other’s company, and rousing their band to a solid, rocking performance. All of the musicians deliver technically polished performance and there is not a note out of place.
Reviewed by Chris Baber
Meier Group: MGPCD021
Pete Oxley: guitars; Nicolas Meier: guitars; Raph Mizraki: acoustic bass, electric bass, darbuka; Keith Fairbairn: percussion
Recorded December 2018 by Mark Lee at Blue Moon Studios, Oxfordshire and January 2019 by Nicolas Meier at MGP Studios
Oxley and Meier have been working together for a number of years now, and this is the fourth instalment in their series of their combined guitar project. All of the tracks are originals (except for ‘The key of klimt’, track 8, which also featured on their last set). What they do here, as on their previous outings, is to explore the guitar duo in all its many settings. So, the opening track begins with a tinge of Americana and solos that, on 12-string guitar and sitar, counterpoint a Western feel with something very Eastern.
The helpful liner notes indicate which guitars are featured on each track and who takes each of the solos. Broadly, Meier’s delicate touch on the acoustic guitar is complemented by Oxley’s electric guitar. There are differences in the ways in which each guitarist approaches their solos. For example, on ‘Manzanita samba’ (track 4), on which both players use nylon string acoustic guitars, Oxley takes the first solo with a jazz inflected interpretation of the theme while Meier takes the second solo incorporating a greater Latin tinge. What works so well here is not simply that both players are masters of their instruments and styles of playing, but that the two voices offer complimentary interpretations of the music. The music itself travels around the world, taking in not only the folk and Americana but also Middle Eastern and Flamenco influences.
Across all of the pieces, you have superbly talented guitarists clearly enjoying each other’s company, and rousing their band to a solid, rocking performance. All of the musicians deliver technically polished performance and there is not a note out of place.
Reviewed by Chris Baber
