Artist: The Guy (Christopher Schreiner)
Title: Only Human
Website: http://www.whostheguy.com
MySpace: http://www.myspace.com/metajam
Style: Guitar Instrumental (Jazz/Rock)
Rating: 8.9 out of 10
By C.W. Ross
Only Human is the debut solo release from Christopher Schreiner, A.KA. ‘The Guy’. He’s no newcomer to music though; The Guy received a degree from the Berklee College of Music. He was also part of the Kenwwod Dennard band, Just Advance, that released the album, Metajam in 2005.
For those of you thinking that Schreiner must be stuck on himself with a A.K.A. like- ‘The Guy.’ Schreiner gives this explanation for how he got the nickname, “My father’s name is Christopher. My family and close friends have always referred to me as “guy,” to avoid confusion. Around the time I began playing in my first garage band, “The Assassins,” people started to call me “the guy.” I suppose that referring me in the third person regardless of the context became amusing. It stuck. Occasionally people interpret it as some pretentious declaration of superiority, as opposed to an affectionate moniker.”
Joining Schreiner on this album is, David Livolsi (bass), Tyger MacNeal (drums), and Chris Coogan (keyboards) on track 3&6.
Only Human is not your typical shredding filled guitar instrumental album. It’s complex and mixes jazz, and rock styles with elements of modern and classic sounds. The sound is layered with not only lead guitar it also includes bass, drums, and keyboard parts that work as perfect accents to Christopher Schreiner’s guitar work.
In his press material Schreiner describes his style as, “…a reflection of my taste in music, I gravitate towards hypnotic grooves of neo-soul and R&B, as well as, the music of seminal guitar heroes of the past and present…”
To me this release plays almost like a complete day. The first three tracks, “Intro”, “Icarus” and “An Interlude in Bleu” felt like when you first wake up in the morning getting ready for the day that waits you ahead. For the most part the songs have a jazzy light rock feel found on them.
The next three tracks, “Zebra Club”, “Youngblood”, and “Syeeda’s Song Flute,” are more upbeat in tempo, to me representing the hustle & bustle of daytime activities. On these songs Schreiner shows that he can rock it out with his guitar when needed.
The last two tracks, “Her Hypnotic Heart,” and “Something Beautiful,” slow things down in to a more melodic flow like that of after a hard day setting back and relaxing the day’s stress away.
All of the songs found on Only Human were composed and arranged by Schreiner except for the John Coltrane song, “Syeeda’s Song Flute.”
Schreiner’s talent really shines brightly in this release. He’s no one trick pony. He shows a wide range of styles on Only Human that will appeal to both guitar aficionados and anyone that’s a lover of music that’s done well.
