Heon - Electro-Acoustic Requiem

Year of Release: 2003
Label: Unicorn Records
Catalog Number: UNCR 5007
Format: CD
Total Time: 39:58:00

pro-gres-sive

Pronunciation: pro-gres´-sive

Function: adjective

1 a: of, relating to, or characterized by progress, b: making use of or interested in new ideas, findings, or opportunities

This is what I found in Merriam-Webster Online dictionary. I guess the second explanation of the word is fitting for the music we enjoy. Many musicians try to find new things to use in their music. Canadian guitar player Martin Héon also wanted to work out an idea: a project to explore the acoustic range of an electric guitar, and to achieve that, he used some unconventional elements. As the booklet describes, the instruments he used for this album are: Fender Stratocaster guitar, a screwdriver, screws, a saw and nails.

Personally I would call that "experimental," but who am I? Fact is, the end result is a very unusual album, with sometimes bizarre sounds. Mix that with the dark and gloomy song titles, and you get, probably the strangest album I have heard. Most songs are around 2, maybe 3 minutes, but that is definitely long enough. There are some nice guitar parts on the album, but mainly it is experimenting and that is something I can only listen to for a short period of time.

Hence the short review, as frankly said: I don't like the album. It is not something I would play to enjoy. I have read some other reviews of this album, and they were longer and more positive than mine; well, so be it. Technically this may be interesting, but if you want music to listen to and enjoy yourself, don't buy this album. If you are curious, check out his very small site, there are some samples on it. But I have listened to the album three times, to write this review, and that is all the time this disc gets in my player.

[This review originally appeared June 2004 at the ProgPower Online review site -ed.]

Tracklisting:
Death (3:59) / Reaching For The Sky (2:27) / Amazed By Beauty (2:50) / Melancholy (2:45) / Purgatory (2:27) / The Trial (2:41) / The Verdict (3:10) / The Punishment (2:40) / Hell (3:54) / Absolution Of The Sins (3:27) / Heaven (2:51) / Back To Life (6:37)

Musicians:
Martin Héon - all instruments

Discography:
Electro-Acoustic Requiem (2003)

Genre: Experimental

Origin CA

Added: May 29th 2005
Reviewer: Marcel Haster
Score:
Artist website: www.unicornrecords.com/heon.html
Hits: 3000
Language: english