New Way opens up with a dramatic intensity that is portrayed at first by a single drum. The intensity soon evolves into something much more full sounding, it in fact becomes an infectiously upbeat piece of music, still intricate in detail and still very much expressed with a feeling of theatre about it, but on the whole an incredibly impressive and well crafted composition.
The music seems to build and change and re-direct itself in a series a fast-paced moments that come to an end almost too quickly. The story presented, and indeed, the journey the music takes you on as a listener, is immediately captivating, and the skill and speed with which the instrumentation is performed has the power to really keep hold of you until the whole thing comes to an end. Mirko Filacchioni’s guitar playing is of an insanely high standard, and what’s enjoyable about witnessing it is that the focus is not consistently on this skill and speed, it’s purely a secondary benefit – albeit, an incredible one.
The development of the music is amazing, there’s an organic sound to many of the instruments, a big-band, even classical touch at times, and the electric guitar lead alongside all of this is beautifully inspired and consistently creative. The additional blessing is that, as suggested, despite the artist’s sheer precision and undeniable ability – the music plays out as expressive of a story and a certain set of feelings. There are moments of downtime to enjoy, moments of space and quiet, and of course, those huge moments in which the intensity and the explicit joy re-group and re-enter your listening space. It’s a thrill to listen to, particularly at high volumes. The album In Guitar We Trust, from where the single came, is an absolute must hear.
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