When I received Midnight Invisibles by David Reid, I didn't have a clue what to expect music wise. My first thought was, after looking at the album cover, I was dealing with a musician who had released an electronic album. But after listening I discovered I was very wrong in my guessing. No way this was an electronic album recorded with all kinds of synthesizers. Or as they used to say long time ago:"No synthesizers were harmed during the recording of this album." This was an instrumental guitar album all the way. No other instruments or human vocals were involved during the recording of Midnight Invisibles. Before going into the album a little bit of of info about the musician might be in the right place. His real name is David James Reid. He is a singer / songwriter and guitar player. Born in Glasgow, but is now based in Peterborough. Although his family relocated to the south of England when he was very young, he remains very much a Scot. Reid and his band, The Contrast, have released eight critically acclaimed albums since 2001. Steven Van Zandt described them as 'One of the best bands on the planet - and England too.' In 2014, Reid co-formed ReidGraves with activist and poet Ron Graves combining pop and experimental music with songs and spoken word. The duo have released three albums. In 2024, David co-formed Lightbulb, an instrumental duo with The Contrast drummer, Thorin Dixon and released a debut album Carnival Of Strange. Okay let's move on now to his new album. On Midnight Invisibles, a sequel to David's 2023 solo album, Shadows And Shades, the tracks evocatively score scenes from 'imaginary movies'. Midnight Invisibles is a set of 16 solo electric and acoustic guitar instrumentals that channel surf, country, folk, jazz and cinematic influences. Each track, written and performed on a single guitar, was recorded live with no overdubs or loops by Reid himself and no other musician. So a true solo album. As David elaborates: "When I write I have always loved to try and make my guitar do'everything'. Not in a flashy, virtuoso sense, but rather using the instrument to make a complete arrangement with all the necessary elements." The songs he performs on this album have an average length of between two minutes and four minutes. Reid has a rich imagination in coming up with titles for his written songs. How about titles like We Are What We Pretend To Be, So We Must Be Careful About What We Pretend To Be or Such A Lot Of Guns Around Town And So Few Brains. Or what about The Whole World Is Three Drinks Behind and The Bug-Eyed Look Of A Man Who Had No Explanation But Needed One Badly? You can't make that up, can you? For those primarily familiar with the solo albums of the guitar heroes of the progressive rock genre, I can happily say there are some similarities with the solo repertoire of British guitarists Steve Hackett and Steve Howe, or with Dutch guitarists Eddie Mulder or Harry Sacksioni. It's primarily the acoustic albums these gentlemen released that allow us to compare Reid's work. Especially on the songs where he lets the acoustic guitar come more to the fore. This is particularly evident on tracks like Nae Man Can Tether Time Or Tide, The Green Ray, The Hornet Spooklight, Half-Mad, Half-Fed, Half-Sarkit and A Hair-Brain'd, Sentimental Trace. On other songs as mentioned earlier, Reid is moving in a slightly different musical direction. Which doesn't necessarily mean it's not good. He has a very relaxed way of playing that you will definitely like. In general, the sixteen instrumental pieces sound very calm and relaxed. The tempo never really picks up. This means that you cannot dance along to his written songs or move your feet to the rhythm of the drummer or bassist. But I can't really say I miss the rhythmic tracks on this album. The songs are too good for that, and they keep you listening until the album ends. But overall, I can say that Reid has released an album with not a single bad song. Everything is of the high quality you would expect from a professional musician. Fortunately, fans of our musical genre will find plenty to enjoy if you enjoy the acoustic albums of Howe, Hackett, and Mulder. Those who prefer pompous progressive rock with lots of tempo changes and solos can safely skip this album. So don't say I didn't warn you! *** Henri Strik (edited by Tracy van Os van den Abeelen) Where to buy? |
