Reviews

 

 

TERRY MUNDAY: The Human Zone

TERRY MUNDAY: The Liberty Project

TERRY MUNDAY: Eurasian

 

 

Reviews for Terry's album "THE HUMAN ZONE" - released September 2004
The Human Zone by Terry Munday
Zeitgeist, January 2005

"Let’s see – last time I reviewed the work of Mr Munday I said. “Mixing up the various vibes of rock, blues and Latin, but tying it down with a traditional melodic sensibility, makes this an absolute peach of a CD, twisting and turning at every opportunity leaving you wondering where you'll end up next. Fortunately, it's always somewhere interesting. If the term guitar virtuoso leaves you cold, I suggest you shun your prejudices and give this a damn good listening.” And I was right – but then I usually am! This release is more of the same, fluid, melodic guitar lines, interspersed with atmospheric, neu-ambient moments, in places Steve Hackett in sound and feel. There is the occasional funky moment when the rhythms lock together, especially on my favourite “In Search Of The Human Zone”. It’s amazing how much you don’t miss vocals when the instrumental work is as compelling as this. Other highlights include the electronica meets Indian vibe of “Behind The Veil Of Ignorance”, but there’s something here for every mood. Unless you happen to be a berserker in which case may I suggest the new GWAR album. The guitars take a step back on “Trans-Global City Life”, which is a funky piano number, before it all closes down with the elegance of “Deep Blue Sea”. Another excellent release, and one which deserves a wider audience."
 

Keith Ames, Musician: The journal of the Musicians' Union. December 2004

"London based member Terry Munday has written, recorded, performed and produced this album of guitar instrumentals which perfectly represent his  considerable skill as a guitarist and arranger. 'Deliverance' exemplifies his skill in shifting from funky clean rhythms to harmonic and masterfully constructed solos. Perfect for fans of lead guitar who prefer their six string heroes to stay on the melodic side of the genre."

 

Don Campau, "No Pigeonholes" KKUP 91.5FM in the San Francisco Bay Area, November 2004

"What's hot and tasty and satisfies fully? Spicy Vegetable soup? Nope, it's Terry Munday's "The Human Zone" which is the third CD from this talented British guitarist/composer. He's drawing out solid ideas, atmospheres and melodies and killing me with these burning, gorgeous leads. I am putting it in my pile as one of the best independent CDs of 2004. Do yourself a favor, don't wait, get it now! You won't stay hungry long!"

 

James Turner, Rock Society, October 2004

"An all instrumental guitar album, Terry Munday is obviously influenced by such maestros as Steve Vai and Patrick Rondat, and has put together an album of guitar music. Ranging from almost chilled out music to more rockier numbers, Munday is a very talented and versatile performer.......it's full of great ideas, and there are some superb riffs and great performance and production on the material."

 

Peter Jolly, Feedback Magazine, rock journal of MENSA, October 2004

"You might recall me raving over Terry Munday's last album 'The Liberty Project' when it dropped onto my desk unannounced a few months ago. In no time at all we have the follow-up, and while the style and musicianship are every bit as good I think he will be hard pressed to come up with another track of the calibre of the title track of that album. The overall tone of this one is more subdued, and while there is still some great guitar-work on here the backing seems to be more at the more jazzy end of the spectrum. 'DELIVERANCE' has a pronounced samba beat to it, and the synth stabs of 'Long Walk Home' come straight from 'Liberty…'. Perhaps he was going for a more melodic style, but I much preferred it when he let rip on the axe. There are some fine tracks on here, with 'Twilight In The Modern World' having a particularly lyrical feel to it, helped along by some subtle piano at the beginning, and 'Behind The Veil Of Ignorance' heralds the return of the stinging guitar solo. 'Trans-Global City Life' is a funky piano-led tune, and the album closes with the gentle melodicism of 'Deep Blue Sea'. Once again this is a true solo effort, with Munday writing, performing, recording and producing the whole thing himself, and so the concept is comparable to similar efforts by Joe Satriani and Steve Vai, but while this is an admirable attempt I think he has a little way to go yet to emulate those guitar heroes. All praise to him for trying".

 

Roland Ludwig, Crossover, Germany, March 2005

"Meistens sind Instrumentalplatten von Gitarristen eine recht langweilige Angelegenheit. Unzählige Veröffentlichungen solcher Saitenakrobaten, die meinen, in ihren Bands zu wenig Entfaltungsmöglichkeiten zu bekommen und endlich mal richtig die Sau rauslassen wollen, ohne sich dabei in ihren gnadenlosen Soloattacken auch nur einen Cent um Atmosphäre und Tiefgang zu scheren, kann man getrost unter Ulk verbuchen. Aber es gibt auch löbliche und sehr hörenswerte Ausnahmen, wie z.B. Terry Munday beweist. Denn dem Londoner gelingt es im Gegensatz zu seinen zahllosen extrovertierten Kollegen, seinen Kompositionen Leben einzuhauchen. Mal jazzig-verspielt, mal softrockig, mal balladesk-smooth führt uns der technisch hoch versierte Londoner durch die "Human Zone". Stets bleibt aber der Song als Solcher, die Anmut der Melodie, die gelungene Harmonie im Fokus des geneigten Hörers und richtet sich zu keiner Sekunde auf das formidable Können des Meisters, der dabei ein ums andere Mal an Carlos Santana erinnert, welcher auf ähnlich geniale Weise Songdienlichkeit und außergewöhnliche technische Fertigkeiten verknüpft und dabei das richtige Gespür für treffliche, nie ins Kitschige abrutschende Melodien beweist. Munday macht Musik zum Genießen, zum Zurücklehnen und Abspannen. So könnte ich mir einige Songs von "The Human Zone" sehr in der Rotation der erfolgreichen amerikanischen Smooth Jazz-Radiosender vorstellen, die v.a. von gestressten Autofahrern in den Großstädten sehr gern gehört und genossen werden. Aber nicht nur dauerstressgeplagten Mitmenschen empfehle ich den Briten, sondern Allen, die schönen, wohltuenden Melodien etwas abgewinnen können."

 

10 von 13 Augen, Tom Klaner, Bright Eyes, Germany, November 2004

"Aus England schickt TERRY MUNDAY sein neuestes Werk über den „Kleinen Teich“. Dieser Musiker stellt mit „The Human Zone“ erneut sein „Ein-Mann-Projekt“ auf die Beine, das bedeutet, dass sowohl das Songwriting als auch Aufnahme und Produktion von TERRY MUNDAY selbst erledigt wurden. Musikalisch bekommen wir gute Gitarrenmusik mit einem großen Faible für Keyboardklänge zu hören. Damit meine ich aber jetzt keinen weiteren Gitarrenfrickler, sondern einen introvertierten Musiker, der ruhigere Songs schreibt, die einen eher nachdenklichen Charakter besitzen. Bezeichnend dafür ist nicht nur der Titel des Openers „Welcome To The Last Hotel“, sondern vor allem das sichere Gespür für Melodien, die sich in Form von leichtfüßigen Gitarrenklängen in Szene setzen. Schade, dass TERRY MUNDAY einen Drumcomputer einsetzt, zumindest hört sich das so an, als ob! Bei einem „Ein-Mann-Unternehmen“ ist es eben nicht anders möglich, aber genau dieser Drumsound entzieht den insgesamt 10 neuen Songs an manchen Stellen leider etwas die Magie. TERRY MUNDAY gehört bestimmt nicht zu den Easy Listening Bands, denn einige Durchgänge benötigt man schon, um sich in den Songs zurechtzufinden. Da es sich um ein Instrumentalalbum handelt, könnte ich mir gerade „The Human Zone“ bestens als skurrilen Soundtrack vorstellen. Wer sich ausführlicher über TERRY MUNDAY informieren möchte, kann dies unter www.terrymunday.com machen."


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Also Terry's two critically acclaimed albums of blues/latin/melodic rock guitar.

The Liberty Project (2001)

The Liberty Project by Terry MundayMr Dent, Modern Dance, April 2004

"Although I have never heard any work from Mr Munday, this album has come as a pleasant surprise. This is an instrumental recording ... where the guitar is being excellently utilised throughout. It's a big sound and needs to be heard all the way through to get full appreciation."

 

Phil Jackson, Paradox One, January 2004

"This 2001 release has finally reached my ears. Terry pulls off the rare trick of engaging the listener's interest for 68 minutes of guitar based instrumental music, a feat accomplished by few others (unless your name's Jeff Beck of course!) If your time is limited programme tracks 2 (Temujin), 6 (Utopian), 9 (Hisataka) and 10 (Kaledioscope) for a nice array of styles. Sheer quality and class."

 

Zeitgeist, January 2004

"It's quite remarkable how one mans musical journey can take him from working with ex-Clash drummer in the quasi goth / rock outfit Blood Simple, to the expressive and intimate guitar work of The Liberty Project. But plying his craft in the Middle East and Spain has managed to add an  incredible depth of expression to his work. Mixing up the various vibes of rock, blues and Latin, but tying it down with a traditional melodic sensibility, makes this an absolute peach of a CD, twisting and turning at every opportunity leaving you wondering where you'll end up next. Fortunately, it's always somewhere interesting. If the term guitar virtuoso leaves you cold, I suggest you shun your prejudices and give this a damn good listening."

 

Peter Jolly, Feedback Magazine, rock journal of MENSA, Nov 2003

"This CD by Terry Munday was forwarded onto me by the good folk at Stone Premonitions, and when I slipped it into the player I did not really know what to expect. It certainly was not the stunning guitar instrumental of the title track. For nearly six minutes he thrashes the instrument to within an inch of its life, and I was left thinking whatever would the rest of the album sound like. 'TEMUJIN' is a funkier, Eastern tinged piece with synth and guitar, with the latter once again outstanding. 'PLATONIC' and 'Wonderful Life' both have a laid back George Benson feel to them, while 'HISATAKA' is a blend of Japanese sounding acoustic and emotive electric guitar. Munday writes, plays and produces everything himself, and considering that there must have been many overdubs the production is crisp and clear. A few of these instrumentals bring to mind Swedish guitarist Janne Schaffer, while others have a touch of Gary Moore to them, and the styles range from heavy rock to jazz to funk. The unifying feature, though, is that every one of them features a top notch instrumentalist and composer whose other work I will most certainly be seeking out".

 

Don Campau, Radio KKUP California, USA, September 2003

"Guts and heat. Soul and expression. Well defined, precision guitar attacks that hit you in between the eyes and leave you breathless. These are a few of the things I find in the music of Terry Munday's "The Liberty Project". It's one of my favourite CDs of  the year".

  

Tony Currie, Radio 6 International, August 2003

"A wonderful album...Not a single duff track on it...68 minutes and 9 seconds of pure entertainment...Lots of different styles, lots of byways and pathways that you go through...What a great album!"

 

Martin Hudson, Rock Society, February 2002

"Calling all fans of flamboyant, and intelligent, electric guitar... eleven tracks stuffed full of virtuoso rock...Munday doesn't give the impression that he's only just learnt how to play his beloved instrument; he's an accomplished British artist of the electric guitar... a splendid instrumental album to listen to."

 

8 von 13 Augen, Tom Klaner, Bright Eyes, Germany

"Aus London reicht TERRY MUNDAY mit seinem "The Liberty Project"-Album ein ganz eigenes Stück Musik an den Hörer weiter. TERRY MUNDAY zelebriert in insgesamt elf Kompositionen seine technischen Fähigkeiten mit dem Umgang seiner Gitarre und muss in punkto Virtuosität und Spielfreude gegenüber den amerikanischen Gitarrenhelden nicht zurückstecken. So ist schon der Einstieg mit dem Titelsong fast ein Joe Satriani-Song, um nur einen gewissen Vergleich zu bringen. Auch hier ordnet sich die Gitarre phasenweise den anderen Instrumenten unter, ohne jedoch ganz in den Hintergrund zu rücken bzw. Soloauftritte zu haben. In fast 70 Minuten bietet TERRY MUNDAY sein gesamtes musikalisches Spektrum dar, wenngleich einige Songs für mich zu elektronisch ausgefallen sind, wie z.B. bei "Temujin" sehr deutlich wird.
Dieses Stück wirkt mit den Bläsersätzen aus dem Keyboard und den Drumcomputer-Sequenzen fast wie eine Paul Hardcastle-Nummer. "Platonic" ist dann eine eher jazzige ruhigere Angelegenheit wie auch das "Wonderful Life", das die Kreativität von TERRY komplett ausschöpft und mit einer hübschen Grundmelodie durch fünf Minuten reinste Improvisation führt. "The Liberty Project" ist ein gelungenes Instrumentalalbum, das eine enorme musikalische Vielfalt in sich vereint, die es allerdings schwer macht, TERRY MUNDAY irgendwo einzureihen. Man darf gespannt sein, was TERRY MUNDAY in den nächsten Jahren noch zu bieten hat und ob sich ein Label findet, das sich zutraut, diese eigene Musik einem breiten Publikum zugänglich zu machen. Für alle Gitarrenfreaks hat TERRY jedenfalls einiges zu bieten, ohne ein neuer Frickelkönig werden zu wollen."

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EURASIAN (1999)

Eurasian by Terry MundayDon Campau, Radio KKUP California, USA, September 2003

"Eurasian" is terrific...the overall feel is exceptional. The leads are smoking and the tunes have direction and
power. Way to go".

Terry Craven, Wondrous Stories, August 2000

"...rocking instrumental guitar workout...virtuosity...control... Terry Munday is one hell of a guitar player, but he also writes a pretty neat tune...a very talented artist".

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