Friday, 6 June 2008
No More updates
Wednesday, 25 July 2007
Away for 4 weeks
Friday, 6 July 2007
Lorenzo Venza

Lorenzo Venza sellaband profile
Genre: Funk, Instrumental Rock, Jazz, Modern Rock
Member since: March 20 2007
Amount of money at time of review: $450
Profile views: 2247
Tracks played: 836
3 profile songs at time of review: Mr green faster psycho trip, Just Me, Secret Plot.
I love music industry ‘light bulb’ jokes so here goes:
Question: How many guitarists does it take to change a light bulb?
Answer: 100. One to change it and another 99 to sit back and say “I could have done it faster”.
Here’s my point: In Lorenzo’s chosen genre of Instrumental Rock/Jazz/Fusion there are too many ‘guitarists’ out there and not enough ‘musicians who play the guitar’. These ‘guitarists’ often can’t see ‘the wood for the trees’. Or perhaps that should be ‘the music for the notes’. So, it is always refreshing to hear someone putting their music first and then just using their technical proficiency as the instrument that communicates it best.
Lorenzo's guitar playing feels very controlled while still managing to sound free flowing and lyrical. His playing is there to serve the song rather than the other way around.
‘Mr green faster psycho trip’
This first track reminds me a bit of Stave Vai’s work on ‘Passion and Warfare’. It starts with a blending of environmental sounds (breathing and the like) and opens out from there. This is a bit of a journey piece. Lots of sections and themes come and go throughout. Radio sampling, guitar and piano unison lines and ethereal textures make this essentially jazz based piece very appealing.
This is the ballad of the three. The constant 12/8 signature pushes things along nicely. Songs like these can often be treated by the instrumentalist as a platform to pull out all the tricks but not once did I get the feeling I had just walked into my local guitar store during the school holidays. There is however a passage that becomes a bit of a ‘note frenzy’, but, it happens at the end and serves as the climax to the piece so there is enough musical justification for that. (Due to some glitch at the SAB end of things, this tracks cuts out early – 1 or 2 seconds according to Mr Venza.)
If track one was the ‘Steve Vai’ of the three then this third track is the ‘Joe Satriani’. The rhythms are a bit more freeform and give the piece a real jam session feel. Again, musical variety is the key to this peice and like track 1, thought has also gone into it's form.
While I have compared him to a few icons of the instrumental rock genre that I am particularly familiar with I wouldn’t say that Lorenzo is a clone or a sound-a-like of either of them. His blending of styles and constant changing of musical material keeps you listening. Tracks 1 and 3 both go over 5 minutes but have the neccessary depth to maintain your interest throughout.
Track 2 doesn’t go over 3 minutes. Any longer and it would start to get a bit monochromatic.
Despite the obvious fact that this man can throw notes with the best of them, Lorenzo also knows when enough is enough. 'Guitarists' take note.
Lorenzo Venza sellaband profile
Thursday, 5 July 2007
Tiffany Gow

"Tiffany may already be known to many as she is edging her way to the first page. However this is Sheet Metals first review and they chose to review Tiffany! We'll try to keep to bands lower than $2000 from now on however. Enjoy the review!" - Mullac14
Tiffany Gow SellaBand Profile page
Genres: Modern Rock, Pop, Hard Rock, Metal
Member since: Nov 12, 2006
Amount of belief at time of review: $12540
Profile views: 19842
Tracks played: 7870
3 profile songs at time of review: Slave Symphony - Nothing's Sadder - No Fear
Female rock acts have always had a tough time. With rock being a predominantly male dominated genre, they either get viewed as guitar-toting totty, or try and butch it up and be "angry" like the boys. That's before we start talking about the obligatory power ballad about misdirected and unrequited love (Heart anyone?). Tiffany Gow neatly sidesteps these issues by neatly sidestepping the sexual politics that usually infest the female side of rock. Indeed, there is nothing shallow at all about the lyrical content of these tracks with the main topic being the routing of individual existential angst.
Powerful, thought provoking and inspiring. Tiffany gow makes you want to stand up for what you believe in and reach for your goals.
Song 1: Slave Symphony
"Don't you dare dream, don't you dare fight, you are told by society"
From the opening clean guitar arpeggio that leads into a thumping driving rhythm, your toe immediately starts tapping. The understated use of orchestral strikes underscores the catchy chord changes and give you an "Oh Yeah!" moment just before the killer chorus swirls you up and gently places you down again for the next ride. The mid section of the song really reminded me of Neighbourhood Threat by David Bowie, not in musical content, but in vibe.
This is my favourite song of the three. The lyrics are lucid and inspiring, identifying the rat race that we all fall prey to, and the struggle to exist beyond the preconceptions that we have had inbuilt by our parental and environmental conditioning.
Song 2: Nothing's Sadder
"Nothing's sadder than wasted talent"
As the beat stumbles into the main riff, the bassline pulls you down into the groove. Just as you are starting to think the song has nowhere else to go and this could be a dud the chorus surprises you with a strange harmonic guitar and vocal combo. Probably the weakest track of the three but an excellent track nonetheless. The final vocal line leaves you wanting more.
Song 3: No Fear
"Do it now....."
A power ballad with a twist. Both emotionally empowering and powerful, this track would not be out of place as the finale of a rock musical. You can almost hear the curtain falling on the final note.
The subject matter is similar to the other tracks - the questioning of "what are you waiting for? Why don't we all just go and attempt to reach what we aspire to". The brilliance of this approach is that it's a universal struggle we can all understand, and the message will not be lost on most people.
Review round up
Tiffany Gow is a strong artist who has a clear message. Do it now. Easier said than done maybe, but she is living proof that you can follow your dream and stay relevant to other people. Finally, a decent female rock act and the positive role model that hundreds and thousands of young girls are sorely in need of.
Rock on Tiff. You are cleared for stardom.
Tiffany Gow SellaBand Profile page
Tuesday, 3 July 2007
Sheet Metal

Sheet Metal Sellaband Profile
Genre: Hard Rock
Member since: Nov 17, 2006
Amount of money at time of review:
Profile views:
Tracks played:
3 profile songs at time of review: This is a warning, London, My name is law
The oldest SAB profile reviewed as of yet, and they seem to have really got into the spirit of SellaBand since the opening of the forum. With them still under the $2000 its up to you to ask why?
I've always said that a good first song selection is probably the bets thing an artist can do. And Sheet Metal have chosen well here. The simple lyrics are catchy enough without the music behind it adding to the effect. Everything in this song works from the continuous beat to the backing vocals.
This is more the kind of music you would expect from an artist with the genre “hard rock” with probably the most unusual intros out there the song really does make an impression. The only thing i don't understand is why do they like London so much?! Well enough to make a song all about it! Its a lot more upbeat then “This is a warning” and i can imagine the great response from a crowd when its sung Live (Much more if they played in a club in London) The outro is very clever, using the guitar to replicate Big Ben is brilliant!
Another lively affair is My Name is Law a great intro really gets you pulled into the song. It just demonstrates the talent of Sheet Metal and proves that there is so much unknown talent in Sellaband. I have to say its my favourite song out of the three. Its a heck of a tune with a long instrumental section. The vocals really do match the lyrics that i had to listen to twice to really understand what they were about.
I'm glad that Sheet Metal have stayed active with SellaBand even though they have seen only small increases the amount of parts sold. To stay with their dream shows real commitment and that's what SellaBand is about. Their building up quite a fan base now and it will be hard to stop them. With the 3 amazing (and quite different when compared to each other) songs on their profile it won't take long until people listen and realise that these guys have talent.
Sheet Metal Sellaband Profile