Dave Kilminster – Scarlet – The Director’s Cut
www.davekilminster.com

Rating: B

Dave Kilminster is the secret weapon for some of the biggest artists on the planet. The talented guitarist has performed and/or recorded with Roger Waters, Keith Emerson, Ken Hensley, John Wetton and Carl Palmer. His touring with Waters on The Wall is simply amazing, as was witnessed on the classic 12/12/12 benefit for the victims of Hurricane Sandy in New York City.

Kilminster has released his first ever solo album, stepping out from the shadows into the spotlight. The result is a very daring and musical album. He melds his influences, ranging from Pink Floyd to more progressive groups including Yes and ELP, with his own brand of creativity. The opening track, “Silent Scream” is the best on the album and really grabs the listener’s attention.

The music on the album is very grown up and delivered with diamond cutting precision. Kilminster, like David Gilmour does in Pink Floyd, can do a lot with a little. Complex passages, that must be musically spot on, come off sounding easy. He has the ability to make notes do things for him that, to the novice, just sound good. To the guitarist in the audience, who know more about what is actually going on, they are little bits of gold.

The only knock on the album is that the songs can run into each other. And while Dave seems to be drawn to the sublime, he would do himself a favor to go ahead and show off more with his lead passages. He is damn talented so he should be more comfortable in letting us all known it!

At the end of the day, this is a nice little slab of original music. While some influences show, don’t be fooled that he is just copying them. On the contrary, Kilminster weaves his influences into a very original musical fabric, ending up with a unique sound.

By Jeb Wright