Artist: Michael Angelo Batio
Album: Hands Without Shadows
Released: October 27, 2005
Genre: Instrumental Rock, Progressive Metal, Shred Guitarist
The Band:
Michael Angelo Batio - lead guitar, all rhythm guitars and keyboards, production
William Kopecky - 6 string and fretless bass
Bobby Rock - drums
Mark Tremonti - guitar
Bill Peck - guitar
Doug Marks - guitar
Stuart Bull - guitar
Rudy Sarzo - bass
Michael Angelo Batio is without a doubt the best shredder in metal music. This album is a cover album, for the most part, only 2 songs on the album are actually written by Batio; “Hands Without Shadows” and “Pray On, Prey”. The cover songs are how covers should be done, Batio takes the songs and adds his own style to them, making the songs innovative and fresh. The album is instrumental, but an excellent choice for some heavy background music.
01. Burn - Deep Purple
02. Tribute To Randy - Blizzard Of Ozz
03. Zeppelin Forever - Led Zeppelin
04. Hands Without Shadows - Batio
05. Wherever I May Roam - Metallica
06. Dream On - Aerosmith
07. Pray On, Prey - Batio
08. All Along The Watchtower - Bob Dylan (Inspired By Jimi Hendrix)
Burn: Burn is a Deep Purple cover, with intense, fast paced shreds. Very innovative cover.
Tribute to Randy: This is a dedication to Randy Rhodes. You will hear mixes from Crazy Train and Mr. Crowley along with some other Batio flavors added to the solo portions of Crazy Train. The song flows very nicely from one mix to the next.
Zeppelin Forever: This song is a mash up of bits and pieces of Zeppelin tunes rolled into a unique blend designed by Batio. Batio lets you know what Page would have sounded like if he were a shredder.
Hands Without Shadows: This is a piece written by Batio. It has a nice opening build then drops and re-opens to some high energy shreds. The song title is self explanatory, hands moving so fast they leave no shadows.
Wherever I May Roam: Metallica never sounded so good! High energy cover of the song showing that Batio has true genius with the guitar.
Dream On: Batio takes this cover to a new level of creativity, taking the vocal portions of the song and letting the guitar talk. A very beautiful cover, easy to listen to.
Pray On, Prey: This is a song composed by Batio, very melodic with unique breaks in the song followed by high octane shredding. A very progressive and complex song.
All Along the Watchtower: This song is hardly recognizable as a Hendrix composition. All the instrumentation is clearly heard on this song. Excellent production!
This album is put together very nicely. It is more than just speed jamming of notes, Batio puts on a great production. A production where you can hear all the instruments being played, including bass. He tweeks the melodies on vocal portions of songs, which can be quite difficult especially on “All Along the Watchtower”.
My rating for listening pleasure 4.5/5
Album: Hands Without Shadows
Released: October 27, 2005
Genre: Instrumental Rock, Progressive Metal, Shred Guitarist
The Band:
Michael Angelo Batio - lead guitar, all rhythm guitars and keyboards, production
William Kopecky - 6 string and fretless bass
Bobby Rock - drums
Mark Tremonti - guitar
Bill Peck - guitar
Doug Marks - guitar
Stuart Bull - guitar
Rudy Sarzo - bass
Michael Angelo Batio is without a doubt the best shredder in metal music. This album is a cover album, for the most part, only 2 songs on the album are actually written by Batio; “Hands Without Shadows” and “Pray On, Prey”. The cover songs are how covers should be done, Batio takes the songs and adds his own style to them, making the songs innovative and fresh. The album is instrumental, but an excellent choice for some heavy background music.
01. Burn - Deep Purple
02. Tribute To Randy - Blizzard Of Ozz
03. Zeppelin Forever - Led Zeppelin
04. Hands Without Shadows - Batio
05. Wherever I May Roam - Metallica
06. Dream On - Aerosmith
07. Pray On, Prey - Batio
08. All Along The Watchtower - Bob Dylan (Inspired By Jimi Hendrix)
Burn: Burn is a Deep Purple cover, with intense, fast paced shreds. Very innovative cover.
Tribute to Randy: This is a dedication to Randy Rhodes. You will hear mixes from Crazy Train and Mr. Crowley along with some other Batio flavors added to the solo portions of Crazy Train. The song flows very nicely from one mix to the next.
Zeppelin Forever: This song is a mash up of bits and pieces of Zeppelin tunes rolled into a unique blend designed by Batio. Batio lets you know what Page would have sounded like if he were a shredder.
Hands Without Shadows: This is a piece written by Batio. It has a nice opening build then drops and re-opens to some high energy shreds. The song title is self explanatory, hands moving so fast they leave no shadows.
Wherever I May Roam: Metallica never sounded so good! High energy cover of the song showing that Batio has true genius with the guitar.
Dream On: Batio takes this cover to a new level of creativity, taking the vocal portions of the song and letting the guitar talk. A very beautiful cover, easy to listen to.
Pray On, Prey: This is a song composed by Batio, very melodic with unique breaks in the song followed by high octane shredding. A very progressive and complex song.
All Along the Watchtower: This song is hardly recognizable as a Hendrix composition. All the instrumentation is clearly heard on this song. Excellent production!
This album is put together very nicely. It is more than just speed jamming of notes, Batio puts on a great production. A production where you can hear all the instruments being played, including bass. He tweeks the melodies on vocal portions of songs, which can be quite difficult especially on “All Along the Watchtower”.
My rating for listening pleasure 4.5/5
He also was a part of a band called "Holland" with ex-Steppenwolf singer, Tommy Holland.
