HoweSound
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Visit product page →Guitarist Steve Howe releases his new solo album Guitarscape on 27th September on his own HoweSound label. The album will be available on CD, vinyl and digital downloads, including Dolby Atmos.
Guitarscape marks a new chapter for the YES and ASIA legend as he presents, what amounts to, a guitar masterclass. “What I’m doing,” said Steve, “is focusing on what I do well and what I love to do.” Guitarscape features 14 new instrumental tracks in a host of musical styles, from rock through to acoustic and classical, each bearing that unmistakable Steve Howe sound. Steve plays acoustic, electric, steel and bass guitars along with keyboards and is joined by his son Dylan on drums. Steve has written all of the tracks and produced the album.
“This album has given me the opportunity to do something different,” says Steve. “I bought a Novatron Summit keyboard and found that it had a wealth of inspiring sounds. It gave me a golden opportunity to create my own keyboard structures – chordal movements and structures that I thought were a bit different. I think differently on a keyboard, I don’t see the chords looking the same but then I had fun playing around with the guitar to see where that goes.
“I’ve utilised most of the colours, as I like to I think of my styles, and I’m always pleased when I hear them running through and it moves from a steel, maybe, to a Spanish guitar. Because it’s a different sort of album, I’m not using terribly conventional chord sequences but things that give me a fresh feeling and opportunities to improvise and stretch out as well as be melodic and make this a nice tuneful experience.“I began feeding the tracks to Dylan. We get on great and he seems to know what to play around my guitar, it’s almost instinctive. Dylan and I fit together really beautifully. We’ve had the chance to do this together, so it’s wonderful.
“The bass parts and the keyboards are pretty interesting, everything had to be interesting but also work together. I like doing things that are super fresh and this album says what I am today.” Steve HoweTracklisting:
Hail Storm
Spring Board
Distillations
Up Stream
Secret Mission
Passing Thoughts
Touch The Surface
Spring Rhyme
Equinox
Seesaw
Gone West
Suma
Spring Tide -
Gatefold sleeve / Black vinyl / Limited to 500 copiesVisit product page →
Brand new solo release from YES guitar maestro, Steve Howe – Steve explains the concept of the Motif series of releases - The MOTIF idea pulls together my solo guitar writing and performances combining new tunes and refreshed and revisited studio performances of other tunes.
My solo guitar tunes combine country picking with classical guitar pieces that have broader influences, jazz, rock, flamenco and folk, they've all been absorbed in my approach to writing and playing. It's 15 years since Volume 1 was released so it's delightful to announce the release of MOTIF Volume Two.
Again I present some new tunes and further explore pulling the selection together to present a clear focus on all things 'solo guitar'. I record these myself onto a hard drive and then work on selecting takes and giving the sound some due consideration.
Assembling the running order and then the final mastering means it's on to the sleeve information and design. Soon it's a 'wrap' and you're holding it in your hand!
Tracklisting:
Side A:
1. Cross Country
2. Mood For A Day
3. In The Course Of A Day
4. Surface Tension
5. The Valley Of Rocks
6. Tailpiece
7. Hint Hint
Side B:
8. Oceans Cadenza
9. Pumpkin Pickin'
10. All’s A Chord
11. Cactus Boogie
12. Honey Creek
13. Pyramidology
14. The Little Gallard
15. Cascade
16. Beginnings -
Visit product page →YES guitarist Steve Howe has announced he is to release the seventh edition of his Homebrew album series on 30th July via HoweSound. Homebrew 7 marks the 25th anniversary of the guitar legend's first album in his Homebrew collection.
The Homebrew series typically features recordings from Steve Howe's home archive of demos and tracks, originally recorded for one of his many solo or group projects with YES, ASIA, ABWH or GTR. Homebrew 7 differs slightly as none of the tracks have previously been released in any form and there are no plans for any to be rerecorded in the future.
'Many are things I've enjoyed saving until the right moment,' says Howe, 'and the Homebrew series allows this. Some tracks have matured with my nurturing but others have been recently rediscovered.'
This collection includes tracks from the late seventies through to 2016 in Howe's extensive range of playing styles. Each of the 21 tracks is dated and accompanied by Howe's background notes and details on instrumentation. Most of the tracks are Howe's solo recordings with occasional contributions from Dylan Howe and Virgil Howe on drums with Phil Spalding on bass guitar (Half Way).
The booklet includes the lyrics for the four vocal tracks and is also illustrated by some of Howe's delightfully atmospheric photography.
Tracklisting:
1. The Glider
2. October
3. Half Way
4. The Only One
5. In One Life
6. Outstanding Deal
7. Be Natural
8. Cold Winds
9. Deanscape
10. Tender Hooks
11. A Lady She Is
12. Two Sided
13. Strange Wayfarer
14. Devon Girl
15. Safe Haven
16. A Matter Of Fact
17. Touchstone
18. From Another Day
19. Foregone Conclusion
20. Space Void
21. From The Get Go
