Conveniently, the trio (as well as the 3 individual artists) are under candyrat records (the same label as Andy McKee, Antoine Dufour, and a host of other amazing guitarists), so when they had the show in Philly, I was notified by candyrat. Otherwise, I would never have heard of them until they were done with their US tour and back in Italy. That being said, after I heard about them through candyrat, I looked them up and immediately cleared my schedule for the show.
The show took place in a tiny venue, the Tin Angel, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Though I’m sure you could pack like 100+ people into the venue, it could maybe seat 40-50 comfortably. Getting there on time meant a front row seat in the dimly lit room, at a candle-lit table. The main point: this was a tiny venue with an intimate performer-crowd setting. This is the sort of atmosphere where there isn’t a bad seat and it’s almost as if the performers are performing a private show for you – excellent for the type of act that Guitar Republic is.
The night started off with the song, “Ghetto Republic.” Sergio used a lap steel guitar in this song, starting the show off slowly, easing the audience into what we were about to be a part of. Throughout the rest of the night, the trio played the rest of the songs off of their 9 song debut, self-titled album, ending with, “Funky Sex Republic.”
What is truly unique about these guys is the variety that they throw into their songs. They had notable influences from rock to jazz to even having some Eastern influence. On top of that, they take their 3 guitar instrumentation to places uncomprehendable. Quite a few people know that I’ve been working with some percussive-fingerstyle lately, but I put my skill level with this right above novice (Yes, I am my own worst critic. Clearly, this is to make a point.). These guys, however, are all three well versed in percussive fingerstyle, easily being some of the best in the genre. In addition to percussive elements, a bow was used a few times, what looked like a computer fan with a string(?) attached to it was used, and some prepared guitar as well.
So what the heck is prepared guitar, you ask? If you’ve heard of prepared piano, you are familiar with the concept. It’s pencils, CDs, nuts, screws, paper, and anything else you can think of to wedge between the strings. Seem like a weird concept? Well, it is. However, it enables some truly unique sounds to be produced that, yes, are mostly created out of dumb luck, but cannot be produced by any “normal” means.
With a unique blend of all three styles, what I witnessed was rhythmic mastery, fretboard mastery, and a mastery of the absurd. This equates to a mastery of music and of sound. Do I believe there is even more out there that can be done with a guitar? Of course I do, but these guys are pushing what even I thought possible. It’s only once you realize how little you know about your instrument that you begin to appreciate its true potential. These guys have helped me to see over where I was as a musician to an entirely new dimension of guitar playing.
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