Guitarist Steve Howe will release his new solo album, “Guitarscape”, on September 27 on his own HoweSound label. The album will be available on CD, vinyl and digitally as 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 utilized most of the colors, 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,” he continued. “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,” Steve added. “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.”
“Guitarscape” track listing
01. Hail Storm (2.22)
02. Spring Board (2.45)
03. Distillations (1.48)
04. Up Stream (3.17)
05. Secret Mission (3.26)
06. Passing Thoughts (2.36)
07. Touch The Surface (3.21)
08. Spring Rhyme (2.02)
09. Equinox (3.04)
10. Seesaw (2.12)
11. Gone West (3.03)
12. Suma (1.34)
13. Spring Tide (2.41)
14. Steel Breeze (2.57)
All tracks written by Steve Howe
Produced by Steve Howe
Assembled and mixed by Curtis Schwartz
Music has been a constant in Steve Howe‘s life. In the ’60s, he made a name for himself as guitarist of psychedelic pioneers TOMORROW. Joining YES in the ’70s, he helped propel that band to progressive rock superstardom. The ’80s found Steve at the top the charts once again as a founding member of supergroup ASIA, and later, GTR. Concurrently, Steve developed a brilliant solo career, performing and honing his skills as a producer, releasing more than twenty albums. Together with wife Jan, he’s raised a family, and steered side projects with son Dylan in THE STEVE HOWE TRIO.
Steve Howe‘s creative passion has put him on a lifelong journey on pathways, ranging from jazz, blues and classical, to folk, bluegrass and rock. His prolific solo career defies easy categorization, making each new album a venture into genre-bending territory that always bears his inimitable imprimatur. Always pushing forward with studio craft and virtuosity, each of his albums reflects the insights he has gathered along the way.
Photo credit: Steve Burnett (courtesy of The Publicity Connection)