The opening track, "Begin Again", is a full-on rocker in the style of Eric Johnson, while the cascade-echo effects of "Still Moments" may bring to mind U2's the Edge. Denis is masterful at exploring the ethereal far reaches of digital delay, as heard in "Formations", where he draws on the past echo and delay-loop achievements of guitar masters like David Torn, Allan Holdsworth, and Phil Keaggy. The loopy enchantment continues on "Song for Sinead", dedicated to one of favorite musicians, Sinead O'Connor, which shows the kind of wide stylistic influence that makes Taaffe's music even more interesting than that of your average guitar wanker.

All told, "Alien Guitar" contains the kind of kooky, maverick genius rarely heard on guitar albums these days. Here's a guy who dares to be different, take chances, and risks making mistakes, certainly, this CD is not the sterile technically polished product of a major record label. It's the sound of one guitarist with a cool idea and the ingenuity to effectively put it down in recorded form. Indeed, we should all be as fearless in our own guitar playing.