By: Matt Blackett
n the liner notes to his latest album, Shawn "Yogi" Farley thanks Mike Keneally, King's X, and Steve Vai, among others. That should give you a good idea of what "Any Raw Flesh?" is all about. Farley mixes those influences into an appealing stew of quirky, clever tunes that manage to be rock, pop, prog, and shred - all at the same time.
Farley spins intricate, interlocking parts in "Throw Me A Bone", with a great, slightly dirty tone, then follows with a cool, melodic neck-pickup solo. He fills every nook and cranny of "My Love For Lois Is Real" with single-note lines, power-chord stabs, and clangy open-string fills, but knows exactly how to orchestrate his numerous parts so that the tune never sounds overly busy. The solo section is very Vai- complete with the requisite bass/drums breakdown and a ton of vocal-inflected wah work. The chorus of "Firefly" almost sounds like a Living Colour outtake, from a guitar and vocal standpoint. Throughout "Any Raw Flesh?" Farley shows a knack for playing a truckload of inventive music without being intrusive.
Any good guitar? Yeah.
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