Abstract Point Of View

The guitar work by Faraz Anwar on Abstract Point Of View covers a lot of ground and has some very intricate and speedy passages. Faraz being a self-proclaimed disciple of Allan Holdsworth, this should come as no surprise after listening to the album and searching the liner notes for clues about his influences. One characteristic about Faraz's approach is that despite the fact that he integrates a lot of outside harmonization and unorthodox scales, he does this in a manner that weaves this complex harmonization into cohesive music with a distinctive and readily-perceivable musical vision. This is truly a difficult objective to undertake, and Faraz has done this on this album with awesome success. Faraz has struck a tenuous balance between tonal exploration and cohesive musical vision that will keep captive the attention of progressive musicians in pondering it. This being said, much of the harmonization is outside and approaching dissonant boundaries and this may be difficult for some to digest - however, the educated ear is going to indulge in this harmonious feast.