Guitarist Chris Forsyth is a unique voice in the realm of American music, having emerged from the challenging free form expressionism of his old group Peeesseye with a lyrical command rare in any genre. His newest work brings his trademark lyricism to new heights in his most straightforward setting yet. Gone are the fleshed out rock band arrangements of last year’s Paranoid Cat LP, replaced on Kenzo Deluxe, by Forsyth shunning overdubs and playing his transcendent songs alone in a room on his electric guitar.
Forsyth recorded the album over three days in the studio with the assistance of co-producer Scott Colburn, who has worked extensively with the Sun City Girls and Richard Bishop’s solo projects as well as Animal Collective and others. The result is a richly recorded album of five rewarding and listenable tracks. With no loss of vision, Forsyth has created his most accessible album to date, one that will engage guitar geeks, freak folks and the uninitiated alike in its trance-inducing glow.(NORTHERN SPY)