Guitarist and composer John 5 has worked with a varied range of artists. He has been a guitar player for some of the biggest headlining rock bands globally and playing sessions with Paul Stanley, Rod Stewart, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and more. John 5 hangs with Rob Zombie and Marilyn Manson; scored Zombie’s film The Lords of Salem. His metal-glam appearance of a crypt keeper facade for John 5 is real; the subculture he projects is genuinely him, he is creative both on and off the stage, but more importantly, he can shred! That fact has allowed him to work with everyone from David Lee Roth to Meat Loaf to Paul Stanley to RED SQUARE BLACK to Lynyrd Skynyrd. Enter his new album called, It’s Alive, joined by the Creatures, which are Ian Ross on bass and Logan Nix on drums. The trio delivers an all-instrumental album of sixteen tracks from the band’s studio album, Seasons of the Witch, with some cover tunes added to round out the set. The styles include metal, hard rock, funk, blues, southern rock, country, and even a little swing. In the vein of Joe Satriani, Yngwie Malmsteen, and Steve Vai, John 5 & The Creatures prove that shred is not dead; it is evolving to have personality, a wide range of virtuosic skills, and a high level of accessibility for guitar freaks and casual music fans alike. That’s the short of it!
It’s Alive
Guitars Tits and Monsters
Flight of the Vulcan Kelly
Six Hundred and Sixty Six Packers in Hell, Ca
Here’s to the Crazy Ones
This Is My Rifle
Jiffy Jam
Hell Haw
Season of the Witch
Portrait of Sydney Sloan (W / Harold Rollings Hymn)
Triple D (W / Dr Evils Spook Show)
Black Grass Plague
Behind the Nut Love
Making Monsters
Beat It
Now Fear This
Medley
Release Date: January 25, 2018
60 cycle hum records
1 hour 13 minutes
5 is a shredder, thank God, but the tunes on Its Alive offer more than shredom; they are melodic and easy to follow and relate to. The fact that 5 is serving up impressive technical fretwork is secondary to the tune's overall statement! The result is both invigorating and enjoyable!
It sounds like the crowd noise within some of the tunes where enhanced, this could be for many reasons because of how the show was recorded, but it does sound unnatural. Does it matter? No! The crowd sounds real in between the songs, and while 5 is speaking to them, I have to say I was surprised when I first heard the crowd sound within some tracks. It is an unneeded distraction.
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