Dean Cascione
Guitar Chop Shop Independent

by Matthew Hoffman
Staff Writer

Comments: Another new and extraordinary guitarist has tossed his pick into the malaise that is guitar hero worship. This gentleman's name is Dean Cascione and he has wonderful feel for both acoustic and electric neo-classic shred genres. Hailing from Massachusetts should with this technique and feel become a bright star on the international guitar scene very soon.

This release is a really unique one as it sails from acoustic flamenco-like notes into a harried vicious chop-a-second approach. The best thing is that all of it works and blends seamlessly into one cool ass summer album. This album is harsh enough to raise the eye brows of extreme metal fans while having a soft side for that special lady in your life. There is something here for everybody.

While kicking back on a lounge chair at a neighborhood bbq with a cold Miller Lite or snuggling on a soft couch sipping a glass of $15 Riesling this sick Italian can help with either "mood."

Alba is a beautiful romantic cut that sounds bit Latin flavored and ends with a few unique Asian notes.

The vicious high tech ability in the aggressive neo-classic realm immediately smacks u in the "chops" as "Molto Veloce" jumps ahead with amazingly crisp and fresh Impelitteri sounding licks. The thing that makes this different from the 986 Yngwie impersonators appearing every year since 1985 or so, is that he has all the technique and also buckets full o' emotion. Frenchy Guillame Sylvin provides the live and spirited if largely basic drumming here with some wicked tone.

The flamenco technique on "Sunrazor" and Dean's layers of acoustic notes in rhythm and lead are dripping with tears. Yes peeps this one may take you down a road you certainly did not expect when you bought what you thought was a shred record. Holy #$% is this wonderful song. It's possibly one of the best in years in the solo instrumental guitar world.

He rotates between serene and melancholic and into aggressive and frantic on this record so often that you may wonder if someone switched CDs in the changer. On that very theme Dean rips Mach 7 tones forward on the next ditty the albums title track. His speedy and vicious striking of the strings up and down approximately a minute into the frey make for an almost bull fighter scene where the tension rises and then he slows it down a bit after the young handsome young animal's protagonist is gored and left to die.

The rest of the CD is just as pure and spectacular. This includes the cover art of Weiye Yin who conceived the picture of a futuristic wildman with sabers for arms.
The only critique of this record is that 27 minutes is a bit short for a full length album, so a bit more content would have been nice.

Regardless of the shortness this is a "top" candidate for album of the year in 2008 and is "highly" recommended.

Pick up his record a.s.a.p at www.guitar9.com.

Band Members:
Dean Cascione - Guitar/Bass
Gullaume Sylvain - Drums
Jay Menard - Orchestration
Randy Ciak - Orchestration, Keyboard Arrangement
Gabriel Langelier - Vocals

Track Listing:
1. Alba
2. Molto Veloce
3. Sunrazor
4. Guitar Chop Shop
5. Brother
6. The Monk
7. Driven
8. Farewell
9. Brother (Vocals)

Hardrock Haven rating: 8.6/10