Review: Oz Noy & Andrew Synowiec ‘Recreational Substance’

Review: Oz Noy & Andrew Synowiec ‘Recreational Substance’

By Hal Horowitz

Neither Oz Noy nor Andrew Synowiec has the recognizable name factor of instrumental jazz/rock fusion guitar veterans such as Eric Johnson, Steve Vai or Joe Satriani….but give them time.

Both are “acclaimed and incendiary plectrists” (a quote from the promotional notes) who have generated industry-wide praise for their individual work yet mostly as supporting players for higher profile acts. But here they share the spotlight on their debut duo album. Similar to the work of the aforementioned G3 string-benders, these eight pieces pool blues, jazz, rock and even prog influences.

Anyone who has thrilled to Jeff Beck’s ‘Blow By Blow’ or ‘Wired,’ both classics of the genre, will find plenty to love on this similarly styled outing. The twosome is assisted by a taut, tight, and often rousing rhythm section of drummer Marvin “Smitty” Smith and bassist Hadrien Feraud who match the headliners’ technical expertise. These four guys sync together like they have been playing as a band for years.

Synowiec, the lesser known of the twosome, provides five compositions in contrast to Noy’s three, (two are revisited from his OZ Live disc). There are no covers. Since they are experienced as backing musicians, each is sensitive to leaving space while the other is soloing, which is often.

The string slashing sometimes gets intense as on Noy’s “I Don’t Know Why.” Here, on the disc’s most energetic track, the opening rock-styled, speedy note bending and tough riffing is enthralling. It displays how talented he is, igniting his strings before the tune downshifts into pure jazz. The guys join for a Pat Methany/John McLaughlin-styled approach of intricate picking as the bass and drums boil under them (drummer Smith takes a short solo too). Riveting stuff.

The fast bluesy beat of “Kuffle Shuffle” brings West Coast swing to the table as they link on the opening lick, then split off for personal flights, never stepping on the others’ toes, or rather fingers. The lines are clean, sharp, and distortion-free, friskily bouncing between each guitarist. You can imagine their grins, trading leads with playful abandon.

The mood gets gauzy on Noy’s appropriately titled “Half Romantic,” at nine minutes the set’s longest tune. It twists from a sweet ballad with laid-back, reverbed solos, gradually building to more frantic fretwork that turns darker and ominous, then goes atmospheric with hints of psychedelia. Elements of Steely Dan’s crisp melodies infuse the bubbling groove of “The Royal You” as one guitar lays into a jazzy rhythm strum while his partner picks out fluid notes that careen like a luxury sports car around tight curves. The beat shifts to light funk when the second solo digs in, carving out cutting lines until both combine to bring the song to a floating close.

You don’t need to be a guitar expert to hear how these two cohere like the pros they are, especially on the closing slow blues of “101 Blues.” The playing builds, stops, pulls back, then lurches forward, keeping the listener engaged and wondering where they’ll go next.

Unlike some multi-guitar excursions which are often exhausting exercises in who can out-shred the other, on the outstanding ‘Recreational Substance,’ Noy and Synowiec are as comfortable musically dancing together as Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers; neither hogging the focus but rather complimenting their partner’s talents.

Oz Noy, Andrew Synowiec