PAUL CLARK – Shredz At An Exhibition

Some music listeners out there have no idea who Paul Clark is, which is why at first glance most people who pick up his new release, Shredz At An Exhibition, will probably put it back down. Don’t be one of those people unfortunate enough to fall into that category. This album is far too enriched with extraordinary talent and listenability to be left on the shelves.

Paul Clark (a.k.a. Clarky) couldn’t help to become anything but a musician growing up. It was more or less all around him as a youngster, from his uncle or his grandfather’s influences. Between the ages of 9 and 15, he went from learning to play drums to guitar to forming a band. His uncle John gave him a cheap old nylon acoustic guitar and taught him how to play the chords to “House Of The Rising Sun.” At age 13, he was given his first electric guitar along with a 15 watt amplifier. Having gotten a taste for bands like Motorhead, Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, AC/DC, Led Zeppelin etc., it was here where Paul began to learn to riff and learn some basic Blues-Rock licks. While still young and impressionable, Paul developed a keen ear for Progressive Rock from his grandfather, listening to Yes, Genesis, Deep Purple, ELP and the like.

The turning point in Paul’s life was in 1978 after going to see Black Sabbath perform live with Van Halen as the opening band. Paul was mesmerized by “Eruption” and the wizardry of Eddie Van Halen. Paul wasn’t satisfied until he learned how to play the entire album. A friend of Paul turned him onto Yngwie Malmsteen’s Rising Force one day. Paul was so blown away that he had to know and learn how to do all of that stuff too. He became hungry for all of the top-named shredders out there (Satriani, Malmsteen, McAlpine, Vinnie Moore, etc.).

Paul experimented with numerous genres throughout his career, including Progressive Rock, Rock, Hard Rock, Blues, Reggae, Heavy Metal, Funk, Fusion, Jazz Fusion, and Classical. Although it was mostly Rock and Metal that “flicked his switch,” as he stated in the past, “I’m not constrained to just one thing. That’s not healthy for a musician.” For most musicians this would be enough, but not for Paul, however. His grandfather introduced him to Classical music, especially Eastern European composers at an early age. After listening to Yngwie Malmsteen, there was only one thing left for Paul to accomplish. He went on to study Classical music, ranging from the 16th through the 20th centuries at the University of London. Paul had to find a way to incorporate this knowledge into his unique compositional and playing style. It can be heard throughout his new release Shredz At An Exhibition, which he has been working on since 2000, with unfortunately numerous interruptions.

The album consists of 7 pieces (songs), each of which are based upon a painting that has a story behind it. Paul wrote it, recorded it, programmed all of the sequenced parts, played all the guitars, mixed it, and engineered it. Upon listening to it for the first time, you may not know what to make of it, even as good as it sounds, although Paul’s musical knowledge and playing style and ability shine right through no matter what. It is obvious in listening that the person behind the guitar is well-versed in his instrument and is an exceptionally talented musician. This album is a definite must for any music lover, not just for fans of instrumentals. Look at it this way — just think of what Paul is going to come out with when he is given some time to work on his new project without being interrupted.