Anand Mahangoe

Trivia question: How many heavy rock guitarists were born in Suriname? If you know the answer to this, send me an e-mail, because I just became aware of ONE this week when Anand Mahangoe’s Joy 4 Ever CD arrived in my mailbox. Born in 1974 in Suriname, South America, Anand moved with his parents to Holland as a wee little lad and picked up the guitar at the age of 12. Based on his playing throughout this CD, he must not have put the damn thing down very often! Admittedly influenced by Joe Satriani, Anand delivers his 2nd all-instrumental CD in Joy 4 Ever, a follow up to his 1st effort entitled A Man’s Mind. At first look, Anand doesn’t seem to fit the Hard Rock/Heavy Metal mold. Dressed in nondescript long sleeve t-shirts and baseball caps, Anand certainly appears non-pretentious, if not a bit dorky, in the pictures shown within the liner notes of this CD…kind of along the lines of Rick Nielsen from Cheap Trick. Once you listen to the first few tracks, however, you’ll quickly realize that you can’t judge a book by its cover, because Anand rocks! Anand indeed has many similarities to Satriani…which, in my book, is a good thing because somehow over the years I’ve managed to continually lug my obstinate arse into a local record store to pick up absolutely everything Satriani has ever released. To best describe Anand’s style and sound, start with Satriani’s Surfing with the Alien album and add more thunderous and pronounced percussion along with mood-enhanced keyboards. The overall sound is pretty clean throughout and well produced. Although clearly intended to showcase Anand’s talents, a conscious effort has been made in Joy 4 Ever to ensure no instrument is left behind. As a result, every instrument is properly emphasized …READ MORE