Artist: Martin Behr CD Title: "Law of the Jungle" Reviewed by: Nick Martinelli Reviewed: 12/4/01

    Me Tarzan like "Law of the Jungle" CD.  Jane listen to Martin Behr he rocks.  Melody and groove driven guitar music best describes the cool release.  Martin Behr is a hot new guitarist hailing from Germany.  He has a very energetic guitar style, you'll notice that right off the bat when you pop this CD into the player.  Martin composes some very well structured songs with lots of life.  His guitar playing isn't boring at all, he keeps your attention with great hooks, and serious guitar playing.  Martin isn't your normal minor key driven guitar player.  He spices things up with jazz and funk orientated guitar playing.  So you really get a lot of variation on this release. I think this is one thing that will help keep Behr outside the crowd of other instrumental players.  He writes with melody and groove in mind.  You can really get into his songs and you'll want to listen over and over.

     Track one "Law of the Jungle" sets the stage for the stellar album.  Its packed with cool jungle percussion.  Just close your eyes and imagine your walking through the jungle.  I can imagine myself being on an safari while listening to this song.  Oh, there goes a cheetah chasing after a gazelle.  Watch out he's a dozie!

    Track "Wild Chase" speeds off on a wild car case with a guitar riff that takes the song up to a high energy level.  The main hook of the song is very cool and he reinstates it many times through out the track.  Check out the cool groove riffs from 1:58 - 2:20 talking about some hard to play rhythms!  Then the  main melody at 2:37 is action packed.  Great runs and licks combined for a interesting solo.  Also, pay attention to some of the rhythm guitar riffs throughout the track.  They really get moving and are a key to the success of this songs feeling.

     "Stirred Not Shaken" track three has to be the grooviest song on the whole CD.  It will get you bopping in your chair that's for sure.  Not only that, but Martin packs it with some hot guitar playing.  I've heard funk guitar before, but this stuff has got flare!  The main hook in the song rocks with out a doubt, it's melodic and hopping at the same time.  1:58 marks my favorite part of the song, a melodic clean backing line accompanied by some tasteful tapping.  Another highlight later in the song is the cool mini bass solo that  breaks at 2:29.  Then listen repeatedly to the killer chord progression from 2:52 - 3:03, it's well worth learning.  Martin gives you, your money worth out of this track.  The listener gets lots of cool shred lines, tapping, melodies and don't forget the funk.

     "Colorado Feeling"  track four, opens a great bass intro that carries into the main section of the song.  Martin right away breaks into soulful playing with his choice of notes.  He drops back the pace on this one, and really goes for it. An interesting section is the brief part from 1:13 - 1:18, he uses a technique rarely used by players, it's a stuttering line.  Where he stutters the notes he plays, which gives song a different vibe to it.  That's one thing that Martin goes for, he tosses lots of style and thought into his writing.  The songs don't get boring, each one has a different feel from the last.  For being a young artist he really has his game on.  It's a joy to hear someone write songs with variation and care.  Another highlight is the main melody lines, Martin can put together some great harmony lines.

     Track five "Three Days in a Row" is the first acoustic track on the disc and it really comes alive.  The main melody line is superb, having a life of it's own and it stands out from the rest of the song.  I love the flow of this song, each part eases into the next perfectly.  Yet another impressive display of Behr's composing abilities.  The bass solo in the middle song is really cool as well, bringing the song to a mellower mood.  I also love the acoustic lead 2:25, he blends in a little harmonic minor to top it off.  This song is defiantly one to repeat over and over.

     "Remarkable Rocks" track six is a cool name for a song, it fits because the song is so remarkable!  It opens with some cool percussion work followed by Martin's driving guitar playing.  The main riff in this song is very articulate, it sounds like it would take a while to learn or devise.  Most of Behr's playing is non conventional when it comes to his rhythm parts.  He use lots of full figured chords and talking guitar lines.  Check out 00:32 for a cool arpeggio line.  Speaking of doing non-conventional things Martin even hits you a smooth sounding slide moment (using a guitar slide) at 1:54.

     Track seven "Snow and Fun" is a fun sounding song.  It's another groove driven song, and he establishes that with his great guitar playing.  I'm telling you his songs would really improve anyone's rhythm guitar playing, some of the sections are real hard to play.   At 1:15, I was really amazed by Martin's writing skills once more.  He does doubled guitar and violin leads with guest musician Hirotaka Aizawa.  Wow!  You'll really like this part, it knocked me off my chair while listening to it.  I truly didn't expect it either and that's another thing that makes Martin a great guitar player.  He surprises the listener all the time.  You'll never know what he will through at you next.  The other leads in the song really have lots of feel and soul.  Did I mention he tears it up in a few parts as well.  Martin truly has a gift for writing well structured songs.  Their perfect lengths as well.  No 8 minutes of non stop shredding, Martin will never lose your attention.  Not even for a second.

     "Floating" track eight is the second slow acoustic number and it's a major album highlight.  He starts of with a very soulful intro solo, then brings in then clean guitar leads.  This would be a great time to mention Behr's clean playing.  He seems to be very accurate and concise in his attack, never hitting a bad note.  I can't imagine how many hours he must have put into his playing, because it really paid off.  3:03 is a great example of his clean playing, it's a clean arpeggio section that will make your mouth drop.  This song carries itself very well.  Like I mentioned above the rhythms in this song rock.  They have a pop or radio friendly sound to them.  "Floating" also has a very warm and soothing feel to it, I have really fallen in love with this song.  It's a classic that you'll never forget, packed with a perfect blend of rhythms and soulful leads that creep up inside you and alter your state of mind.

     Track nine "Constant Confusion" opens with a beautiful clean guitar melody then really gets going with some evil sounding riffs.  The main melody line is killer, and it's at total 360 from the intro riff.  It's one of those hook lines that will leave you craving more.  As always, Martin gives you a great mix of leads, ranging from harmonized runs like at 1:31-1:34, and his great blend of wah wah over some lead lines that make the leads very independent when compared to the rest.  He choose his effect well, the wah really brings those passages to life.  Behr doesn't overboard it either like many other artists, he'll give you just enough.  3:48 - 4:03 is one of my favorite wah passages.  Martin really shows his versatility in effects selection, by blending tones to help accent his playing and to bring his point across.

     "Funk Jam No Good Deal" track ten is a fun song packed with bouncy riffs, groove laden drums and bass that jumps out of the speakers.  When I said fun I really meant it.  Behr's leads tend be be very upbeat and groove oriented.  When it comes to funk playing Marin Behr gets funky!  I haven't been exposed to lots of players that can play this style and really give a song life without boring the listener.  He can however really drive a song home, I can just imagine his band ripping this number out at a live show.  I love how Martin trades of licks and rhythms with the bass guitar in this song.  Behr did a great job of selecting musicians to perform with I might add.  These artists are very tight, and well practiced.  There are to many cool leads to mention in this song, so if I were you, defiantly keep your ears open and your guitar in hand to try to learn a lot of them, because there are plenty of cool ones to work on.

     "The Party Part" track eleven starts of as a total down home blues jam.  Martin Behr can do it all, and his soul really shines through on this song.  With plenty of pentatonics to keep you blues guys on your toes.  Then about half way into the song Behr switches his mode into a mainstream instrumental guitar theme, giving you a great main melody line.  He still keeps the pentatonics going on through out most of the song so don't worry.  Martin really pushes the envelope on this one with them.  He doesn't lock himself into the typical box pattern of pentatonic playing.  Behr goes nuts adding in variations all over.  I had to listen to this one over a few times before I could truly appreciate what he was doing.

     Song twelve "Addiction" is a very soothing clean toned song.  Revolving around the minor key he creates a large atmosphere for the listener.  Makes me think of sitting outside one a overcast day and just watching the clouds pass by with out a care in the world.  Then when 1:50 starts, you get a swift kick in the butt with heart pounding wake up!  This part will then proceed to tear the flesh of you face when 2:53 hits with some damn good drop tuned guitar playing.  Martin really has a killer drop tuning guitar tone, and I think it really enhanced what he was going for.  Check out the smoking double speed harmony at  2:19 which is repeated a few times throughout the song.  This song is built in stages.  It starts of peaceful then gets harder, and really heavy with the drop tuning.  There are no major lead sections during the song, but near the end Martin tears it up for a few bars.  And then he takes a turn back and ends the song with smooth clean acoustic work that leads into track thirteen.

     "Memories" song thirteen is given a great prelude by the ending of "Addiction."  Martin Behr is a master of clean guitar playing.  His backing lines are very peaceful and full of life.  The Bass solo at 2:10 was a superb accent to the song.  It also is very slow and really keeps the mood of the song going.  Martin's main solo starting at 2:36 is packed with soul, flare and shred.  You get it all, from graceful bends to speed licks.  Behr can suck you into a solo passage and and keep your attention locked in.  This song in my opinion really puts Martin's lead playing to the test, because he has a great backing section to explore over.  He chooses some very interesting leads and melodies to fill the voids with.  A major highlight begins at 5:27.  Behr really goes on a limb and wows you with some beautiful harmonics on his acoustic.  The pitches he hits are priceless.  After hearing them, you will mystified and may even influenced to add them into your playing style. 

     Looking back "Law of the Jungle" is an excellent instrumental guitar release.  I stand by Martin Behr's work and would like to congratulate him on a fine job.  The CD is very diverse in nature, ranging from rock, metal, funk and blues.  Behr takes many different aspects of lead playing, puts them in a blender and serves up an intense blend of soul, melody and pure skill.  I would highly recommend "Law of the Jungle" for those who are looking to broaden their playing and knock on doors the didn't know even existed. 

     The sound recording is awesome.  No drum machines here that's for sure.  Behr really pulled out all the stops to record this album.  He really put a lot of time and effort into his pieces and the recording of them.  The sound quality is 100% pro.  Sorry, no bad production here!  What you get is great guitar playing and writing.  I would also like to mention again that his band is very tight and everyone locks into each others playing very well.  They really can drive a song home.  Seriously, I can't wait to get my hands on Martin Behr's next release, I know that is is destined to be great.  Martin Behr is a killer guitar play and deserves the credit for being one.  He raises the bar for other players in his genre and rightfully so.  And for those who still need a little more convincing there is a hot naked chick on the back cover and inside the booklet.  She looks like she's on the prowl if you know what I mean.