John Lowery began playing guitar when he was only seven years old. Now in his mid thirties, John Lowery a.k.a. John 5 has an impressive resume and the respect of his peers.
John 5 was the lead guitar player for Marilyn Manson and now plays lead guitar for Rob Zombie. He has also worked with Rob Halford of Judas Priest, former Van Halen singer, David Lee Roth and country pop singer K.D. Lang.
Fender has even issued 2 special edition John 5 Telecaster. Each is a black telecaster that's been hotrodded, one with a bridge mounted humbucker and twisted neck pickup, the other with three high output humbuckers.
In the last five years or so, John 5 has also found the time to release three solo records with guest appearances by folks like Albert Lee, Eric Johnson, Steve Vai and Joe Satriani. Songs for Sanity is John 5 's sophomore solo album released in 2005.
Even if you're not a big fan of Marilyn Manson or Rob Zombie, you should check out this great guitar players solo work. Although the influences of both can be heard and seen on this album, this album offers quite a lot more. Songs for Sanity is original and interesting sounding material. John 5 himself has a death metal look about him with white face makeup, bleached blonde hair and a Black Dahlia inspired smile, but don't be put off by it. When he picks up his custom Fender Telecaster, he makes it wail.
The first two cuts Damaged and Soul of a Robot show off the shredding skills of John 5. These two songs have an aggressive hard rock flavor that certainly fits John 5s rock roots with Manson and Zombie. Both are instrumentals that have catchy riffs and shredding solos.
Gein with Envy will surprise all those who have made their judgments based on John 5's resume. It is pure and simple country pickin'! Yes, John takes that Tele and picks out a country solo that would make Hank Williams or Chet Atkins proud! To me it is more proof that you can't judge a book by its cover. John 5 is a very versatile guitar player.
Sin is a goth like tune that could have been penned by The Cure or Depeche Mode, it is dark and brooding. When the guitar finally kicks in, it is of the speed metal variety in sharp contrast to the dark tone of the introduction of the song. Behind the Nut Love starts of with harmonics and bends and lots of twang. It is a melodic medium paced song that would sound at home on a rock or country album.
Blues Balls picks up the pace again, doing some basic showing off. If the title didn't tip you off, I'll tell you, its a straight ahead blues rocker.
well, I don't care too much for hymn singing, I favor guitar music myself I don't know if the line is from a movie, but thats how Fiddler's begins. It's a fiddle like showdown, except with guitars.
Gods and Monsters is another song that displays John 5s roots. Heavy and hypnotic the song grinds to a powerhouse beat. The time for head banging comes soon enough as John 5 slams into quick successions of power chords and scales followed by a series of screeching slides. I have no idea what the lyrics are, but they are delivered in a tone that reminded me of the satanic cult in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. The piano music that begins and ends the song is creepy as hell.
2 Die 4 is another death like tune. An acoustic sounding solo fills the room against heavy breathing and bass tones beyond my hearing range. You can feel a heavy thud, but it is barely audible. If they make another Silent Hill video game, this song would fit the theme perfectly.
Death Valley features guest guitar player Albert Lee. A computerized GPS device gives directions against highway sounds. Soon a radio station is being tuned, and settles on a great aggressive sounding track contrasted sharply by Albert Lee's dulcet guitar tones. His country blues solo just takes off in this song.
Perineum has the sturm and drang of heavy metal and features guitarist extraordinaire Steve Vai on the solos. With friends like these, John 5 has a long career ahead of him!
The album closes with Denouement which by definition should give us a summary of John 5s album. Indeed it does, bits and pieces of the previous songs all appear on this final denouement.
My Thoughts
You should know that I do like some of Marilyn Mansons music, and I also like a lot of Rob Zombies songs. However, I do not recommend John 5 because of this. I recommend John 5, because I love great instrumental guitar music. This is just great guitar music. How much did I like it? I've already ordered The Devil Knows My Name his latest solo release from his website. John 5 proved that he can play blues, country and metal with the best of them on Songs for Sanity. Although his songwriting still isn't a match for some of his contemporaries like Vai, Johnson or Satriani, his guitar skills are outstanding and he is a lot of fun to listen to.
Summary
If it was all about skill, John 5 would easily get five stars. I enjoyed all the songs on this album, but none have any hook or melody that lodges itself into your brain. I don't necessarily mean commercial appeal, just that certain something that makes a song catchy or memorable. However, John 5's Songs for Sanity is very good. I give this album 4 stars and think he is certainly a guitar player to follow up on.
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