Well, here’s your chance to catch up on all of those life experiences you may have missed by listening to 809.  Chicago based guitarist and vocalist Danny McGuinness, opens up his mind and lets you listen to what happens when a jam session becomes magical.  With solo virtuoso Kent Van Der Kolk beside him, this entire album was recorded in room 809 of the Bel Age Hotel in Los Angeles, California.  What was once meant as a demo turned into an all night session resulting in ten solid songs. Danny’s voice and style are very hard to place, but if you spend your time trying to figure out who he sounds like, you’re missing some very original music.  With influences including Johnny Cash, Stevie Wonder, David Bowie, and Bob Dylan, you can see it’s difficult to pigeonhole this sound.  Danny has been playing guitar and writing music seriously since he turned 18.  The turning point came after listening to Dylan’s album Desire.  McGuinness has been involved with many different bands throughout his career but released what it is under Heatshield as his first solo outing. With his second solo venture, 809 shows an unbelievable feel for song writing and guitar arrangements.  You could easily spend one time around with this album, simply listening to the guitar arrangements, and hanging on each note of the solos by Van Der Kolk, which were all improvised.  There is great storytelling throughout and the songwriting pops out of the stereo and makes sure you are paying attention to the message of the song. I personally enjoyed the album the second and third time around, way better than the initial time through.  My main detractors are also what make it so loveable, the roughness around the edges.  There seems to be no echoes behind the vocals, no layering of guitar rifs, no three part harmonies, and no percussion.  All of those elements makes it a tough first time through, but it doesn’t take long to train your ear to listen to the actual music. There are no bubble gum radio singles on this album, and that is a breath of fresh air. I recommend this album, listening to it is an experience.  Feel free to wrap yourself up in the music.  You may want to grab yourself a mic, a solo guitarist, a few cold beverages, good friends, and book a hotel room.  If you’re trying to replicate this album, good luck. {mosimage} {mosimage}http://www.dannymcguinness.com Purchase This CD McGuinness is currently off the road working on a new studio album.  Check out the website for any recent concert dates.