Band:	Thom Mathews
Album:	Mindcraft
Style:	Progressive death metal
Website:	http://www.blackflamerecords.com
Release date:	2006

01. Prepare For Crash Landing
02. Acid Membrane
03. Kite In The Whirlwind
04. Mind Craft
05. Blood Letting
06. Vortex Of Abandon
07. Coma-Dose

When this dropped on my doormat I was somehow expecting a black metal album by a one-man band. Why, you might ask. First of all, this is the debut by one Thom Mathews who is guitarist for Quinta Essentia. Not that I know the band, but such a band name conjures up visions of a symphonic, maybe even progressive, black metal band for me. Another reason why I thought that it would be black metal is because it is released by Black Flame Records which is the home of black metal bands such as Magane, Blood Stained Dusk, Abysmal Gates, and Moat.
The first surprise came in the form of a line-up not having a vocalist present and the second was that this mini (or is it full-length?) consists of old-fashioned guitar shredding.
I am always a bit ambivalent towards guitar shredding cds. On the hand I quite like them for the music cannot be ruined by god-awful vocals. But on the other the variation is somehow in a lot of cases less then on regular band efforts. Well, in the case of Mindcraft clocking just over 26 minutes variation is not the problem. And another plus is the fact that Thom employs real-life musicians to helphim out with the drums, bass, and keyboards.
So what does Mindcraft bring the listener music wise? Seven tracks of varied guitar shredding music at times reminiscent of the very early Friedman and Becker solo stuff with some MacAlpine and Vinnie Moore references thrown into the equation
Original? Nope, but damn nice nonetheless, with songs consisting of a head and tale and possessing (just like the bio said) a wide array of metal guitar style with sweeping arpeggios, heavy rhythms, tight harmonies, and a keen sense of progressive songwriting which makes this an album to appeal to all fans of well executed guitar driven. In years I haven't read a bio which was this spot on. So, why waste any more words on this album? If you like guitar driven music as described above? go out and buy it.
Special mention should go out to my personal highlights of this album: Kite In The Whirlwind, Mind Craft, and the almost balladesque Coma-Dose.