THE FOLLOWING ARTICLE FEATURED IN THE Aug 26 2013 EDITION OF SA Music Scene

CD Review: Riaan Nieuwenhuis - Instigator

Written by Ezelle Louw (@LupaPhotography) (See scanned article)

Riaan Nieuwenhuis, the man who writes songs without words, released his debut progressive rock album Instigator to the world a few months back. It was rather fearless I might add, and has received much deserved acclaim so far. He's travelled the country, performed at some of our major festivals like Oppikoppi, Ramfest and Splashy Fen. London has even seen him perform a few times. This man is a multi-instrumentalist, with an impressive repertoire that would make any musician drool with envy.

Instigator lacks words but compensates with intricate guitar melodies and a lead style that emulates wild and asymmetrical fits of immense passion. A varied range of styles runs through this album, all of which are brought together by Riaan's unrelenting compositions of complex melodic passages and shred sequences. "In the Grip", "The Way" and "Glider" stand out as top favourites on this album and really showcases his complexity, complemented by subtly changing rhythms that work well together to give it an ethereal feel.

The whole album is abundant in melodies, great riffs, everything seamlessly mixed into one bowl, where the main goal isn't to bombard the listener's head but to compose complex yet memorable instrumental songs with brilliant hooks. Go get yourself a copy, give it a listen and appreciate the talent.