4 Stars:
I am a rock n roll/heavy metal fan. The most irritating thing to me is the genre “Christian Music.” Why? Because there is no such genre as Christian music. If you’re a rapper and you rap about God, then you’re in the rap genre. If you like heavy metal, but you’re screaming for the Lord then you’re in the heavy metal genre. Christianity is a religion, not a genre. So many people are tricked into buying into it. It doesn’t matter what you’re singing about, it matters if it is good. If it is good then it will reach everyone, for example P.O.D., Flyleaf or Pastor Brad.
Recently, a friend of mine dropped off a CD and asked me to review it. It was just labeled Pastor Brad. I’m not positive, but after some research on the Internet I believe the title of the album is “Reshredded: Pastor Brad & Friends.” Pastor Brad is the real deal. If anything, this album is geared toward the guitar loving metal heads than it is church going Christians. It sounds like his influences are AC/DC, Metallica, Ozzy Osbourne, Iron Maiden and Van Halen.
The album is made up of 15 solid songs. What I like about the CD is that the songs aren’t very long. It’s comprised of nothing but guitar solos, but in short spurts they work really well. Pastor Brad plays lead guitar, drums, some bass and some rhythm. There are other players that come in to take lead or bass, but for the most part this is Pastor Brad. He’s a tremendous talent. I would love to hear him in a band setting with a great singer. Some of the riffs are hard and crunchy and some are very melodic.
I hesitate to say the rhythm section isn’t very developed, because that is not true, but if it was developed even more than it already is he’d be playing songs as good as “Orion” or “Call of the Khtulu” by Metallica. Obviously, the first artist you’ll think of when you think of Pastor Brad is Joe Satriani or Steve Vai. I would love to hear Pastor Brad play with them. By the way, did I mention that he is legally blind?
Pastor Brad has an amazing story. He comes from a great family with roots in Christianity. When he was 15 his dad took him to see AC/DC on the “Back in Black” tour. From there it was over. He was bit by the metal bug, specifically the Angus Young bug. He got deep into heavy metal. He started partying and using drugs and driving drunk. After aspirations to be a rock star began to fade, he spent some time with his grandmother who convinced him to go visit his aunt and uncle. From there his Christian roots began to grow and he started to go the way of the Lord. In the late 80’s Pastor Brad began to notice blurry vision and after visits to the eye doctor and regular doctor it was eventually determined that he had a brain tumor. Once they removed the tumor he was left with the loss of 75% of his vision.
Pastor Brad is definitely for the fans of virtuoso guitar playing. If you enjoy instrumental heavy metal with a lot of amazing guitar solos then I highly recommend this. If you’re into heavy metal in general then I’d recommend at least checking it out. It’s just instrumental so it might not be for you, but there are still some pretty amazing licks. In the end, I think it’d be cool if Pastor Brad were able to hit it big. God bless you Pastor Brad, you’re a positive voice that would fit right in the HEAVY METAL genre.
BYLINE:
Bob Zerull is a frequent movie and concert goer who talks about his ventures to arenas and theaters more than any person should be allowed to do. Now, he puts them down on paper. Email him your thoughts at: bzerull19@gmail.com. Also visit: www.cadaverchristmas.com.
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