People always say not to write these things in the first person so as to give impression that the album is being hyped by some sort of agent or publicist, but this album is a marketing nightmare anyway, so to hell with convention. As I worked on this album for the past six years, my approach was simple: to write the music that I was inspired to write without any regard to how it would be received. I believe that genres are cages used to contain musicians within the confines of an easily marketable brand. Some musicians embrace their cage and are happy to rehash the same emotional ground, song after song, album after album. Others, like myself, prefer to roam free, drawing inspiration from the full spectrum of human emotion. I'm proud to say that what you're getting here is 100% free range, unbridled artistic expression.

It's difficult to describe the sound of one's own music, but I'm going to give it a shot. I think the best place to start would be to list some of my influences. Some of the musicians/bands who most influenced the sound of this album are: Bumblefoot, Queen, Jeff Buckley, Ozzy Osbourne (Zakk and Randy), Killswitch Engage, David Bowie, Dream Theater, Shawn Lane, Metallica, Yngwie Malmsteen, The Black Crowes, and My Chemical Romance. Since my taste in music ranges from introspective songwriters to over the top shred guitarists and everything in between, I guess it shouldn't be much of a surprise that my own music covers such a broad range of styles. I enjoy incorporating vast, layered arrangements into my songs a la Queen and George Martin (eg. Pater Noster has about 30 overdubs of my voice, and Godzilla vs. Thunderslug is an orchestral arrangement featuring electric guitar), but occasionally I prefer a more stripped down sound (You'll Be Gone is just one vocal track, a drum kit, and two guitars). I take a lot of pride in both my vocal ability (4 octave range) and my guitar playing, however I always try to make sure that my technical ability serves the song rather than the opposite... which can be a challenge because I'm a ham!

The main message I'd like to give anyone listening to my album is to keep an open mind, give any songs that might be out of your normal realm of listening a chance to grow on you. I realize that these songs cover a very broad range of emotion, and that the CD may not match any specific mood you may be in, but hey that's what playlists are for! Anyway, thanks for checking out my music, and be sure to also check out my youtube channel where you can find original music, covers, guitar lessons, voice lessons, and some other odds and ends:
www.youtube.com/user/GJaunz