After branching out (only slightly) for 2006's
From the Soil to the Soul
,
Tommy Guerrero
returned to his usual repertoire -- a one-man-band setup and breezy instrumental soul/rock -- for
Return of the Bastard
. Granted,
was hardly a radical departure; it included only a few deeper grooves and one high-profile feature (for
Lyrics Born
). But it's still nice to have
Guerrero
back creating his own record, seemingly unencumbered even by the few suggestions that such an artist-oriented label like
Quannum
may have come up with. Although instrumental music this light and laid-back risks being called lazy, it's clear
isn't just an aimless street-corner musician. His guitar solos, obtuse yet warm, are always interesting, whether smooth and acoustic or raggedly electric, and at several points he adds his own kalimba or
Fredo Ortiz
on conga to vary the sound. Material like this is always going to be considered primarily as the background for a visual narrative, but like great
instrumental rock
from
Link Wray
to
Don Caballero
, it creates its own narrative. ~ John Bush