''Erotic Cakes'' is the first solo studio album by guitarist
Guthrie Govan
Guthrie Govan (; born 27 December 1971) is an English guitarist and guitar teacher, known for his work with the bands the Aristocrats, Asia, GPS, the Young Punx and the Fellowship, as well as his solo project Erotic Cakes. More recently, he ha ...
. It was first released in 2006 through Cornford Records and, it was later re-released by JTC records in 2011. The album features a mixture of songs that Govan had performed previously with his trio as well as some new compositions.
In an interview with All Out Guitar, he stated that, "these studio versions are a lot closer to what I meant the stuff to sound like when I wrote it".
[Edwards, Owen (30 August 2006)]
"Guthrie Govan Interview: The Virtuoso's Virtuoso"
. ''All Out Guitar''. Retrieved 22 April 2015. In the quote, he refers to the changes in arrangement made to the songs compared to his live work with his trio.
Govan has stated that the album name is a reference to the
Simpsons
''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, a ...
' episode "
Treehouse of Horror VI
"Treehouse of Horror VI" is the sixth episode of the seventh season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons'', and the sixth episode in the ''Treehouse of Horror'' series. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on ...
".
Background
Guthrie Govan is a well known guitarist because of his work with
Asia
Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an are ...
as well as winning
Guitarist magazine's "Guitarist of the Year" competition in 1993 with his composition "Wonderful Slippery Thing" which appears in this album.
The songs "Waves" and "Rhode Island Shred" were featured in the compilation "Guitar on the Edge: Vol. 1 No. 4". "Sevens" and "Erotic cakes" were also composed before the album and played with his trio.
Govan himself has said that he was not very interested in releasing a solo album under the assumption that there was no market for it and because he himself could not fund it. That was when
Paul Cornford pushed him to record and told him that he would personally fund it. Cornford then picked Jan Cyrka to produce and mix the album as well as getting a good studio for the guitars.
Recording
The recording process took longer than expected originally. The drums were originally recorded in Pete Riley's old studio. The guitars were recorded in Govan's house by running his amp through a Palmer speaker simulator. The band intended to keep those tracks but, producer Jan Cyrka insisted that they should record the drums again, this time in a better studio.
[Chopik, Ivan (17 January 2009)]
Guthrie Govan Interview
''Guitar Messenger''. Retrieved 22 April 2015. After they did that, the guitars that were recorded at Govan's home did not sound good enough by comparison. It was then when
Paul Cornford decided to fly the band to Hollywood in order to record the guitars in
Richie Kotzen
Richard Dale Kotzen Jr. (born February 3, 1970) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. As a solo artist, Kotzen has back catalogue of more than 20 album releases. He was a member of glam metal band Poison from 1991 to 1993, Mr. Big ...
's studio. This time, the guitars were recorded through mic'd loudspeakers in a wood room.
The result was much better recorded guitar tracks than what was originally expected by Govan.
Musical style
The album features Govan's ability to play multiple styles while keeping his own personal sound. Kevin Dawe refers to the way Guthrie utilizes guitar layering to create "dense musical settings and backings".
[Dawe, Kevin (2010). The New Guitarscape in Critical Theory, Cultural Practice and Musical Performance, pp. 65–66. Ashgate Publishing] He explains that Govan achieves this through the use of heterophony, multi-layered harmonies, varied chord voicings and dynamic rhythmic grooves. He also mentions how, in this album, Govan pushes the boundaries of guitar playing as well as exploring its place in the studio.
Track listing
Personnel
Main musicians
*
Guthrie Govan
Guthrie Govan (; born 27 December 1971) is an English guitarist and guitar teacher, known for his work with the bands the Aristocrats, Asia, GPS, the Young Punx and the Fellowship, as well as his solo project Erotic Cakes. More recently, he ha ...
–
guitar
The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected strin ...
* Seth Govan -
bass
* Pete Riley -
drums
Additional musicians
*
Richie Kotzen
Richard Dale Kotzen Jr. (born February 3, 1970) is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. As a solo artist, Kotzen has back catalogue of more than 20 album releases. He was a member of glam metal band Poison from 1991 to 1993, Mr. Big ...
- guitar on track 4
*
Bumblefoot - guitar on track 10
Technical personnel
* Jan Cyrka -
production
Production may refer to:
Economics and business
* Production (economics)
* Production, the act of manufacturing goods
* Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services)
* Production as a stati ...
,
engineering
Engineering is the use of scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad range of more speciali ...
, cover design
* Matthew Denny -
mastering
* Alex Todorov - engineering
References
{{Authority control
2006 albums