The Undiscovered: Michael Gargiulo

Michael Gargiulo submitted his CD-R demo, entitled Transitions, featuring 13 rock/hard rock/shred instrumentals and two short solo sections. Another skilled guitarist with a large arsenal of contemporary shred techniques and a good, solid vibrato, Gargiulo's compositions stand out as being more dynamic than many of the demos reviewed here. His favorite approach is to start the tune in a mellow fashion, then end with a heavy and powerful section. When not shredding, Gargiulo trys to be melodically profound - and succeeds more often than not. He also goes the extra mile at times to make the solo sections sound different from what you might expect. All the tracks on the demo were recorded on Gargiulo's home PC. It would be great to hear Gargiulo's work in a few years if he keeps developing his composition and production skills, perhaps with a collaborator or two.

Michael has been playing guitar for about 14 years. Self-taught, except for a few local lessons, his influences include Marty Friedman, Steve Morse, Kee Marcello, Tony MacAlpine. Michael's songwriting influences include anything that catches his ear, whether it be a classical piece, a heavy metal tune, or music from a video game. He continually strives to improve his playing technically and melodically.

Until recently, Gargiulo had not thought about taking his music beyond the hobby level. He may join a rock or progressive band in the near future if the opportunity presents itself.

Michael Gargiulo
United States