Al Di Meola – Casino (Speakers Corner)

String dancer Al di Meola, who in "Elegant Gypsy" had already converted his initially over-motivated finger artistry into a plus of musical substance, pursues the path to more concentrated work with the material in the subsequent album "Casino". For example, "Egyptian Danza", a complex of melodies circling around each other that describe the field of tension between Orient, Occident and New World, slightly charged electronically. The sound of "Chasin' The Voodoo" increases much more sharply to a highly compressed continuous fire, pervaded by the familiar bright string sound of the master, who implements the idea of multiple rhythms and voices in personal union with himself: In the "Fantasia Suite For Two Guitars", four miniatures with a crackling Zapateado like shimmering flamenco, Meola accompanies herself thanks to multitracking. After so much good, the best comes to the end: In the extended title track "Casino" the forces gathered are concentrated into a big game of changing tempos, superimposed patterns, metric sliding tricks and of course sovereign guitar art.