These two players are doing so much to push guitar music forward Tim Henson has drafted them for the new Polyphia record
Back in 2013, a playthrough of Polyphia’s Impassion put the prog metal band on the map. The technical mastery at play instantly asserted guitarist Tim Henson as a young prodigy – and, 12 years on, Henson is keen to find the next wunderkind lurking in the shadows.
In a new interview with The Music Zoo, Henson reveals that he’s scouted a pair of up-and-coming guitarists to feature on Polyphia’s new record: RJ Pasin and Spiro Dussias. Considering Pasin’s intricate, videogame-soundtrack-worthy riffs and metal-infused hyperpop, and Spiro’s jawdropping shredding abilities, they’re sure to be a hit with Polyphia fans.
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“We’ve brought them in for the Polyphia record, and it is insane – it is such a crazy sound!” Henson explains. “RJ Pasin can shred, and he can do all these [cool] things. And then, through working with [Spiro], I’ve rethought the way that I play.”
In terms of Spiro, Henson praises the gold-star shredder for his economy picking in particular. “One of the things that Spiro really tries for with his playing is, like, how easy can he make it?” he says. “He told me he wants to be an old guy who has no problem just [shredding], and it’s his approach to the economics of motion.”
“I learned economy picking when I was pretty young,” he continues. “And then you see players like Tosin Abasi who take that shit to the next level… then somebody like Spiro comes in, and just takes it up a whole other notch!”
It’s not the first time Henson has publicly praised Spiro. Back in February, the guitarist named Spiro as the next big guitar talent to watch out for. “That guy is fucking crazy,” he told Guitar World. “I’m definitely going to be hitting him up to see what kind of insanity he can bring [to the new record].”
While Henson’s background in classical violin has helped him forge his own unique style, he’s still keen to learn from the young prodigies of tomorrow. He points to Polish star Marcin Patrzałek’s insane percussive fingerstyle techniques and Italian jazz rocker Matteo Mancuso as examples. “They’re taking guitar to new heights,” he insists.
While Polyphia didn’t collaborate with Patrzałek on their upcoming record, Patrzałek has also shone a spotlight on one of Henson’s up-and-coming collaborators this year. The guitarist notably collaborated with RJ Pasin back in July… Small world!
“Every day, we continue to have absolute sicko monster players coming out,” he says. “It’s just getting crazier and crazier and crazier – and it’s awesome… Like, there’s Marcin, and all these other kids that are just absolutely incredible! They just play circles around me!”
“It’s cool, because, this late in the game, I’m so fortunate to feel inspired [by] my peers,” he reflects.
Elsewhere on the new record, Henson has also teased that there will be a collaborative track with System of a Down’s Serj Tankian. “The new record… it’s heavy!” he teased in conversation with Guitar World.
Check out Henson’s full chat with The Music Zoo below.
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Source: www.guitar-bass.net
