I first became aware of Edward in the early Nineties. At that time guitar based rock music was a real force. It was on the radio, in the charts and bands were regularly touring. There were live music venues aplenty like the City Hall, The Riverside, 244 Rock Club, Buddle Arts Centre and the greatly missed Mayfair. I keep all my ticket stubs from gigs and looking through them from that period you will find shows from the Bullet Boys, Kings X, Extreme, Thunder, It Bites ,Dan Reed, Faith No More and Badlands. Yes those were happy days.

It was an inspirational and fruitful time for local rock bands as well in Newcastle such as Skin Tight, Seventh Avenue, Tom.E.Gun and Gin Sling that regularly tread the boards at the 244 Rock Club and The Riverside. There was one band who always towered above the rest and that was XLR8R and this is where Edward comes in. I remember supporting XLR8R on a couple of occasions and always felt they were the band who would go all the way. They had musicianship, presence ,amazing songs and also Edward on guitar. There was great camaderie between bands in those days and I got to know “Ed” and still keep in touch to this day. XLR8R went on to support major touring bands, play the Marquee in London, tour parts of Europe and win the Radio 1 Rock Wars/Battle Of The bands. Guitarist magazine reviewed their one released c.d “Inner Oceans” (Trigger Happy PPKCD1) in 1995 giving it a rave review and singling out Edwards’s guitar playing. XLR8R should have been and deserved to be one of the U.K’s biggest bands and if only someone had picked them up on the “rock radar” they could have been enormous internationally.

Listening to “Inner Oceans” now Edwards playing on “Superimposed”, ”Vertigo”, ”Stained”and “Incisions” almost seems ahead of its time.

Edward didn’t stand still after the demise of XLR8R .He went on to form Arch Stanton, became a well respected and sought after guitar tutor and linked up with Lion Music to release his first solo c.d “Plectrum head” in 2003 which received critical acclaim in Guitarist magazine. In 2004 he provided a great version of “Foxy Lady” to “The Spirit Lives On: The Music Of Jimi Hendrix Vol 1”. Now in 2006 we have his new solo CD “Moonfudge”.

Edward has kept the same back line of Neil Lough on bass and “wild” Mick Robson on drums and percussion that he used on “Plectrumhead”. The first thing that struck me about “Monnfudge” is that it has a tighter, crisper and more focused sound than Edward’s debut.

The opening track “Jack In The Box” is chock full of superb melodic rock guitar playing. Great syncopated guitar rhythms allow Ed to soar above the proceedings. There is real maturity in his playing as he fires off harmonised picked and tapped patterns. His playing at times is reminiscent of Warren de Martini (Ratt) and George Lynch (Dokken).

On “Welcome To the Grindhouse” Ed really plays for the song. The riff is simple and focused. It's the sort of thing Ozzy would make a song out of. There’s also lots of tight and fast picked guitar in just the right amounts.

“Axis Of Evil” has great harmony guitar playing and super slinky tapped runs with a relentless main riff. Some of the harmony parts bring to mind the great partnership of Jason Becker and Marty Friedman in their Cacophony period.

“Hourglass” provides the albums delicate melodic number. Apparently this song has its origins back in 1992/93.On this track Ed wears his love of Joe Satriani’s playing well and truly on his sleeve. It has excellent pacing and builds up to a wonderful finale. Edwards phrasing almost seems to breathe.

“Stanton's Stomp” is a funky little number which had its beginnings as a vocal number in Ed’s earlier band “Arch Stanton". The riff is almost Hendrix like and in the solo’s Ed really demonstrates his control over some extravagant bent notes.

“Trailblazer” is also another riff, which has its origins in the early nineties. It's a track, which rocks along with great melodic playing.

“Downstream” is a great tune with heartfelt playing backed with acoustic which like “Hourglass” builds nicely.

“Pasadena” has a great opening riff straight from the school of rock in the style of “Unchained” by Van Halen and “You’re In Love” by Ratt. Some tasty pinched harmonics and double tracked guitar set this song up nicely. In the middle Ed slows things down and then gradually builds things up to some nice whammy abused guitar.

“Reverse The Polarity” has a strong riff, which reminds me of Judas Priest. Some nice bluesy style playing on this one complements it’s at times neo-classical moments.

“Big Screen Love Theme” is based around a melody that Ed has had waiting for its moment for the last eight years. The title is an apt description as it would be perfect for a movie like Armageddon over slow motion movie footage of the hero's returning from saving the world. This is melodic playing par excellence.

Edwards album is another huge step forward in his development as a musician. His playing is more melodic here than on his previous outings. He has developed the knack for blending melody with guitar hero passages. America, Germany and Italy are awash with players whose guitar albums are brash and soulless. The United Kingdom should treasure Edward as here we have a player with technique, real melodic sensibilities and who knows how to mix rock with metal.

I read a review in Classic Rock magazine in which the reviewer classed Ed's album as another Shrapnel release but not done as well. I think the writer had missed the point completely as to what Edward is about and missed an opportunity to champion and support our very own guitar hero. Edwards grounding is from the old school of rock/metal by artists such as Schenker, Malmsteen, Satriani, Judas Priest, Iron maiden and Dokken. He writes music with riffs that are melodic and plays for the song. Lovers of guitar music will love this album and it just gets better each time you play it.

Moonfudge is released on September 22nd 2006 via Lion Music

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Track List

Jack in the Box
Welcome to the Grindhouse
Axis of Evil
Hourglass
Stanton's Stomp
Trailblazer
Downstream
Pasadena
Reverse the Polarity
Big Screen Love Theme

Line  Up

Edward Box – Guitars
Neil Lough - Bass
Mick Robson - Drums