John 5 - The Art of Malice

Originally this was going to be a review of John 5’s latest solo album ‘The Art of Malice’; however upon thinking about this I realised it might be best if I introduced the man first, as I am sure a lot will be unfamiliar with him.

John 5 also known as John William Lowery moved to Los Angeles at the age of 17 to pursuer a career in music. He is a very talented musician who has played Fender guitars his whole life and even has his own custom signature guitars. John is best noted for working as lead guitarist for Marilyn Manson and Rob Zombie, however he has also worked with a lot of others, including David Lee Roth, KD Lang, Paul Stanley, Rob Halford, Meatloaf and Sixx: AM. Apart from contributing music to all these artists John also writes as a solo artist.

Taking the steps to produce and release solo albums was a great move on John’s part, as those who only know him from Rob Zombie and Marilyn Manson may think that his playing is limited. When in fact that is not the case. John 5 is one of the best guitarists out there, his technique and ability spans all genres. He is always writing, practising and learning new things, which really comes across and pays off on his solo albums.

The Art of Malice really is such a fantastic album, because every song on there is so unique and really sheds light on John 5’s highly underrated guitar playing. He has even commented himself that the first solo album ‘Vertigo’ really shocked people because having only heard him in Manson they didn’t know just how well he could play.

The Art of Malice has a total of 12 songs all by John 5, except ‘Fractured Mirror’ which is by Ace Frehley. Ex Rob Zombie, now Ozzy Osbourne drummer Tommy Clufetos also plays drums on the album, whilst John also contributes the bass. Although John clearly enjoys playing in the hard rock style, the solo instrumental album allows him to play in another style which he is influenced by, country. You might cringe but it is so fantastic and I am not a big country fan, but his guitar work is really amazing. The album has a whole range of songs including heavier tracks like ‘Ya Dig?’ and ‘The Nightmare Unravels’, but there is also ‘J.W’ which shows John’s country influence and it is quite upbeat and bouncy, showing great versatility. Another great song is ‘Can I Live Again’ which has a quite different feel to it, as John plays much slower and freer, holding each note so they are long; which gives the song a real sensitivity, an almost longing feeling. This is probably the song which holds the most emotion, not that the others don’t have meaning and emotion, this one is just different. ‘Steel Guitar Rag’ and ‘Wayne County Killer’ are also fantastic songs, both quite different, which makes the whole album so versatile and unique.

The Art of Malice, as well as all of John 5’s other projects are really wonderful. Upon listening you can really hear the passion he has for playing guitar, as it comes out not only in his playing but also in the writing as well. I highly recommend this instrumental album, it is something a bit different and good to just sit and listen to.