David T. Chastain (born in Atlanta, Georgia on 31 August 1963) is an American guitarist and owner of Leviathan Records and Diginet Music. Chastain is a metal guitarist who emerged in the mid-'80s along with a wave of other neo-classical guitarists. He has released about 50 recordings under multiple names, including David T. Chastain, CJSS, Georgia Blues Dawgs, The Cincinnati Improvisational Group, SPIKE, Zanister, Ruud Cooty and Southern Gentlemen (blues-rock) as well as a number of heavy metal releases under the band name Chastain, accompanied by female vocalist Leather Leone. In more recent years, David has worked as a record producer at his own company, Leviathan Records. His label specializes in discovering and promoting new talents, specializing in guitarists and bands. He also runs Diginet Music, a company specializing in rare, unreleased or out-of-print music. - Wiki
Although guitarists such as Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, and Yngwie Malmsteen received the lion's share of publicity and commercial success during the heyday of "guitar shredders" back in the '80s, David T. Chastain has been slugging it out for just as long, yet never achieved the same level of recognition as the aforementioned instrumentalists. With his mastery of the six-string and talent for effortlessly reeling off lightning-fast neo-classical licks, Chastain has been releasing albums since the mid-'80s, either as a solo artist or as part of the bands Chastain and CJSS. David Chastain was one of the first artists signed to Mike Varney's Shrapnel label (which specialized in technically accomplished rock guitarists), resulting in such shredder classics as Mystery of Illusion and Ruler of the Wasteland. Countdown to Infinity was released on Leviathan in 2007. © Greg Prato © 2013 AllMusic, a division of All Media Network, LLC. | All Rights Reserved http://www.allmusic.com/artist/david-t-chastain-mn0000224951/biography
In the '80s and '90s, David T. Chastain wore two different hats. His band Chastain favored vocal-oriented fantasy metal in the Judas Priest/Ronnie James Dio/Iron Maiden vein, while the guitarist's solo albums offered instrumental hard rock along the lines of Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Mads Eriksen, and Randy Coven. Elegant Seduction, one of his instrumental solo projects, is a total chopsfest -- in other words, David T. Chastain is showing off his virtuosity and making sure you know just how big his chops are. Chastain's small group of fans insist that he is one of rock's unsung guitar heroes, and anyone who doubts that he knows his way around his instrument need only give Elegant Seduction a close listen. Chastain is definitely a virtuoso, and it's nice to hear him stretching out on this 1991 release. Most of the material is instrumental hard rock, although Chastain detours into fusion on "Menage a Trois" (which wouldn't be out of place on an album by Scott Henderson, Al DiMeola, or John McLaughlin). But most of the time, Elegant Seduction has a rock mentality instead of a jazz-rock mentality, and the majority of Chastain's solos live in the land of the power chord. Of course, the chops-for-the-sake-of-chops approach has its limitations; that is true in hard bop and jazz fusion as well as instrumental rock. But serious rock guitar freaks -- the sort of people who wish that Eddie Van Halen would record an instrumental album -- will enjoy this CD anyway. Those who have spent a lot of time listening to Satriani, Vai, Coven, Eriksen, and similar players will find that Elegant Seduction is worth checking out. © Alex Henderson © 2013 AllMusic, a division of All Media Network, LLC. | All Rights Reserved
(Originally released in 1991) Acknowledged the world over as a virtuoso musician, guitar wizard David T. Chastain has received reams of accolades from the media for his exceptional work on both his instrumental and group efforts. His third solo album, appropriately titled Elegant Seduction (Leviathan Records), presents the artist in a light which will win you over with power and grace. Each track on the 11-tune LP explores new musical horizons with the kind of sublime sophistication which Chastain has come to be known for. At the same time, it is a record for the serious music student as well as the fan of heavy metal and jazz fusion. Referred to as "the most prolific musician in rock" by Hit Parader Magazine, Chastain composed all the tracks on Elegant Seduction himself. Not surprising when you learn that he has always placed composition at the top of his list of priorities. "For me, composing is a very natural process. Nothing makes me happier. I always leave a tape recorder on, even when I practice. Then I go back over it to search for ideas and sounds I like, unifying and incorporating them into the material I record and perform." Chastain lists "Fortunate Happenstance" and title track "Elegant Seduction" as two of his favorite cuts. "I prefer a very up tempo style with a strong fusion feel, which I was able to express on these tracks. It's a nice change of pace for me to get away from the very heavy, dark, Gothic sounds on my band albums." Naming his favorite fusion guitarists who have been influences on him, Chastain points to Allan Holdsworth, Al Di Meola, and John McLaughlin. Opening cut "Schizophrenic" spotlights the versatility of this guitarist extraordinaire. Chastain negotiates the transitions with taste and proficiency by incorporating numerous musical influences and styles--from blues to classical, metal to fusion. The result ties together many styles into a seamless whole. The classically influenced "Pompous Rompous" features Baroque counterpoint and arpeggios reminiscent of Bach's Prelude in C. "Images" is a piece which features Chastain's acoustic style and non-strand time signatures. Produced by Chastain himself, Elegant Seduction was recorded at Kajem/Victory studios in Philadelphia, PA, and engineered by Joe Alexander (who has also worked with Vinnie Moore and Metal Church). "This album is a growth from the last one. The guitar comes through much cleaner, and is absolutely the best guitar sound that I've had yet." For the LP, current Chastain band member David Harbour plays bass; drummer Rick Porter, who toured with the Chastain band in 1990 rounds out the group. In the summer of 1990, Chastain released an instructional video, "Progressive Metal Guitar-Instruction and Performance," released by Backstage Pass. Designed to teach aspiring guitarists, the one hour tape features the maestro demonstrating many of the rare and exotic scales which characterize his style. Included is the classical feel of the Gypsy Minor, and bluesy pentatonics. Among the myriad of good advice Chastain has for the fledgling musician is the importance of learning as much about music theory as possible, right from the start. "Theory provides the foundation to learn more quickly, and understand your music more deeply, I feel that it's best not to copy other guitarist. Everyone has their influences, and we all have to learn from others, but it is too easy to rely on someone else for ideas which we should find on our own. Improvisation is the best way to meet this challenge. It allows you to shift the focus of attention to your own riffs and melodies, inspires creativity, and provides an outlet for incorporating music theory into everyday playing." Obviously Chastain follows his own advice, displaying the merits of these theories on Elegant Seduction. Chastain believes that his approach to a solo album is quite different from his efforts with the Chastain band. "On solo albums, there are no deep meanings in the songs- my statements are solely musical. There also is less of a tendency to overplay musically because there's no need to cram everything I want to express into a short solo break. I have much more space to develop my ideas, and experiment with new sounds." Elegant Seduction is Chastain's most expressive effort to date, combining numerous musical influences together. the listener experiences new musical horizons without ever losing touch with the heavy metal feel that has made this heralded musician a favorite among guitar fans. With the release of Elegant Seduction, Chastain's innovative mix of guitar styles is sure to please his long time followers, as well as win him new audiences. © http://www.leviathanrecords.com/seducdes.htm
David T. Chastain is one of the most versatile and talented guitarists and composers on the scene today and should be better known. Guitar World says that, "As a player, Chastain ranks with Steve Morse, Eric Johnson, Joe Satriani and Steve Vai." “Elegant Seduction” is a top notch early 90's instrumental metal album full of various guitar styles. The album contains eleven Chastain originals and is HR by A.O.O.F.C. Listen to his "Guitar Master" album [All tracks @ 320 Kbps: File size = 102 Mb]
TRACKS
1.Schizophrenia (3:21)
2.Elegant Seduction (4:31)
3.Trapped in the Void (3:17)
4.7 Hills Groove (3:24)
5.Pompous Rompous (3:50)
6.Blitzkrieg (4:19)
7.Ménage à Trois (3:59)
8.Fortunate Happenstance (4:31)
9.No Repeat Discourse (3:19)
10.Images (3:48)
11.Positional Strategy (3:58)
All tracks composed by David T. Chastain
MUSICIANS
David T. Chastain - Guitars
David Harbour - Bass
Rick Porter - Drums
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