Marnie Stern

iTunes Review

Marnie Stern, a highly skilled and technical guitarist, delivers an arresting aural assault on her hard-driving third release. Her multi-layered guitar parts, with emphasis on her two-handed tapping technique, along with the frantic tempo changes and frenetic drumming are both jarring and thrilling on first listen. “For Ash” features a catchy, anthemic chorus, “Gimme” and “Building a Body” boast jagged hooks, and “Nothing Left,” “Risky Biz,” and “The Things You Notice” are noisy indie rock. It may seem odd to label such experimental sounding music as pop, yet Stern’s songs retain a strong sense of melody often missing from such guitar-shredding music. And she doesn’t do it all alone. As on her first two releases, she’s joined by the nimble and inventive drummer Zach Hill who plays a major role in getting these songs across. Hill’s technical mastery matches Stern’s and the interplay between guitar and drums is remarkable and always in service of the complex arrangements. Intense and ambitious while remaining tuneful and accessible this is an exhilarating statement from a young guitar phenom and her talented cohorts.