The Naked Show is a band formed by Mathias Donoso (all music) and Dan Gallar (all vocals) in May 2012 out of Manchester/Reading, UK.
The Naked Show - Exposed (independent) 2012
1. Opening [instrumental] (3:46)
2. Burning (4:20)
3. Indhi (6:27)
4. Down (6:27)
5. Rising [instrumental] (6:29)
6. Walls (6:21)
7. Paint It Black (4:14)
8. Irreversible (7:44)
The Naked Show are a UK hard rock/heavy metal band formed in May of 2012 by guitarist Mathias Donoso and vocalist Dan Gallar. "Exposed" is the band's first CD and was released only months after the pair got together.
"Exposed" opens with a melodic instrumental that sounds a lot like something Joe Satriani might record. Track two was a bit of a shock as it is a completely different style than the opening number. "Burning" is a groove-based heavy metal track with Dan Gallar singing in a clean but aggressive style. The mostly mid-paced song is built around crunchy guitars and those Pantera-influenced stop/start riffs. The are also momentary bursts of speed built into the song. This groove-based style continues on "Indhi", though the band pumps up the aggression slightly on this song. "Down" and "Walls" show off a more melodic side of the duo. Though the songs are ballads, they are not sappy radio ballads. "Down" is a progressive and melodic song that ebbs and flows from clean guitar bits to crunchy guitar riffs. "Rising" is another instrumental track and has an Iron Maiden flair. "Paint it Black" is a cover of the Rolling Stones classic song. The due offer up an unique approach to the song, giving it a bold, heavy edge that approaches hyper thrash metal at certain moments. The CD closes out with a nearly eight-minute long, progressive, power metal song and is easily the highlight of the CD. On this song the band avoid the Pantera-type riffing and instead mixes things up with a mix of tempos.
I was actually taken back by how much I enjoyed this independent release on the very first listen, especially for a band that had only been together for a matter of months, if not weeks. However, that short time together is also apparent by the variety of styles displayed on the CD. With future releases I am sure they will gel together more as a band and figure out which style they really want to do. An entire CD of songs along the lines of "Irreversible" and "Rising" would be awesome. I personally prefer this style to the two ballads and the two groove-based songs.