Gordian Knot (band)

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For other uses, see Gordian Knot (disambiguation).

Gordian Knot
Origin	USA
Genre(s)	Progressive rock Progressive metal Alternative rock Instrumental rock
Years active	1998–present
Label(s)	Sensory
Website	Sean Malone / Gordian Knot
Members
Sean Malone (Bass) Paul Masvidal (Guitars) Jason Gobel (Guitars) Bill Bruford (Drums)

Gordian Knot is a progressive rock/metal band directed by bass guitarist Sean Malone. At times its shifting lineup has included Steve Hackett of Genesis, Bill Bruford of King Crimson and Yes , Ron Jarzombek from Watchtower and Spastic Ink as well as Jim Matheos of Fates Warning, several of Malone's former bandmates from Cynic and John Myung from Dream Theater.

[edit] Musical Style

The music of Gordian Knot is a stylistic mixture of progressive rock and -metal, Fusion, instrumental music à la Robert Fripp's Guitar Craft (replacing the clean guitar sound with distorted sounds) and his solo-work (for example, compare Gordian Knot's song "Grace" with Fripp's "Evening Star"). Notable is their use of several overlapping layers of complex melodies and harmonies into a unified whole, while the complexity is never an end in itself.

The music of Gordian Knot also relies heavily on diatonic guitar melodies (although sometimes encompassing later-resolved dissonances to add a jazz-fusion-like flavour). The interaction between the various instruments, all played by accomplished instrumentalists, allows for communication of various melody lines, harmonies and rhythms between guitar(s), bass and (concerning rhythms) even drums.

Also, Gordian Knot cannot be categorized without disregarding certain aspects of their music. For example the piece "Komm, süsser Tod, komm sel'ge" is a transcription of a piece of the same name by Johann Sebastian Bach, while some other of their pieces, most notably "Grace", have a distinct classical, even baroque Bach-like flavour, being constructed in an almost counterpoint-like fashion by interweaving several independent diatonic melody lines from the Chapman Stick.

Other songs, such as "Muttersprache" (German for "mother tongue") or "Code/Anticode" work with on-beat/off-beat, interplay between two guitars and/or the rhythm- and melody section, incorporating jazz chords and dissonant intervals to create tension and form the basis for a mixture of jazz fusion and progressive rock/metal.