Fans of modern-day Steve Morse Band are gonna eat this one up—an instrumental trio indulging in controlled, disciplined compositions, guitarist Travis Larson a very versatile center to things, able to play shredding solos, lovely acoustic passages, and inspired jazz/fusion bits, joined by a rhythm section (bassist Jennifer Young and drummer Dale Moon) that may even draw applause from Dave LaRue and Van Romaine (anyone else have the utmost respect for Morse’s unsung bandmates?). Tracks like “934,” “Powerdown,” and “Frantic Manic” show a potential guitar hero in the making, but slower, more subtle songs like “Sandusky Trail” and a cover of “Georgia on My Mind” (featuring Bela Fleck bassist Victor Wooten), show that, while Larson can be flashy, he also respects the idea of music. This is a band on their way to great things if Suspension is any indication. Though Larson’s playing sometimes indicates that he hasn’t fully carved his own niche (you’ll hear bits of Morse here, Satriani there, and for some reason, “Frantic Manic” sounds a lot like Eric Johnson’s “Cliffs of Dover” to me), there is no doubt that this will happen. A lot of instrumental albums have a tendency to only be of interest to musicians—Suspension, like Steve Morse’s recent Split Decision, is one that’s just very cool to kick back and listen to.
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