Guthrie Govan and The Aristocrats...
Guthrie already has guitar covered anyway. They could get Jens Johansson on keys.
rickboot,
Good one! But since these guys have a bit of Jazz in their blood, (...well, not sure how much Marco digs Jazz, but he's an amazing drummer nonetheless - LOL!) I might have a better idea for keys:
Herbie Hancock! Herbie is LEGENDARY, AND he loves to improvise (obviously!) That could be pretty mindblowing if I do say so myself - LOL!
But seriously, as I watched them here in
Boston, MA about 5 weeks ago
(at Berklee Performance Center - at Berklee College of Music,) I was thinking about IF they had a 4th-member, who could it be? The ONE guy that I thought could be the perfect utility-guy is:
Mike Kenneally! He'd be great because:
a.) He's awesome on Keyboards
b.) He's awesome on Guitar!
c.) He shares that "quirky" sense of humor both personally AND in his music (*which the other three Aristocrats-members TOTALLY have in common - IMO!)
The only downside to having Kenneally in that band that I could think of is that would then make TWO ex-Steve Vai bandmembers (Kenneally and Beller,) which resume/reputation/qualification-wise is GREAT,
BUT I think
Guthrie is REALLY making an effort to distance himself from being compared to ANY other single guitar-player (I.E. He does NOT want to be known as the guy who can sound like anyone else! He wants to establish himself as the guy who instantly sounds like Guthrie Govan) I think he is succeeding at developing a "singular-voice," but he's SO DAMN VERSATILE, that he CAN play like anyone else, and he clearly enjoys blending his stunning number of influences into HIS style.) For example
(speaking of Vai,) I've noticed that when Guthrie is improvising over Lydian-harmony, he just can't help himself but to sound a bit like Steve Vai! I think he so effortlessly channels Vai in those
"Lydian-situations" (after all, Steve Vai/Frank Zappa are two of Guthrie's many influences) that it just pours out of him subconsciously! Now I'm NOT saying that Guthrie always sounds like he's channeling another guitarist's style/licks when he plays, I'm just saying that I hear it once in a while, usually over certain accompaniment (as I said earlier
the Vai/Lydian reference, sometimes a little Satriani, and (rhythm-wise) I hear some "Hendrixian-noodles" (Guthrie's own description - LOL!) or "chord-embellishments" and Eric Johnson "spread/drop" chord-voicings. Occasionally when he's incorporating some staccato-chromaticism, I hear some Steve Morse. Hell, at other times, I know I'm hearing influences from the likes of: Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, Allan Holdsworth, Robben Ford, Angus Young, Joe Pass, Yngwie Malmsteen, Shawn Lane, Mike Stern, and Derek Trucks too, all in varying degrees, and some very indirectly! (....and these are just
Guitar-influences!) I'm convinced that Guthrie is profoundly influenced by all sorts of other NON-GUITAR music/musicians as well!
I guess at the end of the day, the good news is:
At least Guthrie Govan has some awesome influences, and he has SO MANY of them that it adds up to an amalgamation/style/voice that he can call all his own - AND right up my alley - LOL!