Defense Mechanizms (1991)
Performers:
All Music composed by Michael Harris
Track listing
01. Defense Mechanizms
02. Tranz-Orbital Schizophrenia
03. Mind or Heart?
04. Psychotic Biorhythms
05. Classical Conditioning
06. Eminent Domain
07.Collision Course
08. Tarantula
09. Call to Arms
10. Octavian: Heir To the Conqueror
11. Wolfgang Lives! (A Modern Excerpt From Mozart’s 25th Symphony)*
12. Through the Eyes of Eternity
There’s a reason that Michael’s debut CD is still a fan favorite after all these years. “Defense” features plenty of guitar prowess, but Michael never sacrifices that for the music itself, always putting the compositions first. From the prog insanity of the unique title track, to metal crushers like “Tranz-Orbital Schizophrenia” and “Eminent Domain” or the highly melodic & emotive “Mind or Heart?” and even neoclassical stunners like “Octavian” and “Wolfgang Lives!”, there is plenty here for even the most discerning instrumental guitar fan to sink their teeth into. River City Music News had this to say regarding “Defense Mechanizms”:
Not only is Harris the most spectacularly gifted player I have ever heard, he can write an instrumental that sounds like a song rather than an exercise.