“Destiny Road” is a hard-rocking, dynamic, engaging piece of work from the versatile and adventurous Gary Dranow. Having heard a few of his songs now, I have to say that I know what level of quality expect from Dranow, and he more than delivers on this blues rock banger.
The song opens with a hard-rocking guitar-bass-drums section before launching immediately into a lovely solo – with some of the creamiest, most satisfying guitar tones I’ve heard in a while. The arrangement is built on a classic rock ensemble of the aforementioned guitar, bass, and drums, but each part is played with care and precision. The acoustic guitar in the verses of the song, and the softer bridge section, is particularly of note.
The vocals are well performed and the lyrics capture the imagination – “destiny road, where the dreams leave the soul” – but it’s really the instrumentation that owns this song. The amount of guitar solos is almost indulgent, but it’s so well performed I don’t really mind. And that’s the thing about rock – as long as it’s played well, it doesn’t really matter how excessive it is. We seem to have forgotten that in a world full of one-and-a-half-minute TikTok bops; “Destiny Road” clocks in at four and a half minutes and does so with gusto.
As with most of Dranow’s releases, the production quality is excellent. The mix is clear, each instrument audible and well-placed in sonic space. The particular version of the song I heard was labeled on Spotify as a “re-mix,” which makes me think that there may have been a rough or demo version at some point. I’m sure that even with a more raw mix, however, the overall quality of the song would have shown through.
I’ve been increasingly impressed with each release I’ve heard from Dranow as I’ve become more familiar with his work, and “Destiny Road” is no exception. This is, as I said, a hard-rocking track that belongs firmly on any modern blues-rock playlist. It’s a throwback to the golden era of rock, and yet modern at the same time. And even though it’s a longer song, it takes full advantage of its running time to show off the skill of the rhythm section and (presumably Dranow’s) lead guitar prowess. Kudos, Gary. Keep it up.
Listen to "Destiny Road - Re-Mix " on Spotify here -
You can check out Gary Dranow’s (band) website here:
A brilliant addition to the repertoire -
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