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Reviews

Kevin Kastning / Paul Wertico — Interchange One
(Greydisc no#, 2026, CD / DL)

Kevin Kastning — Codex III
(Greydisc GDR3608, 2026, CD / DL)

Kevin Kastning — Codex IV
(Greydisc GDR3609, 2026, CD / DL)

Kevin Kastning / Phil Grenadier — Unreal City
(Greydisc GDR3607, 2026, CD / DL)

by Peter Thelen, Published 2026-07-23

Interchange One Cover artCodex III Cover artCodex IV Cover artUnreal City Cover art

Few guitarists have as unique a style as Kevin Kastning, and certainly part of that is because he’s playing a collection of unique guitars of his own design that eschew most standard guitar techniques. In this review we present a couple of solo recordings (Codex III, Codex IV), plus a couple of excellent collaborations, one with trumpeter Phil Grenadier (Unreal City), and another with drummer Paul Wertico (Interchange One). 

Perhaps the most overtly melodic of these is Unreal City, the duo’s second collaboration together following 2024’s In Visible Ascent. Here Kastning plays his 35-string double contraguitar, 24-string and 30-string double sub-contra guitars, and 18-string contraguitar, while throughout Grenadier plays only trumpet, an arrangement that mostly leaves Grenadier free on melodies, while Kastning fills in everything in the bass and chordal registers of the guitars, as well as the subtle percussives therein. There are only four tracks here , the first three cover around nineteen minutes, and the closer is a little over sixteen, making it perfect for an LP release should that ever come to pass. One would have to guess that these four pieces are not scored, but closer to well-rehearsed improvisations. While there seems to be plenty of communication between the two players — or is it telepathy? — they seem to be working closely together, taking their respective turns in the foreground and background, as solo and support, it all seems to work out seamlessly, at times dreamy and at other times perhaps more abstract, but always immersive and magnificent. “Memory Passage Echo,” at over sixteen minutes, might well be the longest track ever from a Kastning collaboration, with plenty of space for ideas to expand and stretch out, though in a relaxed way that invites the listener in.

Paul Wertico is a magnificent drummer, best known for his long tenure with the Pat Metheny Group (beginning in 1984 with First Circle), though I had the pleasure seeing him live with the Polish trio SBB, one of the best sets I’ve ever witnessed. Interchange One has a completely different feel from Unreal City, perhaps darker and more intense, a contributing factor may be because there is no melodic solo instrument (other than what Kastning can produce on his array of guitars: 30-string contra-baritone, 30-string double contra, and 24- and 26-string double sub-contra), which are all operating primarily in the low registers, while Wertico plays a standard drum kit, prepared drum kit, talking drum, and an array of cymbals and percussives. The overall effect is a wild and thunderous bottom-end heavy adventure that at times seems to be scored, at other times completely improvised. There are seven tracks, “Adjacent Flowing Streams I – VII,” though they all tend to flow together like one long continuous suite, one might not even notice when you move from one track to the next, only the mood changes with the transition, but the instrumentation is the same. I’m not familiar with all of Kastning’s endeavors going back to the very beginning, but Interchange One is the first time I’ve heard him in a duo setting with a drummer or percussionist, and it’s really a different feeling. 

The most recent releases are the two solo albums Codex III and Codex IV, follow-ups to Codex I and Codex II released earlier this year. Like those, these are mostly performed on the double contraguitars, contra-baritone guitars, and sub-contraguitars, with a six-string guitar in the credits as well. These represent mostly gentle solo improvisations, seven on Codex III and eight on Codex IV. The nature of these tends to be dreamy and overtly spacious, not as busy and intense as the collaborations, yet every bit as powerful. Because of the range of the instruments employed, the bass and baritone ends tend to be the loudest elements, although there is plenty going on in the high registers as well, just more delicate, which is why a quality set of headphones is a must for an optimal listening experience on these two. Across all of these recordings, Kastning continues to pursue his singular musical vision as a solo artist and with other like minded travelers.

Filed under: New releases, 2026 releases

Related artist(s): Kevin Kastning

More info
http://kevinkastning.bandcamp.com/album/interchange-one-2
http://kevinkastning.bandcamp.com/album/unreal-city
http://kevinkastning.bandcamp.com/album/codex-iii
http://kevinkastning.bandcamp.com/album/codex-iv

 

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