| 1. Playthings 2. In The Middle 3. Act Of Sympathy 4. Enemy Lines 5. Don't Come Crying To Me 6. Sometimes In A Dream 7. Traumatized 8. Highway To Nowhere 9. Donut 10. This Might Be The Last Time 11. Animal Man 12. Do You Still... 13. Merry-Go-Round |
| Originally Released on Pulse Records (U.S.) 1999. GARY SCHUTT - all instruments and vocals This was recorded on a Tascam 488 in my apartment when I was living in Miami in 1997. It took alot longer to record than "Sentimetal" (about 8 months) because I had a full time job working at a music store, a weekend gig in a top 40 band and a live-in girlfriend. The main guitar used was a G&L Legacy, transparent green with a maple neck and a DiMarzio Chopper in the bridge pickup. Any solos you hear with whammy bar stuff was done on a Jackson Dinky Reverse, violet burst finish - I miss that guitar. The Ibanez "Donut" guitar was used on my remake of Queen's "Death On Two Legs". I used a Digitech RP6 through a Peavey Classic 50/50 amp into a Peavey 4x12 speaker cab. The cabinat was cranked up in my bathroom with the covers from our bed on it and mic-ed with a Shure SM57. Two Boss SE-50's were used for outboard effects on the Tascam. I sang through a SM58. The bass was run the same as the guitar. The drums were programmed on a Roland R5. The Keyboards were sequenced on a Ensoniq ESQ-1. |
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| REVIEWS |
| SOUND BARRIER MAGAZINE & METAL AREA WEBZINE (excerpt)
Rating: 10/10 by Nicky Baldrian WOW, some people are full of surprises! This is shit-hot. "Playhings" is the brand new opus from guitar player Gary SChutt whom you may recall played on the first Takara album. Vocally Gary sounds a cross between Fastway, Jeff Scott Soto, Tommy Heart, Stryper and the lead singer dude from XYZ. "In The Middle" is just superb and features a really great bass solo a'la Billy Sheehan, actually thinking of it, this song is Talas and David Lee Roth's "Eat 'em And Smile" played by one guy!!! Phew!! It's only 2 tracks in and I am having so much FUN with this album. "Enemy Lines" see Gary playing backed up by good drum effects, here he sounds like Micheal Sweet from Stryper and the song is very catchy with a brilliant chorus. A HIT!!! Brilliant melodies and foot tapping arrangements. "Sometimes In A Dream" is a gorgeous ballad. "This Might Be The Last Time" is a jaw dropping piano led ballad with big hollow vocals, this is beautiful and will rip you apart! "Animal Man" get things on the heavy side and features some amazing singing and brilliant drumming. Gary Schutt has released to most incredible album of 1999. Everything you hear is bombastic classic eighties hard rock with not a single filler in sight. This is a dangerous album that gets my vote for top album of the year, yup. It's that good!!!! RATHOLE.COM review by Scott Bazzett (excerpt) You don't know him yet, but you should. Gary Schutt is a one-man band. Writing, recording and producing the Playthings himself would have been impressive with just a marginal talent in each area, but he's a great rhythm section and an outstanding lead. Creative drum lines and impressive bass licks back up blistering solos and piercing vocals. His only major credit was as the bassist on the first Takara (Jeff Scott Soto) album, but that was clearly a waste of his talents. Gary is an accomplished songwriter, coming up with unique riffs and melodies filled with emotion and energy. As it turns out, he's a pretty great singer though. His voice is perfect for these songs. There was no reason to get anybody else. All the range and power to pull it off. With nothing to loose and nothing to prove, he comes across more sincere than anyone I've heard in a long time. HardRoxx.com by Dave Cockett (ecerpt) rating: 8/10 "Playthings" is the second solo offering from one time Takara bassist Gary Schutt. Whereas Jeff Scott Soto handled the vocals on "Sentimetal", this time ol' Gary boy does that too - personally, I can't decide whether he wants a Grammy or a slap really! Although the Takara debut was a fine slice of melodic rock, their subsequent efforts (neither of which feature Mr. Schutt) were only cheap imitations. However, with "Sentimetal" and now "Platythings", their erstwhile bass player seems to be going from streng to strength. SPINME.COM pick of the day (excerpt) rating: 8/10 "Playthings" is a true solo project: Gary Schutt wrote and performed all of it himself, which just shows what a fine singer, very strong songwriter, and truly tremendous musician he is. Schutt's instrumental prowess is sometimes absolutly jaw-dropping, but the album's diverse excellence is even more impressive. Without question, "Playthings" is an outstanding melodic hard rock album. It's a snarling, powerful hour of heavy rock, period, and metal fans from all over the map will find something on "Playthings" worth hearing. |
| "PLAYTHINGS" |
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