Reviews
"His (Hole's) playing has unmatched fluidity. The fireworks, laser strikes, and machine-gun blast sound lubricated, and the quiet, sweet riffs are loose and flowing. Maybe it's the assist of gravity, maybe it's less friction of drag from his fretting hand - whatever it is, he has something new, and since 1992 he's taken the slide world by storm."
"BLUES REVIEW", U.S.A. (SEPT. 2003)
"Man, can Hole play the slide guitar! His new CD "The Live One" is a slash and burn rampage through old-school blues slide wailing.
"CHICAGO TRIBUNE", U.S.A. (AUG. 2003)
" Elmore James probably would be surprised to find out that someday the world's best slide guitar player would hail not from Chicago but from Perth, Australia. The guitarist in question would be, for those who haven't been paying attention, Dave Hole. … the man can make his axe sing, cry, weep and wail, which is all that matters."
"SAN FRANCISCO BAY GUARDIAN", U.S.A. (AUG. 2003)
"The Live One" is one of the purest insights into this man's truly awesome slide ability ever captured on tape. An amazing display of fluid blues gymnastics from beginning to end". "……heavenly slide playing that words couldn't do justice to. For those times when too much guitar is never enough."
"AUSTRALIAN GUITAR" MAGAZINE (MAY, 2003)
"The clarity (of the recording) means you catch every biting microtone in Hole's banshee squeals and hellbent fret runs."
"ROLLING STONE", U.S.A. (MAY, 2003)
"Dazzling……an ear-bending burst of slide guitar blues brilliance."
"CHICAGO TRIBUNE", U.S.A. (2003)
"From a standpoint of voltage, he reigns supreme. His electric slide is without peer, and believe me he is hiding nothing under that heavily distored signal, he is just trying to reach the greatest number of souls in the most electrifying range. A composer of the first rank, he bares all the influences of figures past and some almost present. Check out "Purple Haze".
"VINTAGE GUITAR", U.S.A. (JUNE 2003).
"On his first concert album ever, Hole proves that his musical intelligence and his emotional honesty are a formidable as his technical skills."
AMAZON.COM", U.S.A. (2003)
"Hole is an extraordinary talent in a very crowded idiom. While his music surges and crashes it has the inexplicable appeal of the ocean demonstrating its awesome power."
"CANBERRA TIMES", AUSTRALIA (APRIL, 2003)
"The album ("the Live One") brilliantly captures the energy of a Dave Hole performance and will delight his many fans - and any disadvantaged slide guitar enthusiasts who have not yet enjoyed the pleasure of hearing the remarkable Dave Hole play."
"BLUES IN BRITAIN" (2003)
"This Australian slide monster's off-the-cuff delivery, coupled with a mean and searing tone driven along the border between blues and hard rock, makes for a sonically dangerous experience….still he has a nice side too. Just be careful when he turns."
"GUITAR ONE", U.S.A. (AUG. 2003)
"Searing, steel-guitar-like tones. Long, fat, sustained notes that screech like a siren with a wildly tremulous vibrato…an effective composer of molten blues-rock tunes."
"LOS ANGELES TIMES", U.S.A. (2001)
"A combination of wild abandon and surgical precision….soul deep singing and incendiary fret work. Shuffles and swaggers in the best road-house style. His slide work dive bombs with fat tone and vibrato, played with string-melting intensity. His speed and dexterity will leave you scratching your head and wondering how he can pull it all off with style, fire and grace."
"BLUES ACCESS", U.S.A. (2001)
"Dave Hole is one prodigy whose daunting chops always seem to serve the music, and his smoking new CD "Outside Looking In" is another ear-bending burst of slide blues brilliance that's both innovative and faithfull to the spirit of the music."
"CHICAGO TRIBUNE" (JULY, 2001)
"Hole plays ferocious, adrenaline-charged electric slide…throws sweeping and swirling slide guitar notes into the stratosphere for a dizzying, slash-and-burn, good time stomp".
"LIVING BLUES", U.S.A. (2000)
"Incendiary bottleneck blues…impressive. Highly recommended."
"GUITAR SHOP", U.S.A. (2000)
"Slide sensation flaunts fretboard flash…slashing, burning and raucous….Hole's slide technique is really astounding."
"JAZZ TIMES", U.S.A. (2000)
"One of the most incendiary guitarists ever. Jaw-dropping slide work."
"BIKINI", U.S.A. (2000)
"Aussie Dave hole's blistering guitar playing left a deep impression on Singapore. At times, it seems he could almost make his guitar speak; at others it was clear that he knew exactly the right buttons to push to get the crowd roaring."
"BUSINESS TIMES", SINGAPORE (APRIL, 1999) (Live review)
"As usual Hole's commitment to his art is evident….he plays and sings without compromise, sometimes cajoling, sometimes blasting, but always deep-rooted in the spirit of the blues."
"CANBERRA TIMES", AUSTRALIA (MAY, 1999)
"Hole delivers a virtual slide guitar feast for the listener (on "Under The Spell"). His reach, speed and dexterity ranks with the best of the rock and jazz greats. His commanding musical presence leaves his listeners in awe."
"JAZZ & BLUES" MAGAZINE, U.S.A. (JULY, 1999)
"Hole is rightly revered for his jaw-dropping slide work, but he's about more than just hot licks. He's a strong, smart songwriter and an expressive singer."
"BLUES REVIEW" U.S.A. (JULY/AUGUST, 1999)
"…. Hole has seldom sounded more persuasive or impassioned -his guitar consistently conveys the deepest emotions and truths."
"WASHINGTON POST", U.S.A. (OCTOBER, 1999)
"Ticket To Chicago' stands as a tribute to the electric Blues invented in that City."
"ASSOCIATED PRESS", U.S.A. (MARCH, 1997).
"Probably the greatest blues guitar player of all time. Stevie Ray Vaughan, Albert Collins - name them - no one is nearly as good as this Australian. Now this is the blues."
"VENTURA COUNTY REPORTER", U.S.A. (MARCH, 1997)
"… this critic believes that Dave Hole is the best Blues slide player in the world today. With or without his bottleneck, he has the overall chops of the genre's finer names. He is the equal of Buddy Guy, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Eric Clapton and Fleetwood Mac's tortured co-founder Peter Green."
"THE PRESS" ATLANTIC CITY, U.S.A. (MARCH, 1997).
"Dave Hole's overhand slide continues to blaze and amaze. Elmore James, Hound Dog Taylor and Duane Allman resound in his swoops and slides, while his fingers-on-the-frets forays recall Albert King".
"GUITAR PLAYER", U.S.A. (JUNE, 1997).
"Sizzling and supercharged… a one-way journey to sonic joy."
"LIVING BLUES", U.S.A. (MAY/JUNE, 1997).
"Dave Hole is one of the best slide players ever. His relentless slide strafes and searing single-line solos come at you like a runaway truck down a mountain grade."
"DETROIT FREE PRESS", U.S.A. (1997)
"Exhilaratingly relentless…he produces solo upon blistering solo."
"GUITAR WORLD", U.S.A. (1997)
"…. Harrowing slide guitar solos and rampaging vocals…wickedly seductive….playfully inventive."
"DOWN BEAT", U.S.A. (1997)
"No one on the current scene plays with the incendiary power he does...plenty of energy and explosive slide work. It's never easy to sit still when he's churning out a solo."
"ASSOCIATED PRESS", U.S.A. (1997)
"One of the greatest blues slide guitarists in the world….It's a blues album (Ticket To Chicago) that drips with emotion. Hole's playing defies comparisons."
"CHICAGO SUN-TIMES", U.S.A. (AUGUST, 1997)
Whether plugged or unplugged, Hole's precise and passionate playing ranks with the legends of the genre."
"ASSOCIATED PRESS", U.S.A. (JULY, 1995).
"Yes, Dave Hole is that good. If this guy played with any more feeling, he'd have to go on Prozac. Dave Hole is not only a superb guitarist with a distinctive sound, he performs heart-felt vocals with the depth and credibility of any Blues headliner today.
"BLUES REVIEW", U.S.A. (JULY, 1995).
"When the music of Dave Hole crossed the Pacific it was met with an incredible reaction. Radio programmers, press and fans alike could not get enough of the crackling electricity and raw energy that flows from the man. Ripping, speaker-melting play-every-note-like-you-mean-it, big-balls-out guitar is what he's all about. People still talk about his debut tour of the States in the Fall of 1993, expressing amazement that any of the venues in which he slayed audiences were still standing.
"VINTAGE GUITAR", U.S.A. (SEPTEMBER, 1995)
Kirk Hammett (Metallica) ".......and Dave Hole - his slide playing kills me."
READERS POLL - "BEST SLIDE GUITARIST" category - JOINT 3rd. PLACE. "GUITAR PLAYER", U.S.A. (JANUARY, 1994).
"There's no more explosive Blues guitar player in the world."
"ESQUIRE", U.S.A. (JULY, 1993).
"Slide guitar fanatics will have their brains blown out by the second astonishing album by this Australian fret-melter. ......just take in the eight brilliantly sustained minutes of 'Up All Night Thinking' and prepare to hear your jaw hitting the floor."
"BILLBOARD" MAGAZINE, U.S.A. (OCTOBER, 1993)
"....the man and his guitar were all-encompassing. This was exciting, not just for the Australian Blues-rocker but for the entire audience at 'Legends'. Hole burned down Buddy Guy's place Friday for two amazing sets. His lightening delivery and screaming slide, which sounded almost like a falsetto vocal at times, were works of art."
"CHICAGO SUN-TIMES", U.S.A. (OCTOBER, 1993) - Live Review.
"Years from now, Blues aficionados may still be talking about the time in November, 1993 when slide guitarist Dave Hole first came to town. An extraordinary musician and nascent star, Hole is often compared to the late Stevie Ray Vaughan, but he plays with depth of feeling that owes more to early bottleneck men like Blind Willie Johnson."
"NEW YORK" MAGAZINE, U.S.A. (NOVEMBER, 1993).
"One of the world's most powerful players."
"GUITAR WORLD", U.S.A. (DECEMBER, 1993).
"Whether he's sliding, picking, or acoustic bottlenecking, Dave scorches the strings with utter abandon, pushing the envelope yet another notch further in this idiom."
"GUITAR PLAYER", U.S.A. (DECEMBER, 1993).
"If you have any taste for raucous slide guitar, don't let 'Working Overtime' disappear from your record store. Hole could do for slide what his countrymen AC/DC did for metal."
"PLAYBOY", U.S.A. (DECEMBER, 1993).
"....Hole's work displays bruising power and bewildering invention.. .….the playing here will leave you slack-jawed with wonder."
"MUSICIAN", U.S.A. (DECEMBER, 1993).
"It's not pretentious or flashy. It is just Blues guitar played with mind-numbing virtuosity."
"SYDNEY MORNING HERALD", SYDNEY. (APRIL, 1992),
"When it comes to scintillating slide guitar, Aussie guitarist Dave Hole is rewriting Rock history.
"FIRST HEARING", U.K. (DECEMBER, 1992).
"An astounding guitarist. Evokes favourable comparisons to Albert King and Stevie Ray Vaughan."
"GUITAR PLAYER" MAGAZINE, U.S.A. (JULY, 1991).
"Magnificent, staggering, almost beyond belief. Utterly Blues approved."
"GUITAR PLAYER" MAGAZINE, U.S.A. (APRIL, 1991)
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