Tó Pica – Is This The Best You Can Do?
Tó Pica
“Is This The Best You Can Do?”
Metal/Rock
Released 30th September 2015
Via Premiere Music
Tó Pica is such a veteran Portuguese guitar player that I’m surprised it took him so long to come up with a solo album. But then again, his involvement with other artists/bands is so extensive that the surprise may lay in how he found the time to do it…
First thing you need to know is that this isn’t a “guitarist’s album”, meaning you won’t hear intricate, overdone guitar pieces disguised as songs. Even “The Urge”, where the lack of vocals emphasizes the guitar, has a thick rhythm section and could belong to any top-notch metal band. And in the other instrumental song here, “And… Just Breathe”, the piano plays a bigger role than the guitar. So no, “Is This The Best You Can Do?” isn’t the reflection of a guitarist’s ego but a full band’s work; the solos have just the right measure of artfulness to show how skilled and talented Pica is.
Also, despite his experience dating back to I-don’t-know-how-many-ages-ago, this isn’t an old school album. Pica is a versatile and open-minded musician and so is the outcome of his work. From the more traditional “My Time Has Come” to the more alternative “The Tempest”, going though the whiff of prog in “Suspended Metamorphosis”, the inclusion of string arrangements in the acoustic “Taste My Blame” and the heartfelt emotion in the modern rock piece “Espelho” (mirror – my favorite), Pica and his friends bring you a dynamic mix of dashing songs. I can assure you the album title represents the sarcastic nature of the artist, not the traits of his work.
4,5/5
Renata “Pieni” Lino
Valkyrian Music 
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