A monster modern-jazz player from Canada, Demir has the kind of taste, finesse, and chops that put him in the same camp as Pat Martino and John McLaughlin. This neo-bop record displays him mostly on acoustic and Roland GR-30 guitar synthesizer and he sizzles on each, while earlier releases highlight his pure electric fury. Check him out.
by Pete Prown

The first thing to notice on the Orhan Demir Trio's fascinating Guitar Plus (Hittite records HTT-2007 ; 57:57) is the raw, almost scratching production style on the be-bopping title track. This up-close, dramatically bare feel echoes ' 50s beatnik club jazz , and should serve as a warning that Demir and company will be squarely in-your-face for the next hour . This is a tremendous opportunity for guitar fans to experience Demir's searingly fast fretwork and improvisation on a visceral level . The Turkish-born guitarist rages through flights of improvisation and experiments with guitar-synth tone on wild tunes like "Lumberyard"(buzz-saw fuzz guitar over bebop jazz bass and drums) and "El Nino" (a creepy electronic-Latin fusion hybrid), showcasing an an endlessly fascinating technique. Demir's Eastern influences surface most prominently on "Orpheus" and "Goodbye Princes", with dissonant chords punctuating each phrase , creating waves of anquish and reminiscence. Guitar Plus is a must for anyone who aspires to use the instrument as a freeform , emotional paintbrush ; but others be warned : it's also an exhausting listening experience. By Hilarie Grey, March 1999 Jazz Times.

Jazz is the mongrel offspring of disparate musical fruitfully from musical styles the world over. The influence of the East shows up time and again, in pieces like Ellington's "Caravan," Strayhorn's "Isfan" and in almost all of Coltrane's later works. Add to this long list the music of guitarist Orhan Demir, a native of Turkey now making his home in Toronto. "Guitar Plus" is largely a trio effort, featuring the prodigious talents of drummer Barry Elmes and bassist Neil Swainson on 9 of 14 tracks. The tracks on this CD, all Demir originals, cover an unusually broad range of styles and moods, from the joyous bouzouki-like rhythms of the title track to the jagged avant-garde edge of "warriors of Darkness," and "Lumberyard," on which Demir manages to sound like an agitated insect swarm. Demir also uses the guitar synthesizer to explore more conventional instrumentation. On "Heavy Mental" he plays with a straightforward open trumpet sound. On "Lighthouse" he adopts a piano sound, and on "After the raid" he sounds like a church organ. Key to success of this CD are Barry Elmes' driving polyrhythms and Neil Swainson's probing, ruminative bass. Their hard, acoustic sound, and Demir's use of free rhythms and modern harmonies give the music more edge than is usual for synth-driven fare. Evocative, always engaging, and featuring a much broader spectrum of sounds than you'd expect from guitar, bass and drums, Orhan Demir's "Guitar Plus" is a very good CD.
by Ethan James

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