I am a prog rock guita player, songwrite, musician and sound engineerr in the Netherlands.

In the seventies and eighties I was influenced by bands like Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, Wishbone Ash, Grand Funk, Uriah Heep, Focus, Rainbow, Van Halen, Saga, Foreigner, Boston, Kansas, Toto, Thin Lizzy and many other great bands.

In that period favourite guitarist were Ritchie Blackmore, Gary Moore, Jimmy Page, Jan Akkerman, Pat Travers, Rory Gallagher, Jimi hendrix, Jeff Beck, Joe Walsh, Al DiMeola, Edward van Halen, Steve Lukather and many others.

In 1993 I first heard the progressive rock band Dream Theater. Although their music is complex, it inspires me to write my own songs. The variation in music and their musical skills are unimaginable.

Other current prog rock metal bands, guitarist, drummers, musicians I enjoy listening to and giving me inspiration are Symphony X, Vanden Plas, Evergrey, Pagan's Mind, Queensryche, John Petrucci, Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, Steve Lukather, Michael Romeo, Simon Philips and Rock Projects like Liquid Tension Experiment and Explorers Club. Of course there are more great bands and musicans. The list would be long...

 

Gradus Van Gelder

Rock Project 'The Vow'