I Built the Sky’s Rohan Stevenson on breaking out of the shred-metal box for an acoustic guitar album that makes space for banjo, xylophone and more

Rohan Stevenson / I Built the Sky
(Image credit: Elgin Huang Jiale)

While Rohan Stevenson’s body of work as I Built the Sky features plenty of high-gain, eyebrow-singing electric runs – just last fall he and Jake Howsham Lowe went buck wild with gymnastic flair on their Coalesce EP – the progressive shredder has always had a soft spot for the tender tone of a finely strummed acoustic guitar

In the past, he’s tucked the occasional unplugged piece onto an album, but he’s gone full-fledged acoustic for his latest 10-song release, The Quiet Place Away.

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Gregory Adams

Gregory Adams is a Vancouver-based arts reporter. From metal legends to emerging pop icons to the best of the basement circuit, he’s interviewed musicians across countless genres for nearly two decades, most recently with Guitar World, Bass Player, Revolver, and more – as well as through his independent newsletter, Gut Feeling. This all still blows his mind. He’s a guitar player, generally bouncing hardcore riffs off his ’52 Tele reissue and a dinged-up SG.