Nils Rurack is a songwriter and guitar player who focuses on powerful music with a groove. Genres are just labels. Nils' compositions cross genres from Jazz to Heavy Metal, from Prog to Funk and from Blues to Rock.
"Some people like to watch professional sports. Other people like to play video games. I like to play with harmonies, melodies and rhythms turning them into songs." - Nils
Carl King: "Nils is cooking up some Smooth Jazz Metal". Leslie J. Bialik, Rock Promoter and Scout for Roadrunner Records: "superior guitar playing" "powerful vocal delivery" "dynamic".
Latest News
Feb-2024
1697 - my recent obsession with anachronisms is now available on my bandcamp page.
Public Reviews
Jamie Glaser on Thrillseeker:
Having been in a few well known fusion rock jazz bands ( Jean Luc ponty, Chick Corea and others) the things that seems to be missing these days is attention to melody, air in the tracks, and telling a story.
Nil's tracks have all the elements of greatness, from real solid compositions, arrangements that tell a story, modern sounds , voicings that compliment the melodies and solos.
While listening to a track like Sixteen torches with its groovin ostinato bass , I wondered where he would go and he didn't disappoint. From his melody I found a story being told, and I sat here waiting for where his melodic journey would take him.
When Nils dug into his improvisation he didn't just shred like a youtuber who has watched lick videos for most of their lives, and he didn't sound like he was trying to sound like someone else,, he has his own sound, a pristine clean sound that is neither the usual smooth jazz fare that you hear all day long on the radio, nor
a heavy metal sound... just a Nils sound, and with that sound he told his story.
I am quite enjoying Nils work which I'm told reflects his personal journey in life.
Yep he has a story to be told ,.,, and he does really well.
Leslie J. Bialik on Ike:
Right away I liked this song. The singer's voice has enough uniqueness to give the song an identity and his delivery is powerful! The guitar playing is superior (the guitar solo is very tasty!) and the songwriting/composition very good because it's simple, but still different. The vocal harmonies on the refrain are reminiscent of Alice in Chains (beautiful) and contrast very nicely with the raspy vocals in the rest of the song. The echo effect at the end of the song is very effective, too. The production is more than adequate and overall I think this song is very good! Keep up the great work! If you found this review helpful or bad, feel free to post your comments on the Community Feedback portion of this website. Thanks for letting me listen to your music!
On Bank Robber:
I thought the vocalist has enough of a distinct quality to his voice that this band could be identified by it. He also sings clearly enough to make the words understandable. The song itself is very simple musically, but the guitar work gives it a certain drive and flow, and there are enough dynamic changes that keep it interesting for the listener. The hook/refrain "you stay alive" is a nice touch that gives the song continuity. This didn't feel like a 3-minute song and left me wanting to hear it again. Good work! Thanks for sending me this second song, Nils.
Nils Rurack Bio
Born and raised in Hamburg/Germany Nils was introduced to music in his early childhood at home. Listening to Elvis and The Beatles at age 6 he knew he wanted to play guitar. At age 11 he started taking lessons for classical guitar and bought his first electric guitar three years later. During the highschool years Nils played in local amateur bands and took lessons from private teachers and at several music schools.
In 1992 Nils went to college in Enchede, The Netherlands to study electric guitar and popular music. Before he graduated in 1997 he made a decent living playing gigs with jazz ensembles, funk bands and playing in several TOP 40 cover bands.
Driven by his interest in composition and original music Nils started a career in IT to support his love for music without compromises. Finding and refining his style in the first few years after college Nils spent a lot of his free time in the home studio writing and recording before he emigrated to the United States. Today he collaborates with musicians and singers all over the world in different styles touching Funk and Blues but always rocking.
In 2008 Nils worked on Stereo Burn with Arizona based singer Michael Reardon. It showcases Nils' heavy and very rhythmic guitar work while incorporating Michael's powerful vocals and memorable hooks. Stereo Burn has been described as "Disturbed with a spice of Mudvayne".
Since then Nils has published a total of 24 projects, some by himself and some with guest musicians/singers like Peter Olach, Paul Messina, Oliver Wulff, Ad Smit, Frans Vollink, Ed Mann, Bill Ray, Dave Frank, Matt Tebow and many more.
Every project starts with a challenge. Who knows what's next?