CARDINAL VIRTUE

As he puts his old band back together for their debut album, blues guitarist Chris Buck emphasizes playing for the song.

- RICHARD BIENSTOCK

FOR THE PAST several years, British guitar phenom Chris Buck has made a name for himself in six-string circles as one of modern music's most expressive, emotive and exciting players, with a blues-and-soul-drenched style that he has showcased onstage and on record with his band, Buck & Evans, as well as in Friday Fretworks, his popular Instagram posts and YouTube video series. And it's not just guitar fans who have been talking about Buck - it's also legendary players and peers, including Iron Maiden's Adrian Smith, Myles Kennedy, former Whitesnake man Bernie Marsden and, most prominently, Slash, who has jammed onstage with Buck and called him a "fucking amazing guitar player."

Buck's guitar playing, which is highlighted by his exquisite tone and impeccable taste, is deeply rooted in his love of classic rock and blues. But with his newest project, Cardinal Black, he's also delving into his personal roots. Because while Cardinal Black have just released their first album, the band's history stretches back more than a decade, to when Buck and drummer Adam Roberts joined with singer Tom Hollister to write songs for what was, at the time, Hollister's university dissertation project.

But the musicians, then known as the Tom Hollister Trio, soon became something much more. Steve Winwood attended the trio's first gig, instantly becoming a fan, and invited the group to record at his own Wincraft Studios. Soon enough, they were in the U.S., working on a debut album under the guidance of veteran Guns N' Roses manager Alan Niven. But before the band could properly launch, Hollister bowed out and returned to the U.K.

"It wasn't an acrimonious split, per se," Buck recalls, "but it wasn't particularly... whatever the opposite of acrimonious is." He laughs. "I guess crimonious?"