"I love the music of Joni Mitchell or Bob Dylan," says Icelandic guitarist Mikael Máni. "I think that's the main reason why I often write songs for the guitar that could just as easily be sung." Which brings us to the core of his ACT debut "Guitar Poetry": It shows an instrumentalist who loves the sophistication of composing and the freedom of improvising in equal measure, combining both with the clarity and sincerity of a singer-songwriter. This is what makes his music so multi-layered. Mikáel Mani likes to describe it as a mixture of jazz, rock and impressionism, always with the aim of being both accessible and sophisticated in order to stimulate people intellectually and touch them emotionally at the same time. The very first song, "She'll Arrive Between 10 & 11", sets out the range of what listeners can expect throughout the album "Guitar Poetry": a warm guitar tone with fine, acoustic brilliance in an open echo chamber opens the piece. This is followed by a simple, folkloristic melody, a few sparse harmonies - a musical idyll. And then, in the middle of , the song tips over into noise, becomes gloomy, threatening, almost hopeless... and finally returns to the conciliatory theme Mikael Máni is a young master of contrasts and musical surprises. And a guitarist with his very own signature style, which can hardly be categorized within the usual spectrum of the instrument in jazz. The reference to jazz is more evident in his playing style and less in any real genre affiliation. The finger-picking of folk guitarists, influences from blues, Americana and Nordic songs and a unique, cinematic quality are more obvious. And even if Máni interprets his music purely instrumentally, it has an extremely vocal character. Virtuosity competitions and instrumentalist vanity are alien to this artist. Mikael Máni lets his music flow and creates intensity sometimes through calm and relaxation, sometimes through energy and small outbursts that can explode briefly from any tonality into noise, only to either find their way back or discover completely new ways out. And sometimes you have the feeling of experiencing two or more guitarists, of perceiving several layers of sound in parallel. But, with the exception of two tracks recorded in multi-track technique, it is always Mikael solo who has the talent to play harmonies, melodies and fragments that then live on and grow in the listener's mind as parts of the arrangements. The phrase may be a cliché, but here it simply fits: the songs on "Guitar Poetry" all tell stories, open up spaces and landscapes, draw pictures. And they are the reflection of a guitarist who is as unconventional as he is musically approachable, an extroverted introvert for whom expression and emotion seem to be paramount.