Michael Hedges was often pigeonholed as a new age musician. But despite the smooth surfaces of his music, his complexity and innovation earned him acclaim from avant-garde composers and heavy metal fans alike, with no one able to deny his sublime talent. Bringing together traditions from across guitar music history, with elements of folk, jazz, rock, and more in his work, each of his albums further proved his experimental talent. Although Hedges tragically died in a car wreck in '97 when he was only 43, he had already left behind a prodigious legacy.