New Steve Vai album 'Inviolate' out January 28th

[Bloody_Inferno]

https://www.guitarworld.com/news/ste...nviolate-album



Candle Power and Knapsack will be on it. Looks like he released a new song just now as well:

[Chris]

New tune is decent, sounds like a Fire Garden b-side or something. Not a fan of the boring noodling section towards the middle and end.

Those PIAs look fucking great, I just really wish they weren't 3-4x the price of a 550 for essentially the same guitar with a couple of holes poked in it.

[Shawn]

Nice. Should be good once it comes out.

[Bloody_Inferno]

It's funny because immediately after posting this thread, Vai posted this photo:



I was going to go rambling on how Vai has been different to his contemporaries and that he was always the kind to follow his sly muse and play ridiculous instruments like this (built by Hoshino and used for the opening track Teeth of the Hydra). Basically Fever Dream and I Know You're Here all over again.

Then I found out Little Pretty was tracked mostly with a Gretsch.

Steve Vai swaps Ibanez for Gretsch in new single Little Pretty, and reveals bonkers triple-neck Hydra guitar | Guitar World]

[Ghost.]

I feel like Vai could have given quite a driven track for a single and that just wasn't it. It was very Vai of course, kind of reminded me of an Al Di Meola track in some parts but it isn't something I'd regularly would listen to.

He is at a fairly relevant point right now still with guitar players young as well as older. He could have done something in the vein of "Bad Horsie," "Building the Church" and caught more attention like "Knappsack" did.


I'll listen to it again on a proper speakers but it was just ok I guess? Great playing.
I was hoping this was going to be that straightforward guitar record he had been talking about and maybe it is?

[Chris]

I'm w/you. I'll never intentionally listen to this song again. I've intentionally listened to Bad Horsie about 200 times in my life.

[Ghost.]

I'm w/you. I'll never intentionally listen to this song again. I've intentionally listened to Bad Horsie about 200 times in my life.

Amen.

That song from top to bottom (musicality, production, melody, solo) is perfect.

[desertdweller]

Quick reminder of this absolute insane and incredible piece he posted this past spring:

[Ghost.]

Quick reminder of this absolute insane and incredible piece he posted this past spring:

He's a King. This still makes me sick...

[jacksonplayer]

That new song is fucking amazing from start to finish. He's putting his advanced composition chops to use in a band context, and then to produce such a beautiful, lyrical solo over *those* wacky changes? I'm blown away. Maybe you have to be a fan of his Zappa-influenced side to feel this.

Vai's last couple studio albums didn't quite do it for me, but I'm really looking forward to this one.

[Ghost.]

That new song is fucking amazing from start to finish. He's putting his advanced composition chops to use in a band context, and then to produce such a beautiful, lyrical solo over *those* wacky changes? I'm blown away. Maybe you have to be a fan of his Zappa-influenced side to feel this.

Vai's last couple studio albums didn't quite do it for me, but I'm really looking forward to this one.

He had three to four good songs on the last album from what I remember?

"Moon and I" & "Weeping China Doll" are Masterpieces.

[Bloody_Inferno]

[Drew]

Saw a clip from that on IG earlier. I think I simultaneously love, and hate, how distinctly like a Steve Vai song e very single one of his songs sounds. He's playing a jazz box there and you know it's him from the first note.

[Dominic]

He's holding a jazz box in that video

FTFY



(I don't hold it against Vai, and I think all three of us understand showbiz)

[Drew]

FTFY



(I don't hold it against Vai, and I think all three of us understand showbiz)

I mean, there's a ton of tracks of harmonized guitar there, but I suspect that's the same one he used for the "primary" lead.

[Bloody_Inferno]

FTFY



(I don't hold it against Vai, and I think all three of us understand showbiz)

Vai's gone on record that he's recorded the song on a Gretsch, but for the sake of showbiz, he used the Ibanez hollowbody... to keep it in the family.

But yea, regardless of what he's playing he still sounds like Vai, and can't help but double, triple and harmonise everything.

[Bloody_Inferno]

New song just dropped:

[Chris]

When did "official visualizer" become a thing?

It sounds like Vai.

[Bloody_Inferno]

When did "official visualizer" become a thing?

When instrumentalists realised that they can't do 'official lyric videos'.

[Chris]

When instrumentalists realised that they can't do 'official lyric videos'.

I'd be 100% cool with an out of focus iphone video of Vai poorly miming his own song instead in this case.

[RevDrucifer]

I dug that one, though putting ‘In Chains’ at the end of anything makes me automatically think of AIC and I was hoping for something brooding.

I’d love to hear him do a whole album that was just dark and gloomy, but even when Vai does something in that vein it ends up sounding cheerful at some point in the song. It’s like his phrasing doesn’t allow for misery in his music.

[desertdweller]

New song just dropped:

Yeah this is Vai at some of his peak. Awesome stuff right here.

[jacksonplayer]

So, the album's been out for a couple days now. It's gorgeous from start to finish. No vocals or odd little compositional freak-outs. Just tons of amazing, off-center guitar playing.

This is the closing track, which seems a little inspired by Zappa's "Watermelon in Easter Hay".

[Snoop Travvy Travv]

I wonder how many hours he has in total of playing guitar.

[scole]

Good god.