Steve Vai Albums (13)
'Where the Wild Things Are'
Release Date 9/29/2009
Tracks 15
Label Favored Nations
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What The Critics Say
Taken from a two-hour-and-40-minute sold-out show recorded at the State Theatre in Minneapolis, Where the Wild Things Are is yet another live showcase of meticulously mapped Steve Vai compositions. Much of the material is new, and tested out in front of an unfamiliar but eager audience, with Vai exercising his chops to the limits. It's a chance for him to bust out every trick in the book: blazing through ridiculously difficult scales, double hand-tapping extravaganzas (where he plays the guitar like a piano), and sick string bends and whammy bombs to the point where his custom Jem neck should be left, imaginably, in the same shape as the rubbery guitar on the cover of Flex-Able. The listening experience is more geared toward frequent guitar clinic attendees than someone seeking background music for a day drive. It's not easy listening. It's the kind of stuff that deserves full concentration, and while most will furrow their brows while focusing on the guitar pyrotechnics, the rest of the instrumentalists are tightly locked and highly ambitious in their own right. Touring for the first time as a collective, violinists/keyboardists Ann Marie Calhoun and Alex DePue join Vai, along with bassist Bryan Beller, drummer Jeremy Colson, and guitarist/sitarist Dave Weiner. The virtuosic tendencies run high, the musicianship is incredible, and as a whole, the group sounds more like one of Zappa's stage bands than, say, Roth's. Things are still flamboyant and over the top, as expected from the owner of a three-pronged heart-shaped guitar, but there are signs of maturity. As a guitarist and as a composer, Vai's only getting better with age, as proven by Real Illusions: Reflections' sprawling, elastic "Freak Show Excess" and "Building the Church," running the gamut with haphazard emotional shifts, flawless changes, and otherworldly playing. ~ Jason Lymangrover, All Music Guide
'Sound Theories, Vols. 1-2'
Release Date 6/26/2007
Tracks 17
Label Epic/Red Ink
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What The Critics Say
Despite his reputation as a rock guitar virtuoso, Steve Vai has been writing orchestral scores since the age of 14 (that would be circa 1974) by his estimation and "[amassing] hefty heaps" of them ever since, "but with few performances." So he notes in his annotations to the ambitious double-CD live set Sound Theories, Vols. 1-2. Vai's compositional bent finally was given an outlet by Co de Kloet of Dutch Public Radio & Television, which commissioned him to write an hour's worth of music to be performed by the Metropole Orkest. Going through his amassed materials, Vai came up with two hours' worth, which he and the orchestra performed in a series of concerts in May 2004 and July 2005. Then, he took the recordings home and began working on them, resulting, two years later, in this album, the first two volumes of what he hopes to be a continuing series. The pieces date back to 1978 ("Answers"), with many from the 1980s ("Salamanders in the Sun," "Attitude Song," "For the Love of God," and "Liberty" from the first disc and the entire second disc). Several of these earlier works, notably "Salamanders in the Sun" and "Frangelica, Pt. 2," reveal the influence of Vai's former employer Frank Zappa. Zappa was never fortunate enough in his lifetime to work with a sympathetic symphony orchestra like the Metropole, however. (He did work well with some smaller ensembles toward the end of his life.) Like Zappa, Vai is interested in pushing the limits of composition and playing ability, and he has gone even further by manipulating the live recordings with what he acknowledges are thousands of edits and note substitutions. The first disc, subtitled The Aching Hunger, is a guitar-plus-orchestra album with his usual playing pyrotechnics. But he leaves the entire second disc (Shadows & Sparks) to the Metropole, which makes this music sound like the highly dramatic soundtrack for an adventure film that hasn't been made yet. Sound Theories, Vols. 1-2 seems to be the beginning of a post-guitar-hero career for Vai, and it makes a good start in that direction. ~ William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide
'Real Illusions: Reflections'
Release Date 2/14/2005
Tracks 11
Label Sony
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What The Critics Say
For his first studio album in five years, Steve Vai came up with a "rock fable" described as follows: "Real Illusions: Reflections is the first part of a multilayered menagerie of vignettes based on the amplified mental exaggerations of a truth-seeking madman who sees the world... Oh, never mind." Sound advice there. Each tune has a description of the "story line" and further track-by-track description is available on Vai's website, but the reality is that the concept doesn't get in the way of the music on this largely instrumental offering. "Building the Church" is everything you'd expect right out of the gate: crunching heavy riffs and wild elastic soloing, but Vai's always been more interested in solid melodies and great attention to sonic detail and tone than he is in empty showboating. As a result, his playing is restrained and lyrical just as often is it is flashy, with the composition itself taking precedence over the soloing. He's got a great ear for arrangements, and can build a track with a thousand guitar parts or turn around and sound just as full with a single guitar, bass, and drums (as on the beautiful "K'm-Pee-Du-Wee"). He's also got a couple surprises: like getting funky with scatted mouth percussion and horn charts on "Firewall" or the amusing and experimental "Yai Yai," with its ticking clock rhythm and crazy talkbox work. "Freak Show Excess" (title says it all) is a wild guitar fest with cool electric sitar, and then there's "Lotus Feet," a live track taken from concerts Vai did with the Metropole Orkester (one of Europe's finest orchestras) in Holland in 2004. As a vocalist, he's gotten way more confident, and while it's doubtful his singing will ever be the primary attraction, he does a fine job here. The playing and production is fantastic, but it seems that with the different styles and feels (along with excellent pacing) Vai really tried to craft a solid album as opposed to a series of dazzling tracks and succeeded nicely. ~ Sean Westergaard, All Music Guide
'Alive in an Ultra World'
Release Date 6/19/2001
Tracks 15
Label Epic
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What The Critics Say
Steve Vai came up with an ambitious concept for the follow-up to his 1999 album The Ultra Zone: to write a series of compositions that related to different countries, and then to perform and record those tunes in the countries themselves. As he acknowledges in his liner notes to the hour-and-a-half-plus double-CD Alive in an Ultra World, logistics prevented him from exactly accomplishing his goals, especially with regard to geography, so that, for example, "Giant Balls of Gold," the song for Poland, was recorded in Greece, and "The Black Forest," the song for Germany, was recorded in Scotland (both with studio overdubs added later). But for a peripatetic musician like Vai, the idea was doubtless inspiring, and it has spurred him to write some interesting pieces, even if many of them have no obvious connections to the places they're supposed to be about. More often, they sound like Vai's usual musical influences. "Blood and Glory," the song for the U.K., has a majestic sound that does seem British, especially if your idea of Britain is guitarist Brian May of Queen. "The Power of Bombos," the song for Greece, is reminiscent of Jimi Hendrix, so maybe it should have been the song for Seattle. And "Devil's Food," the song for Holland, recalls Frank Zappa, whose "Dog/Meat" is even quoted. Some tunes do show obvious national influences, though. "Iberian Jewel," the song for Spain, employs a Spanish guitar and flamenco rhythm; "Incantation," the song for Bulgaria, and "Babushka," the song for Romania, each have a distinct Eastern European gypsy feel; and "Light of the Moon," the song for Australia, borrows the melody of "Waltzing Matilda" in the chorus. For his part, Vai is an engaging, slightly goofy frontman, which allows him to interact successfully with his European and Far East audiences. ~ William Ruhlmann, All Music Guide
'The 7th Song: Enchanting Guitar Melodies - Archive'
Release Date 11/7/2000
Tracks 11
Label Sony
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What The Critics Say
This album contains two tributes to two other stellar guitarists. One of those is "Jiboom," which pays homage to Stevie Ray Vaughan, while "Frank" remembers Frank Zappa. Vai saw his career begin as a teenage stunt guitarist for Frank Zappa. Later, Mike Keneally performed the same role in a band backing Zappa. For this album, Keneally toured in Vai's band, but plays keyboards on the album. It is an amazing exhibition of six-string talent. ~ Tom Schulte, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Before his high-profile gigs with David Lee Roth and Whitesnake, Steve Vai served time as Frank Zappa's guitarist in the early '80s. And judging by Vai's first two solo albums released around this time, 1984's Flex-Able and Flex-Able Leftovers, he was heavily influenced by Zappa's songwriting and compositional skills. Although there is definitely a noticeable Zappa stamp on the tunes, Vai's own personality and awe-inspiring guitar chops are what really make these two solo albums so impressive. Also, Vai was one of the few guitar heroes of the '80s to stress the importance of songwriting over mindless soloing. While Flex-Able was a full album, Flex-Able Leftovers was originally just an EP of material that didn't make it onto the debut. When Flex-Able was released on CD in 1988, a few tracks from Leftovers were included as a bonus, yet fans have wondered all along if the full EP would ever be released on CD. Ten years later, their wish came true. Not only has the EP been re-released, but unreleased tracks from that era are included, making up a full-length album. Vai's over-the-top humor can be sampled on the profanity-fest "#?@! Yourself" and the goofy "So Happy," while "Massacre" and "Natural Born Boy" feature his immense guitar skill. And Vai's unique songwriting talent is evident on such tracks as "Burnin' Down the Mountain," "The Beast of Love," and "Bledsoe Blvd." The 1998 version of Flex-Able Leftovers is highly recommended to guitar freaks everywhere, as well as lovers of completely original and cutting-edge rock music. ~ Greg Prato, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Widely acclaimed as his best album, Passion and Warfare finds Steve Vai coming into his own as a composer, as well as bypassing vocals almost entirely. His style isn't quite as derivative of influences Frank Zappa and Joe Satriani as it was six years earlier on Flex-able; while some of Vai's sense of humor is still evident on tracks like the cock rock strut of "The Audience Is Listening," it is mostly replaced by a spiritual reflectiveness on ballads like "For the Love of God" and "Blue Powder" and dignified, committed rockers like "I Would Love To" and "Liberty." Vai is a more distinguished composer than most of his guitar-shredder contemporaries, and rather than simply showing off his technique, he isn't afraid to experiment or take chances in his playing. Thus, Passion and Warfare is arguably the richest and best hard rock guitar-virtuoso album of the '80s. ~ Steve Huey, All Music Guide
What The Critics Say
Steve Vai offers the following words of advice about Fire Garden, his fifth solo album: "This is essentially a double CD packed onto one. In this package there are over 74 minutes of music. Phase I (for the most part) is all instrumental music, and Phase II (for the most part) is all vocal selections, with the exception of 'Warm Regards.' ... Being as dense as it is, this CD may best be experienced by devouring it in pieces, but those with a strong constitution may dare to consume it whole as it is." Seldom has an artist provided more telling liner notes for his own album. Fire Garden is indeed a dense album, filled with a never-ending array of sonic textures and guitar tones. Unlike most guitar heroes, Vai doesn't treat music as a way to demonstrate his technical skill. Instead, he channels his astonishing technical skill into creating soundscapes that will showcase his virtuosity as often as not. The result is a guitar album that is enjoyable for non-guitar freaks, as well. Vai's vocals still have a way to go before they are as expressive as his instrumental work, but this subtle and dense concept album is the closest he's ever gotten to integrating the two sides of his musical personality together. An impressive effort from a musician who continues to grow and stretch himself with each new release. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine, All Music Guide
