Guitar World archive: Yngwie Malmsteen Critiques the Playing of His Peers

[ELVIS]

I thought it was catchy...

BTW, I picked up Sacred Heart at a pawn shop...not catchy...

[Terry]

I like You Don't Remember...

Really?

That track always struck me as a ham-fisted attempt at a Dioesque tune circa Sacred Heart album period (not Dio's best, IMO).

[ELVIS]

I like You Don't Remember...

[Terry]

Malmsteen is certainly an accomplished player - much more than just mere speed. He has a well-honed sense of melodic theory; I never got the sense that he doesn't know exactly what he's doing with each note played and exactly where he's going with the following notes. His playing isn't that of accidents that can either sound great or sound terrible. Very controlled. Rising Force and Marching Out are brilliant: highwater marks of European-style metal guitar.

It's his inability to write simple, catchy tunes that has kept him a cult artist. There's little universal appeal in what he's doing. He's technically brilliant, clearly doesn't suffer from a lack of ego - it's his inability to realize that in rock sometimes less is more in terms of reaching a wide audience...or perhaps he is fully aware of this but chooses not to compromise. I get the sense that he feels if he isn't displaying his chops on everything he plays, somehow he's failing...or dumbing himself down...or playing to less than his abilities.

This comes across clearly in the his attempts in the late 1980s to capture a wider market with such third-rate Dio ripoff tracks as You Don't Remember (I'll Never Forget). Half-assed lyrics, inane main riffs, brilliant solos.

Funny enough, I still found myself agreeing with quite a bit of what he said in his reviews outside of Jeff Back.

[ThrillsNSpills]

Yngwie had some good stuff in the mid 90's with Vescera on vocals.

I don't know how available it was at the time, I found it years later on the Spitfire label.

[ELVIS]

Aww...

I feel the love...

[sadaist]

I've always maintained that if Yngwie had narrowed his countless albums down to about six or so, and left out all of the filler repeat crap, he would have much wider appeal...

Is that a similar approach as 'absence makes the heart grow fonder'?

LOL...go away & we'll like you more. It worked for you E.

[ELVIS]

I've always maintained that if Yngwie had narrowed his countless albums down to about six or so, and left out all of the filler repeat crap, he would have much wider appeal...

[kwame k]

Me too!

Great guitarist, amazing but that gets old quick and the guy's only put out maybe two albums that were worth a shit.

[atomicpnk47]

All his shit sounds the same to me.....

[ELVIS]

I prefer an asshole who honestly speaks his mind than some fake positive kiss ass who spouts sugar coated lies.

I like you too, Nitro...

[Nitro Express]

I don't know. I prefer an asshole who honestly speaks his mind than some fake positive kiss ass who spouts sugar coated lies.

[ThrillsNSpills]

The donut clip is great.

[ThrillsNSpills]

Amazing when people say things like "I could speed up my playing and it'd sound like Yngwie" -

Where do these walking question marks come from? Who's going to answer to producing such supreme doltlery.
The Jethro Bodean school of logic. He later went on to make the connection If I hit my finger with a hammer, it hurts bad.

[ELVIS]

I like this one...

"I think the guitarist bought a Chuck Berry record that had a scratch on it. He repeats the same thing, even though he changes the key."