I think the larger part of Yngwie's problem (besides an over-inflated ego and a metabolism that is slowing down rapidly) is the fact his playing has no phrasing.

Everything I've ever heard him play is kinda like the windshield wipers on my old 1964 Ford--"ON" or "OFF"...there's no phrasing, no "breathing," if you will, and that's why it sounds so mechanical.

There are some shredders out there that I enjoy listening to--Satriani, for one...because he has an organic method of playing that breathes.

Yngwie--and his ilk--can play circles around me (and 90% of everyone else), as far as technicality is concerned. But he has no soul, no heart, no phrasing.

Within classical music (which I enjoy listening to, but do not play), there are different movements, phrases and moments of silence--and those are the the things that move me.

To distill water, you heat it up and keep the reconstituted steam. Any impurities (including minerals, etc.) are gone. The finished substance (distilled water) is pure, but it has no taste.

Yngwie is distilling music by applying classical techniques and has for a result a "pure" barrage of notes. Unfortunately, you need those "impurities" to make the music tasteful.

Yngwie is a stuntman, not an actor. Stuntmen impress me, but actors move me.

Give me a sloppy, noisy, impure, inaccurate musician who has soul any day...

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Good Vibes To Y'all!



Screamin' Armadillos
Texas Roadhouse Music
Guitar/Slide Guitar/Harp/Vocals

Recently heard an interview Eddie Trunk did with Yngwie, surprisingly he wasn't a dick.

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"Life is like eating jalapenos. What you do today may burn your arse tomorrow"

I'm not a huge Yngwie fan but I know he is a fan of Hendrix. He covered Spanish Castle Magic and Red House. I read articles in GW where he praises Hendrix on is innovation.

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10-4 good buddy, over and out!

Some day I hope someone punches Yngwie in the mouth. No joke. "There is nothing normal about me." please. It is frustrating to hear from somebody who is a gigantic jerk...

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“The guitar is a small orchestra. It is polyphonic. Every string is a different color, a different voice.”


- Andreas Segovia

This Japanese kid does a fine job of dumping on Yngwie in his own endearing way... honestly I like some of the stuff Yngwie does. But this is the ONE song by the fat kid that I really do like and this young Japanese kid knocks it out of the park.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gwpLC-SU ... re=related

I actually think that Bach's opinion as well as Paganini, Mozart and earlier period composers would be justly critical but in a positive light.
Think about the fact that there was no method of even simple recording until the 19th century, therefore all of the music was live and in order to achieve the effect of today's amplification the only solution was acoustically resonant concert halls and very large ensembles.

Also keep in mind that in their day, those composers were the Avant Guard, often ridiculed and derided for their musical visions yet history has proven them correct.

Just because you do not like Malmsteen does not justify total disregard of his approach.
Really who is producing and playing sold out venues and who is at home, at the computer.?!!!
I grew up on classical music ( rock was not allowed in my house until about 11 or 12) and I'm actually quite thankful for that education today.

Granted some of Malmsteen's work leaves me cold.
But, however to say that there is no phrasing in his lyrical playing is just spewing a rant and rave.
His playing does have soul, by context would one say that Paganini's 24 Caprice's were soulless or that Jascha Heifetz played without emotion?

I find that often I have to force myself to listen to a piece of music and shelve the preconceived prejudice and be objective.
That doesn't infer that I like this particular band or that a certain piece of music is not dissonant (to me only) however in music, there is often something to be gained in your own approach by at least listening objectively.

As far as Ego..
Well.. I have never met anyone who, being highly succesful, did not posess an overwhelming level of self confidence. RE Type A personality !!
I would say that Malsmsteen does not suffer fools and the majority of interviewers are redundant and ask questions that belong on the tabloids.
In that context I would be less than cordial.
I have read the articles where intelligent music related questions were asked and answered politely, the rest dismissed as drivel and so be it..

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"C'est parti mon Kiki "

I guess he's being humbled by his rapidly declining looks, weight gain and the fact he can't get much airplay or a decent recording contract.

Here's a recent interview and concert footage. Enjoy!:shock:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BAMlHGwbnU8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-pI3mtIfSbY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dURukXNBLzI

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Life...... It's sexually transmitted and always fatal

"Self Confidence" and "Arrogance" are two different things...

...if Malmsteen doesnt want to answer the tabloid questions, he should not submit to interviews. Rather, he should prepare press releases or essays and submit them to the magazines, websites and companies that might find them relevant.

Also, I have met many excellent, successful musicians of all styles (classical, jazz, blues, rock, you-name-it) that are not arrogant, do not have an inflated ego, and are able to suffer "fools" gladly.

Also, these "fools" may be fans or admirers of Malmsteen; perhaps he should cut them some slack in answering their questions you label as "drivel." Truthfully, he should be glad anyone is willing to speak to him in regards to his career; as time goes by, he is less and less relevant to music, and really is just a "nostalgia artist" harkening back to the soulless days of spandex and pseudo-virtuousity that never quite satisfied.

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Good Vibes To Y'all!



Screamin' Armadillos
Texas Roadhouse Music
Guitar/Slide Guitar/Harp/Vocals

I totally agree, Don't get me wrong... i actually really like Yngwie's playing. I don't care too much for the songs with vocals but I find his classically derived instrumentals are really cool and fun to listen to. Honestly, I prefer that style to blues myself anyway, but its all taste. As for the ego... I really don't care... none of my business .... wasn't Mozart known to be pretty arrogant?

If given a choice of listening to Itzhak Perlman playing Paganinni's 24 caprices or Ynwie Malmsteens latest release Itzhak would win hands down even though I've played that CD countless times because Perlman's soul comes across in every caprice-his rendition of Caprice No.9 is without a doubt the finest ever recorded.

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.

Well done Bro!

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you can save the world with your guitar one love song at a time it's just better, more fun, easier with a fender solid body electric guitar or electric bass guitar.

I honestly used to like Malmsteen, but i came to my sense and realized it was the same electrified noise over and over

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I got this guitar and I learned how to make it talk...

I dunno. From what I gathered on that video, Malmsteen stated he saw Hendrix on a TV news clip smashing his guitar. it was the famous Montery video. Malmsteen further stated that he got into that and stated there wasn't a music connection, it was all noise. This can be true as during the smashing of the guitar was noise, not musical. This was from a child's point of view, as malmsteen as a child watching the news of hendrix smashing the guitar.

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http://www.youtube.com/user/gmlasam