Review by Richard Henry for MPM
This was the first time since 1990 that Yngwie has been in Belfast, last time is saw him was in London in 2017 so I am very excited to see the master back in session again, up first…
Limberlost
Now I am going to be completely honest, I hadn’t heard of these guys before tonight, and straight off you see there are six members in the band, a core of the 4 guys on drums, bass, guitar and keys and then you have the two frontwomen of the band, hailing from Seattle they are a really unique mix of what I can only say would be if you took elements of Deep Purple and Heart and threw in a little Zeppelin, musically really covering a lot of more 70s rock era in sound but adding the two vocalists gives the whole thing a really refreshing sound, just with the splitting the vocals or harmonizing, added a load to the sound, the band are great, really tight solid grooves, great solos, everything you would want, I would absolutely go check them out, great opener!
Yngwie Malmsteen
Rising Force – Now as soon as I heard the synth intro, I knew what this was, then the band kicked in and with a lot of dry ice Yngwie was on the stage, shortened version of the song, just the one verse and chorus and then straight into the solo which if you’re a guitar player, is an absolute pig to play, and there he is locked eye contact with someone in the audience and played it while staring at them, Nick on the keys and vocals doesn’t get a lot of mention but he is a hell of a keys player and a great singer, and the two of them look to be having a ball during the tradeoff solos!
Top-Down Foot Down/No Rest for the Wicked
The arpeggios, furious start to this one from World on Fire, I must add the guitar sound was buttery and gorgeous as well, I love that little descending melody part after the solos and that’s not something gets mentioned as much is that there are tons of melody in all these tracks plus the chops on top of it, we go straight from one into the next song, still from the same album, straight up descending scale picking and arpeggios and then a really lovely counter point melody before Yngwie launches into another improvised section before coming back to another arpeggio part, it a furious start to the show, but then you would expect nothing less!
Soldier
Again, sticking with World on Fire, first track with Yngwie talking lead vocal, softer, clean guitar and keys bed intro to this one, you can’t deny the guy has it all, vocals sounded great, and it also brought the set down a bit in pace after the blinding pace so far, now it didn’t last long cause when the song kicks in, it is a double bass onslaught really power metal in vibe as well when I think about it, the solo has it all, a whirlwind of arpeggios picking and a massive vibe vibrato, jaw dropping!
Into Valhalla/Baroque & Roll
Another truncated version, one song from 2010s Relentless album and the other from 2002s Attack, Into Valhalla, love the vocal’s orchestral part at the start of this between the breaks, more of a mid-tempo driver of a track than the previous ones there is a real nod to Bach on the start of that, before Yngwie launches into a solo, there is a really cool muted arpeggio section on this, the picking is absolutely nuts when you see it live, so little effort and so clean, and then boom we switch into Baroque & Roll, this is another absolutely nuts piece of playing, the different combinations of arpeggio play crossed with counter point melody in this is stunning, because a lot of these songs are combined it’s hard to think I am six songs in when its only really four, value for money there for sure, again Yngwie is just constantly prowling the stage, throwing out picks, pulling shapes, gesturing to the crowd while all the time blazing round the fretboard!
Like an Angel
Back to 1997s Facing the Animal, the melody at the start of this over the piano intro is lovely, really soaring lead line, again it’s a truncated version where we get more of a solo version over the chords rather than the full song
Relentless Fury
That song title is like the show so far, and this one doesn’t let up either, first song from the new album Parabellum, Yngwie taking the mic again, band are seriously tight as well, locked in, I love that riff as well then, that descending melody back into the verse again, furious solo full of lightning fast speed picking licks, again the vocals and the chorus on this one are class and will stick in your head, that break where he goes up and down the scale and then into another solo at the end, so clean!
Now Your Ships are Burned
Oh yes, back to the Rising Force album, that’s tricky little riff at the start with the little lead lines interspersed in between, that lead break still to this day gives me the chills and to see it live well it’s something to behold cause its seriously hard to play, I love that break in the solo for that run then into the melody part before we get the tapping lick into the neoclassical part, before it breaks down for Yngwie to improvise his thing over it, what a track!
Wolves at the Door
Back to the new album again and the first track from it, that’s it I am giving up guitar after 35 years, that’s nuts, absolutely nuts the starting arpeggios to the start of this one, again there is slamming double bass drumming to this track, the Yngwie takes the mic and the song itself is a great track, something that maybe gets overshadowed by the guitar playing, then we have the Paganini reference in the solo before it all goes Yngwie, improvising up till the arpeggio parts in the solo, which is cool because I would rather hear someone do what they feel rather than robot the same solo every night!
Si Vis Pacem (Parabellum)
Title track of the new album, we had a restart as the guitars are very jet lagged and slightly out of tune and then we hit into it again, lovely arpeggio part at the start straight into a soaring melody after and back and forward, then the syncopated part with all the band following, this song is relentless in pace, little diminished line and then back into the arpeggiated start part again, into the middle solo which was some part the original and then improved as well, what a track, is this any less furious or demanding as anything from the first album nearly 40 years ago, I don’t think so!
Badinere
Now what this is, it’s a section of No mercy from the Fire and Ice album from 1992, it’s also a piece from JS Bach, so we have Yngwie performing this to a track with the entire orchestral backing that’s on the album, now I have always loved this so I thought it was so awesome to see this being done live!
Paganini’s 4th/Adagio
Continuing with the classical theme we get Paganini’s 4th which has been a staple at Yngwie’s shows for years and I heard first on the Live in Leningrad album, it’s a joy to hear it live and then leads into Adagio which is part of the Icarus Dream Suite from the first album, and the one thing apart from the beautiful guitar tone is just the melody and the vibrato of the notes, it’s for me, absolutely spine tingling, I make no bones about it, he is one of my biggest inspirations and its moments like these that you know why he is still at the front of what he does!
Far Beyond the Sun
First album and this is a staple of the live set, I have seen it a good few times and the one thing about it, it’s always going to be different, elements are the same as the start and the melodies and the end run and arpeggio ending but al lot of the middle sections are completely improvised, some great back and forth as well with Nick on the keys on this one, it’s a timeless classic of a track for me and I don’t think I can say anything that hasn’t already been said, genius!
Seventh Sign
The lights go down and the acoustic guitar intro hits to his one, now I love this album to be fair, and I have heard this track live before, its heavy as anything live as well, Nick handling the Mike Vescera vocal part which can’t be easy to do, see when it hits the middle and they all including the drums play that unison line before it breaks and those insane arpeggios comes in, bonkers, then it comes into the solo and yet again, different solo to what I heard the last time I seen it live and I love that, then when we come out into the end of the song Yngwie wants us all to sing the chorus back to him in the breaks, fantastic track!
Toccata
Pretty sure I heard the chords from Prelude to April in there, but Yngwie, as many classical composers do, was improvising to himself using the delay and over a keys bed to create this improvised piece of music, breathtaking!
Smoke on the Water
Yeah, that song, well he did cover it on the Blue Lightning album, now they looked like they were having an absolute blast playing this one to be fair, now for those in the know, Yngwie is a huge Richie Blackmore fan, and he actually did play the start of the solo exactly as Richie plays it before then improvising the next part, but I for one thought that was a lovely tip of the hat to one of his inspirations!
Trilogy/Guitar Solo
Oh yes, off the album of the same name, that fast scale playing start into the double bass then into that open string pull off lick and the into the classical arpeggio section, it’s another absolute classic song from Yngwie and again it’s just effortless, straight out of that into an unaccompanied solo, much like the Live in Leningrad album and it finishes the same way, with Yngwie pulling all his strings off the guitar bar the low E, and the feeding it back and speeding up the delay then throwing the guitar behind his head to his awaiting guitar tech!
Red House
A favorite Hendrix cover of Yngwie’s, I mean I think and I’m not the only person to ever say this, Yngwie’s blues playing is massively underappreciated, he has a great voice for this song as well, full of grit and charm and then he takes the solo and it really is that mix of the traditional blues phrasing and the wide bends and vibrato crossed with his own style and it works so well in the context of a song like this, loved this version of the song and I have heard a lot of people tackle it!
Fugue
Again, this was on the Concerto Suite album, Yngwie playing with the orchestral backing track, and I loved this album, and I would love him to do another with the full orchestra as it was so good!
Drum Solo
I wasn’t expecting blast beats at the Yngwie show but I approve, a bit of double bass groove and bit of a tribal drum idea and that was it, short solo, less than two mins and the band bomb back onto the stage again!
You Don’t Remember I’ll Never Forget
Back to the Trilogy album and the first song you heard from it, its again an absolute classic Yngwie hit, and the crowd are singing away with the band on the chorus, it also sort of struck me how different this sounds now compared to a lot of the newer songs, that keyboard counter point line just before Yngwie launches into the melodic start of the solo is beautiful before it kicks up into the solo proper, a bit more of a crowd participation sing along at the end of this one and then they are off the stage!
Acoustic Guitar Solo/Black Star
Well, we all knew when he went off, it wasn’t the end as this is always the show closer, the white Ovation acoustic is out for the star of this where we get Air on a G String, a bit of improvisation and then closing with the intro to Black Star, boom into the song proper and that melody is burned into my brain since I first heard it in 1990 when I was 12, I had been playing guitar a year and a fella gave me a cassette he didn’t like, it was the Yngwie collection and my life and guitar playing changed, this song is an epic melodic journey, yeah it has the counter point classical melody, it has the arpeggios but the whole song is just constantly building with purpose and I never get tired of hearing it or watching Yngwie play it, what a track to end the set!
Yngwie has been on his own path for 40 years and after watching him play that set tonight, I can’t help but think that he’s 60 years old and he is playing with the same energy and if anything, more complicated insane arpeggios and patterns than he was doing all that time ago, its mental how he still is doing this at this level for all this time, never change, a true master at work! He has a few dates this weekend in the UK, if you get the chance go and see him!
