Review by Paul Hutchings
He may be one of the world’s best guitarists, but boy does he write some mind-numbing music. It’s no wonder that fans of the Swede are devoted, whilst the other camp would run a mile rather than listen to the virtuoso musician. I have nothing against his sonic technicality, although I did once doze off at a show in Cardiff in the 1980s whilst watching him. Technically, yes, but listening to a million notes played at breakneck speed? Not for me.
Yes, Malmsteen may arguably site alongside Page, Hendrix and Van Halen I suppose. But his music isn’t memorable in the same way that a Rain Song, Purple Haze or Hot for Teacher hangs in the memory. And the reason is simple. The songs on Hell or High Water are just boring, mediocre, and generic.
Take penultimate song Eye for An Eye. This could sit on any hard rock album of the past 20 years. It matches (On the) Battlefield and (He Is) Living A Lie in terms of music by numbers. Which is curious, because the man himself makes the following comment. “Even without a guitar in my hands, the music just comes to me. It’s like that movie Amadeus. Mozart was getting music given to him in complete form. I understand the building blocks and can therefore build you anything you like. If you asked me to write you a death metal song, call me back in five minutes, and I’d have it ready for you. You want country and western or reggae? No problem. I can give you whatever you want.
The language of music is simple. There are certain notes that belong together in whatever stylistic direction and sound pleasant to the ear. The ideas don’t come all the time, but when they do, it’s like an avalanche. The pieces I choose for my records are like gifts that I capture because they amaze me. I’m very lucky in that sense.”
Perhaps the fact it comes so naturally is why it is so bland. Throw in a death metal or country song and maybe it would liven up this record. For even the instrumentals, Antikythera and Beyond Zeta Reticuli are overblown and over dramatic. It is simply a showcase for a brilliant guitarist to demonstrate his technical prowess.
Perhaps after all these years, it’s me and not Malmsteen. And there in lies the rub. If you find the technicality enthralling, then this album will be for you. I’m afraid that there is no soul in this music for me, regardless of what I may be told. Even the emotional conclusion, Father, dedicated to his late senior who passed last year, is devoid of warmth. And I feel mean for saying that. But that’s how I feel.
Hell or High Water feels cold; a cocktail of palm-muted riffing, complete with baroque melodies and dexterity I could only dream of. If you enjoy it, I wish you well. For me, no thanks.
