Label: Mind’s Eye Music
Release date: 09.10.2019
Production: Vinnie Moore
Album length: 45.17 min
Genre: guitar rock / art rock
Rating: 9.0 / 10
Vinnie Moore is an American musician, let’s say it straight, one of the wizards of total command over the manual dexterity of six-string theory when it comes to playing electric guitar, who made his name back in the second half of the eighties with his studio debut, which, right when his older countryman Satriani was breaking onto the scene, co-paved the way for the rapid popularization of all-instrumental guitar rock albums where the guitar playing is, of course, the absolute focal point. On top of that, Moore played for a short while with Alice Cooper, recorded a commercial jingle for Pepsi Cola, opened shows for Rush on their “Roll the Bones” tour, and in 2003 joined the legends UFO — and of all the guitarists who have rotated through the lineup of this long-lived band since the late sixties, headed by the famous Michael Schenker, he has lasted the longest in UFO. He’s still playing with them today. Of course Moore also takes care of releasing solo studio records; quite a few have come out over his career, and all of them are regarded as exceptionally beautiful and high-quality achievements that, truth be told, fully reflect the musician’s pulse and confessional essence.
The new “Soul Shifter” follows suit. Above all, the new album is a step further in Vinnie Moore’s artistic maturing. It’s a step into new musical territory, where Moore discovers new dimensions in his search for the best he can deliver right now. “Soul Shifter” may therefore be the most mature solo studio album from this artist. In its bag of expressive variety, it also boasts an exceptional measure of restraint (“leveling”). If back in the day, alongside MacAlpine, Friedman, Becker, the aforementioned Satriani and a few others from those distant times, he was counted as a guitar superhero who raised eyebrows with his venomous “shredding,” lately this iconic guitarist has been proving that he’s mellowing quite a bit. The new album is the perfect proof of that.
The new album is definitely a continuation of the artistic point where its predecessor “Aerial Visions” (2015) left off, and then some. In recent years the musician’s life was marked by the loss of several people who meant a lot to him, and the album took a bit longer to make than usual, coming together in bits and pieces, mostly in the free time Moore found between UFO tours. So the ideas are of older origin, reaching back to before “Aerial Visions.” Vinnie’s ninth album features two “mini” legends of rock’n’roll, metal and prog. That’s Rudy Sarzo (Quiet Riot, Ozzy) on bass, and Jordan Rudess (Dream Theater), while the lineup that recorded Moore’s new album is rounded out by drummer Richie Monica, bassist Michael Bean, who already played that instrument on Moore’s album “Time Odyssey,” keyboardist John Cassidy, and drummers Richie Monica and John Pessoni.
Alongside the humor that has always been typical of this musician and has accompanied his lucid playing from the start, embodied by the opening Funk Bone Jam and, at number 3, the especially fun and cheeky Kung Fu Grip, where the combination of “Satriani-like whammies with wah-wah” is particularly thrilling, the new album serves up a bit more contrasting “seriousness,” even balladic wistfulness (Mystified is dedicated to Chris Cornell), and between those two extremes there’s plenty of room for sharpened jam escapades. Take the track Brother Carlos, which Vinnie dedicated to the legendary Carlos Santana, whose persona and work have always been a huge inspiration to Moore. The musician’s sensitive side shines through the playing, along with great aural power in the search for a sophisticated and delicate delivery of melody. Moore also proves himself an exceptional healer in the pursuit of musical perfection. This radiates above all from the laid-back and playful semi-acoustic Same Sun Shines, with a particularly catchy lead motif, closely followed by the already mentioned Mystified. Gainesville Station, driven by a souped-up rock riff thoroughly backed by the thick bass-drum foot of “grooving” thumps and a veil of southern rock rowdiness, is likewise a dedication from Vinnie Moore to his idol, the late Lynyrd Skynyrd guitarist Steve Gaines. And the dedications aren’t over yet. There’s the “rustling” Soul Rider, where the bluesy nature of the composition also gives way to playing around with slide tricks, because the sweet sounds this track squeezes out are a tribute to the legendary Gregg Allman (The Allman Brothers Band). Heard You Were Gone’, tinted with country colors, remembers Vinnie’s late friend Elliott, who worked at Dean Guitars.
The arrangements are often acoustic, which deepens the sense of organic warmth in the production, while at the same time the electric guitar, played in this way against a palette of chosen sonic pastels, behaves in an even more contrasting manner. An extremely balanced album. There’s no shortage of subtlety and fine mechanics in Moore’s filigree-crafted structures. A heap of details adorns the songs, and it’s real fun to listen to the solutions and tricks Vinnie Moore pulls out of his sleeve in his harmonies and ornamentation.
“Soul Shifter” is exactly what the album title says. A refined voyage across the emotional expanses of the musician’s sensibility. And it rewards the listener with everything. With exceptional musical polish, the filigree magic of its execution, and sophisticated, delicate moments. All in one. In this way, the artistry of Moore’s maturing reaches a kind of creative zenith.
author: Aleš Podbrežnik
Track list:
01. Funk Bone Jam
02. Same Sun Shines
03. Kung Fu Grip
04. Mystified
05. Brother Carlos
06. Gainesville Station
07. Soul Rider
08. Mirage
09. Heard You Were Gone
10. Across The Ages
Lineup:
Vinnie Moore – guitar, synthesizers on tracks 2, 8, 9 and 10, bass on tracks 3 and 8
John Cassidy – Hammond organ on tracks 1, 3, 6, and 7, clavinet on track 1 and piano on tracks 3, 4, 5, 7, and 9
Michael Bean – bass on tracks 4, 5, 6, 7 and 9, pedal steel on track 9
Randy McStine – bass on tracks 2 and 10
Richie Monica – drums on tracks 1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9
John Pessoni – drums on tracks 2 and 10
Rudy Sarzo – bass (1)
Randy McStine – bass (2, 10)
Michael Bean – bass (4, 5, 6, 7, 9), pedal steel (9)
GUEST MUSICIANS:
Jordan Rudess – piano solo (track 6)
Rudy Sarzo – bass on track 1
