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Review: Steve Vai, O2 Academy
The touring guitar hero whose shows aren’t being interrupted by Johnny Depp shambling on stage, Steve Vai returned to Bristol for the first time in six years with another masterclass for the faithful. And faithful his audience certainly is in a time when the phrase “15 minutes of fame” becomes more literal than figurative with each passing day.
That grim era when musical ability was viewed with suspicion by critics now long behind us, Vai’s audience is also being renewed with an influx of younger math rock/tech-metal enthusiasts. Each of the opening notes he plays is greeted with a whoop of joy. On the downside, there’s a sea of smartphones held aloft as punters strain to record every second of fretboard action for posterity.
is needed now More than ever
Avalancha from new album Inviolate opens the show, with Vai wielding one of his coolest-looking guitars – the one with the blue illuminated fretboard that makes even those of us who don’t play feel covetous. Pity his hard-working guitar tech, mind, as the poor chap has to come charging on with a new instrument for virtually every song. It’s a wonder that changeover malfunctions aren’t more frequent. Absent, unfortunately, is the agreeably preposterous looking triple-necked ‘steampunk’ Hydra guitar that features on the cover of Inviolate and in its first video, Teeth of the Hydra. Apparently, it’s just too damn heavy to bring on the road.
A rather muddy sound mix reduces Vai’s excellent band to a dull, booming thud for the first few numbers. This mercifully improves as the set progresses, and there’s enough shredding on offer to keep jaws on the floor throughout. But Vai has more strings to his bow – and, indeed, his many guitars – than the thousand notes a minute approach. One of the few people to have their sexual peccadilloes chronicled in song by Frank Zappa, this crazy guy’s former employer remains a strong influence on what he later describes as his ‘quirky’ compositions, whose odd time signatures and tonal inventiveness venture way beyond the territory staked out by many of his peers.
Old favourite Tender Surrender from Alien Love Secrets is a typical example of Vai’s imagination at work. Greeted with a huge cheer of recognition, its roots are in blues, belying the lazy kneejerk criticism that technical brilliance is automatically void of emotion, but swiftly slips its tethers take wing and soar.
Having just celebrated his 62nd birthday (“I’ve got the grey hairs to prove it”), he’s in reflective mood, remarking that he used to look back critically on his early compositions. But on hitting 50, he gave up on all that and now feels delighted with his accomplishments: “I always played exactly what I wanted to do at the time.” How many musicians are able to say that?
It helps that his excellent band have been together for so long. Each of them gets a brief solo spot, including powerful tattooed and mohicaned drummer Jeremy Colson and dazzling six-string bassist Philip Bynoe. And while it may on the face of it seem a tad surplus to requirements to have a guitar solo at a Steve Vai show that isn’t played by Steve Vai, Dave Weiner not only proves up to the challenge but also holds his own impressively while duelling with the boss.
The show was supposed to have had an interval at the halfway mark, but the musicians all seem to be enjoying themselves so much that they appear to have forgotten all about it and carry on playing for two straight hours.
On the rear projection screen, that scene from Crossroads – Walter Hill’s reworking of the Robert Johnson story in which the younger, hairier Vai’s emissary of Beelzebub takes on Ralph Macchio – heralds the seriously hard-rockin’ Bad Horsie. Dyin’ Day sees a rare appearance by an acoustic guitar and the set ends with a sublime performance of For the Love of God, with Vai giving it some serious whammy bar action.
Taurus Bulba from the Fire Garden album makes for a suitably bombastic encore, after which he thanks each and every one of us profusely for showing up. You’re welcome pal, but don’t leave it until you’re 68 before coming back, OK?
All pix by Mike Evans
Read more: Metal & Prog picks: June 2022
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