Metal favourites Porcupine Tree are set to return to the UK in November
for two dates in Oxford and London. Further dates are also expected to follow
in December.
In a moment of musical history that will no doubt leave Sheffield’s finest The Arctic Monkeys cringing, Welsh crooner Tom Jones picked the Concert for Diana to unveil his version of I Bet You Look Good On The Dancefloor, the massive hit that cemented the Monkeys’ rise to fame.
American alt-legends Sonic Youth have stunned their fans by announcing the release of a new compilation album… through Starbucks. The album is due to feature at least one new Sonic Youth track and will be available for sale throughout the Starbucks chain.
Never mind the Concert For Diana or Live Earth – July 9th is the date when the new Wembley Stadium will really get put through its live music paces as Metallica thunder into town for the stadium’s first ever metal gig. The bill just got heavier as well, with Metallica’s Bay Area buddies Machine Head joining the party as the main support act.
Midlands guitar heroes Editors crashed back into the album charts on Sunday as their second album An End Has A Beginning debuted at number one. The four piece from Birmingham beat Kelly Clarkson to the top spot.
but I really love playing the guitar and the scope
of my catalogue and career even back then, even when
I was with those heavy metal rock bands in the 80s,
the view I had was much greater than a trend. I’ve
already seen two and a half trends go by since I made
my first solo record and nothing will deter what I do.”
So a grunge styling would never have been appropriate
for Vai?
“I wouldn’t be great at those other things
and I wouldn’t have conviction. I think that anybody
who’s successful or effective at what they do,
they have conviction in their confidence that what they’re
doing is appropriate for them.
“Sometimes you see when a trend comes along. It’s
usually started by someone who’s very inspired
and they don’t have a choice to do what they do.
It’s usually a reflection of ‘I don’t
want to do this stuff anymore that everyone else is
doing. I don’t want to wear those clothes, I don’t
want to say this in the press, I don’t want to
use this kind of recording technique…’ Whatever
it is, they do what’s unique to them and it’s
so honest that other people are moved by it, they’ll
hear something and be inspired by it and they can copy
it. That’s okay, that’s what 99% of what
we listen to is.
“But what usually happens then is it gets very
watered down and insipid and so someone comes along
and says ‘I’m not doing this crap anymore…’
That’s basically what happened, getting back to
the 90s. You had people like me doing all of this crazy
guitar stuff and it took a lifetime of work to do that.
A kid’s going to come along and say, ‘I
don’t want to spend a lifetime doing that! I just
want to go Arrgh!’ And that’s great.”
Given his blanket refusal to pander to trends, it’s
ironic that the music world appears to be catching up
with Vai. Bands like Dragonforce and Trivium show obvious
influences gleamed from the master. Not that you’ll
necessarily find the artists you might expect on the
Vai iPod.
“I love anything from Tom Waits!” he enthuses.
“I couldn’t pick one record. Everything
he does to me is breathtaking. Anything by Stravinsky.
Well maybe not anything. Maybe the Rite of Spring, the
Firebird or Petrushka. Any one of those. The Firebird
is pretty dazzling.”
Tom Waits? Stravinsky? Where are all the guitars? Vai
pauses for a moment before adding with a smile, “And
maybe Led Zeppelin II.”
Now that’s more like it! Which track in particular?...
