Search - Tony Macalpine :: Maximum Security

Powerful guitar/shred album

James | Seattle | 09/23/2006

(4 out of 5 stars)

"It always annoys me a bit when people accuse any 80's neoclassical-metal solo guitarist of being an Yngwie clone. First of all, all great musicians in this vein (Tony Macalpine, Vinnie Moore, Jason Becker, etc.) were playing guitar ever since they were young, the same as Yngwie. Similarly, they were playing neoclassical-styled music on guitar, the same as Yngwie. All Yngwie really does is plays dozens of different scales, modes, arpeggios and runs which could be found in any music textbook. Yngwie is a talented musician, but he isn't superlative in the genre, and I feel that there are others who do what he sought out to do, only better.



Tony Macalpine, especially with this early albums, is quite often accused of copying Yngwie. I would disagree with this greatly. The biggest difference between the two is that Tony (early on) was entirely instrumental. Yngwie has NEVER been entirely instrumental. In fact, even on his most instrumental album, (Rising Force) only three quarters of the songs were instrumentals. From there on, his instrumental pieces became even more scarce, not to mention less varied. Tony was somewhat of the opposite, starting out with an entirely instrumental repertoire, and adding in his own vocals later on. Of course, he also went on to experiment with Fusion and other styles of playing (something which Yngwie has yet to do). Tony's early, Neoclassical days were his greatest.



Now that I've cleared up why Tony isn't just "another Yngwie clone," I can move onto a more detailed description of the album. On Maximum Security, Tony demonstrates a focused, melodic, soulful style of playing which is actually quite unique in the shred genre. Tony gives the guitar room to breathe, endowing almost every song on the album with a beautiful, songlike melody that he can modify and solo over as he pleases. His harmonies (contributed by keyboards and bass which are played by Tony himself) add depth and texture to the songs, while his melody lines are quite superb.



Tony's style of playing is surprisingly tone-oriented, with excellent vibrato, bends and expertly used artificial harmonics, left and right. Every song has a distinct 80's sound to it, which is characterized by Tony's tone, drenched in reverb and distortion, but generally sounding smooth rather than harsh. His songs are all on the short side, the average length for the album being somewhere around 3 or 3 and a half minutes. His works are concise and to the point, with much less showing off than one would expect from a shred artist. His songs feel much more like compositions than showcases for his technical prowess, as Tony only really goes full shred sporadically throughout the album. Most of the time, he's fretting along at a medium tempo, sometimes even in a relaxed, luxuriant manner, like on album standouts Tears of Sahara and Porcelain Doll.



Every song on the album is a winner, and there is hardly anything that could be considered filler, except for maybe the Chopin etude (track nine) which Tony threw in, maybe for a tad of variety, maybe for contrast, or maybe to remind us that he's an awesome classical pianist as well as a virtuoso guitarist--just in case we were doubting his musical talent. The etude is a very commonly played piece, but is also of considerable difficulty. It's short and exciting--most serious piano students will tackle it at some point in their career, but Tony's performance of it is quite polished. He's excellent for an amateur pianist.



The rest of the songs are all Tony's original compositions, though he does borrow a theme from Chopin on Porcelain Doll. Several of the songs also feature solos from fellow 80's shredders George Lynch and Jeff Watson, both of whom are very talented guitarists. This only adds more variety and energy to Tony's already magnificent album.



There's not much to complain about with this album. Tony manages to craft a neoclassical album that is original, concise and almost entirely devoid of excess. Unlike more egotistical, showy players of the time such as Vinnie Moore and Yngwie Malmsteen, Tony manages to keep the song lengths short, and the compositions focused, with a strong melody and logical structure instead of just seemingly random shredding.



This is a must-have album for any fan of virtuoso, neoclassical/metal lead guitar work. MacAlpine is an underrated guitar player, who also blesses the album with a great ear for melody/harmony and stellar keyboard skills.



"

Move Over Joe, Vinnie and Yngwie

Ian J. Einman | 01/16/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is one of those albums (cds) that is so damn good, you wonder how you ever got through life without it. The most beautiful and melodic instrumental metal-prog you can possibly imagine, with powerful, tasty drumming and incredible production make this a must-have for music lovers that know better. Just wait till you hear his collaboration with George Lynch on "Tears Of Sahara"--it'll bring tears to your eyes with it's absolutely heavenly sonic aura and killer lead trade-offs. You won't find solos with more feeling and better tones anywhere this side of the universe. And Tony's keyboard playing is right up there with his awesome guitar playing, making him a talented guy of fearful proportions. I have all the Satriani's, Moore's, Malmsteen's, Greg Howe's, etc. on cd and dig them all but find myself pulling this one out just a bit more. It's really THAT good."