Steve Vai Sound Theories

[shredmaster]

just picked this up off itunes a few days ago. each time i buy something i say i will never buy a Vai album again but yet i keep going for more. All in all, I have to say the first half is very good, a live album with the Attitude song, etc etc. with the violins, etc. the last half of the album is Steve orchestrating weirdness, odd noises, musical instruments....it is truly Vai in all his weirdness and i'm just not into that. sounds to me like some warped sound track to a movie that makes no sense. if i had it to do again, knowing what i know now, i would have never purchased those other songs. i liked the first half of the songs with the band and songs and guitars but i'm not into the weird vai / zappa oddities...never was.

[dex]

I passed on the latest album.
Didn't really liked the one before that much and the Metropole show was on the radio a few times so I had a listen and though Steve had done a really mediocre job at orchestrating his music.

I admire Steve and used to love his music but lately I can hear all the things that shouldn't be there and SO wish he would just get an external producer to help him a little.
If I can hear things that bug me I bet you half the people in that orchestra wanted to stab Steve in the eye with a fork.

[shredmaster]

i will agree with that. far be it from me to say something isn't good in the art realm, it's my opinion, but i think the weirdo tim burton / zappa orchestra stuff is something he shouldn't touch, and if he does, maybe include it on some other album completely different. i too have noticed many things that shouldn't be there in these writings. there are many orchestrations that make no sense and go absolutely nowhere. but, it's his vision and not mine. i'm so glad he didn't pull any of that stuff at the show last week. i'm sure he would have pissed off a lot of people. going back to guitar, there are only a few tunes i can pick off each album that came out since passion and warfare that i can say i like. the rest, i just don't. to me, the "jack butler" early days were the best. i can do without the weirdo composer tim burton on crack thing. again, that's just me.

[ryanb]

I was also less than thrilled with Sound Theories. I have seen similar efforts that were much better done, and frankly had higher hopes for this one. The orchestra stuff just seemed awkward and unpracticed. I've never been a fan of the "wierd noises" stuff either. But it's Steve's album, so if he is happy with it, that's all that matters.

[shawn7v]

Just want to put my 2 cents in. I'm a Berklee College of Music graduate ( 1984 ) and as far as orchestra arrangment on Sound Theories......BRILLIANT.Steves early " Jack Butler " days were filled with wierd sounds for example three quarters of Flexable not to mention all his work with zappa. It's time to open our ears to complex music unless we all want to listen to the White Stripes or worse yet the Killers.

[courtney2018]

Originally Posted by shawn7v

It's time to open our ears to complex music unless we all want to listen to the White Stripes or worse yet the Killers.

I absolutely can't f'n stand the White Stripes. I haven't heard of Killers, but if they're worse than the White Stripes I'll be sure to keep my ear out for them so I can turn it off. I usually go back and forth from BoneYard to Squizz (XM radio) at work and every time the White Stripes comes on I switch it. How they got a record deal I'll never know.

As for Vai, I really didn't like the second half of the CD. I bought the DVD though and I have to say that seeing them perform the second half is much better, at least to me, than just listening to it. The CD sounded too much like a long drawn out version of some screwy cartoon.

However, I think that much of the stuff on this CD was done in his very early days. Now that he's more mature I think his next orchestra effort will be much more elaborate, intricate, and profound. ...probably more likeable by his guitarist fans too. I'm hoping he does another orchestra production with new material.

[elcid]

You may be happy to know there is allegedly a Meg White porn tape out. From the stills its as boring as their music.

[shredmaster]

Originally Posted by courtney2018

The CD sounded too much like a long drawn out version of some screwy cartoon.

I could not have said it better. those were the words i was looking for.

Shawn, Berklee music school grad or not, people will either like something or they won't. I also hate the white stripes and it's beyond me how they are signed.....just like most "bands" out there. I also wasn't a fan of flexable by the way, except for the attitude song and call it sleep. the rest, to me, is cartoon garbage...again, it's my opinion. never got into zappa either for the same reason. i'm not saying he wasn't good or anything....i have heard he is quite the genius.....but, i could never get into it. it just never made sense to me. that doesn't mean i'm less of an artist, it just means i don't like it. i didn't go to berklee but i spent hours, months, few good years studying classical. i know how to phrase and i orchestrate stuff non-guitar related. it comes natural to me. i have written compositions for strings with piano and other instruments. i truly appreciate what he is trying to do, however, it's not for me. i'm glad you like it. just like dream theater, i can't listen to them anymore. they have 30 minute songs man! enough already! they just go on and on and on, and the singer is stuck in the high registers and it gets nuts. i can't listen to that either. similar to an artist who throws a bucket of paint on a canvas and sells it for $5000. to some it is genius, while to others, it is just a splash of paint on the wall. that's art. when i said jack butler i guess i should have said cool guitar phrase passages with metal overtones minus the cartoon oddities and weirdness.

[TREVA]

Originally Posted by shawn7v

Just want to put my 2 cents in. I'm a Berklee College of Music graduate ( 1984 ) and as far as orchestra arrangment on Sound Theories......BRILLIANT.Steves early " Jack Butler " days were filled with wierd sounds for example three quarters of Flexable not to mention all his work with zappa. It's time to open our ears to complex music unless we all want to listen to the White Stripes or worse yet the Killers.

+1.000

[Jemwielder]

Originally Posted by shawn7v

Just want to put my 2 cents in. I'm a Berklee College of Music graduate ( 1984 ) and as far as orchestra arrangment on Sound Theories......BRILLIANT.Steves early " Jack Butler " days were filled with wierd sounds for example three quarters of Flexable not to mention all his work with zappa. It's time to open our ears to complex music unless we all want to listen to the White Stripes or worse yet the Killers.

I too am a Berklee student and I agree wholeheartedly. The orchestration is breathtaking. Also to Dex, he did get help orchestrating a great deal of Sound Theories, it says so in the liner notes. Personally I really enjoyed sound theories. I think that Steve Vai, much like Jeff Beck, keeps getting better with age. Some people may not dig the new stuff. I'm not going to make any assumptions to why you guys didn't dig it just make sure that you're actually paying attention to things like the orchestration, rather than being disapointed that Vai didn't release an other rock record and make a statement about something you may not actually fully understand.

[shredmaster]

Originally Posted by Jemwielder

I'm not going to make any assumptions to why you guys didn't dig it just make sure that you're actually paying attention to things like the orchestration

we paid attention to it, just didn't like it. maybe it's a berklee thing, i don't know, but it sounds like cartoons thrown on a canvas to see what sticks.

[courtney2018]

Originally Posted by elcid

You may be happy to know there is allegedly a Meg White porn tape out. From the stills its as boring as their music.

I think I'll check that out his weekend. Thanks for the tip!

[dex]

Originally Posted by Jemwielder

I'm not going to make any assumptions to why you guys didn't dig it just make sure that you're actually paying attention to things like the orchestration, rather than being disapointed that Vai didn't release an other rock record and make a statement about something you may not actually fully understand.

I have over 100 Classical music CD's in my collection and get it, in fact I would go as far as to say I LOVE some of the stuff way more than any other type of music.
I even own some Pop-classical CDs (Bond, Vanessa Mae, Sarah Brightman - all given to me by people who think classical music means chart classical music) that I've given a fair listen to.

If you seriously think you won't be embarrased to go to your composition professor at Berklee and hand him a copy of Sound Theories and insist he listens to it because it's "brilliant" then I'll take your word for it that orchestration, composition and arangement are brilliant.
To me it sounds like he aranged the music for 7-8 instruments and couldn't be bothered to do more so he just copied that in different keys and handed it out to different sections in a 50 piece orchestra.
Also sounds like he didn't think about instrument range too much when he did it.
Whatever, Steve is a world famous recording artist and I'm a guy on a forum so don't take my word for it, if you think it's brilliant power to you.
I rather listen to Keneally's piano reductions than to the show at the Metropole.

[markg5150]

Originally Posted by dex

I rather listen to Keneally's piano reductions than to the show at the Metropole.

Sound Theories may be technically very good. But I much prefer listening the Piano Reductions too

[Guitarmiester]

Originally Posted by courtney2018

I bought the DVD though and I have to say that seeing them perform the second half is much better, at least to me, than just listening to it. The CD sounded too much like a long drawn out version of some screwy cartoon.

That's how it was for me too. It wasn't easy to listen to, but once I got the DVD it was a bit more enjoyable.