n the late 80's, Joe Satriani had taken the electric guitar to new heights. With three LP's and 2 EP's he had shown the world that the electric guitar could be used for more than just flashy shredding or beefy chords to back up hair metal. He showed that technical and feel could be brought together to make music on a whole other level that did not need vocals of any kind. To continue this gospel into the next decade, Satch recorded and released his 1991 classic The Extremist.
The Extremist is where Joe started to drift away from the outer space guitar sound he had become known for and towards other things. In certain respects, it felt just a little more (though not to a huge extent) stripped down and straightforward than his previous outings. That said, there was still plenty of brilliant song writing with the occasional bit of just for fun shred spread throughout the entire record.
"Summer Song" is the very first song I ever heard from Joe Satriani (although it was a live version). I was just so incredibly dazzled by his technical skill on the guitar that he used to express true human feeling through rather than just play scales at a million miles an hour. This tune in particular has this driving pumped up feel with such a memorable melody. As a kid it got me hook, line, and sinker into becoming a big fan to this day.
"War" is one of those songs that no matter how many times I listen to it gives me absolute chills. It makes you really feel that terror of being on a battlefield and being approached by an enemy army that is far stronger and fearsome than you and you for sure without a single of a shadow of a doubt are going to be brutally slaughtered. He manages to do this all without uttering a single word. Just the electric guitar and his backing rhythm section. For that and plenty of other things I have to give him some serious props.
The Extremist is not the record I would start a new Satch fan off with, but it is definitely one of the essential albums of his to get into your collection as soon as you can. It really does show a turning point in Joe's transition from outer space guitar wizard to modern day axe titan. It has a plethora of great songs on it that in my opinion are classics. There are so many other tracks on here that I could go into serious detail on, but I would rather you go out and discover them for yourself.
The Extremist, by Joe Satriani receives 4 out of 5 stars.
Track List:
1. Friends
2. The Extremist
3. War
4. Cryin'
5. Rubina's Blue Sky Happiness
6. Summer Song
7. Tears in the Rain
8. Why
9. Motorcycle Driver
10. New Blues
Buy the album on Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/Extremist-Joe-Satriani/dp/B00138F6ZW/ref=ice_ac_b_dpb_atc_badge_A28VFQ2RQJP1YP?ie=UTF8&qid=1527197573&sr=8-1&keywords=Joe+Satriani+The+Extremist
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