Customer Reviews

Perpetual Flame

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(8)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

what can i say?..dont know exactly but this album is a blast
i think it's one of the best things he ve done since seventh sign and magnum opus,
the songs in this album are pure neoclassical and dark at the same time
they all remind me of the 80's and early 90's
the mixing is perfect and tim ripper really nailed all the songs with his dark vampire(ish) voice.
i give it 5 stars and guys i really cant stop listenin to it
i recommend it for all yngwie's fans

They say you can't teach an old dog new tricks. Perhaps the same can be said of guitarists as well. But when you know as many tricks as Yngwie does, and can perform them as well as he does, well...don't fix what ain't broke. "Perpetual Flame" is Yngwie's first new album in more than three years, but was worth the wait. While Yngwie himself has been consistently mind blowing over the course of his career, some of his vocalists have not. Not to say they were bad, but just didn't seem to fit in with Yngwie's style, at least to my ears. "Perpetual Flame" still finds Yngwie in top form, but finally adds a vocalist who sings as aggressively as Yngwie plays, Tim "Ripper" Owens. Musically, "Perpetual Flame" is similar to Yngwie's last few studio offerings. But "Ripper" Owens vocal style is such a good match to Yngwie's musical style that the whole album sounds more alive and fresh than some previous releases. Well worth the price of admission. Play Loud!

When I heard about Tim Owens being engaged as a vocalist for Yngwie's new album I said to myself: Finally! He finally got the singer who is as good vocally as Yngwie is as a guitarist. It's a perfect match! The songs are great, the solos are mindblowing, Ripper is in a dangerous form. And for the ones who want to listen to different things, go listen to pop music. I DON'T want Yngwie to do anything different (as new metal crap or emo) because of someone's changing musical taste. Way to go! And yes, he may be narcistic and arrogant, but it doesn't matter. He is one of the best guitarists alive! He doesn't care what all the losers think!

Whenever an Yngwie album pops up, there will likely always be three main camps- those who like what he puts out no matter what, those who don't no matter what, and those who've come to believed Yngwie is starting to give out a yawn with "the same recycled riffs, scales, etc." I have been listening to several different albums on the go for the past week or two, and this one by Yngwie, as with most of his other albums, takes a bit of 'cranking-up" period to truly appreciate what has been offered.

Fortunately there's a fourth camp which i sincerely believe is out there that understands and appreciate his continued "professional service" to his fans. Yngwie doesn't pull out an album for the sole purpose of pulling out an album; he makes the music that you'd headbang to in your car, and the kind of music that would translate to, more importantly, hard rocking good entertain when he does it on tour. That's foresight. And he'd deliver that from concert to concert from start to finish.

In this respect, coupled with the tour worthy songs included in these album, Yngwie delivers. This is Yngwie at his continued, sustained, pinnacle best. He stays true to himself and his fans in terms of personal artistry and musical ethics; no experimentations for the sake of experimentations; just true heartfelt, hard rock from an accomplished artist/musician who should rightfully be appreciated for sharing his works with the world than to have stayed cooped up in a basement with all that talent and never be heard.

Malmsteen is one of those brutally honest characters who totally owns up to his influences. A string of classical music guys for starters, Blackmore and Hendrix for seconds and - outside the musucal realm - Enzo Ferrari and Monty Python. And it's an obscure Monty Python sketch that came to me upon listening to this album, one where a droning monotone declares 'here comes another one/just like the other one.... here comes another one/here comes a bunch of 'em...'

In short this album is consistent Malmsteen. All music + lyrics written by the master blaster fretman. A bunch of instruments like bass and sitar played by him and he does lead vox on Magic City. The mixing + engineering and production are by him with a bit of a hand from Keith Rose and Roy Z. And ultimately I guess if its your name on the cover then you might as well have the gazongas to shoulder most of the work. So respekt. As for his guitar playing itself it's still brilliant within the mans limited hard rock neoclassical moats 'n' moors milieu. My fave displays of mind bending virtuosity are to be foind on the tunes Red Devil and Priest of the Unholy though truth be told the guy seems to have been somewhat inspired on this release as he revisits biting soloing styles more reminiscent of his best works from the '80's.

Of course the songs are still mostly 2nd rate speed metal. Few real riffs as per usual, teflon coated production and a song about his Ferrari (yes really!). Malmsteen has publicly stated that Dougie White did a great job on the two previous studio efforts but for this album he wanted a more powerful singer to be able to get over the songs he'd written for this album. Therefore this weeks vocalist is Tim 'Ripper' Owens who is a quality vocalist but seems mixed a touch back. But fair play to the guy - he does a good job of sounding like most other Malmsteen singers.

If you like Malmsteen then buy this album because just like Facing the Animal it's a constant song based effort and this one has better solos.

Oh yeah and speaking of consistency he still hasn't tired of putting himself on the cover. What's that - 15 out of 16 albums or something like 18 out of 21 releases or whatever it is?

love it, the cover is horrible and they should change it right away, it will sell more without it. But Yngwie sounds great and Ripper is great, I would say the best singer Yngwie has had and Live, Ripper was even better. THANK GOD FOR RIPPER, he is perfect and they look gtreat together on stage. I do think production could have been a bit better, vocals are a bit low in the mix and tinny, but I still love it. Long live ripper and yngwie

I expected this cd to be good even before I listened to it but "Perpetual Flame" was even better than I imagined. Awesome vocals by Ripper and King Yngwie's solos are more crisp and intense than ever. I thoroughly enjoyed every track but if I had to choose a favorite or two this soon I'd have to say the driving majesty of Be Careful What You Wish For and jaw-dropping speed and beautiful melody of Caprici Di Diablo (one of his best instrumentals) as the standouts. However, all the songs have very good, stick-in-your-head choruses that remind me of his earlier work but with the raw heaviness of his recent material.

So if you're an Yngwie fan and you still haven't ordered this yet, what are you waiting for?? And for those that have wasn't Magic City a pleasant surprise?

What can be said that hasn't been said before? Yngwie is one of the most creative guitarists ever. Taking blues and Blackmore and Hendrix and merging it with Paganini and Bach, the Maestro has truly created his own style! On this new CD, instead of utilizing singer Dougie White, he brings in Tim "Ripper" Owens, who currently sings with BEYOND FEAR and has done stints with the mighty JUDAS PRIEST and ICED EARTH. And like a grey DOD 250 Overdrive pedal taking a 1968 Marshall Amp to the next level, Ripper helps take Perpetual Flame to the next level of Kickass!

If you are a fan of neo-classical, metal, hard rock or GUITAR HERO, get this album.
If you have never hear of Malmsteen, get this album. Great addition to the Malmsteen Catalogue.

Thank you, and Good Night.

Let me start off by just saying, that since I got this cd three days ago, I can't stop listening to it! This is one of Yngwie's best for sure.

It kicks off really fast and heavy with Death Dealer, my new favorite Yngwie song, and continues along with some more great tunes. Four Horsemen is quite refreshing and one of my favorites. It continues along without getting boring, and then Capricci Diablo hits like a bomb! This instrumental is one of Yngwie's best yet! It's his fastest playing he's ever done and the melodies won't get out of your head. Lament is basically the same except a lot slower and more melodic sounding. Magic City has Yngwie on vocals and is one of his best ballads yet. The sitar at the end is really cool. Then comes perhaps the most spectacular moment of the album, Eleventh Hour. Imagine Stargazer by Rainbow, done the Yngwie way. Ripper sounds great and it has amazing orchestration to go with it. Heavy Heart is pretty good and a nice close to the album.

One other thing that must be mentioned about this album is that Yngwie's soloing is a lot better than on the previous two albums. They sound more structured.

The drums are great, Ripper is as amazing as he's ever been, and Yngwie's playing is the best yet! All Yngwie fans need this album.

Yngwie has shown a degree of energy in his last three albums ("Attack!," "Unleash the Fury," and the new "Perpetual Flame") that had been missing to a certain extent for a number of releases. Though "Alchemy" and "War to End All Wars" for example, had great songs on them (even with the muddy production on "WTEAW"), it was with "Attack!" that I felt again the same excitement I did when I first heard Yngwie in 1983 on the first Alcatrazz release.

"Perpetual Flame" continues the energy and the shredding, but for me it has always been about the melodies that Yngwie creates, and this release fully satisfies that need.

Those who think that Mr. Malmsteen is repeating himself are simply not listening, AT ALL. Yngwie has no need to play African music, or ska, or disco. His loose combination of baroque, blues, and traditional power metal provide a wealth of variety for the musically educated ear. (If you are having a hard time appreciating Yngwie's music, you can always go to something that is truly simplistic and unoriginal, such as Metallica.)

Tim Owens is an important element of giving "Perpetual Flame" an overall heavier, tougher sound. This may be Owens' best vocal performance ever, with a combination of harshness, smoothness, and some excellent screams here and there. (He IS the "Scream Machine!") Naturally it's unknown how long the musical relationship will last, but Owens is one of the few people who has a voice that can do justice to the wide variety of expression that is found in Yngwie's compositions.

I have given this release 4 1/2 stars, with a slight deduction because of the track order. I think it would have helped the flow of the album if the instrumental tracks had been spaced out more evenly. As they are, though each is an excellent track individually, there is a bit of a disruption, kind of a disjointed feel in the second half of the album.

Like me, Yngwie is a middle-aged family man, in some ways mellowed, but he has definitely shown that the flame can keep burning, and that there are musicians who have the integrity to stick to their visions, regardless of the mindless, derivative non-art that is being passed off as music all around them. (See, for example, Metallica, Nu Metal, and most death/black/doom/goth metal bands.)

There are a few stalwarts still inspiring people to be real musicians/artists, such as Uli Jon Roth, Paul Gilbert, and Michael Romeo, but unfortunately most people are too lazy to spend the time required to truly understand and appreciate great music. The assertion that Yngwie is boring is no reflection on Yngwie, but it tells us a lot about the lack of effort and musical sophistication on the part of the bored individual.

Personal Favorite Track: "Be Careful What You Wish For"