Generarion Axe/Osaka,Japan 2017

Has there ever been such a “rich” live album before? This is the ultimate form of the strongest and largest guitar album in rock history. This is the best live album that completely records the second night of the big virtuoso competition. “GENERATION AXE A NIGHT OF GUITARS” was a rich and strongest guitar concert. This work includes the “April 4, 2017 Zepp Namba performance”. This week, the sister work of the Nagoya performance “NAGOYA 2017” will also be released at the same time, so let’s hold down the schedule here. ・April 3: Zepp Nagoya “NAGOYA 2017” ・April 4: Zepp Namba [this work] ・April 6: Zepp Tokyo ・April 7: Zepp Tokyo In this way, the Japan tour of “GENERATION AXE” has a total of four performances. This work is the second sister work following the first day “NAGOYA 2017”. The fact that these are sister works is not just about concerts. The recorder of this work is the same as “NAGOYA 2017”, “Western Japan’s Strongest Taper”. As the name suggests, he knows all the live spaces in Western Japan and is a master who has made a series of super-famous recordings at the sweet spots of the venues. He is a modern master who has been described as “recording with better sound than the actual venue” by analyzing not only the venue acoustics but also the musicality of the artist and the characteristics of the fan base in total. “NAGOYA 2017” was one of the most powerful sounds in the “strongest” collection, but this work is just as strong…or should I say, it’s better!?!? Of course, both works are so high-dimensional that it’s hard to say which one is better at the level of preference. If I had to talk about the difference, “NAGOYA 2017” is crystal clear, while this work is clear and has a beautiful rich sound with even a beautiful bass “ring”. In addition, it is a super-beautiful recording with no audience noise nearby. The show depicted with such a sound is a guitar competition from start to finish. You can enjoy the guitar immersion that will be at the top of all guitar albums in rock history. For the complex show structure, please refer to the commentary of “NAGOYA 2017”, but here we will take a closer look at the listening points of each guitarist. [Disc 1: Toshin Abasi & Nuno Bettencourt] Disc 1 contains “Foreplay” with all five members, to Toshin and Nuno’s solo stage. First of all, “Foreplay” is amazing. In the intro, the five members play as they like, and halfway through, Toshin → Nuno → Zack → Yngwie → Vai take solo turns. I’ve written the names like this, but in fact, there’s no need to even do that. The super-individuals are in full swing, and you can tell who is playing just by the sound. The guitar relay is reminiscent of the former charity project “HEAR ‘N AID”, but it is even more intense than that. And the first batter of the solo stage is Toshin. He is the only black guitarist among the five people this time, but his true identity is the leader of the progressive metal band ANIMALS AS LEADERS. He has been in the industry for 10 years and is 34 years old, which is approaching the middle of his career, but his skills are the best among the five of them. This work also shows off fierce progressive metal, and “Air Chrysalis”, which was not performed at the Nagoya performance, has been added. Nuno appears from “Physical Education” by ANIMALS AS LEADERS, which is Toshin’s last song. Of course, the main thing shown on his solo stage is EXTREME, and it changes from mechanical progressive metal to the world of “fun” in an instant. Even though it is technical, it is funky and grooves. [Disc 2: Zakk Wylde & Steve Vai] The third act was Zakk. He performed with Nuno on his last song, “Sideways,” and took the baton. His stage consisted of covers of famous songs, not his own songs. They were “N.I.B.” by BLACK SABBATH, “Little Wing” by Jimi Hendrix, and “Whipping Post” by THE ALLMAN BROTHERS BAND. Zak has the most orthodox style of the five, but his forceful playing and violent harmonics are one of a kind. He plays a song for 10 minutes, and in “Little Wing,” he dances into the audience and performs a passionate performance while being pushed around by the front row of customers. And the fourth act was maestro Steve Vai, who was originally supposed to be the final act. Even though there were five super-unique super guitarists, his transcendent personality was still enormous. The various perverted phrases are simply colorful, and he builds a unique world that is different from the other four… no, from anyone in the world. Buckethead, John 5, Matthias Eklund, etc…. Various geniuses have appeared since Vai, but he is still alone. He shows off his true genius, which should be praised alongside Eddie Van Halen. [Disc 3: Yngwie Malmsteen] The last act of the solo stage is our own Yngwie. He is also a synonym for super individuality and a great man who needs no explanation. However, this work does not end with “the usual Yngwie”. It seems that he had an argument with the staff at the Nagoya performance, making the audience uneasy, but at this Osaka performance, a big problem broke out that was not worth it. It all started with the opening song “Spellbound”. Just when you think he’s about to explode with a fierce sweep, the guitar breaks out and he stops playing and retreats to the wings of the stage. They somehow managed to adjust the equipment and resume the performance, but the sound still cut out. They continued to suffer from the trouble until the next song, “Valhalla”. Perhaps this trouble was very much tolerable, because after the equipment was restored, they tried to go full throttle! But it didn’t work. The performance became rougher than usual, and the phrases with Derek Sherinian were also in tatters. It would not be strange if Yngwie got angry, but that is where Yngwie is different from normal people. He played an incredible number of notes as if to say, “So what?”. Including his personality, Yngwie was the main character more than anyone else. And from the last number of Yngwie’s stage, “Black Star”, there was a three-part luxurious collaboration. First, Vai appeared in “Black Star” and the two former ALCATRAZZ giants performed together. In the encore “Frankenstein”, the four members other than Yngwie performed together, and in the last song “Highway Star”, Yngwie returned and played hard as a group of five. That’s all for 3 hours, 12 minutes, and 4 seconds. Either “NAGOYA 2017” where Yngwie is doing well, or this one with one more song and rare troubles. Either way, it’s the ultimate guitar album, with intense and “rich” guitar sounds and filling the album. It’s amazing that the five of them are together, but “GENERATION AXE” is a masterpiece that fully showcases their super individuality. This masterpiece was vacuum-packed by Japan’s master Taper. It’s a monster album from a rare monster show, so please enjoy it together with “NAGOYA 2017”. No matter how much you love guitar, this is a sister product that is sure to fill you up. Immerse yourself to your heart’s content until you reach your limits! Live at Zepp Namba, Osaka, Japan 4th April 2017 TRULY PERFECT SOUND(from Original Masters) Disc 1 (49:04) 1. Intro/Foreplay ★Tosin Abasi 2. Tempting Time 3. Air Chrysalis 4. Woven Web 5. Physical Education (with Nuno Bettencourt) ★Nuno Bettencourt 6. Get The Funk Out 7. Midnight Express 8. Extreme Med ley Disc 2 (72:29) 1. MC 2. Sideways (with Zakk Wylde) ★Zakk Wylde 3. N.I.B 4. Little Wing 5. Whipping Post ★Steve Vai 6. Bad Horsie 7. Racing The World 8. Tender Surrender 9. Gravity Storm Disc 3 (70:51) ★Yngwie Malmsteen 1. Intro. 2. Spellbound 3. Valhalla 4. Overture 5. 1,000 cuts / Arpeggios from Hell / Baroque & Roll / Masquerade 6. Paganini’s 4th/Adagio 7. Far Beyond The Sun 8. Trilogy / Fugue / Echo 9. Acoustic 10. Black Star (with Steve Vai) 11. Member Introductions ★ALL GUITARISTS 12. Frankenstein (All except Yngwie) 13 Highway Star (All) Yngwie Malmsteen / Steve Vai / Zakk Wylde / Nuno Bettencourt / Tosin Abasi Pete Griffin – Bass JP Bouvet – Drums Derek Sherinian – Keyboards