Facing the Animal

Facing the Animal
Facing the Animal
Studio album by Yngwie Malmsteen
Released	1997
Recorded	Studio 308 and Criteria Studios in Miami
Genre	Neoclassical metal, heavy metal
Length	59:33
Label	Pony Canyon
Producer	Yngwie Malmsteen, Chris Tsangarides
Yngwie Malmsteen chronology
Alternative cover
	United States edition

Last updated March 22, 2025

Facing the Animal is the tenth studio album by Swedish guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen, released in 1997 through Pony Canyon (Japan) and Mercury Records (United States). The album reached No. 20 on the Finnish albums chart and No. 39 on the Swedish albums chart.^[1]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[2]

Stephen Thomas Erlewine gave Facing the Animal three stars out of five, saying that "much of the record is stronger than anything Malmsteen has recorded in years" but also calling it "predictable, from the rockers to the power ballads".^[2]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Yngwie Malmsteen

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Braveheart"	5:19
2.	"Facing the Animal"	4:37
3.	"Enemy"	4:53
4.	"Sacrifice"	4:19
5.	"Like an Angel – For April"	5:47
6.	"My Resurrection"	4:48
7.	"Another Time"	5:03
8.	"Heathens from the North"	3:39
9.	"Alone in Paradise"	4:33
10.	"End of My Rope"	4:24
11.	"Only the Strong"	6:05
12.	"Poison in Your Veins"	4:23
13.	"Air on a Theme"	1:43
Total length:		59:33

Japanese edition bonus track
No.	Title	Length
14.	"Casting Pearls Before the Swine"	3:57

Personnel

Yngwie Malmsteen – guitar, bass (tracks 1, 4, 6, 12), background vocals, arrangement, production
Mats Levén – lead vocals (except track 13)
Mats Olausson – keyboards
Cozy Powell – drums (except track 13)
Barry Dunaway – bass (except tracks 1, 4, 6, 12, 13)
Chris Tsangarides – engineering, mixing, production
Keith Rose – engineering assistance
Rod Fuller – mastering

Chart performance

Year	Chart	Position
1998	Finnish albums chart	20^[1]
1998	Swedish albums chart	39^[1]

Certifications


Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Japan (RIAJ)^[3]	Gold	100,000^{^}
^{^} Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

1 2 3 "Yngwie J. Malmsteen – Facing the Animal (album)". finnishcharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 17 January 2014.
1 2 Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Facing the Animal – Yngwie Malmsteen". AllMusic . All Media Network. Retrieved 17 January 2014.
↑ "Japanese album certifications – Yngwie Malmsteen – Facing the Animal" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan.Select 1997年9月 on the drop-down menu

External links

Facing the Animal, 1997 at yngwiemalmsteen.com

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[finnishcharts-1] 1 2 3 "Yngwie J. Malmsteen – Facing the Animal (album)". finnishcharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 17 January 2014.

[allmusic-2] 1 2 Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Facing the Animal – Yngwie Malmsteen". AllMusic . All Media Network. Retrieved 17 January 2014.

[JapanYngwie_MalmsteenFacing_the_AnimalalbumCertRef-3] "Japanese album certifications – Yngwie Malmsteen – Facing the Animal" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan.Select 1997年9月 on the drop-down menu

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