Mind's Eye (album)

Last updated
Mind's Eye
Vinnie moore minds eye.jpg
Cover art by Guy Aitchison
Studio album by
Vinnie Moore
Released1986 (1986)
RecordedAugust 1986
Studio Prairie Sun Recording Studios in Cotati, California
Genre Instrumental rock, neoclassical metal
Length43:00
Label Shrapnel
Producer Mike Varney, Steve Fontano
Vinnie Moore chronology
Mind's Eye
(1986)		 Time Odyssey
(1988)

Mind's Eye is the first studio album by guitarist Vinnie Moore, released in 1986 through Shrapnel Records. [1] Recorded in eleven days when Moore was 21 years old, [2] the album was ranked third on the all-time top ten list of shred albums in a 2009 article by Guitar World magazine. [3]

Vinnie Moore American guitarist and member of the band UFO

Vincent "Vinnie" Moore is an American guitarist and a member of the British hard rock band UFO. Moore is one of the most influential and important guitarists to emerge from the virtuoso boom in the mid to late eighties.

Shrapnel Records record label

Shrapnel Records is a guitar-oriented record label started in 1980 by record producer Mike Varney.

Shred guitar

Shred guitar or shredding is a virtuoso lead guitar solo playing style for the guitar, based on various advanced and complex playing techniques, particularly rapid passages and advanced performance effects. Music critics have stated that shred guitar is associated with "fast alternate picking, sweep-picked arpeggios, diminished and harmonic scales, finger-tapping and whammy-bar abuse", while others contend that it is a fairly subjective cultural term used by guitarists and enthusiasts of guitar music. It is commonly used with reference to heavy metal guitar playing, where it is associated with rapid tapping solos, fast scale and arpeggio runs and special effects such as whammy bar "dive bombs". Metal guitarists playing in a "shred" style use the electric guitar with a guitar amplifier and a range of electronic effects such as distortion, which create a more sustained guitar tone and facilitate guitar feedback effects.

Contents

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic Star full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar full.svgStar empty.svg [1]
Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal 6/10 [4]

Robert Taylor at AllMusic gave Mind's Eye four stars out of five, calling it "a classic in the shredder community", albeit "just a display of technical ability to the casual listener." Praise was given to Moore for being "one of the more interesting of the shredders", but Taylor also labeled him as an Yngwie Malmsteen clone. "In Control" and "Saved by a Miracle" were listed as highlights. [1] Canadian journalist Martin Popoff called the album "a mature, triumphant, very professional record" and lauded the musicians and Mike Varney's production. [4]

AllMusic Online music database

AllMusic is an online music database. It catalogs more than 3 million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musical artists and bands. It launched in 1991, predating the World Wide Web. As of 2015, AllMusic is owned by RhythmOne.

Yngwie Malmsteen Swedish musician

Yngwie Johan Malmsteen is a Swedish guitarist, songwriter and bandleader. Malmsteen first became known in the 1980s for his neoclassical metal playing style in heavy metal, and has released 20 studio albums in a career spanning almost 40 years. In 2009, Time magazine rated Malmsteen as number 7 among the 10 greatest electric guitar players of all time.

Martin Popoff is a Canadian music journalist, critic and author. He is mainly known for writing about the genre of heavy metal music. The senior editor and co-founder of Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles, he has additionally written over twenty books that both critically evaluate heavy metal and document its history. He has been called "heavy metal's most widely recognized journalist" by his publisher. Popoff currently lives in Toronto, Ontario.

Track listing

All music composed by Vinnie Moore.

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."In Control"4:38
2."Daydream"4:31
3."Saved by a Miracle"5:19
4."Hero Without Honor"7:19
Side two
No.TitleLength
5."Lifeforce"4:02
6."N.N.Y."3:43
7."Mind's Eye"3:28
8."Shadows of Yesterday"4:34
9."The Journey"5:26
Total length:43:00

Personnel

Musicians
Guitar Fretted string instrument

The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that usually has six strings. It is typically played with both hands by strumming or plucking the strings with either a guitar pick or the finger(s)/fingernails of one hand, while simultaneously fretting with the fingers of the other hand. The sound of the vibrating strings is projected either acoustically, by means of the hollow chamber of the guitar, or through an electrical amplifier and a speaker.

Tony MacAlpine American musician and composer

Tony MacAlpine is an American musician and composer. In a career spanning three decades and thirteen studio albums, he is best known as an instrumental rock solo guitarist, although he has worked with many different bands and musicians in guest appearances and collaborations.

Keyboard instrument class of musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard

A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument played using a keyboard, a row of levers which are pressed by the fingers. The most common of these are the piano, organ, and various electronic keyboards, including synthesizers and digital pianos. Other keyboard instruments include celestas, which are struck idiophones operated by a keyboard, and carillons, which are usually housed in bell towers or belfries of churches or municipal buildings.

Production

Mike Varney is an American musician, record producer, music publisher and impresario. He is the founder of the Shrapnel Label Group, which includes Shrapnel Records, Tone Center Records and Blues Bureau International. He also has a 50% stake in Magna Carta Records, a New York-based label. Amazon.com currently lists over 790 albums as being released by record labels founded or owned by Mike Varney. He is often credited with being the individual most responsible for popularizing the mid-1980s shred guitar boom, and has continuously specialized in producing highly acclaimed musicians within the genres of instrumental rock, hard rock, jazz, jazz fusion, blues, blues-rock, progressive metal and speed metal.

Record producer Individual who oversees and manages the recording of an artists music

A record producer or music producer oversees and manages the sound recording and production of a band or performer's music, which may range from recording one song to recording a lengthy concept album. A producer has many, varying roles during the recording process. They may gather musical ideas for the project, collaborate with the artists to select cover tunes or original songs by the artist/group, work with artists and help them to improve their songs, lyrics or arrangements.

Audio engineer engineer who operates recording, mixing, sound reproduction equipment

An audio engineer helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization and audio effects, mixing, reproduction, and reinforcement of sound. Audio engineers work on the "...technical aspect of recording—the placing of microphones, pre-amp knobs, the setting of levels. The physical recording of any project is done by an engineer ... the nuts and bolts." It's a creative hobby and profession where musical instruments and technology are used to produce sound for film, radio, television, music, and video games. Audio engineers also set up, sound check and do live sound mixing using a mixing console and a sound reinforcement system for music concerts, theatre, sports games and corporate events.

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References

  1. 1 2 3 Taylor, Robert. "Vinnie Moore - Mind's Eye review". AllMusic . All Media Network . Retrieved 2017-08-12.
  2. ↑ "Batttttty shares a quiet glass of screaming ale with Vinnie Moore". Strangers in the Night.com. 6 April 2004. Archived from the original on 2 May 2004. Retrieved 2017-08-12.
  3. ↑ Guitar World Staff (7 September 2009). "Top 10 Shred Albums of All Time". Guitar World . Archived from the original on 28 May 2011. Retrieved 2017-08-12.
  4. 1 2 Popoff, Martin (1 November 2005). The Collector's Guide to Heavy Metal: Volume 2: The Eighties. Burlington, Ontario, Canada: Collector's Guide Publishing. p. 231. ISBN   978-1894959315.
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