Joe Satriani What Happens Next cd review



World-renowned guitar virtuoso, Joe Satriani, releases his 16th solo album, What Happens Next on January 12, 2018 on Sony/Legacy Recordings.

The new, instrumentally electrifying album features a power trio of legendary status; Satriani  on guitar and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee bassist Glenn Hughes(Deep Purple/Black Country Communion) and drummer Chad Smith (Red Hot Chili Peppers), the latter reuniting with Satriani for the first time since their work in the supergroup Chickenfoot. Satriani is once again joined by producer/engineer/mixer Mike Fraser, his frequent collaborator over the last 20 years, on What Happens Next. Fraser is well-known for recording/mixing every AC/DC album since 1990’s The Razors Edge along with his classic works with Satriani going back to the release of Crystal Planet in 1998.

Every Joe Satriani is a journey through musical soundscapes featuring every mood known to man and a few more.Only Joe could have the voice of rock on an instrumental album!!

Every note Joe means with a light touch and it isn't about how many notes he can play as fast as he can it's about textures it's about painting a scene and making every note count.He is an artist that transcend's genres and the world stops and takes notice every time he releases something new.

What Happens Next is 12 musical landscapes with the first being called Energy being just that with a fast paced rocker with Joe all over it from the first riff and his melodic soloing is wonderful and you realise what a wonderful bass player Glenn Hughes is which normally gets forgotten and the interplay between all 3 is off the scale truly from another world another galaxy.
Chad Smith hits as hard as any drummer on the planet and the groove is monstrous and you can only begin to imagine the feeling in the studio as these 3 amazing musicians lay down a Joe classic.Smiles everywhere.

Thunder High On The Mountain starts on an insistent Chad drum pattern before a rolling Joe riff suddenly turns into a huge heavy riff and drum workout with Glenn's bass booming and holding it all together.

Cherry Blossom is a retrospective number all picked held notes and melody and Joe's story telling blossoming.Mid song it explodes with a big guitar riff and Chad and Glenn again grooving before it quieten's down again for the outro.

Headrush is classic Joe with a song taken from the Satch Boogie family.Fast paced with Joe's riff making your head and feet move and again the band interplay off the scale with Glenn's stunning finger work underpinning it all as Chad pounds his kit into submission.Going to be a live favourite for sure.

What Happens Next is a mid paced number with Joe's guitar melodic soloing simply beautiful and another you can imagine being a live favourite with suitable impressive light show.

Super Funky Badass is just that with a number that starts on Joe's heavy guitar riff and Chad's groove/swing on drums with the feel of a live jam but with a melodic secondary groove before the heavy riff returns and Joe's lengthy solo a thing of beauty.7 and a half minutes of heaven.

Invisible and Forever And Ever end the album in style.The former sees a band jam and Joe's soloing showing he can make noises out of a guitar very few can while the later is a slower picked note song full of textures.

Joe Satriani continues to delight and What Happens Next is a wonderful start to 2018 and leaves every guitarist looking up to his amazing standards.

Joe will hit the UK in April with his G3 run to include John Petrucci and Uli Jon Roth.

Be there. 


Photo Credit: © Joseph Cultice




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