The nation's multitude of metalheads and air-guitar aficionados will get a chance to let their hair down in the coming week, when rock-guitar wizard, Joe Satriani makes his long-awaited inaugural appearance in Taiwan for a one-off gig at the National Taipei University of Technology.
The fact that Satriani doesn't possess the same manic stage presence as many of his peers hasn't gotten in the way of the mild-mannered and soft-spoken New Yorker's building up of a substantial following in Taiwan.
Spending his formative years teaching guitar techniques to the likes of Metallica's Kirk Hammett and Primus' Larry LaLonde along with performing as a session artist for Alice Cooper and Deep Purple, Satriani avoided a solo recording career until the music press inadvertently got wind of his skills in the mid-1980s.
One-time student, Steve Vai lauded Satriani's teaching methods and techniques in interviews with several of the US' leading music publications and Satriani was offered a record contract shortly thereafter. Although he released his debut, Not of this Earth, in 1986, it was to be his 1987 release, Surfing with the Alien, that was to prove Satriani's most monumental moment. Packed with a heap of wicked licks and hooks, the album saw Satriani taking guitar playing and song composition to new levels and in so doing set the standard for a new generation of heavy rock guitarists.
While the Taipei gig doesn't come in tandem with a new Satriani release, it does prepare his fans for the Super Audio re-release of this year's, Strange Beautiful Music. Only playable on Super Audio CD players, however, the limited edition, Strange Beautiful Music [SACD Multi] (Epic), is set to hit record store shelves worldwide the day before Satriani's Taipei appearance.
Applauded by the music press on its release in June this year, the album not only boasts some of Satriani's more original compositions to date, but also a host of guest musicians.
Satriani is accompanied by the likes of guitar guru and ex-King Crimson front-man, Robert Fripp, Dead Kennedy's engineer and percussionist, John Cunibert and bassist, Matt Bissonette.
Not only does the album see Satriani incorporating world music with rock riffs and licks, but it also includes some rather off-the-wall techno moments, making the release more than just simply another "guitar" album.
While the guitar wizard will be putting his Ibanez through its paces in Taipei next week, he will unfortunately be doing so without the aid of Fripp. Instead, Satriani will be accompanied by local percussionists and aided by one of China's leading heavy metal guitarists, Yang Chang-yong (楊長勇).
Joe Satriani will be appearing at the National Taipei University of Technology's Chungcheng Hall (台北科技大學中正廳) at 6pm next Thursday, Oct. 10. Tickets cost between NT$1,200 and NT$1,800 and are available from ERA ticketing outlets nationwide. The university is located at 1 Chunghsiao E. Rd., Sec. 3, Taipei (北市忠孝東路三段一號).
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