一聽音樂網

"The Seventh Sign" is an inspiringly good Yngwie outing. However, when I first acquired this piece, it seemed to be anything but. The over-the-top aggressive vocal style and the handful of true 'metal' tracks made me shy away in a hurry, since at the time I was on a strict diet of Def Leppard and Yngwie's poppier discs like the superb "Odyssey" and the without a doubt, mainstream bound "Eclipse". "The Seventh Sign" was an entirely different animal indeed, but as my tastes changed, the contrasts in themes and moods and the sincerity of the album won me over in a big way. This was the 'debut' of the skilled and versatile, Michael Vescera as frontman in Malmsteen's ever changing roster of vocalists. His pipes are clean and bursting with emotion, not able to contain it, he just spills over, with ear piercing highs and sinister growling lows. Vescera does ballads not only with class and style, but also with conviction. He paints the world that has been created for him with true passion, making the listener not only hear the music but feel it straight down to the soul. Being the perfect compliment for the Maestro's axework which is typically pristine with its signature sound and bubbling with spirit or pain. Mike Terrana, drummer extraordinaire, not sure if it was the mix or perhaps a bit of luck, but by the sound of "...Sign", he is the best drummer to have lent his skin pounding talent to the Malmsteen musician circus, with one glaring exception, which is legend Cozy Powell, who is greatly missed. Terrana's track record has been exceptional, as he has lent his skills to such artists as Axel Rudi Pell, John West, Gamma Ray, Artension, Tony MacAlpine and others. And let's not forget Mats Olausson, the only musician to have stayed aboard beyond a couple of albums. His keyboard playing is fantastic as usual, and really shines on the ballads, when gentle piano comes into play. The production on this thing was absolutely phenomenal, it simply blew me away at first, even though the album itself was not exactly my cup of tea at the time. Malmsteen produced it himself, with painstaking details coming through so crisp and clear as a bell, enriching the intensity ten fold. I simply don't understand why he would let anyone else do the job after this album turned out so fabulously in sound.