Time Odyssey

During the post-Van Halen shred eruption of the '80s, only a few guitarists made anything that resembled a unique musical statement. For every Steve Vai and Joe Satriani, there were a dozen Joey Tafollas. Perhaps the most groundbreaking musician of this era was Yngwie Malmsteen. The Swedish virtuoso had many imitators, and Vinnie Moore was chief among them. After a successful debut on shred-specialty label Shrapnel Records, Moore landed a deal with Mercury and released Time Odyssey at the height of solo rock guitar excess in 1988. On the disc's first two tracks, "Morning Star" and "Prelude/Into the Future," Moore tosses off some guitar harmonies that bear a huge resemblance to Deep Purple (an acknowledged Malmsteen influence). Moore then glides through a few competent, slightly passive rock numbers before Time Odyssey's most impressive cut, "Race With Destiny." Unfortunately, this neo-classical number is an utter Malmsteen rip-off. Of the imitators, Moore ranks high, due to his accurate playing and warm tone, but offerings like Time Odyssey are missing the emotional substance and/or technical innovation they need to be considered important shred documents.