Persbericht, zaterdag 2 april 2022

Steve Vai en Favored Nations / Mascot Label Group presenteren de officiële videoclip voor “Teeth Of The Hydra”. Vai deelt, “The idea for this guitar and track came to me roughly seven years ago.  I envisioned composing and performing a piece of music on a multi-neck instrument where all of the sound emanated from that one creation with the exception of some keyboards and drums.  I sent my ideas to Ibanez, and their builders delivered this astonishing wooden creature.  I was stunned.  It was awesome.

When I first laid eyes on it, I named it the Hydra, and instantly knew the name of the song would be ‘Teeth of the Hydra.’  A Hydra is a dragon-like creature from Greek mythology possessing various heads.  For every head chopped off, two would grow in its place.  I then set out to write a piece of music that utilized all the features of the Hydra, but could also stand on its own as an enjoyable composition with a sultry melody and heavy dynamics. When I finally sat with the Hydra and started to contemplate writing this piece and how I was to navigate the instrument in a seamless way, for a moment it seemed impossible.  I just started slowly, and it all began to unfold very naturally.  Things that can seem impossible don’t seem so impossible once you just start doing them. Every new discovery and accomplishment were treated as a joyous victory, even if it only involved figuring out one bar of music.

The overall inner vision was the guide through the process, but with every accomplishment, the process became more and more addictive.  I became immersed in the splendors of the Hydra.  It was a meditative experience, and on the day that it all finally clicked, performing the song felt like stillness in motion—that’s when the performance becomes virtually effortless, and the freedom of present-moment expression has you feeling as if your feet are about a foot off the ground.  The exhilaration can be overwhelming at times.  I’m very happy with the way the video came out, and having BJ McDonnell as director, along with his amazing crew, was vital. Enjoy!”

De performance clip werd geregisseerd door BJ McDonnell en geproduceerd door John Heller en Jason Salzman. De Director of Photography was Eric Leach, met art direction door Michael Mesker. Greg Wurth was de geluidstechnicus en assistent-editor.

Vai’s nieuwe studioalbum Inviolate debuteerde op #1 in de Billboard’s Current Hard Rock Albums-hitlijst. Totale streams overschrijden de 5 miljoen, met “Teeth Of The Hydra” goed voor meer dan een miljoen.Steve Vai heeft aangekondigd dat de Inviolate World Tour start met een Europese run in Glasgow op 4 juni 2022. De tour loopt door tot midden juli, en hij zal shows geven in Groot-Brittannië, Ierland, Frankrijk, Noorwegen, Zweden, Denemarken, Duitsland, Oostenrijk, Italië, Zwitserland, Nederland, België en Spanje. Tickets en een verscheidenheid aan EVO Experience VIP bundels staan op https://www.vai.com. Vai wordt vergezeld door zijn vaste ensembleleden Dave Weiner (gitaar/toetsen), Philip Bynoe (bas) en Jeremy Colson (drums). Vai deelt: “It’s amazing to realize that after three years of not performing our show on a stage, that it’s now on the horizon, and will start to unfold in Europe this summer.  I can feel the road now and the enthusiastic audiences that we will be will be connecting with.”

De Inviolate World Tour begint op 4 juni in Glasgow.