Live | Vinnie Moore – De Bosuil-Weert [NL]

21 September 2023

American guitarist Vinnie Moore started his career as the axeman of the notorious metal band Vicious Rumors, but his first solo album ‘Mind’s Eye’ – still one of my personal favourite guitar albums ever – really put him in the spotlight as a more than average guitar shredder. Since 2003 Vinnie has played guitar in UFO and this year, he released his new, 10th solo album called ‘Double Exposure’, his first solo album that features six tracks with vocals.

TUTTI GLI ITALIANI

This evening in Weert, Moore’s band consisted of Roberto Pirami (drums), Francesco Caporaletti (bass guitars), Emiliano Tessitore (guitar) and sometimes vocals Titta Tani, so tutti gli Italiani indeed! Moore’s awesome riffs, hooks, and solos in older tracks like ,,Meltdown” (1991) or ,,In Control”, from his debut solo album ‘Mind’s Eye’ (1986) are still a real treat for all guitar aficionados and I still cannot understand why Vinnie is not as “famous” as Vai or Satriani…..

HIGHLIGHTS

The title track of Moore’s 5^th solo album ‘The Maze’ (1990) was definitely one of the guitar highlights of this evening; an awesome track packed with dazzling riffs, hooks, melodies, and solos, showing Moore’s unsurpassed guitar playing. When singer Tani entered the stage, it was time for a couple of vocal tracks from Moore’s latest album ‘Double Exposure’ of which the bluesy ,,Paid My Dues” and the melodic, almost catchy ,,Hummingbird” were the best.

COMPLETE SURPRISE

Then, however, it was time for a complete surprise, as Vinnie played the notorious intro riff from the classic Deep Purple track ,,Mistreated”; a Blackmore/Coverdale composition from the album ‘Burn’ (1974). Musically Vinnie (being a huge Blackmore fan) really nailed ,,Mistreated”, but the vocals of Tani were rather mediocre and kind of spoiled this amazing song a tiny bit…

VINNIE MOORE UNDERRATED

,,Rise” and ,,Vertical Horizon”, also from the new album, were also on the setlist before the small but enthusiastic audience were “treated” (not) to a drum and bass guitar solo, so for me it was time to go to the, you know where, as I find those solo spotlights utterly superfluous. ,,Check It Out” and ,,Morning Star”, both older tracks, were again a treat to my ear showing again what a superb and underrated guitar picker Vinnie Moore actually is. For those of you who missed this gig, I would say the next time that Vinnie Moore is in town, check him out as his guitar playing is almost second to none!

All photos by Martien Koolen