Michael Angelo Batio - Intermezzo 2013

When it comes to guitar shred, Michael Angelo Batio is the flagship of the genre. Michael, age 57, is the real hands without shadow of electric guitar when we defined speed. His power in using giga-fast guitar picking, often-ly by both hands, is the main thing comes to mind. He had a numbers of studio albums, but mostly Michael Angelo is more renown as respectable guitar clinician. Touring around the world, MAB preach guitar lessons to created a global shred-mania-fever. His choices of destination included invited to many exotic places, such as Indonesia or Nepal. So when the new album introduced earlier in 2013 as Intermezzo, it's kind of automatically reserved in waiting list.

The album of MAB is good enough, but what about if Michael Angelo Batio invited more than 25 guitarists and bassists to join his shred celebration. The list of old school-er such as George Lynch, Chris Poland, Joe Stump, Guthrie Govan then the later forces of Michael Romeo, Jeff Loomis and Rusty Cooley in one album is simply utopian album for guitar lover. They all performed in the later half of the album, started from 8 Pillars of Steel, proceed to Overload. These are songs that designed to being 'shred' all over the jam track. Do not ever skeptical about the result, because with so many styles put together it is an encyclopedia of licks and techniques. I mostly impressive with songs like 5 Four Ever, which included so twisted guitar solos by shredders whose styles are quite different which is Alex Stornello (a rock-jazz-fusion master) and G. Govan. If you rather enjoy MAB's "solos", with nice composition. Starts from Intermezzo, MAB gives us a strong thematic melody and shred the all the variations along away to give a damn kick ass of opening track. Kaleidoscope Images is heavier with lots of progressive accents, drumming are hardly an easy job as well. I Pray the Lord, as the titled suggested, is gospelic inspiring melodic stuffs with MAB set in mellow mood. One more other track similar in this flow is The Possession - A Tone Poem which is also led by sentimental melody theme to glue us together in the web of speedy licks.

Intermezzo is a champion. It's a bag full of jumping left and right on the guitar necks.  Additional of many guest there is a force to get you make this album as a must have.

Metal Harem class : ********** nine stars out of ten

Michael Angelo Batio - Intermezzo 2013
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1. Intermezzo
2. Kaleidoscope Images
3. Oceans of Time
4. I Pray the Lord
5. 8 Pillars of Steel 
(feat. Elliott Dean Rubinson on Bass
guest solos in order by – Dave Reffett, Jeff Loomis, MAB, Rusty Cooley, George Lynch, Andrea Martongelli and Craig Goldy)
6. The Possession – A Tone Poem
7. 5 Four Ever (featuring Alex Stornello (2:34 - 3:07), Guthrie Govan (3:22 - 4:08)
8. Juggernaut
(feat. solos in order by MAB, Chris Poland, Dave Reffett, Annie Grunwald, Guthrie Govan, Mike Lepond and Michael Romeo
9. Overload Intro (featuring Florent Atem)
10. Overload
(feat. solos in order by Tobias Hurwitz, Ken and Darren Burridge, Bill Peck, Peter Ema, Joe Rose, Joe Stump, Florent Atem, Maxxxwell Carlisle and MAB)

Elliott Dean Rubinson - Bass
Mike Lepond - Bass

Michael Angelo Batio intermezzo album review