Vortex, guitarist Neal Schon’s ninth solo album, is a two-CD guitar work-out of noodling high-fret explosions without the pop expectations of Journey. Pushed along by ex-Journey drummer Steve Smith, we are presented with speedy instrumentals, often with each player running hard and fast around one another.
On “Miles Beyond,” Schon fluidly covers his fretboard while an organ makes the bed and strings sail in later to cover it all. It’s evident Schon is just as fast as ever. The savory staccato of “El Matador” has Schon and Smith in lock-step all the way into the last third where we get some classical guitar before ending the entire thing with Santana-like flights.
The sweet and sad Igor Len piano solo on “Eternal Love” comes at just the right time, leading into another strong offering called “In a Cloud,” a building instrumental with piano and Smith laying back (at least a first) as Schon manages a bunch of pull-offs. It rises a bit and gets a little messy, but the haunting main riff sustains as things then float back down to where they were in the beginning.
One of two tunes Schon wrote for his wife, “Lady M (Our Love Remains)” sees Schon coaxing what feels like every droplet of emotion from his frets. It’s a loving tribute to be sure. “Tortured Souls” features heavy keys and a single riff cutting through. “Schon & Hammer Now” is a furious jam between Schon and keyboardist Jan Hammer that’s loud, wild and what you’d expect.
“Triumph Of Love” is more of that single-note, slower riffing where we once again experience a very expressive Schon. He stays away from the higher notes and slows down, which is an approach that works the best magic on Vortex. “Mom” is another welcomed acoustic moment, but the flicks and plucking are over too quickly. I would have preferred the acoustic moments to have been longer and more compositionally realized. We’re back to Smith and Schon playing like mad man on “Talk to Me” with big tom hits, dangerous plucking and a distinctive main riff.
Vortex is fusion of a high order executed by brilliant players. This double-CD set could have probably benefitted from some trimming (there’s lots of the same territory here mined over and over) down to one CD, but there’s no denying the force of nature that Neal Schon is.
~ Ralph Greco
