What an utterly amazing show! As a guitarist the excitement that goes with seeing Joe Satriani live goes beyond what mere words can describe, but since there's no reviews on here yet I feel it's my duty to get the ball rolling.

First of all, I was obviously misinformed in that I thought The Screaming Jets were going to be the support act for the night. It mattered not though as a city starved for truly great musicians combined with the sheer aural ecstasy of Joe behind a guitar meant this was an audience that didn't need any warming up! The atmosphere was already electric when some casual noodling let the crowd know it was time to hold on to their seats before the band launched into one of my personal favourites "Up In The Sky".

There was a steady balance of Joe's heavier up-tempo numbers and more sublime songs but one thing in common throughout the show was that the guitar assault simply didn't let up. Being the "Is There Love In Space?" tour there were naturally a few tracks from his latest album such as "Bamboo" the title track itself, but long-time fans were also rewarded with classic Satch numbers like "Flying In A Blue Dream", "Cool #9" and the awesome 'encore' finisher "Surfing With The Alien", by the end of which Joe was met with one of the most sincere standing ovations I've ever witnessed at a concert. There was even the odd obscurity (by my standards) like "Strange", softer numbers like "Starry Night" and "Sleepwalk", and of course plenty of improvisation. The highlight of the night for me was his awesome live version of "Always With Me, Always With You" with a few bits of "Raspberry Jam Delta-V" thrown in for good measure. I don't have any live recordings with Satriani other than the G3 CDs and an earlier Deep Purple bootleg but I'm going to be on the look-out now after hearing that.

If there was any real let-down with the show it was that it felt like 90% of the songs always ended in 2 minutes of finale-shredding, 2 minutes of feedback and a 'group-slam'. Considering I sleep listening to the likes of Rusty Cooley and Buckethead it's safe to say I love my random shred spots as much as the next red-blooded guitarist, but after nearly every song was a bit much and it just dragged it out a bit. Considering the amount of improvisation and how often some of the staple songs featured extended semi-improvised soloing it just dragged it out. It's really a minor quibble and I'm sure I'll hear all hell over it but someone has to say it. A slightly shorter set with less post-song celebration and an extra song or two snuck in might be worth considering.

Comparisons will naturally be drawn between this and Steve Vai's show last August by anyone who went to both in Sydney. Vai had some amazing backing musicians (MacAlpine and Sheehan in particular) who each had their own solo spots and made the whole thing feel a bit more diverse, whereas Joe basically stole the show and it was all about him from start to finish. That's not neccessarily a bad thing either! Just would have been nice to see a bit more from the other musicians, but I guess it highlights the drastically different paths taken by both Joe and Steve in getting to a similar place in instrumental guitar history. Steve is a man whose career has been built upon working with equally amazing musicians, whereas Joe is more accustomed to bringing down a ceiling on his own merit. I have to say I appreciate the variety in their styles even more after having seen them both live, both in terms of musicianship and songwriting.

I also have to say after having been to both completely packed concerts, come on guys! You've both been down here now and you know you can sell out a venue without difficulty so no more excuses. Drag Petrucci's arse down here and let's see some G3 action soon! The only thing better than going to two amazing shows by two likewise amazing guitarists would be to see three amazing guitarists at once!

Something which seems to be lacking in concerts I've been to lately is the traditional throwing of the picks into the audience but not so here. I don't think I've ever seen so many picks up for grabs and a couple lucky punters got a drum stick each. At one point it even looked like a rubber chicken was on the cards for someone but that didn't quite eventuate. The favour was returned with a souveneir bucket hat complete with Australiana grafitti thrown on stage which Joe wore proudly for many of the songs. Joe also did a good job of involving the seated audience members, especially with the call-and-response trade-offs between Joe's guitar and those audience members able to vaguely sing along to a lick without words. It was little things like that which made it feel like you were actually at a concert rather than just watching a bunch of guys on stage.

Last of all, I stuck around after the show in the hope of getting a guitar body signed which I intend to clear-coat and have framed for my wall. There was no post-show appearance though other than for those with back-stage passes which was a bit disappointing. Thankfully I managed to convince someone to part with theirs after they'd finished with it, and I not only got my guitar signed but had the distinct pleasure and honour of meeting Joe Satriani himself. It was an amazing show already but having that guitar signed completely made my night and when I woke up this morning I was still unable to stop grinning. It's a shame that some of the people inside didn't seem to really know anything about Joe while there were some clearly avid fans waiting out front who were overlooked. One suggestion for the web site is to include details of any meet-and-greets or signings in the vicinity along with the show details so those who care don't miss out on an opportunity. A friend of mine who went to the Brisbane show wouldn't have even known about the Allans Music signing if I hadn't received an email from the Allans mailing list I joined years ago and forgot to unsubscribe from. I realise touring is very draining and you can't please everyone though, and it was great that he took the time to meet his fans at all. I even saw one guy with about half a dozen CDs, two guitar tab books and a Guitar Techniques magazine with Joe featured on the cover get them ALL signed without any complaint by Joe.

Overall this was easily one of the best concerts I've ever seen, and even had I not managed to get the guitar body signed I would have still walked away feeling much richer for the experience. The signing was just the icing on the proverbial cake. Now I just have to try and remember the fingerings for those double-handed tapping parts and try and work out how on Earth he gets those awesong squealing harmonic sounds on "Bamboo"...

PS to Joe himself- If you haven't heard of him, check out Mattias Eklundh. I reckon he would be a natural choice for your next G3 roster. Thanks again for the signature and photo, and I hope to see you in Sydney again some time within the next year or two at the very latest!

It was amazing...It trully was...but I must say that I still think that you sound better at the Gran Rex Theater. The Luna Park Stadium isn't maid for these type of concerts...It doesn't have great accoustics and a lot of things started shaking around me. But talking 'bout the concert...It blew me away...simply as that.

PS: next time...please...at the Gran Rex Theater...for me that concert stills in my head as the best rock concert I ever assisted.

Pato Master!