Yngwie J. Malmsteen’s Rising Force – Odyssey 2012 Remaster SHM-CD, MP3+FLAC

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As requested, here’s the Japanese remastered reissue on high quality SHM-CD of YNGWIE MALMSTEEN’s Rising Force “Odyssey”, the 1988 album he recorded with the mighty Joe Lynn Turner on lead vocals, a cardboard sleeve MiniLP replica release out of print now.

After the success that was the start of his solo career, Yngwie Malmsteen went through a lot of changes.
Having already mastered the art of electric guitar technique, on “Odyssey“, his fourth album, Malmsteen honed his sights on mastering the art of songwriting, rounding out his neoclassical chops with superb melodies and catchy hooks.
Highly responsible of this was the great Joe Lynn Turner, who not only provides an outstanding vocal work, but also has co-written the songs bringing his ability to craft memorable tunes.

But it’s Yngwie itself who has refined his songwriting on “Odyssey”; the main riffs are solid and rarely inflated, the vocal melodies demand most of the songs’ focus, and though he always throws-in a blistering solo, it’s confined to the traditional bridge section rather than wanking all throughout the song.

“Odyssey” finds Malmsteen cutting synth-laden Melodic Rock tunes like the anthemic “Hold On”, “Crystal Ball” and the borderline hair metal hit “Heaven Tonight”.
This is also the first record in which Yngwie did a real ballad with the excellent “Dreaming (Tell Me)”. Also of particular note is “Dreaming”, a delicate, expressive marriage of acoustic guitars and keyboards.
Balancing the disc we have powerful Melodic Hard Rockers such as “Rising Force”, the punchy “Riot In The Dungeons” and the kicking “Déjà Vu”.

“Odyssey” is one of the best melodic hard rockin’ albums from the late ’80s, and my favorite Yngwie ever. Even if the title of a particular track slips my mind, I can always recall it just from the opening guitar line, as it usually mimics the chorus melody. Seems to me his critics need to find something to bitch about besides his arrogance: his music songwriting on this album kicks ass.
Joe Lynn Turner shines on one of his best recordings, the Johansson bros. are amazingly trained beasts, and production is first rate.
Part of the Yngwie Malmsteen’s Japanese SHM-CD / miniLP reissue series, this “Odyssey” remaster sounds incredible; big, crispy and perfectly balanced. It really makes the difference.
A Must Have

1 Rising Force
2 Hold On
3 Heaven Tonight
4 Dreaming (Tell Me)
5 Bite The Bullet
6 Riot In The Dungeons
7 Deja Vu
8 Crystal Ball
9 Now Is The Time
10 Faster Than The Speed Of Light
11 Krakatau
12 Memories

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