Today we are featuring in exclusive the upcoming IMPELLITTERI “The Complete Beast 1987-2009 [6-CD Box Set]“, a lavish 6-Disc clamshell box bringing together, for the first time outside of Japan, every Impellitteri album and EP release between the band’s debut in 1987 until 2009’s ‘Wicked Maiden’ – also included are numerous bonus tracks and outtakes.
A mammoth career-spanning set including 11 albums / EPs (a total of 113 tracks) that is an essential purchase for not just Impellitteri fans, but for classic melodic metal / hard rock aficionados in general. All the best recorded with Impellitteri, from Chuck Wright to Ken Mary to the late Pat Torpey, with the likes of Michael Wagener producing.
Featuring impressive vocalists Graham Bonnet and Rob Rock, Impellitteri fused like few traditional US metal, classic hard rock and shred guitar hero rock. When legendary guitar shredders are mentioned, it doesn’t take long for Chris Impellitteri’s name to come up, spoken of in the same breath as legends like Yngwie Malmsteen, Paul Gilbert or Steve Vai.
Superstars in Japan and with international sales of over two million records, Impellitteri the band were inducted into the 2023 Metal Hall Of Fame. “The Complete Beast 1987-2009 [6-CD Box Set]” is great deal as many Impellitteri albums aren’t easy to find on CD, and here you have all of ’em for a nice price.
The need for speed has never been more apparent than in the finger blurring, neoclassical ‘Secret Lover’, taken from the band’s first studio album, 1988′s Stand In Line.
Chris Impellitteri wields his guitar like an UZI, spitting out a blur of notes that leave no one untouched. Surprisingly for one who is inclined to suffocate the vocals with fast fingers, he leaves room on the outstanding title track for Graham Bonnet to show just why he succeeded with Rainbow and Schenker.
Oh and there’s a killer version of ‘Since You’ve Been Gone’ too.
Grin & Bear It (1992) divided fans and critics both. Nobody could pin it down musically. Described by some as AOR (?) and others as neoclassical metal, it’s as enigmatic as albums go. It’s a great one, very melodic, hard rockin’ groovin’. ‘City’s On Fire’ and ‘Under The Gun’ give a pretty good indication of the album’s socially aware message.
And although the follow up, Answer To The Master (1994) seemed to be treading water (yet still delivering the superb ‘Hungry Days’ and ‘Fly Away’) it also brought with it some controversy over its reputedly “vivid Christian themes”, but that’s another story (The Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Metal does say that “They are unknown in much of contemporary Christian sub-culture”, but that’s debatable.)
By 1996, the band was attracting premier league producers. Michael (Accept / Dokken/ Skid Row) Wagener manned the mixing desk for Screaming Symphony. It’s a blast from start to finish, and contains two of the band’s live set list favorites: ’17th Century Chicken’ and ‘Rat Race’, plus the immense ‘Father Forgive Them’.
It was awarded “Album of The Year” by HM magazine.
Disc 3 packs Eye Of The Hurricane… that centre point at which the maelstrom is still … is an apt title for this 1997 album. The recording takes this moment to illustrate the length and breadth of the band’s rock and metal range, adding two superb ballads ‘On and On’ and ‘Paradise’ to the band’s expanding canon.
Also on this disc (a matter of physical space) there’s Impellitteri EP (1987): in the beginning was this self-titled EP. It got a lot of music media attention, despite (or because of) its raw production. A more polished version of ‘Play With Fire’ featured on the band’s debut album, Stand In Line.
Completing Disc 3 we find Victim Of The System (1993) EP. The release went down well with a growing fanbase. Original vocalist Rob Rock was back, helping the band create a perfect mix of interpretive finesse and speed. ‘The Young And the Ruthless’, wrapped in a glorious rush of amplitude and complexity, is perhaps the EP’s standout.
In the year 2000, the band released the album Crunch. It came on the cusp of a major change in just how rock music should sound, and so, some drop tuning became part of the band’s musical arrangements. ‘Spanish Fire’ and ‘Texas Nuclear Boogie’ successfully claimed the middle ground… a skillful transition from past to present.
A lot can change in 2 years. On 2002′s System X, Bonnet was back, and along with Chris Impellitteri they twin up axe and voice, pushing the needle of the band’s stylistic compass back into the red. Fans loved it, especially ‘Falling In Love’ and ‘Rock’n’Roll Heroes’.
Pedal to The Metal (2005) was an outstanding critical success. It resonates with the sheer joy of running the heavy metal gauntlet, taking the punches, fighting back, weighing up the past and pushing on through the present. The contemporary metal track ‘Propaganda Mind’ is the pick, written, we would guess, for very personal reasons. Apart from melted frets and skyscraping vocals, you can always rely on Impellitteri and Bob Rock to serve up a slice or two of social commentary.
2009′s Wicked Maiden doesn’t disappoint. Rob Rock’s sharp, observational lyrics take no prisoners as they condemn mankind’s propensity for violence. The title track and album standout, ‘Garden Of Eden’, carry the message.
And so, 9 albums and 2 EPs later we come to 17 genuine bonus tracks. The majority come from the Live, Fast, Loud, bootleg album compiled from the band’s Japanese tour recordings. Many are live versions of the obvious stuff – ‘Stand In Line’, ‘Victim Of The System’ and so forth – but probably ‘Burning’ and ‘Lost In The Rain’ from 1987’s Impellitteri EP make the most impact.
That said ‘Warrior’ and ‘The King Is Rising’, both from Answer To The Master, sound amazingly powerful in this raw, unadorned state.
This is a hell of a boxset. Impellitteri’s is quite some career to look back on.
And it continues still.
HIGHLY Recommended
You’ve seen it first at anywhere
DISC ONE
Stand In Line (1988)
01 – Stand In Line
02 – Since You’ve Been Gone [Rainbow Cover]
03 – Secret Lover
04 – Somewhere Over The Rainbow
05 – Tonight I Fly
06 – White And Perfect
07 – Leviathan
08 – Goodnight And Goodbye
09 – Playing With Fire
Grin & Bear It (1992)
10 – When The Well Runs Dry
11 – Ball And Chain
12 – Wake Up Sally
13 – Power Of Love
14 – Under The Gun
15 – Endless Nights
16 – City’s On Fire
17 – Grin & Bear It
18 – Dance
DISC TWO
Answer To The Master (1994)
01 – The Future Is Black
02 – Fly Away
03 – Warrior
04 – I’ll Wait
05 – Hold The Line
06 – Something’s Wrong With The World Today
07 – Answer To The Master
08 – Hungry Days
09 – The King Is Rising
Screaming Symphony (1996)
10 – Father Forgive Them
11 – I’ll Be With You
12 – Walk Away
13 – Kingdom Of Light
14 – Countdown To The Revolution
15 – 17th Century Chicken Pickin’
16 – Rat Race
17 – For Your Love
18 – You Are The Fire
DISC THREE
Eye Of The Hurricane (1997)
01 – Eye Of The Hurricane
02 – Shed Your Blood
03 – Fuel For The Fire
04 – Race Into The Right
05 – Bleed In Silence
06 – Master Of Disguise
07 – On And On
08 – Everything Is You
09 – Kingdom Fighter
10 – Halloween
11 – Paradise
Impellitteri EP (1987)
12 – Lost In the Rain
13 – Play With Fire
14 – Burning
15 – I’ll Be Searching
Victim Of The System EP (1993)
16 – Victim Of The System
17 – Visual Prison
18 – Glory
19 – Cross To Bear
20 – The Young And The Ruthless
DISC FOUR
Crunch (2000)
01 – Beware Of The Devil
02 – Turn Of The Century
03 – Speed Demon
04 – Wake Me Up
05 – Spanish Fire
06 – Slay The Dragon
07 – Wasted Earth
08 – Forever Yours
09 – Texas Nuclear Boogie
10 – Fear No Evil
Pedal To The Metal (2004)
11 – The Writings On The Wall
12 – Crushing Daze
13 – Destruction
14 – Dance With The Devil
15 – Hurricane
16 – Judgement Day
17 – The Iceman Cometh
18 – Punk
19 – Propaganda Mind
20 – Stay Tonight
DISC FIVE
System X (2002)
01 – United We Stand
02 – Perfect Crime
03 – End Of The World
04 – She’s A Nighttime Lover
05 – Slow Kill
06 – Why Do They Do That
07 – Rock & Roll Heroes
08 – Gotta Get Home
09 – What Kind Of Sanity
10 – Falling In Love With A Stranger
11 – Anti Social Disease (Bonus Track)
Live, Fast Loud / Bonus Tracks:
12 – Visual Prison (Live, Japan, 1995)
13 – I’ll Be With You (Live, Japan, 1996)
14 – Victim Of The System (Live, Japan, 1995)
15 – Walk Away (Live, Japan, 1996)
16 – Stand In Line (Live, Japan, 1995)
17 – Countdown To The Revolution (Live, Japan, 1996)
18 – Burning (Live, Japan, 1995)
19 – Lost In The Rain (Live, Japan, 1996)
DISC SIX
Wicked Maiden (2009)
01 – Wicked Maiden
02 – Last Of A Dying Breed
03 – Weapons Of Mass Distortion
04 – Garden Of Eden
05 – The Vision
06 – Eyes Of An Angel
07 – Hi-Scool Revolution
08 – Wonderful Life
09 – Holy Man
10 – The Battle Rages On
Bonus Tracks:
11 – Stand Or Fall (B-Side)
12 – Tears In The Eyes Of The World (B-Side)
13 – Freak Show
14 – Cyber Flesh
15 – The Fall Of Titus [American Metal vs Swedish Metal]
More Live, Fast Loud:
16 – For Your Love (Live, Japan, 1996)
17 – Warrior (Live, Japan, 1995)
18 – The King Is Rising (Live, Japan, 1995)
Chris Impellitteri – Guitars
Rob Rock – Vocals
Graham Bonnet – Vocals
Chuck Wright – Bass
Pat Torpey (R.I.P. 2018) – Drums
Ken Mary – Drums
Philip Wolfe – Keyboards
James Amelio Pulli – Bass
Ted Days – Bass
Loni Silva – Drums
and more…