Alex Skolnick says there was “so much more” to Eddie Van Halen’s playing than his shredding
Thrash metal guitarist Alex Skolnick feels there was a lot more to Eddie Van Halen’s playing than people gave him credit for.
Eddie became known for his speedy tapping technique and thrilling runs within the band, with tracks such as Eruption and Hot For Teacher becoming iconic for Eddie’s soloing. Skolnick, known for his work in Testament and The Alex Skolnick Trio, believes Eddie was more these shreddy snippets.
READ MORE: Alex Skolnick was once “on standby” to join Megadeth: “I learned the songs. I was ready”
Speaking to Metal Hammer, Skolnick picks the band’s 1981 track Mean Street as featuring one of his favourite riffs of all time. He says, “To me, it just captures everything that’s great about a riff. It’s angry, more than was expected from a band like Van Halen, who had a lot of very pop melodies, especially in the vocal tune. That whole tune captures some aggression and intensity, and I can’t think of any metal players that weren’t influenced by that riff in one way or the other.”
Speaking on Eddie’s skill as a player, he adds, “I think Van Halen sometimes gets overshadowed by his own brilliant lead playing and shredding, or whatever you want to call it. There’s so much more to him: timing, swing, tone and especially riffs. Mean Street really captures the best of the riffs.”
In a recently unearthed 1980 Guitar Player interview, Eddie explained how he came to master his versatile approach. Originally trained as a classical pianist, he was taught that gruelling commitment was the only way to master your instrument.
“I had this Russian teacher who couldn’t speak a word of English, and he would just sit there with a ruler ready to slap my face if I made a mistake,” he said. He initially jokes that his shredding abilities were because “they used to lock me in a little room and go, ‘Play fast!’”, though he later added, “Both my brother and I took lessons, then when we got to the US my dad found another good teacher. Basically, that’s where I got my ears developed, learned my theory, and got my fingers moving.”
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Source: www.guitar-bass.net
