Joe Satriani SHOCKWAVE SUPERNOVA

Audio Mixer: John Cuniberti.Recording information: 25th Street Recording; Skywalker Sound; Studio 21.Editor: Scott Bergstrom.Photographer: Chapman Baehler.Arranger: Joe Satriani.Joe Satriani may have retained the services of keyboardist Mike Keneally for Shockwave Supernova, the guitarist's 15th studio album -- Keneally has been in Satch's orbit for a while now -- but he chose to invite bassist Bryan Beller and drummer Marco Minnemann (from the inventive instrumental rock band the Aristocrats) to be his rhythm section for the bulk of the record. This slight shakeup reinvigorates Satriani, who already sounded spry on Unstoppable Momentum. Where that record hearkened back to his '80s heyday, splitting time between arena-friendly riffing and lyrical solos, Shockwave Supernova exists in the heady world of intricate time signatures and elastic instrumental interplay; it is more the child of pre-MTV AOR -- a world where Rush and Allan Holdsworth split time on the stereo of MAD Magazine reade