Joe Satriani and Steve Vai recently joined a chat with American Musical Supply. Satriani spoke about the concept of stage personas and David Gilmour’s approach to performances during the interview.
The guitarist said he consciously avoided creating personas for himself and explained:
“I didn’t think I was that interested in being so theatrical anyway. At the same time, there were other players. Look at David Gilmour. He’s a fabulous musician, created music that is epic in scale, and it stood the test of time. But he’s got no persona other than he’s David Gilmour.”
He Doesn’t Want To Be Like Elton John
Satriani said Gilmour’s ‘Pink Floyd’ tenure included theatrical performances. However, he argues these didn’t reflect on Gilmour’s solo shows. Elton John, on the other hand, did include big theatrics and fancy costumes into his shows:
“We’re solo artists, Steve and I. Even though we’ve been with different bands over time, we’ve been solo artists, and at some point, someone says, ‘Am I gonna be like Elton John and just spend all my money on wardrobe or am I just gonna get a black T-shirt? Maybe 15 of them and just go out and make people see something else?’”
Satriani Used To Have Personas
Joe Satriani created different personas in his early touring years. One of them, ‘Shockwave Supernova,’ saw him doing stunts like playing guitar with his teeth on stage.
After the 2015 album of the same name, Satriani decided to embrace his natural traits and personality, though. He once said his son, ZZ, influenced the change of mind:
“I think one of the things (ZZ Satriani) discovered is it wasn’t so much a discarding of an alter ego as it was me accepting that it was really part of me all along.”
The guitarist started a joint tour with Steve Vai in March 2024. The duo will perform in the US until May 12.