Joe Satriani: Music Rader interview

At what stage are you with the album? Have you finished tracking?

"Last week, we finished 99 percent of the drums, bass and guitars. Because we're not always in the same room together - or the same town - there's always a little bit of hesitation of where to go with the finishing touches. In this particular case, Sammy and I have been watching each other as to how we're developing our parts over what the entire band did when they were together. So the songs are still developing lyrically and vocally, and I don't want to commit 100 percent what the guitars will do until I hear Sammy's finished vocals.

"We're at a very exciting point in the development of the record. I think I can definitively say that the album sounds heavier and that it sounds like Chickenfoot. [laughs] I can't say too much about the lyrical aspect because I haven't heard everything Sammy's going to do - he wanted to come back from the book tour he's on before he made up his mind on a couple of songs.

"But I can tell you right now that the sound of the album is tremendous. The guitars are out of this world, and we haven't even done the real mixes yet." more