Taking over the guitar elements of King Crimson legend Robert Fripp is a frightening prospect for any guitarist, even one with a stature like Steve Vai. 

So when Vai agreed to imagine guitar duties in BEAT – the supergroup put collectively to rejoice the ‘80s period of King Crimson – he did so with a level of trepidation.

However his hesitancy was put to relaxation when Fripp himself reassured him that he didn’t must play precisely like him, and will inject a few of his personal persona into his elements.

“Approaching it as a guitar participant, I needed to research Fripp,” Vai says within the new difficulty of Classic Guitar. “I received into his disciplinary type. There have been two spots the place I needed to reconnoiter issues.

“On Body by Body [from King Crimson’s 1981 album Discipline], there’s that relentless cross-picking riff that’s merely exterior of my wheelhouse, particularly at my age. I didn’t really feel like I may play it constantly each night time, so I wanted to determine one thing out. So, I took it into my wheelhouse, which is tapping. That labored. It’s reflective of the unique, however eliminated.

“On a few the riffs on Elephant Discuss [from the same album], I made a decision to hammer as an alternative of choose. Every little thing else falls inside my skill. When it comes time to take a solo, it doesn’t make sense to sound like Fripp.”

He goes on: “Fripp stated, ‘If I have been sitting within the viewers, I wouldn’t need to see you doing my form of solo. I wanna see Steve Vai go loopy!’ So, that’s what I do.

“Adrian and I add a dynamic that’s completely balanced for the music. We’re so completely different, but we come collectively on many issues throughout the present.”

Alongside Steve Vai, Beat consists of Crimson alumni Adrian Belew and Tony Levin, and Device drummer Danny Carey. The group has a sequence of tour dates deliberate for this 12 months in South America.

For a full checklist of dates, head to their official web site.