Slash Praises Yngwie Malmsteen: 'He Doesn’t Just Play, He Owns It'

In a new interview with Guitar World, Slash named the guitarists he admires. According to Slash, great guitar playing is about developing your own unique style. And one of these names who achieved that was Yngwie Malmsteen.

“No matter what type of playing it is, the really good ones that stand out are the ones that have their own unique personality,” Slash said.” That’s what I’ve always been attracted to. It doesn’t matter whatever technique it is that they’re using, as long as it’s theirs. I mean, Yngwie? Yngwie means it. He f*cking owns that shit, whether you like it or not.”

Slash didn’t forget to mention guitar icons such as Eddie Van Halen, Billy Gibbons, Jeff Beck and Eric Clapton.

Being one of the guitarists Slash admires, Malmsteen says that guitarists like him never needs practice. And apparently, he didn’t ‘practice’ either.

“I didn’t practice. I never practiced — never practiced ever,” he explained during another interview. “I played as if I was performing. I wouldn’t accept myself going [hums a scale]. Never. Only play perfect now. I [would be] telling myself, ‘Don’t sound like you’re f*cking trying to do something. Do it.’ Mental focus so much that it became just every day more and better and better and better.”

He added that ‘practicing’ would be the wrong word for his approach to guitar playing.

Slash’s first S.E.R.P.E.N.T. Festival is happening now. The festival started on July 5 and is to wrap up on August 17.