When legendary guitar shredders are mentioned, it doesn’t take long for Chris Impellitteri’s name to come up, spoken of in the same breath as legends like Yngwie Malmsteen, Paul Gilbert or Steve Vai.

Superstars in Japan and with international sales of over two million records, Impellitteri the band were inducted into the 2023 Metal Hall Of Fame.

This lavish 6CD box set entitled The Complete Beast (1987-2009) brings together, for the first time outside of Japan, every Impellitteri album and EP release between the band’s debut in 1987 until 2009’s ‘Wicked Maiden’.

Also included are numerous bonus tracks and out-takes. A mammoth career-spanning set that is an essential purchase for not just Impellitteri fans, but for fans of melodic Heavy Metal in general, the tracks feature both vocalists Graham Bonnet and Rob Rock.

Here comes cult hero Graham Bonnet, this time with new age axe-god Chris Impellitteri. Given Bonnet’s history in Rainbow, MSG, and Alcatrazz, the supreme screamer is no doubt used to standing behind fretboard fireworks.

But the best moments on Stand in Line occur when the man with the iron lungs steps up to the mike: the title track is a searing shot straight out of the Bonnet canon, the sweaty Secret Lover sends lyrics and guitar spiraling heavenward until an all-too-abrupt fade, Tonight I Fly features a cascading chorus of Hollywood heartbreak that only great Bonnet could deliver, and the James Dean metal of Goodnight and Goodbye makes for a wild ride.

On the downside slides one of too many versions of Since You’ve Been Gone, the Russ Ballard winner which Bonnet got right the first time (he also drops a nod to Lost in Hollywood, a different dazzler from Rainbow’s dynamite Down to Earth).

Obviously, Impellitteri’s running the show, but he almost runs the record into the ground with two excessive and useless instrumentals; the dilute update of Somewhere Over the Rainbow is unnecessary and an affront to the guitar whiz’s demographic inasmuch as his blatant attempt to one-up Ritchie Blackmore destroyed this disc’s commercial chances.

Oh, and Impellitteri also emulates another of Bonnet’s axe alter egos, Yngwie Malmsteen, by obliterating decent riffs with excessive ornamentation!

Also included on this disc is Grin & Bear It (1992) which manages to be the top Neoclassical Metal album of that year by this fact alone! While Impellitteri’s debut not only had very memorable guitar leads, it also was commanded by the legendary Graham Bonnet on vocals.

New vocalist Rob Rock does a good job and even has a similar sound to Bonnet, but he can’t match the man when it comes to crafting earworm hooks and interesting lyricism. Impellitteri himself is still putting out impressive solos and riffs, but similarly, they just aren’t very memorable.

There’s also a lot less “power” on this one compared to the debut, and it sounds more in line to hit some commercial success (though I’m sad to say it never quite did re: mainstream).

CD 1: Stand In Line (1988)
1 Stand In Line 2 Since You’ve Been Gone 3 Secret Lover 4 Over The Rainbow 5 Tonight I Fly 6 White And Perfect 7 Leviathan 8 Goodnight And Goodbye 9 Playing With Fire

Grin & Bear It (1992)
10 When The Well Runs Dry 11 Ball And Chain 12 Wake Up Sally 13 Power Of Love 14 Under The Gun 15 Endless Nights 16 City’s On Fire 17 Grin & Bear It 18 Dance

Answer To The Master (1994) features a lot stellar guitar work from Chris Impelletteri. Bob Rock can sing with the best of them. That being said, most of the songs sound alike. Not much variation in song structure. I like Screaming Symphony better, but that’s just me, but if you like virtuoso guitar playing, this will fit the bill.

That said, the guitar just rips, the bass drum kicks, the vocals WAIL and if you took the DNA of Bruce Dickinson and Geoff Tate and put them together ... wait, nevermind, God already created Rob Rock!

Also included on this second disc is Screaming Symphony (1996) where heavy metal sounds as it should, and what is more it is served up in a short and sharp thirty three minute album.

Impellitteri have got the blueprint down to a tee here, there is no excess or anything surplus to requirements here. Nine fast and furious songs to practice your best head-banging and air guitar to ... and then promptly collapse into a sweat ridden heap! If this is your thing, then you won’t be disappointed!

CD 2: Answer To The Master (1994)
1 The Future Is Black 2 Fly Away 3 Warrior 4 I’ll Wait 5 Hold The Line 6 Something’s Wrong With The World Today 7 Answer To The Master 8 Hungry Days 9 The King Is Rising

Screaming Symphony (1996)
10 Father Forgive Them 11 I’ll Be With You 12 Walk Away 13 Kingdom Of Light 14 Countdown To The Revolution 15 17th Century Chicken Pickin’ 16 Rat Race 17 For Your Love 18 You Are The Fire

Again, and as already lauded, Impellitteri is back with one of the best voices in metal Rob Rock. Eye of the Hurricane is an excellent album in the mold of riffy Dokken. Indeed, the album is more diverse than the previous album Screaming Symphony and better for it. 11 songs on the regular album with some grooving tracks, an acoustic ballad and some balls out speedy metal tunes, this is one of those that can happily play on repeat.

Also included on this disc is Impellitteri EP (1987), which brings us Lost in the Rain, which is one of my favorite Impellitteri songs. The lyrics and vocals are awesome, as well as the guitar playing. The solo here is especially kick ass.

Play With Fire is here, it’s inferior to the album version, but still sounds great. Burning is another killer song. This and the first song really illustrate how fast Chris is. I won’t even mention how bad ass the guitar solo is, I’ll Be Searching is a slower song, but a great track regardless. Albeit of a less energetic and chugging variety.

CD 3: Eye Of The Hurricane (1997)
1 Eye Of The Hurricane 2 Shed Your Blood 3 Fuel For The Fire 4 Race Into The Light 5 Bleed In Silence 6 Master Of Disguise 7 On And On 8 Everything Is You 9 Kingdom Fighter 10 Halloween 11 Paradise

Impellitteri EP (1987)
12 Lost In The Rain 13 Play With Fire 14 Burning 15 I’ll Be Searching Victim Of The System EP (1993) 16 Victim Of The System 17 Visual Prison 18 Glory 19 Cross To Bear 20 The Young And The Ruthless

Obviously if you have Criss Impelletteri on guitar with Rob Rock singing it’s going to be about as good as it gets! (Although I am a BIG fan of Bonnet and his unique vocals, if truth be told).

With the aptly-titled Crunch, Impellitteri released its heaviest and nastiest set of tunes yet. The drums are faster, the riffing is no-holds-barred, and the distortion is thick, blistering, and raw. The band still manages to imprint its patented melodic style, though, and continued to reign atop the power/melody world.

Guitarist Impellitteri showed no signs of slowing or mellowing out here and remained the benchmark against which all other shredders were/are judged. The fast and cutting opener Beware of the Devil is nonstop from the beginning, and Turn of the Century is ultra-tight, and features some great and yearning Rob Rock vocals in the verse sections.

A high-flying chorus marks Speed Demon and Slay the Dragon has a heavy-handed chorus flow. The riff-ripping pace of Wake Me Up features a host of brutal cuts, and top spot Fear No Evil mixes nasty chugs, ripping notes, and a full-throttle chorus. Wasted Earth is yet another heavy staple, as it drips with aggressive emotion.

Two instrumental pieces show up, as Spanish Fire is total fast-fretting, and Texas Nuclear Boogie is a Satch-like, free-spirited romp. Forever Yours, the lone unplugged track, is still nice and smooth.

The other album on this disc is Pedal To The Metal (2004), where the vocals are outstanding from start to finish. The range is excellent, and the delivery gritty. The lyrical subject matter patterns Chris’ typical good v. evil take, and the writing is stellar.

The accompanying music has some speedy thrash elements in parts, some classic heavy rock hooks throughout, the rhythm section is steadily heavy and rock solid, and of course there is the phenomenal, appropriate soloing by Chris.

CD 4: Crunch (2000)
1 Beware The Devil 2 Turn Of The Century 3 Speed Demon 4 Wake Me Up 5 Spanish Fire 6 Slay The Dragon 7 Wasted Earth 8 Forever Yours 9 Texas Nuclear Boogie 10 Fear No Evil

Pedal To The Metal (2004)
11 The Writing’s On The Wall 12 Crushing Daze 13 Destruction 14 Dance With The Devil 15 Hurricane 16 Judgement Day 17 The Iceman Cometh 18 Punk 19 Propaganda Mind 20 Stay Tonight

Despite the impressive and fast guitarwork of Impellitteri, back in the day I was really looking forward to hearing this record because of the return of Graham Bonnet (Rainbow, Alcatrazz, MSG). Bonnet had handled the vocals on the excellent STAND IN LINE album nearly 15 years before this release. STAND IN LINE was an expertly performed hard rock record that fell squarely between the songcraft of Rainbow and the musicianship of Yngwie Malmsteen.

Bonnet’s voice is absolutely unique. If Glenn Hughes wants to be soulful in a Stevie Wonder sort of fashion, then Graham Bonnet is more like a gospel/shouter type like David Ruffin (Temptations) or a (far less funky) James Brown. It is an acquired taste to be sure, but Bonnet has the capacity to reach certain emotions with his voice that most rock singers can’t even describe let alone reach.

System X is well performed and executed, though it falls well short of the expectations set on Stand In Line. Part of the blame can be placed on the songwriting/arranging, and the rest on the mix. Bonnet’s strength is in his expressive voice; when left to lyric writing, he makes some unconventional topic choices with a few clunky lines here and there. [She’s a Nighttime Lover and Why Do They Do That? are prime examples of this occasional awkwardness in the lyrics].

Also included on this fifth disc are a set of Live, Fast Loud bonus tracks, where we get eight tracks, with standout’s being Visual Prison, Victim Of The System, the immersive Countdown To The Revolution and the stalwart Burning.

CD 5: System X (2002)
1 United We Stand 2 Perfect Crime 3 End Of The World 4 She’s A Nighttime Lover 5 Slow Kill 6 Why Do They Do That 7 Rock & Roll Heroes 8 Gotta Get Home 9 What Kind Of Sanity 10 Falling In Love With A Stranger 11 Anti-Social Disease (Bonus Track)

Live, Fast Loud (Bonus Tracks)
12 Visual Prison 13 I’ll Be With You 14 Victim Of The System 15 Walk Away 16 Stand In Line 17 Countdown To The Revolution 18 Burning 19 Lost In The Rain

With Rob Rock back on vocals, Impellitteri’s rhythm section is brilliant throughout this album, but especially on Weapons Of Mass Distortion, Wicked Maiden, and Holy Man.

Also, and to his credit, Chris is not depending entirely on basic neo-classical guitar credentials. There are many songs that show variation allowing some traditional heavy metal guitar work to appear, as on Eyes Of An Angel and the titular Wicked Maiden.

Also contained on this final disc are a handful of Bonus Tracks, with the standout’s for me personally the B-Side tracks Stand Or Fall and Tears In The Eyes Of The World, along with the immense The Fall Of Titus (American Metal Vs. Swedish Metal) More Live, Fast Loud version.

CD 6: Wicked Maiden (2009)
1 Wicked Maiden 2 Last Of A Dying Breed 3 Weapons Of Mass Distortion 4 Garden Of Eden 5 The Vision 6 Eyes Of An Angel 7 Hi-Scool Revolution 8 Wonderful Life 9 Holy Man
10 The Battle Rages On

Bonus Tracks
11 Stand Or Fall (B-Side) 12 Tears In The Eyes Of The World (B-Side) 13 Freak Show 14 Cyber Flesh 15 The Fall Of Titus (American Metal Vs. Swedish Metal) More Live, Fast Loud 16 For Your Love 17 Warrior 18 The King Is Rising

Official 6CD Purchase Link