To say that Yngwie had mastered the guitar would be a big understatement. But by 1992, the man who had single handedly re-invented the instrument was under severe fire from most U.S fans and critics who were referring to Yngwie as a "sellout" for making an attempt at commercial accessability or as an artist whose creative juices were all dried up. Nevertheless, it was time for Yngwie to right the ship and conjure up another testament to his guitar heroics. The slumping sales of ECLIPSE caused Yngwie to leave Polydor/Polygram, his label since his first solo outing, and strike up a deal with the record giant Elektra. That Elektra saw any purpose in this is beyond me because it was obvious from all the media venom that Yngwie was on a one way street (in the U.S anyway) to the "out of print" file. Ultimately, that was this albums fate. Which is truly a shame, because the same ECLIPSE line-up was back sans Michael Von Knorring (who only plays on one track). He was replaced by the talented Bo Werner on drums. With the 1992 release of FIRE AND ICE on Elektra records, Yngwie would push his music further classically than he had since RISING FORCE and had crafted a true epic that should have fared better. Not much different from other outings (except for minor production twists and a heavily processed guitar tone) FIRE AND ICE boasts a plethora of great tracks and great instrumentals like the opening "Perpetual", the bluesy "Dragonfly", the radio ready "Teaser", the crafty "Cry No More", the sitar laden "C'est La Vie", the beautiful ballad "I'm My Own Enemy", another blues rocker "All I Want Is Everything" and the tranquil "Golden Dawn". The epic piece "How Many Miles To Babylon" is also a true gem. Yngwie also acquired the duties of a small string section for the great and hard rocking "No Mercy" and "Forever Is A Long Time", both high points for the album and for Yngwie. The title track "Fire And Ice" is another great song featuring a wild arpeggio intro and the concluding "Final Curtain" is really odd seeing as this album did mark the end for Yngwie's stateside career. But the ultimate track here is the instrumental "Leviathan". Harkening back to the classic instrumentals of his early days, "Levithan" is a non stop juggernaut of guitar mastery and makes an apt statement for both Malmsteen and instrumental guitar music which he had helped popularize in the 1980's. Boiling with state of the art guitar playing and an overall epic scope, FIRE AND ICE would be Malmsteen's first and last album on Elektra records. The disc would be out of print just a short time later and still as of 2000 has not seen re-release possibly due to Elektra's stonghold. Later, Malmsteen himself would denounce the album and it's single "Teaser". Folks in Japan were treated to bonus track "Broken Glass" which is a stellar song and should have seen the light of day here. FIRE AND ICE marked the end of one part of Yngwie's career, but another was right around the corner. With the grunge revolution on it's way, Yngwie would soon return to his underground cult status and put forth his best album in almost a decade, THE SEVENTH SIGN

this is in my opinion the best Malmsteem album of all time,plain and simple. if you don't know why..the guitar intro to the fire and ice track is absolutely impressive and speaks for itself. here Malmsteem demonstrates why he's considered the most virtuous guitar player of today...and then some...not just anyone can play these songs. on this album there is a greater emphasis on the combination of classical and metal music than in the ones that came before it,this is probably one of the most classicaly influenced metal cd's you'll ever hear. there are some brilliant orchestral parts with guitar solos that can blow your mind yet as always it mantains a very melodic and elaborated feel,all around sublime. this is simply a perfect expression of musical virtuosity,its defenitely among my top 10 favorite cd's. I wish he'd release another masterpiece like this,..but it would be a very dificult task to surpass the excelence of this majestic opus. It is absolutely imperative to have this cd in your collection

This was the last big studio release by Yngwie J. Malmsteen. Clearly wanting to return to his classical, Blackmore-influenced music, Yngwie still manages to throw in a few radio-friendly songs. Production quality is a bit too "bright", but it fits for the material here.

The most commercial song on the disc is "Teaser", which could have been written by Joey Tempest's Europe. The vocal, especially the chorus, sounds so much like Europe's style that I'm surprised that Tempest never filed a copyright suit.

The least commercial track, barring the instrumental works, is "Final Curtain". Complete with a HUGE orchestral rhythm section that doesn't sound a bit out of place here; the thunder at the end brings out the strength of the song.

True, there's no "I'll See the Light Tonight" or "Soldier without Faith" here, but the Yngwie stamp is undeniable and definitely solid.

"Fire and Ice" is Malmsteen's second album after having ditched the whole Rising Force band concept, and continues to mine the same musical vein started on the "Eclipse" album. For some reason, these two albums have always had a bad reputation amongst Malmsteen's fans, particularly this one; as in: they're his "selling out albums", because he changes the lyrical focus from "Dungeons and Dragons" style writing, to something a little more commercially accesible and relevant. This bad rep is sad, really, because this a strong, solid album; Malmsteen doesn't rein in his bombastic soloing style, from which he might benefit, rather he actually attempts to also give a little more melodic structure to the actual songs, instead of just making them vehicles for his sometimes tiring guitar histrionics. Thus the amount of "stunts" is reduced in favor of more melodic "statements". Granted, there are a couple of clunkers in this album, and if you run through it all at once the songs sound sorta the same, but the melodies are strong enough to merit listening and enjoying. Furthermore, one thing Malmsteen has always made an effort to do is to keep his musicianship top- notch, which really comes through in the band's playing; this is Malmsteen's best band except for the drummer, who's certainly no slouch, but is somewhat "faceless"; the bass player is great, a real find! and the keyboards of Mats Olauson gained a lot of confidence in this album; also, Yngwie's guitar tone really shines, and complements the band well. If you're a fan of melodic hard rock, and sick of the same old- same old alterna-rock, give this one a try.

Released in 1992, Fire and Ice is Yngwie Malmsteen's sixth studio album. The material is in a hard rock musical direction. Overall, I consider the songwriting to be good, the musicianship to be accomplished, and the sound quality to be worthy. There are 14 tracks; of these 14 tracks, three of them--"Perpetual," "Leviathan," and "Golden Dawn"--are instrumentals. Also, some of the compositions on this album contain a string section. Malmsteen is a proficient guitar player, while Goran Edman sings smoothly, and the keyboard work of Mats Olausson is skilled. Songs that I find to be favorites are "How Many Miles to Babylon," "Cry No More," "C'est la Vie," and "I'm My Own Enemy." The epic, impressive "How Many Miles to Babylon" is a stately piece featuring a pretty introductory section consisting of Malmsteen's guitar work, a string section, and flute instrumentation. The elegant, plaintive "Cry No More" displays a beginning that is striking and attractive, nice vocals from Edman, and charming, polished guitar playing from Malmsteen. The majestic "C'est la Vie" presents a regal refrain, gratifying singing from Edman, and sitar work from Malmsteen. The pleasing, melancholy "I'm My Own Enemy" exhibits industrious vocals from Edman. An example of another track that I like is the fast-paced "Forever Is a Long Time"--it sports a remarkable, medieval-sounding ending passage; a string section is also utilized on this song. The CD insert includes the song lyrics, four color photos of Malmsteen, and another color photo of him and his band. There is a color photo on the back of the CD jewel case. The album cover illustration is creative. The disc is almost 65 minutes. Fire and Ice is a refined, majestic piece of work, and I recommend it.