THE BEAST

Without Steve Vai 's input, modern electric guitar and electric guitar-based music just wouldn't be the same. His creativity fused both the musical and technical aspects of the business. One of his biggest contributions was the development of extended-range guitars. Although a seven-string guitar wasn't an unheard-of concept, Steve's ideas simplified it, and eventually, they came to fruition with his collaboration with Ibanez as the Universe series.

However, the guitar didn't initially lift off commercially until Korn emerged in the mid-1990s. Although it wasn't exactly what Vai expected to hear, he was impressed by what Brian "Head" Welch and James "Munky" Shaffer did. In Ultimate Guitar's brand-new edition of the "On the Record" podcast, Justin Beckner asked Steve about seven-string guitars and how they came to be.

Did you foresee the success of the seven-string? How did it feel for you years after developing that seven-string Universe and then seeing what it did to the music industry? I mean, it created whole new genres.

"Yeah, well, it's really nice to be a part of that, to be able to make a contribution that grew legs and ran. When I originally designed it, it took 30 seconds. I was sitting with an Ibanez rep, and we were talking about multi-stringed instruments, and he said, 'I have an eight-string guitar.'"

"And I said, 'Eight-string?' I'm trying to envision it because I know if I tune that low string down, it's gonna start chugging. Now, at the time, tuning down wasn't even a thing. Tuning down a six-string was rare, as far as I know. So I just thought, let's add another string."

"And in my mind's eye, the moment I thought of it, the first thing that came to me was, this is something you're interested in, you want to play around with, so here, get it for you. But then, in the back of my mind, of course, there was the thought about the potential. And what ran through my mind was — I know there's going to be kids that are listening to this, and they're not popular yet, and it's going to inspire them, and they're going to see that the potential for the use of the heaviness."

"So, I used it on the Whitesnake record, but I'm not a djent type player. I'm not heavy, like Meshuggah. I love that stuff. I love heavy stuff, but I'm an older guy, so..."

"Sure enough, the seven-string came out, and I also thought, if you're a jazz player, this would be an excellent instrument because you can do walking bass lines. And if you're a classical player, not that it's the tone you're looking for, but you could do counterpoints that you just can't do with a six-string. So I thought in my mind's eye back then, I'm sure some people will fool around with that."

"I thought, if anything happens if it transcends just being what most people might see as a novelty, I think it'll have some teeth. Sure enough, the seven-string came out, and it was a bit of a novelty, and it was selling, and then it started to die down."

"Ibanez was considering discontinuing it, and I said, 'Just wait a little while, give it another few years, even if you have to make ten per year or something because somebody's gonna get it.'"

"And sure enough, not long after that, I was driving down the street, and I heard this incredible heavy music on the radio, and I knew it was a seven-string. I pulled the car over, and I listened, and it was what I was expecting, in a way."

"The band that was playing was Korn, and it was brilliant. It was like, yeah, that's the use of the seven-string that I didn't do, that I was hoping somebody would do, and they certainly did. Then, from there, it just took off."

"So, I may be the godfather of the production model seven-string because they existed before I did that, but bands like Korn, Fear Factory, and a bunch of those bands from that period gave it the kick that it needed to start the subculture."

Well, it's good to know that you enjoy that music. It would be something if you created the seven-string, and then you heard Korn, and you're like, "Oh no, what have I done?"

"No, not at all. As a matter of fact, I remember I was on tour, and I walked into this hotel bar, and there was a little jazz band that was playing. The guy had a seven-string, and he was doing walking bass lines. But my heart was full when I saw that."