Congratulations to Yngwie Malmsteen for being included in Spin magazine’s list of the 30 Greatest Instrumental Songs Ever. It was Malmsteen’s “Icarus Dream Suite Opus 4” from 1984 that made the list, alongside works from Eddie Van Halen, Frank Zappa and Miles Davis. About “Icarus Dream Suite,” Spin wrote, “On this majestic track from his debut album, the onomatopoeically-named Swede defines the art of heavy guitar shredding, delivering classically-inspired songwriting with lightning-fingered speed.”

When it comes to his amazing guitar tone, Malmsteen turns to Seymour Duncan. His signature STK-S10 YJM Fury pickups meet his exacting tonal demands. The bridge pickup is aggressive and handles Yngwie’s hard-hitting chordal onslaught. The neck pickup balances Yngwie’s fluid left hand technique with his broad mix of right hand pick attack for a tone that’s sweet and fluid, but with great articulation and responsiveness to dynamics. And when it comes to potentiometers, Malmsteen again turns to Seymour Duncan with his YJM High Speed Volume Pot which contains a minimal-viscosity lubricant for fast-action potentiometer turns. Malmsteen uses the volume pot to take complete control of his phrasing dynamics. He uses his pinkie finger to flip the volume on and off for dramatic, lightning-fast starts and stops.