YNGWIE MALMSTEEN To Release New Album 'Hell Or High Water' In November

In a new interview with Jimmy Kay of Canada's The Metal Voice, legendary Swedish guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen spoke about his plans for the follow-up to his latest album, "Parabellum", which was released in July 2021 via Music Theories Recordings/Mascot Label Group. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET):  "It's done. It's in the can."

Asked if the upcoming LP is an all-instrumental effort, Yngwie said: "No. No. No. It's four songs I sing on it. I'm really happy with it. [it's gonna get] a November release."

Regarding the musical direction of his new album, Malmsteen said: "I would say it's very Malmsteen-esque. It sounds like Yngwie Malmsteen… You will definitely hear the similarities. I would say some of the instrumental stuff is really, really nuts. But there's some cool metal — I'd say, like, not metal, but whatever you wanna call it now."

Elaborating on what fans can expect from his new LP, Yngwie said: "The album's called 'Hell Or High Water'. And I made it specifically to fit on the vinyl record. Nine [songs], [with] one bonus track, but it's 46 minutes [long]… I deliberately [made it] like that. I had a lot more ideas, a lot more songs, but I made it so it's exactly that."

Malmsteen went on to say that he made "Hell Or High Water" specifically so that it will be heard in its entirety as opposed to as a collection of standalone tracks.

"This album I just made now — most of my albums, I would say — you couldn't just take one song and it'd be representative of the record," Yngwie explained. "They all complement each other. They all have their own thing. 'Oh, that's what the album sounds like.' No, because the next song doesn't sound like that. You have to hear it as an album. It's made as an album, like a movie. 'Oh, yeah, look at that scene. Yeah, three minutes.' No, that's not enough. You have to see the whole movie. You read the whole book. And I made it that the sequence of the songs and everything, they're following —I think about tempos and key signatures and stuff like this. And I'm really happy with it."

Asked if "Hell Or High Water" is a concept album, Yngwie said: "No, I wouldn't call it that. I mean, if you wanted to, you could analyze it any way you like. You can go, 'Yeah, it's a concept album,' but it's not meant to be. But it could be, I guess."

Malmsteen previously talked about "Hell Or High Water" this past April in an interview with Eddie Trunk at the 2026 edition of the Monsters Of Rock festival in São Paulo, Brazil. He said: "I just finished recording a new album. I've been in the studio almost five months straight."

Regarding the musical direction of his new LP, Yngwie said: "Well, it's very Malmsteen-esque. It will be everything you expect and then some."

Asked if there are any vocals on the album or if it's all instrumental, Malmsteen said: "Oh, yeah. I sing about four songs. And then [the rest of it is] instrumental. It's a mix. But it's made especially for the vinyl. So it's exactly 46 minutes [long]. I made it especially so it's gonna be a vinyl record. It's gonna come out on everything, but it's made to fit perfectly on a vinyl LP."

Malmsteen also talked about his mindset going into making the new album. He said: "I have the luxury of owning my own [recording studio], so I go in when I'm inspired. And I decided a long time ago, I'm not gonna try to do something special, either what other people think I should do or decide [ahead of time which direction to go] — except sometimes [I say], 'Okay, I'm gonna make a blues album,' or, 'I'm gonna make an acoustic album,' which has happened. But when I make the records that are, let's say, an Yngwie Malmsteen album, I just let it flow. And I come up with maybe a hundred ideas and I use nine or 10. So I take the best of what I think is the best, the most dramatic stuff, most interesting stuff — not necessarily a decided direction or whatever. It's just natural, whatever comes out. And this particular album is gonna be very neoclassical."

Asked what the key is to making instrumental music work and be able to cross it over into a bigger audience, Yngwie said: "I don't know, but I decided a long time ago to make honest music. Not to try to do something that's fashionable or follow a trend or do what other people say. But what I've always done is [made] passionate music. Like [Italian violinist and composer] Niccolò Paganini said, one must feel strongly to make others feel strongly. So I feel very strongly about the music, and apparently that translates out. So it seems to work."

On the topic of Yngwie's touring plans for the coming months, the guitarist said: "We go to Europe in June, and then we go home a little bit, and then we go back to Europe in July. And then in September, I think we're in Asia. Then October, November, United States."

Only four of the songs on "Parabellum" featured vocals. The album title is Latin, translating as "Prepare For War".

After working with some of the top hard singers of the past four decades, Yngwie now handles much of the lead vocals himself in his own band, backed by a lineup that includes keyboardist Nick Marino, bassist Emilio Martinez and drummer Kevin Klingenschmid.

Yngwie released a new live album, "Tokyo Live", in April 2025 via Music Theories Recordings. The concert was recorded at the Zepp DiverCity, Tokyo on May 11, 2024 as part of Yngwie's 40th-anniversary world tour.