Facing the Animal is the tenth studio album by guitarist Yngwie Malmsteen, released in 1997 through Pony Canyon (Japan) and Mercury Records (United States). The album reached No. 20 on the Finnish albums chart and No. 39 on the Swedish albums chart.
Although credited to Malmsteen, "Air on a Theme" is an arrangement of the second movement (Largo) of Antonio Vivaldi's "Piccolo Concerto in C Major (RV443)". Facing the Animal features one of drummer Cozy Powell's last performances before his death in April 1998.
Critical reception
Stephen Thomas Erlewine gave Facing the Animal three stars out of five, saying that "much of the record is stronger than anything Malmsteen has recorded in years" but also calling it "predictable, from the rockers to the power ballads".
Track listing
Personnel
Yngwie Malmsteen – guitar, bass (tracks 1, 4, 6, 12), background vocals, arrangement, production Mats Levén – lead vocals (except track 13) Mats Olausson – keyboards Cozy Powell – drums (except track 13) Barry Dunaway – bass (except tracks 1, 4, 6, 12, 13) Chris Tsangarides – engineering, mixing, production Keith Rose – engineering assistance Rod Fuller – mastering