Dragonforce guitarist Sam Totman is known for his shreddy shreddiness when it comes down to it, but the dude has an opinion on shred! He doesn't like it unless the context is interesting, according to an interview with Songfacts:
"I always tell people I definitely spend a lot more time writing a song than writing guitar solos. Obviously, I still spend a lot of time on the guitar solos, but nothing close to the amount of time I spend actually getting the song right first — getting the vocal lines good and getting the structure in place. Guitar solos always come last. Not to say that they don't count, because, of course, they do. But a great guitar solo is nothing unless it's in a good song. To me, anyway."
At least he cares about the integrity of the songs! That's why I personally could never get into much instrumental music. It always felt like guitar solos were all that mattered and everything else was ancillary. It also strikes me as at least a little bit funny coming from Totman, considering 90-percent of his riffs just consist of lightening-speed sweeps and Nintendo noises followed up by shreddy solos.
Oh well.
