My ear says Satriani is ALL gimmicky. That's his stock in trade. Not that it's bad...
Surely, Joe's sonic aura is built upon mind/finger manipulative tricks of dexterity, two handed hammer gimmicks and nimble "Floyd Rose" crying dive bomb calisthenics. He is ALL speed and gimmicks. That's what makes him Joe.
If you want an electric axe with some grindingly sincere sloppy chops that hit the heart with raw emotion, I believe Neil Young does it pretty well.