Man, I used to have to memorize two songs in a weekend, then rehearse them with a band, I will be doing it again in a few weeks. Learning songs on the fly is an important skill, as much as goal setting.
And while we're on that subject, the one who goes 30nps, prosporo I think(sp?), how did you get so fast without setting goals? Your faster that I am, and you've been playing alot longer than I, but I set goals. After about two years of playing (and a month and a half of actually trying to be able to solo) I hit ten notes per second, shredding chromatics and scales with a metronome, so I know how fast I am. I figured it out with a calculator, he he.
Anyway, I think thats pretty good for someones who's been playing as long as I have, and I wouldn't have gotten there without goalsetting, and thanks to my extra practice while playing with bands, I know how to apply it tastefully.
What I'm getting at, is goalsetting for speed is a good idea, and doesn't compromise your originality. One of your goals could be to learn how to apply speed tastefully, after all.
Anyway, Im saying that I really cant listen to players like Yngwie. They are talented, but all they do is shred. I prefer players who can go 20 or 30 nps, but only use it for 3 or four parts of the solo, like Steve Vai on For the Love of God, or Stevie Ray Vaughn in Little Wing.
If you learn to do that, your set. And your right when you say that tastless playing is something to avoid while working on technique. Sometimes I'll practice some speed techniques, a bit of site reading, and then improvise for a bit. That helps to apply speed tastefully.