Indholdsfortegnelse for May 2022 i Guitar World

AS I WRITE this Woodshed, Metallica’s Kirk Hammett has just announced his first-ever solo release, a four-song instrumental EP called Portals. Steve Vai’s Inviolate is out and about, and new instrumental albums by Joe Satriani, Animals As Leaders and John McLaughlin are covered in this very issue. Now, let us pause to consider the thousands upon thousands of other — lesser-known — guitarists in the universe who ply their instrumental wares daily on YouTube, Instagram, on stages, in studios, in their Seventies-era-paneling-enrobed basements, bedrooms or living rooms, etc. And let us think about the background music you hear in countless movies and TV series. Instrumental guitar music is everywhere. Seriously, when I consider the amoeba-like concept of “guitar in 2022,” literally the first thing I think of is somewhat complex…

OVER THE PAST decade, Denver’s Khemmis has climbed to the top tier of the modern doom hierarchy, and they’ve balefully embraced the tag (their official website is khemmisdoom.com). Over three full-lengths, they’ve augmented epic songs with bruising riffs and twin-guitar hooks while never straying from their gloom-saturated roots. But with their latest album, Deceiver, guitarists Ben Hutcherson and Phil Pendergast have spread their taloned wings even further, injecting more extreme elements into their multifaceted music. “In the past, there’s always been that critic’s voice in the back of our heads — imagined or otherwise — that kept us from taking some musical chances,” Hutcherson says. “With this [album], we tried our best to silence those voices and just go for it.” “Some people have viewed aspects of what we do…

ROINE STOLT MOVED backwards to progress for his Flower Kings’ latest double album, By Royal Decree. While prepping the band’s 15th full-length, the Swedish prog great had been remixing a series of Nineties-period Flower Kings records for an upcoming set of reissues. That nostalgic look back also included rediscovering decades’ worth of unused recordings he had tucked away. He liked what he heard. “I was listening back to music we did 20 years ago, and music I’d done even before that. I could feel there was something different. Some of it felt more exciting — maybe not as professional, almost childish,” Stolt suggests of riffs he found while combing through digital file folders of song ideas, some of which are finally coming to pass on By Royal Decree. The record…

“I CALL IT ‘sharpening the knife,’” says Tosin Abasi, describing the approach he and his longtime Animals As Leaders guitar partner Javier Reyes adopted when recording the group’s super-aggressive fifth album, Parrhesia. “On the past couple of albums, we explored a lot of different directions; we got very experimental and we did some fusion-y stuff. This time out, Javier and I consolidated the elements we wanted to incorporate and we went for a more bludgeoning experience.” He laughs. “That sounds pretty good, doesn’t it?” 30 JOE SATRIANI TOSIN ABASI & JAVIER REYES DONNA GRANTIS NICK JOHNSTON STEVE VAI GUTHRIE GOVAN YVETTE YOUNG PLINI OMAR RODRÍGUEZ-LÓPEZ ERIC JOHNSON NITA STRAUSS JULIAN LAGE MIKE SULLIVAN MATEUS ASATO TIM HENSON & SCOTT LEPAGE MARK LETTIERI MATTEO MANCUSO MIKE DAWES LARI BASILIO ANDY TIMMONS…

STREET PRICE: $1,299 MANUFACTURER: Martin Guitar, martinguitar.com The SC-10E is treated with a thinly applied satin finish rather than gloss, which contributes to a naturally smooth and raw wood feel. Martin’s Linear Dovetail neck joint offers near-limitless access to the upper frets as well as making action and intonation adjustments easier than ever. THE BOTTOM LINE Martin Guitar puts its best foot forward with the affordable SC-10E, which goes above and beyond what an acoustic is capable of in playability and tone.…

IF YOU’VE EVER had to kick off a slow blues tune — and odds are that you have on at least a few occasions (more than a few for me!) — there are a number of different ways you can do it. A classic way to start a slow blues in A is with the turnaround shown in FIGURE 1. Following the low A root note, I play chromatically descending 6th intervals, or 6ths, fretted on the G and high E strings. Most blues guitarists rely on these types of chromatically descending 6ths, or ascending ones, for turnarounds, as well as for use in rhythm parts or during a solo. I came up with an unusual approach to the turnaround that sometimes freaks people out a little bit. The technique…

“DON’T DREAM IT’S OVER” Mateus Asato RISING GUITAR STAR and YouTube sensation Mateus Asato is continually attracting new fans the world over with his soulful style, musical versatility and artistry. His instrumental cover of this popular love song from the mid-Eighties, originally recorded by Crowded House, features the guitarist performing his tastefully crafted chord-melody arrangement on his Suhr Strat-style electric guitar with a warm, clean tone that’s treated with a dreamy long-tail reverb. Asato performs his arrangement finger-style, which enables him to selectively pluck neighboring or non-adjacent strings simultaneously, as opposed to having to strum them with a pick. Using his fingers and thumb in this way also allows the guitarist to arpeggiate chord voicings, accent certain notes and manipulate his guitar’s whammy bar with minimal pick-hand movement and thus…

Tito Rodriguez AGE: 46 LOCATION: Queens, NY GUITARS: Blue Rocker Custom, Ibanez Prestige RG, Peavey Wolfgang, Gibson Les Paul Studio SONG I’VE BEEN PLAYING: Whitesnake “Judgement Day,” Steve Vai “For the Love of God,” Spyro Gyra “Old San Juan,” Journey “Wheel in the Sky” GEAR I WANT MOST: Blackstar Silverline head, Peavey Invective head, Ibanez High Performance RG Eric Bauer AGE: 22 LOCATION: Niagara Falls, ON, Canada GUITARS: Gibson Slash Signature Les Paul, Gibson ’50s Tribute Les Paul Goldtop, Gibson Explorer Standard, Epiphone Les Paul Standard, Wylde Audio Odin, Palermo Guitars Mick Mars Replica Strat, Jackson Pro Series Soloist, Schecter Damien Platinum 6-FR, Schecter Blackjack ATX S-ll, B.C. Rich Mockingbird SONGS I’VE BEEN PLAYING: Guns N’ Roses “Mr. Brownstone,” Deep Purple “Burn,” Rammstein “Mein Herz Brennt” and originals by my…

• GUITARS Fender Telecaster Thinline (with True Temperament fretboard and piezo pickup), 1953 Les Paul Goldtop, Gibson ES-335 (with True Temperament fretboard), 1966 Gibson ES-175, Parker Fly, Fender Custom Shop Stratocaster (with Kinman pickups), JET handbuilt electric, Seagull 12-string acoustic, Guild jumbo six-string; Mahalo ukulele • AMPS Orange TH30 with 2x12 cabs, Mesa/Boogie TA-30, Fender Vibrolux combo, Marshall JTM45 • EFFECTS Dunlop Cry Baby 95Q wah, Keeley Aria compressor/overdrive, Strymon El Capistan dTape Echo, TC Electronics Shaker vibrato, Dunlop Volume (X) DVP3, Ramble FX Twin Bender fuzz, Victory Amps The Countess Valve Overdrive…

THE HISTORY OF THE EASTMAN MUSICAL INSTRUMENT COMPANY IS LIKE CONDENSING THE 300-YEAR EVOLUTION OF STRINGED INSTRUMENT DESIGN INTO ONLY 30 YEARS WITH A FOCUS ON THE GREATEST ACHIEVEMENTS AND BREAKTHROUGHS. Founder Qian Ni started Eastman in 1992 with the goal of building high-quality yet affordable violins, violas, cellos and string basses using traditional craftsmanship and techniques. The success of those efforts eventually inspired Ni to start producing archtop guitars and mandolins in 2002, followed by steel-string acoustic flattops in 2008, thinline electrics in 2012 and solidbody electric guitars in 2016. “We have redone the golden age of guitar building,” says Eastman International Sales and Product Development Manager of Fretted Instruments Pepijn ’t Hart. “But it all came naturally. From the beginning, our focus was to use traditional building techniques…

IT MUST BE DIFFICULT TO WATCH AN ALBUM YOU labored over for months get released into a world on lock-down. But in April 2020, Joe Satriani made the decision to put out his 18th solo album, Shapeshifting, a month into the Covid pandemic in hopes the world would be back to business as usual in a matter of months, and he could play it live for fans around the world on tour. 30 JOE SATRIANI TOSIN ABASI & JAVIER REYES DONNA GRANTIS NICK JOHNSTON STEVE VAI GUTHRIE GOVAN YVETTE YOUNG PLINI OMAR RODRÍGUEZ-LÓPEZ ERIC JOHNSON NITA STRAUSS JULIAN LAGE MIKE SULLIVAN MATEUS ASATO TIM HENSON & SCOTT LEPAGE MARK LETTIERI MATTEO MANCUSO MIKE DAWES LARI BASILIO ANDY TIMMONS GREG HOWE PAT METHENY RORY FRIERS & NIALL KENNEDY ANGEL VIVALDI JASON…

STREET PRICES: $219.99 (Dept. 10 Boost); $299.99 (Dept. 10 Dual Drive or Dual Distortion) MANUFACTURER: Blackstar Amplification, blackstaramps.com All three pedals harness the power of an ECC83 triode tube driven by more than 200 volts to deliver true tube tone and dynamic. The Dept. 10 Boost’s passive James high- and low-shelving EQ circuit allows users to sculpt a wide variety of natural-sounding tones using just two knobs. The Dept. 10 Dual Drive and Dual Distortion pedals’ Cab Rig output provides simulated room, mic and speaker cabinet for realistic direct tones. The Dual Drive and Dual Distortion pedals have two individual channels each with two selectable voices to provide the functionality of a custom two-channel amp. THE BOTTOM LINE: If you love the responsive dynamics and harmonically rich overdrive and distortion…

IRISH LUTHIER ALISTAIR Hay, founder of Emerald Guitars, is one of the most fascinating and visionary guitar designers of the last two decades. Readers may remember his dazzling Bahamut dragon guitar featured in the “It Might Get Weird” column in Guitar World’s June 2013 issue or his incredible Ultra “alien” guitar played by Steve Vai on tour. While those guitars were radical visually, Emerald’s carbon fiber production models are notable for their progressive features and highly ergonomic designs. Emerald’s new Virtuo model, which combines acoustic, electric and synth controller features in a single instrument, is a great example of the company’s visionary outlook that redefines the potential of our beloved instrument. FEATURES The Emerald Virtuo is a true hybrid design built around a slim acoustic guitar base but featuring the…

THIS MONTH, I’D like to take a look at another tune from my brand-new album, Electric Truth, titled, “E.W.F.” As some of you may have ascertained, the title of this song is a thinly veiled reference to the incredible band Earth, Wind & Fire. The song is a bit of a tribute to the band’s phenomenal guitarist, Al McKay, who contributes beautiful guitar work to every track he records with EWF. “E.W.F.” is a very funky, swinging and bluesy affair, driven by a repeating ascending lick that’s built from double-stops, which are two-note pairs (sometimes referred to as dyads). FIGURE 1 illustrates the track’s opening eight-bar rhythm part, which is built from a harmonized melody played on pairs of adjacent strings, starting on the bottom two and gradually moving up…

“HEAVEN BESIDE YOU” WORDS AND MUSIC BY JERRY CANTRELL, MICHAEL INEZ, SEAN KINNEY AND LAYNE STALEY. COPYRIGHT © 1995 BUTTNUGGET PUBLISHING, LUNGCLAM MUSIC, MICHAEL INEZ MUSIC, NANCYLAYNECO, LLC AND SHYLO VIOLA PUBLISHING. ALL RIGHTS ADMINISTERED BY BMG RIGHTS MANAGEMENT (US) LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. USED BY PERMISSION. REPRINTED BY PERMISSION OF HAL LEONARD LLC.…

JEFF BECK IS one of the rare breed of players who always sounds like himself regardless of what gear he’s using, whether it’s the tiny Fender Pro Junior amps he plays onstage today, a DigiTech GSP-21 direct to the mixing console like he used on Frankie’s House or the Marshall stacks he played onstage during the Seventies. Even when I once watched him play “Savoy” on an unplugged 1956 Gretsch Duo-Jet with heavy flatwound strings, it still sounded uncannily like what he recorded on Guitar Shop. Because his tone is so heavily shaped by his idiosyncratic technique, phrasing and personality, I’ve avoided covering Beck in this column, but as Tonal Recall makes it final bow, it seems like a good time to make an attempt at a track on his…

AS GUITARISTS SUCH AS LINK WRAY HANK Marvin, Grant Green and Giovanni Paolo Foscarini (Look him up!) have taught us, compelling guitar-based music does not require vocals or lyrics. Below — inspired by our two cover stars — we offer up a guide to 30 (technically 31!) hardworking instro-centric guitarists whose solos are worth at least a thousand words. JOE SATRIANI MUCH LIKE HIS old student Steve Vai, Joe Satriani’s influence has echoed in the waves of guitarists that have come after him. His ear for big, bluesy hooks and liquid legato lines set him apart early on — as evidenced by the enduring popularity of his solo albums like Surfing with the Alien, Flying in a Blue Dream and The Extremist, his session work with Mick Jagger and, in…

THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC has brought with it countless forms of hardship: from catastrophic to tedious and everything in between. It’s affected the health, finances and emotional wellbeing of hundreds of millions of people across the globe. It’s forced many of us to fundamentally change the way we worked, cared for families, shopped for food, went to school, socialized, created music and so much more. For John McLaughlin, pandemic-packed 2020 was also the year he got busted… for riding his bicycle. The British guitar virtuoso weathered that year’s turbulence in Monaco, where the 80-year-old has lived with his family for decades. When the jazz-fusion great wasn’t practicing guitar, McLaughlin would combat his cabin fever by taking a spin on his bike. It was on one of these stress-reducing treks that he…

AT FIRST GLANCE, THE NEW Line 6 DL4 MkII doesn’t seem much different from the original DL4. The overall dimensions are smaller and the housing is more simplified and streamlined, but the front panel still has six knobs and four footswitches. The pedal’s operation is still as simple and straightforward as it’s always been, but the engine under the hood has undergone significant upgrades. The rotary effect selector switch still has 16 positions, but a new Alt/Legacy button provides access to three banks of effects: 15 new MkII delay models, 15 original DL4 delay models (with Rhythmic Delay replaced by the Echo Pro’s Echo Platter Binson Echo-Rec model) and 15 “secret” reverb models. The MkII models add several new Line 6 original models plus a TC Electronic 2290 ducking delay,…

THOUGH ROBERT NIGHTHAWK is without question one of the greatest and most influential blues guitarists of all time, he never received the acclaim of his contemporaries Muddy Waters, Howlin’ Wolf, Buddy Guy, Jimmy Reed and many others. In reality, Nighthawk was performing throughout the South years before these other legends, and his playing and singing influenced just about every one of them. Born Robert Lee McCollum, Nighthawk is best known as a brilliant and innovative slide guitarist. Elements of his style can be heard in the playing of Earl Hooker, Mick Taylor, Duane Allman, Ry Cooder and every electric slide guitarist since the mid-Sixties. B.B. King has said that, while a young newcomer on the scene, he tried his hardest to replicate Nighthawk’s slide vibrato with his fingers, exclaiming, “But…

IN THIS COLUMN, I’d like to go over some of the basics of the classic Chicago blues shuffle style, as heard in the iconic recordings of Magic Sam, Buddy Guy, Junior Wells, Earl Hooker and many others. Let’s start by laying down a signature Chicago-style shuffle groove in the key of A. As shown in FIGURE 1, the shuffle is played in meter, which may be counted “one two three, four five six, sev eight nine, ten lev twelve” or “one two three, two two three, three two three, four two three,” in either case with three evenly spaced triplets falling within each of the four primary beats. This pattern begins with four bars on the I (one) chord, A7, played in 4th position. On the downbeat and upbeat of…

GUITAR: Fender Stratocaster with early Sixties body and mid Seventies rosewood neck (bridge pickup), Volume: 10, Tone 1: 10, Tone 2: 10 AMP: Early Seventies Ampeg VT-40 (Input One/Bright, Volume 1: 7, Volume 2: 0, Treble: 6, Midrange: 8, Bass: 2, Reverb: 0, Sensitivity 1: 0dB, Sensitivity 2: NA, Ultra Hi: Midrange switch: 2/1000Hz) with four Ampeg special-design 10-inch speakers (either CTS or Eminence) EFFECTS: Colorsound Overdriver (Drive: 6, Treble: 4, Bass: 6) STRINGS/TUNING: Unknown (probably Ernie Ball Super Slinky .009, .011, .016, .024, .032, .042)/standard PICK: Unknown, probably Fender 351-shape (teardrop) medium…