Innehållsförteckning för September 2015 från Total Guitar

This month, we’ve lined up a huge series of rock lessons for you, and there’s something for everyone. You’ll find tips for improving fundamental techniques, how to play more authentic blues and improvise more imaginatively, and even guidance on adding some simple yet creative lead ideas to your playing. Oh, and then there are our Guest Lessons. My jaw damn near fell clean off this month, as I watched UK shred virtuoso Andy James film his lesson in TG’s Shabbey Road Studios. And that’s not all – Gus G returns for an amazing alt-picking lesson this month, and we also picked Kerry King’s thrash-rhythm brain to bring you a workout, and finally, there’s Bumblefoot, once again delivering the goods with his unique blend of mind-blowing technique and comedy gold! On…

TRACKS 07-08 A one-bar rhythm is often all it takes to build a great riff! And the drop C-tuned (CGCFAD) guitar refrain in Bring Me The Horizon’s recent single, Happy Song, is a banging example. Each repeat of the rhythm pattern begins with same notes, but the endings alternate between descending and ascending lines, developing that one-bar rhythm into a two-bar riff. Remember: the notes change, but the rhythm stays the same and your picking doesn’t need to change at all. Hammer-ons and pull-offs aside, it’s ‘down-up’-style alternate picking throughout. The first, fifth and seventh notes should all be accented, meaning you pick a bit harder. So, if you’re counting a ‘1 e & a 2 e & a’-type 16th-note rhythm, the accented notes are beat 1, beat 2 and…

Richa’s excellent new EP, Inhale/Exhale, has passed all of TG’s key tests, including both the intense ‘public transport zone-out’ and the punishing ‘angsty post-pub singalong’. The band now dwell in London and Brighton, but hail from mid-Wales and make music that could soundtrack the Black Mountains. TG detects hints of Radiohead, My Bloody Valentine and Jeff Buckley in frontman Gethyn Thomas’ impassioned delivery. “Emotive music, I think that’s what we go for,” says Gethyn. “We like things that are pure and have got depth to them and we go for things that are a bit darker.” Reverb is Richa’s best friend, while Gethyn and co-guitarist Toby are Fender devotees in both amp and guitar choices, using a Jazzmaster and Tele, respectively. But along with the phenomenal riffs, sculpted dynamics and…

I got my first real six-string… “I had an SG copy. Tony Iommi inspired me to play. It sounded so dark, heavy and cool. That was it. Iron Man was probably the first song I ever learned. Once I learned a root 5th to do a bar chord and I slid that around, I could do a lot of his songs.” Don’t stop thinking about tomorrow “Never give up. Sully Erna [Godsmack frontman] drilled that into my head, early on. He’d always say, ‘The guys that don’t make it are the ones that gave up.’ It made sense. Don’t stop. If you’ve got something going, just keep trying.” Still got the blues “I was never really into metal [growing up], I was a classic-rock guy with Hendrix, Zeppelin, Black Sabbath,…

This month at TG Towers we’ve made it our mission to help you improve your playing within that broad church called rock. Over the next seven pages, TG’s top tutors have written lessons covering essential guitar techniques from warm ups and technical skills through to rock riffing, creative lead and improv ideas. Of course, the blues runs deep in rock. Legends such as Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page made careers in blues-rock; and the DNA has continued in more recent years with the likes of John Mayer, Rival Sons, The Black Keys, The Answer and Dan Patlansky. If you want to play blues like the greats, our lesson on authentic blues chords will take your playing to the next level. If that’s not enough to keep you busy until next…

Gus G is a hard-working guitarist. Having cut his teeth with Nightrage and Dream Evil in the early 2000s, recording – to date – eight albums with pet-project Firewind and touring heavily to support I Am The Fire in 2014, Ozzy Osbourne’s right-hand man has just released his second solo album in 18 months, Brand New Revolution. Treading a straight hard-rock path, less metal and more radio-friendly than Firewind, but still as tightly performed as you’d expect and with solos that melt faces, you get the sense that Gus is comfortable in this space. Still, a comfortable headspace wasn’t enough to stop the man from Thessaloniki halting the recording process mid-way to redo all of his solos. Clearly, Gus G is a man with high standards when it comes to…

EverTune’s mechanical bridge system is quickly finding favour among pro guitarists in need of stable tuning, and Andy James is a convert! “In hindsight, I wish I’d had my EverTune earlier. Wounds was the last one we tracked, and I did that with the EverTune and you can tell the difference. I want to retrofit some of the LTD AJ models with an EverTune, because once you get used to it, it’s hard to go back! Most of my parts live will be octaves and some of the more intricate parts as well as riffs and solos, so everything needs to be in. If you have one string that’s slightly out, some of those incidental bits will just sound horrible. I love not worrying about tuning. It’s the worst thing…

“I’ve got tons of song ideas on my phone. But it was a bit embarrassing, really, because in America we do runners from gigs, so we jump offstage, jump straight into the cars and go haring off, and we stop at a gas station or a lay-by and change in the dark on our way to the airport. It sounds crazy, but I actually lost my phone in America doing that and it was full of ideas. I had no password on my phone, so this guy found it and he went through my ideas, and there’s me sitting in my underpants in a hotel room on video singing and playing guitar! But I got a letter [from him] and he sent it back to me. He said he was…

AT A GLANCE  TYPE: Guitar synthesiser pedal CONTROLS: Output level, select, 4x parameter knobs, buttons: synth/FX, blender, write, menu, exit, page left, page right, power; lift/ground switch SOCKETS: Input, thru, return 2x outputs, 2x sub outputs, MIDI in/out,expression/control, USB, power BYPASS: Buffered POWER: 9V power supply only (included) CONTACT: Roland UK 01792 702701 www.roland.co.uk SCREEN THIS is your gateway into the SY-300’s treasure trove of tones: as well as a big, easy-to-read patch display, you get access to a detailed signal chain for tweaking, plus a built-in tuner OUTPUTS YOU get the usual input and stereo outputs, MIDI hook-ups and an effects loop, but the SY-300 also packs a USB port for patch editing and storage, plus a pair of sub outputs for earth-shattering low-end rumble FOOTSWITCHES CTL 2 and…

TYPE: Acoustic pickup-enhancing pedal CONTROLS: Body SOCKETS: Input, output, mini-USB, power POWER: 9V power supply only (not included) CONTACT: TC Electronic 0800 917 8926 www.tcelectronic.com THE piezo quack: we all know and dread the sound. That unwanted distortion and plasticky slap that comes from amped-up under-saddle pickups is a long way from the blissful acoustic tone in our heads. External and preamp EQ plays a part in sweetening piezo tone, as do your PA or acoustic amp. Now, TC Electronic’s secret weapon: an acoustic pickup enhancer for under-saddle pickups, using pre- configured filters and compression to help restore the sense of ‘acoustic’ in your electro sound. Plugging straight into a PA and starting with this mini pedal’s sole Body control at 25 per cent to A/B test, we immediately notice…

THIS TRACK doesn’t feature on either of The Libertines’ albums; it was only released in single form back in 2003. Despite this, it remains one of the band’s most famous songs and has been featured on soundtracks for The Long Weekend and Kill Your Darlings, plus TV shows Gavin And Stacey and The Inbetweeners. It’s a quick and easy song to learn – there are just four open chord shapes and the lyrics are short and sweet and easy to remember. We’ve tabbed out the catchy, uncomplicated lead line that you can hear just before the first verse, and this also repeats a couple of times later on in the song (you’ll hear where on the backing track). So, if you’ve yet to learn your first lead solo, this would…

WHAT IS TAB? TAB is short for tablature, a notational system used to give detailed information as to where notes should be played on the fretboard. Tab appears underneath conventional music notation as six horizontal lines that represent the strings of the guitar, from the sixth (thick) string at the bottom to the first (thin) string at the top. On these lines, numbers represent the frets where you should place your fingers. For example, an A note on the 2nd fret, third string, will be shown as a number ‘2’ on the third line down on the tab. Unfretted strings are shown with a ‘0’. The key and time signatures are shown in the traditional notation. TG also includes a timestamp to tell you where in the original track you’ll…

SCALE LENGTH EVEN WHEN using heavy-gauge strings, down-tuning a six-string often results in tuning problems. Extended-rangers deliver anything from 660mm (26-inch) up to 749mm (29.4-inch) scales for utmost stability, although you’ll still find Fender-style 648mm (25.5 inches) on some guitars. Many necks feature graphite reinforcement to better cope with the extra string tension, too. PICKUPS GIVEN THEIR use by djent and alt-metal bands, seven- and eight-strings tend to come loaded with high-output humbuckers from the likes of DiMarzio and EMG. These pickups are produced with extended-range guitars in mind, given that they have to handle a wider range of octaves than your average six-string specimen without getting muddy in the low-end. TUNING THE INDUSTRY-STANDARD seven-string tuning is (low to high) B E A D G B E, but just as…

When did you first play a seven-string guitar? “The first time was probably when we were recording Ascendancy [2004/2005] – I recorded some of the guitar solo parts on the record with one of producer Jason Suecof’s Ibanez RG seven-strings. I remember one of them sounded particularly good for lead stuff. But I started playing it full time when we did The Crusade, we wrote some songs on seven-string and then I actually got my first seven-string when we were touring for that record, because we needed to play some of the seven-string stuff live. It was Matt [Heafy] wanting to write seven-string material that forced me to get one and be comfortable with going from a six to a seven without being confused!” Trivium’s next release, Shogun,…

When did you first start playing seven-string guitars? “I started out as a drummer and the best part of being a drummer when you’re starting out is everyone has to bring their gear to your place. And usually if it’s heavy they’ll leave it there. So I was lucky that the guitarist I was jamming with had a seven-string guitar and it just kind of lived at my place. So I was exposed to seven-string guitars early on, and it wasn’t really a strange or weird thing to me because I always had it available. So I’ve always felt particularly comfortable on both six- and seven-strings. By contrast, the eight-string is something we’ve got into quite recently and I don’t really feel at home with it in the same way.…

JACKSON JS32-8Q DINKY APPROX £300 Eight-strings are no longer just for the metal elite, and the JS32-8Q proves that better than most. Boasting flash looks thanks to a quilt maple top and piranha fretboard inlays, the 8Q has the playability to back it up, with a 660mm (26-inch) scale length and all-purpose 406mm (16-inch) radius, while two high-output Jackson eight-string humbuckers provide the tones. JACKSON PRO SERIES DKA8 APPROX £740 The DKA8 snagged a Best Buy award back in 2013, and as a formidable, giant-slaying package, it hasn’t aged a bit. The DiMarzio D Activator 8 humbuckers provide a cutting, powerful output right down to that low F#, while the 673mm (26.5-inch) scale length and Planet Waves locking tuners ensure stability – oh, and it has an arcade-style red button…

CHRIS BIRD TG’S Music Ed will tell you that the one difficulty with proofreading tab is that sometimes you have to play through the music. Having played through this month’s guest lessons from shred geniuses Gus G, Andy James and Bumblefoot, it’s fair to say that Birdy’s fingers are all a-flutter. JOSH GARDNER AGED five years and given a haircut since last issue, Josh used his newfound wisdom to chat with Dallas Green about his love of DAngelo, oh and City & Colour’s bold new album. He’s also taken to talking to himself about sport in the office, as nobody else cares about the Rugby World Cup… ROB LAING ROB has early childhood memories of pawing over his older brother’s Live After Death vinyl sleeve artwork in wonder, and he’s…

After the painful, very public deaths of Black Country Communion and California Breed, Glenn Hughes is back in solo mode and ready to roll his pretty damn huge world tour into the UK this October. “It is very clear to me that going back to my solo work is the way that it is supposed to be now,” he says. “I really truly don’t have a lot of time to form a band and then something goes wrong and you have to go back to the drawing board and start again.” Glenn may be back solo, but he’s bringing a familiar face out with him. With The Voice Of Rock’s usual guitarist Soren Andersen already booked up, former Whitesnake man Doug Aldrich will be in tow when Glenn makes it…

“THE BODY is very similar to an ESP Eclipse. I wanted the feel of an ESP Eclipse, which is pretty easy to play, but the tone is more like my favourite 1960 Les Paul. So we sort of did a hybrid. I wanted tone that would work for a pure fingers player with not a lot of crazy effects. But also as someone who was used to guitars from the 80s onwards, I wanted it to be easy to play.” THE PICKUPS are custom Seymour Duncans. They are a little riffed off the ’59 and JB, but this neck pickup has a little bit more of a jazzy sound; a little more hotness than the bridge pickup. You have the option to blend them together with the middle toggle switch…

“Jeff did the lyrics and music, it’s his last entirely polished song. I was waiting for him to finish this for like 20 years! It felt like the longest time and he never addressed it. I’d always be like, ‘What about that song?!’ because it didn’t have a name. He never thought to finish it… I was on both sides of the fence about including it. I didn’t think we necessarily needed one of Jeff’s songs, but as a metal fan, I get why it was important to have it on there. I think people will get a lot out of it. “And there’s actually another unfinished Jeff song that we’ve been working on, but we don’t have any lyrics yet. So maybe on the next album, there’ll be another…

When it comes to lead playing, Gus has a ferocious picking technique and an impressive turn of speed. You can distil these enviable soloing skills down to two approaches: alternate-picked scale runs and string-skipped arpeggios. Of course, there is much more to learn about Gus’s playing, but if you understand these elements, then his lead style will open up to you. Gus begins by playing some three-note-per-string scale shapes. These are useful picking and fretting exercises, but, more importantly, they can form a basis for rapid-fire riffing and soaring lead lines alike. Following a brief detour into the subject of single-string riffing and palm-muting, Gus moves on to demonstrate three string-skipped arpeggios, each outlining a different chord – a great alternative to scalic solos. Finally, note that Gus tunes down…

Between his various bands, solo albums and online tuition, Andy James has secured himself as one of the most technically proficient metal players in the UK, if not the world. His mastery of everything from precision riffing, insane tapping and blistering alternate picking has earnt him praise from the likes of John Petrucci and Mark Tremonti. In TG’s lesson, Andy starts by giving tips on alternate picking using the E minor pentatonic scale as a framework. As Andy demonstrates, it’s a good idea to practise picking between just two strings so you can focus on cleanly moving your pick from string to string. Andy points out that he prefers starting each new string with an upstroke rather than the more popular downstroke. In the second half of the lesson, Andy…

Roland has always been hot on the scene with advances in guitar-synth technology, and over the decades, the company’s gear has found its way into the hands of Rush, Andy Summers and Steve Hackett. It started in 1977 with Roland’s dedicated GS-500 guitar – a switch and knob-encrusted single-cut made by Ibanez, funnily enough – and the GR-500, an analogue ‘desktop processor’ that was almost as big as the instrument itself. The guitar featured an early example of a hex, or divided, pickup, which allows each string to be processed individually by the synth unit. Throughout the late 70s and 80s, the range of guitar controllers expanded, including the considerably smaller GR-300 floor unit, and the ability to use your own guitar via the use of the GK-1 pickup –…

AT A GLANCE  TOP: Spruce BACK & SIDES: Layered sapele (sapele/poplar/sapele) NECK: Mahogany SCALE: 648mm (25.5”) FINGERBOARD: Ebony FRETS: 20 ELECTRICS: Taylor ES-B pickup system w/volume and tone knobs plus tuner HARDWARE: Ebony bridge w/ compensated Nubone saddle, chrome enclosed tuners LEFT-HANDED: Yes FINISH: Natural matte only CONTACT: Taylor Guitars +31 (0) 2066 76030 www.taylorguitars.com NECK WITH a Fender-like 648mm (25.5-inch) scale length and no pesky heel to get in the way, the Big Baby is an electric-like breeze to play PREAMP THE ES-B preamp is basic, but it’s small and unobtrusive – plus, when the raw sound from the ES2-inspired pickup is this good, it doesn’t need much tweaking BODY WHILE a 15/16ths downsize doesn’t sound like much, it makes a world of difference when you play the Big…

AT A GLANCE  BODY: Chambered Spanish cedar w/ maple contoured top NECK: Mahogany, glued-in SCALE: 629mm (24.75”) FINGERBOARD: Rosewood w/ 305mm (12”) radius FRETS: 22 PICKUPS: 2x Seymour Duncan P-90s CONTROLS: 2x volume 2x tone, 3-way toggle pickup selector HARDWARE: Graph Tech ResoMax Wraparound bridge, enclosed tuners LEFT-HANDED: No FINISH: Sunburst gloss top, natural satin with black gloss top (shown) CONTACT: 440 Distribution 01132 589599 www.godinguitars.com PICKUPS TWIN Seymour Duncan single-coil P-90s power the Core. In the bridge is the slightly more powerful Custom SP90-3; at the neck, it’s the Vintage SP90-1 BRIDGE GRAPH TECH doesn’t just make nuts and saddles, as this ResoMax bridge proves. It’s made from a “lightweight, high strength alloy that boosts harmonic content” and it magnetically locks to the posts BODY MADE from chambered Spanish…

TYPE: Analogue chorus pedal CONTROLS: Rate, depth, time, feedback, mix switch SOCKETS: Input, output, power, expression BYPASS: True bypass POWER: 9V battery, 9V power supply (not included) CONTACT: Source Distribution 0208 962 5080 www.moogmusic.com IT had its time in the neon glow of the 80s sun, but chorus is rarely found at the top of guitarists’ wishlists these days. If anyone can revive its fortunes, however, it’s Moog, which has added an all-analogue, bucket-brigade chip-based chorus to its ever-so-sexy Minifooger range. As it’s Moog, there’s more to it than just chorus, mind: there are time and feedback controls for extra resonance, while a three-way mix toggle flips between lighter and deeper chorus sounds, as well as a fully wet vibrato. As you’d expect from a pedal packing the same kind…

THIS ISSUE, Ron rounds off his series of video lessons by expanding on last month’s six-finger tapping riffs. His method involves using the first, second and third fingers of both hands in an alternating ‘fret hand, then pick hand’ fashion. The idea is to perform a fret-hand tap (aka hammer-on from nowhere), then mirror it with a tap by your corresponding pick-hand finger farther up the fretboard. Ron taps nine-fret intervals in the style of his solo from Piranha. The second tapping lick is taken from Ron’s track, Clots. Although the fingering pattern is quite involved, there are many repeated phrases, which makes learning the riff easier. Persevere with the tab, remembering that squares denote fret-hand taps and circles indicate pick hand taps. In his final two exercises, Ron plays…

1. Paul McCartney died in 1967 Scan the Abbey Road sleeve, the conspiracy theorists insist, and you’ll find the ‘evidence’ that Macca was replaced by a lookalike following a fatal 1967 car crash – from the band resembling a funeral procession, to the bassist smoking with the wrong hand. “A load of old rubbish,” shrugged The Beatles’ bewildered press office in 1969. 2. Gene Simmons has a cow’s tongue While the KISS bassist does indeed have a tongue like a butcher’s shop window, medical experts have nixed the theory that it was transplanted from a cow, on the basis that he’d have died of blood loss, as, most probably, would the cow. 3. Keith snorted his dad’s ashes “I snorted my father,” Keef supposedly told the NME in 2007. “He…

Seven-string chords The addition of a seventh string to the guitar offers up new sonic potential when it comes to playing chords and using the open low string can free up your fingers to form cool-sounding extended chords; these are chords with extra notes that go beyond basic major, minor or powerchords (such as 9th and 11th intervals). Of course, the bass string may be fretted or open. Keep in mind, though, that things can sound muddy in the bass region if there are lots of notes. We've kept every sixth string note at least a 5th higher than the seventh string to make a little room at the bottom end in these chord shapes. Seven-string scales Seven-string scales are not far removed from six-string shapes (they just have one…

When did you first pick up a seven-string guitar? “I would say it was either 1990 or ’91. I’d heard about them earlier but had always thought they were for doom metal. They always sounded low and boomy and not defined, but when I heard Dream Theater’s Awake it totally changed my opinion about what a seven-string could do, and sonically where it sits. I just became an instant fan and had to have one.” Do you remember what your first seven-string was? “An Ibanez, I can’t remember the exact model but it was a JEM, I picked up a couple of all-white JEMs. I kind of wish that I’d hung on to them because they were produced in very limited numbers. But I ended up selling them off and…

JACKSON JS22-7 DINKY APPROX £200 The JS series offers phenomenal value for money, and the range’s seven-string offering doesn’t pull any punches when it comes to spec. A 673mm (26.5-inch) scale length ensures tuning stability, while the 406mm (16-inch) radius maintains playability. Add in a pair of Jackson high-output humbuckers, and you have everything you need for some low B action. JACKSON CHRIS BRODERICK PRO SERIES SOLOIST 7 APPROX £800 The former Megadeth man’s six-string Pro Series was a Best Buy winner in TG, thanks to its killer DiMarzio signature pickups, fluid Floyd Rose Special locking vibrato and versatility courtesy of built-in coil-splits and a kill switch. The 7 keeps the 648mm (25.5-inch) scale length to ease the seven-string transition, plus a shred-ready 304.8mm (12-inch) radius. JACKSON USA SELECT B7…

LETTER KEEP ON STRUMMIN’! I have recently started a deep clean-up of my guitar room, and I attacked a stack of CDs that have been stored in my bookshelf. I took a closer look and saw that some of them are 18 and 19 years old! And after wondering how old I am myself, I took a closer look, and saw that one of the CDs contains one of my favourite acoustic songs: Love In Vain by The Rolling Stones! I still play that regularly, but it was a surprise to realise that I learned it 18 years ago! Isn’t it funny how good songs just stick in your mind? So this just goes to show that Total Guitar does an excellent job at choosing which songs to transcribe! Fred…

Andy James had a great start to 2013. Having released his signature LTD models and become internationally recognised as one of the finest in the ‘new breed’ of shredders, his band Sacred Mother Tongue were finally gaining traction. Performances at Download festival, plus support slots with Halestorm, Hell Yeah and Ill Nino followed, and then… it all ended. “We had these plans and then things fell through, and all the time there was debt mounting up.” Andy tells us. “Not that it really should be about money, because that was never our focus, but you start thinking, ‘I don’t really want to be doing this,’ you know?” SMT performed their final show in October 2013, and went their separate ways. Andy turned his attention to “just making a living”, focusing…

A cold barren wasteland, cloaked in darkness and devoid of all meaning… No, sir. We don’t want to imagine a world without Iron Maiden in it. But we also can’t envision Iron Maiden without Adrian Smith. Okay, fair enough, between 1990 and 1999 we had to deal with the harsh realities of a Smith-less Irons, but does anyone talk about the era that brought us Virtual XI with great affection? Exactly. The Eastender who joined for 1981’s Killers doesn’t just bring a special blend of the technical and the melodic to his playing, he’s had a hand in writing some absolute belters, too: Wasted Years, 2 Minutes To Midnight, Can I Play With Madness, The Evil That Men Do, Flight Of Icarus, Moonchild, The Wickerman… You get the picture. Now,…

Auerbach has long maintained that sometimes putting down the guitar provides the best inspiration and the non-musical elements of his life continue to influence his compositions. “In the last couple of years, I’ve got into boxing and working on my motorcycles and riding a bunch,” he tells TG. “Both have influenced my music. There are different songs inspired by different things related to those areas. Velvet Ditch, I wrote that song when I was on a motorcycle trip. Then there’s Stay In My Corner and Tomato Can, especially, which was about a boxer. We used that as the B-side to the Stay In My Corner seven-inch and put it out just for the Mayweather vs Pacquiao fight, just for fun.”…

ROLAND GR-55 GUITAR SYNTHESIZER £519 You’ll need Roland’s GK-3 pickup (£135), too, but the GR-55 gives you over 900 PCM sounds, including pianos, strings and the like, plus a ton of onboard effects and a looper. RED WITCH SYNTHOTRON £249 The Synthotron takes a more analogue approach with its synth processor, packing a pair of oscillators for pitch effects, plus tremolo and sample/hold – it only has mono tracking, mind, so leave chords out of it! ELECTRO- HARMONIX SUPEREGO £159 It’s not a fully formed synth, but this polyphonic ‘synth engine’ allows you to freeze notes and glissando between them – add a pitch-shifter in its effects loop, and you’ll get a decent synth approximation.…

AT A GLANCE TYPE: Overdrive, distortion and boost pedals CONTROLS: ABD: volume, tone, gain; SRO: volume, treble, drive, low-cut trim pot; PGS: level, tone, drive, vintage/modern switch; GGB: level SOCKETS: Input, output, power BYPASS: True bypass POWER: 9V battery, 9V power supply (not included); overdrives will run on 9-18V CONTACT: Zoom UK 0843 208 0999 www.one-control.com IF you’re not familiar with One Control, it’s a Japanese company that makes a range of pedal ancillary items, including switching units and power supplies. Now distributed by Zoom UK, One Control products are destined to have a higher profile in this country, and perhaps deservedly so if they can tempt the likes of Bjorn Juhl (BJF) to design a range of pedals for them. Swedish-born Bjorn is a respected designer for Mad Professor…

THROUGHOUT THEIR incredible career, Queen have touched on almost every style of music, from rock, pop and ballads to funk, trad-jazz and opera. This diversity reflects that each member was an accomplished songwriter – Messrs Mercury, May, Deacon and Taylor could all claim to have written a worldwide chart-topping hit. Brian May alone provided 22! 1989’s I Want It All marked a return to the band’s hard-rock roots. The track highlights Brian’s ability to create simple but powerful hooks and showcases his wonderfully melodic blues-rock soloing. Our transcription is an amalgamation of the acoustic, rhythm and lead guitars heard on the record. To perform the track, you will need to switch between clean, overdrive and solo boost sounds. If you don’t have a boost pedal, try using your guitar’s volume…

BLUES IS a cornerstone of rock music and the ability to play a solo in this style is essential for every electric guitarist. So, this issue, we’re looking at how to play a solo over an R&B track from RGT’s Level Four Performance Award syllabus. The A blues scale sounds great over the track. How do we know? First, the blues scale usually sounds good over ‘dominant 7’ chords (A7, D7, E7, etc). The first chord in this month’s chart is A7, so that’s a big clue. Second, the blues scale is often applied to I-IV-V progressions with dominant 7 chords. A, D and E are the first, fourth and fifth notes of the A major scale hence A7-D7-E7 is a I-IV-V in A. Below are two blues scale shapes…

Seven- and eight-string guitars are becoming increasingly popular, and recently, more accessible, too. What were once niche instruments are now appearing in mainstream music, and contributing to some of modern guitar’s most interesting and exciting playing. We’ve teamed up with Jackson to deliver this guide for people who want to get started with extended range instruments; from tunings and easy chord shapes to get you playing straight away, to interviews with the famous guitarists who are pushing seven-and eight-string playing forwards.…

Eight-string chords The creative potential for chords on the eight-string guitar is huge. The additional range over (or rather, under!) the seven-string makes it ideally suited to wide-interval, almost piano-like chords. And if four fretting fingers are barely enough to play chords on a six-string, with the eight-string, you need to think differently all together. Our first four shapes use a first finger barre across strings one to seven, with the eighth string providing a root note. This leaves your other fingers free to form major and minor triads, plus other extensions that work so well in progressive metal. The final two chords are in the 12th fret region, so there is a huge jump between the chord tones and the bass note. Eight-string scales You'll likely feel at home…