Innehållsförteckning för April 2017 från Total Guitar

2017 marks the 50th anniversary of two seminal blues-rock albums: The Jimi Hendrix Experience’s Are You Experienced? and Cream’s Disraeli Gears. Now, we aren’t saying that blues-rock began here, but it’s certainly a big landmark, so this issue, we’re taking a look at five decades of blues-inspired rock guitar, and filtering it down into 14 pages of lessons for each era – it’s the complete lesson! Elsewhere we’re showing you how to play a grunge classic – and get to grips with 7/8 timing – with Alice In Chains’ Them Bones, an acoustic arrangement of The Beatles’ Let It Be courtesy of Rockschool, and contemporary singer-songwriter Hozier’s mammoth hit Someone New is the subject of this month’s Open-mic Songbook. We’ve got a feast for gearheads this issue, too, starting on…

GEAR Co-bay-n Kurt Cobain’s Hagstrom Blue Sparkle Deluxe was auctioned for charity on Ebay. It was owned by the late Nirvana frontman from late 1992 until his death in 1994, after which Courtney Love gave it to a close friend before it ended up with collector, Nathan Fasold. Nirvana tech Earnie Bailey originally converted the right-hand guitar for southpaw Kurt. A portion of the proceeds from the sale will go to Transition Projects – giving life-saving and life-changing assistance to some of Portland, Oregon’s most vulnerable residents. GEAR Vai’s Legacy When Steve Vai needed a portable alternative for his signature Carvin Legacy amp in compact carry-on luggage dimensions, the company’s response was this Legacy Drive Preamp pedal (a hefty $499). It’s packing four gain stages with 12AX7 tubes into its…

1 “I first noticed a problem with my shoulder a couple of years back at a German festival – me and someone got into a wrestling fight in a corridor… he fell on top of me and I busted my shoulder. But I didn’t get it checked. I usually work out at home so I just worked my way through it, but then when I busted my other shoulder and tore the AC [acromioclavicular] ligament I started overusing this one and I had to go and see the doctor because it hurt so much. I had an x-ray and he told me, ‘You’ve got arthritis and it’s pretty bad.’ From there on it’s been rehab. But it’s not a big deal. When I’m playing, sometimes it’s worse, but I’m 45…

German thrash-metal pioneers Kreator have just released their 14th album, Gods Of Violence, and to celebrate, we have an LTD MK-600 Mille Petrozza signature model – signed by the Kreator frontman himself – to give away. Designed around a modified version of ESP’s classic Arrow outline, Petrozza’s LTD packs a streamlined body built for getting heavy. It’s one seriously well-spec’d beast, too, with a Floyd Rose locking vibrato, Grover tuners and Fishman Fluence humbuckers, which offer multiple voices. Pair that with a neck-through-body design at 24.75-inch scale, mahogany body with three-piece maple neck and 24-fret rosewood fingerboard, plus the Military Green Satin finish, and guitars don’t get much more playable than this. To be in with a chance of winning this signed metal beast, plus a copy of Gods Of…

WHAT YOU WILL LEARN How musical rhythms work in 4/4 time How long each note you play should last Three musical examples with various rhythms Last month we looked at some essential basics of rhythm and how a four-count is almost certainly at the heart of most of the music you listen to. However, if you want to tackle funkier and more varied rhythms you’ll need to look at some new note values. In this lesson we’ll stick to music that follows a four-count (known technically as 4/4 or ‘four-four’ time), but we’re looking at a wider selection of rhythms. This can help you read music or serve as a springboard for your own rhythm ideas. 1. LONG NOTES: WHOLE NOTES AND HALF NOTES TRACKS 16-17 These musical symbols tell…

SYNYSTER GATES 1 Schecter Synyster Custom/Standard “I’m still using the Schecter signatures with some Sustainiacs and Seymour Duncan Invaders – though I’ll be switching over to my new signature pickups, which just came out and I’m really excited about. They took a while to develop, the incredible people at Schecter helped make it all happen. There are little things here and there that they bring. We designed our guitars to supplement all the different sounds we might need. Whenever it calls for something old-school, these can do it.” 2 Schecter Hellwin Amplifier “I don’t even know if the amps are even for sale anymore or what’s going on with that, but I know I still love them! I’m really not at a loss with the Schecter around. We worked extensively…

With bands such as Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath on the rise, by the 1970s the distorted guitar was taking centre stage. Dirty tones still came mostly from cranked Marshalls – later aided by the development of the master volume, meaning guitarists could overdrive the preamp with a gain control to give a different flavour of distortion without splitting as many ears. It wasn’t all about gain though; bands like Lynyrd Skynyrd and Allman Brothers Band dialled in cleaner ‘hot country’ tones. Dire Straits took a similar approach. On the technique side, Deep Purple’s Ritchie Blackmore brought rock solid timing and impressive speed picking to the table and in 1978 Van Halen’s debut album rewrote the rule book for rock guitar, influencing scores of later players. SOUND ADVICE Many sonic…

1 RHYTHMIC VIBRATO Vibrato is the fluctuation in pitch that you create by wobbling the string when you fret a note. Sync the speed of your vibrato to the rhythm of the music for a tidy pro sound. 2 WHAMMY BAR PHRASING As locking vibratos became commonplace, so too did a host of related techniques. Simply dipping the bar as you lead into a note (known as a scoop) gives a fluid, vocal-like quality. 3 TAPPING Brought to the masses by Van Halen, tapping is an easy way to play fast. Tap at the 12th fret with a finger on your pick hand, then hammer on or pull off at the 5th and 8th frets.…

If you’re a guitarist of any kind, chances are you’ve at least heard Surfing With The Alien. Over the three decades since its release, the album has become essential listening for legions of players – a masterclass in fusing technique and melody. But in the run-up to its recording, Joe Satriani didn’t exactly fit the guitar hero mould he occupies today. Back in the mid-80s, Satch was working in guitar stores and sharing his knowledge with eager young players. Thanks to the help of former student Steve Vai, he’d landed a record deal and already had one album to his name, but high hopes for his second release were scuppered when he received word of its $13,000 budget, in an age where albums routinely cost $100,000-plus. It left Joe and…

Them Bones appeared on Alice In Chains’ 1992 album Dirt, which became a breakthrough platinum hit and brought international recognition. The song’s 7/8 time signature (where each bar comprises seven eighth notes) is unusual and may take practice. Count aloud to keep time (count ‘one-two-three-fourfive-six-sev’) but remember that Jerry Cantrell’s intro chops along at double speed. Listen out for the hi-hat – which is in time with the count. Don’t get caught out by the chorus, which reverts to 4/4 time. The solo is typical Cantrell. He doesn’t panic playing in 7/8 time, delivering fluent, musical phrases at the beginning of every bar. The original recording is in drop D b tuning (drop D with all six strings down a further semitone), but we’ve stuck to drop D (DADGBE). SOUND…

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 which frets you 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 notation. TG also includes a timestamp to tell you where in the original track you’ll find each example…

Let it be is a classic Lennon/ McCartney number from the Beatles’ 1970 album of the same name. Rockschool’s arrangement starts with some intro chords which lead into the melody during the verse. The chords are a classic‘four-chord trick’ built on the first, fourth, fifth and sixth notes of the C major scale (C D E F G A B). The chords are C, F, G and Am, so you can see how chords and scale relate to each other. Make sure your chords ring out cleanly and your fingertips are planted firmly behind the appropriate frets. F is played with a barre – you’ll be pressing down on two strings with one finger so take time to find the best hand position. If you take Rockschool’s exam you must…

“IT’S BEEN STRIPPED DOWN AND BULKED UP FOR ROCK” 1 BODY  The Affinity Series is available in Arctic White and Black, but we’d love to see a Candy Apple Red or Seafoam Green finish sometime soon 2 FRETS  Medium-gauge frets offer a nice, classic feel that goes against the trend for jumbo frets, which you’ll find everywhere, even on J Mascis’s signature Jazzmaster 3 PICKUPS  These humbuckers are bright and punchy, but this Jazzmaster is worth modding: a Seymour Duncan Hot Jazzmaster single coil in the neck could be incredible AT A GLANCE BODY: Alder NECK: Maple, C-shape SCALE: 25.5” FINGERBOARD: Rosewood FRETS: 22, medium PICKUPS: 2x Standard Humbucker (neck and bridge) CONTROLS: 1x volume, 1x tone, 1x three-way selector HARDWARE: Chrome LEFT-HANDED: No FINISH: Arctic White (pictured), Black CONTACT:…

“IT REACHES ACROSS THE AISLE TO GUITARISTS OF ALL FAITHS” 1 MACHINEHEADS  These staggered-height locking tuners are hassle-free and help the Masquerader hold its tuning no matter how hard you play it 2 TONE AND COIL-SPLIT This 500k tone pot has heaps of range, its coil-split offering some single-coil twang from your bridge ’bucker 3 INLAYS  These hand-inlaid aluminium line fret markers are a neat, minimalist touch, a design feature that’s repeated on the side position’s markers AT A GLANCE BODY: Mahogany NECK: Rosewood, bolt-on SCALE: 25.5” FINGERBOARD: Rosewood FRETS: 22 hard nickel medium-jumbo PICKUPS: 1x USA Seymour Duncan SP90 (neck), 1x USA Seymour Duncan TB-4 Trembucker CONTROLS: 1x volume, 1x tone w/ coil-split, 3-position selector switch HARDWARE: PJE Design Shergold Custom T bridge, chrome with compensated brass saddles, Staggered…

With guitars like these, you’ve got to assess your needs. What are you going to be playing? If the answer to this isn’t death metal, then one of this group is going to make a very persuasive case for being ‘the one’. For those with a little extra cash and don’t mind shelling out the extra £200, then the Supro offers a truly unique piece of American vintage guitar. It’s a player and a workhorse; its pickup position finds a sweet spot somewhere past the bridge, and brings both brightness and warmth. The ideal surf rock guitar? Maybe, but then you’ve got the Danelectro, which is just begging for a Fender Twin and a little tremolo for a spot of surf action, and then, with a more svelte neck, its…

THERE’S HUGE POTENTIAL, AND THE OVERALL VOICING IS SPOT-ON Increasingly, delay pedals seek to bend to guitarists’ every whim – with multiple modes, modulation and pitch-shifting now par for the course. But with its latest pedal, Ernie Ball has taken us on a different tack by offering just a single delay and reverb mode with full-sized expression control modelled on EB’s famous volume pedal design. The Ambient Delay features three knobs: time and feedback, to tweak the digital delay (with the option of an external tap tempo footswitch); plus reverb, which adjusts the level of an all-purpose plate reverb. The overall level of the combined effects is handled by the big ol’ treadle, and offers up a host of new sonic opportunities. By keeping knob twiddling to a minimum, Ernie…

CHRIS BIRD Chris and contributor Richard Barrett prove they’ve still got the blues in this month’s huge 14-page feature on 50 years of blues-rock. When asked his favourite guitarist of the genre the big man says, “Gary Moore or Jeff Healey, but don’t ask me to choose… it’ll be someone else next week.” JOSH GARDNER Josh last spoke to Minus The Bear guitarist Dave Knudson for TG way back in 2012, but with the Seattle band finally back with their first new album in five years, the time seemed right to talk to the effects whiz about Botch, Boogies and Baseball. Read his Five Minutes Alone on p10 ROB LAING Players can get a lot of guitar for their money these days. But as Rob became smitten testing Taylor’s new…

The Magpie Salute WHEN 12-14 April Rich Robinson and Marc Ford’s new 10-piece band will be playing their solo songs and Black Crowes classics during a four-night stand at Fulham’s Under The Bridge venue. Crowes alumni Sven Pipien also features on bass. The Who WHEN 30 March and 1 April Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend will perform their 1969 rock opera concept album, Tommy, for the first time since 1989 for these acoustic special shows. It will be in aid of the Teenage Cancer Trust, of which Daltrey is patron. Hendrix’s Flat WHEN Now With the 50th anniversary of Are You Experienced? this year, it’s an even better reason to make a pilgrimage to Jimi’s old flat in Mayfair that’s been restored to look as it did when he lived…

YOU CAN USE A COMPRESSOR TO BOOST YOUR VOLUME, FATTEN YOUR SOUND, GET MORE SUSTAIN AND A LOT MORE! 1 Sustain  This will add more compression to your signal, so cranking it up will make the effect more noticeable both in terms of feel and sound 2 Attack  The attack control governs how quickly the compression kicks in – it’s measured in milliseconds. Setting it for a longer time will allow the early stages of your picking to remain uncompressed 3 Level  The level control is the overall output. As compression reduces gain, you can make up for it by turning this up 4 Blend  Some pedals split your signal, and allow you to blend in the uncompressed signal with the compressed one using this control COMPRESSION Meet the unfairly…

I’m old school,” Grant Nicholas admits. “There’s a lot to be said with keeping with something you know and having your own character.” Amen to that. Grant still wears his 90s values proudly on his sleeve in Feeder, so there’s no Fractals in sight. Instead we have drool-worthy vintage Fenders and a good ’ol pedalboard with fuzz machines and delay oddities. “I do use pretty much all of them in a set,” says Grant, who’s been considering a switching system. “You have to remember, I’m trying to cover nine albums. But it is a lot of pedals – I’m tap dancing sometimes!” GUITARS 1 1966 FENDER JAZZMASTER ‘OLD BROWN’ “This is Old Brown, the first Jazzmaster that I ever got. I part exchanged an American DigiTech Whammy for it that…

In the 60s a new breed of young bands discovered the blues styles of the generation before and busied themselves reinventing and revitalising it with loud guitars and attitude aplenty. The hub of this activity was centred in London, though, of course, it spread beyond the boundaries of the UK to the US, where the movement became known as the ‘British Invasion’. The far-reaching impact of Peter Green, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck and more can be heard in each subsequent generation of aspiring blues based guitarists. Clapton and Green’s solos were often minor pentatonic and blues scale based, but their individuality lies in ‘phrasing’ – a gift for melodic invention delivered with their own instantly recognisable lyrical styles. Focus in particular on string bending and vibrato as you try our…

Having travelled far along the road towards high tech rigs, high-gain tones and virtuoso technique, the 90s saw a reaction in the opposite direction – guitarists looked back to early blues and to the rock legends of the 70s golden era. Many who had forsaken classic instruments for pointy headstocked SuperStrats were rekindling relationships with retro rigs. Gary Moore and Eric Clapton both returned to blues, releasing seminal albums (Still Got The Blues and Journeyman) and Stevie Ray Vaughan’s tragic death in 1990 surely inspired many, too. Elsewhere, younger grunge bands such as Soundgarden and Pearl Jam continued to innovate, while drawing from classic rock and blues influences. SOME OF THAT 80S HIGH-GAIN HEFT WAS PARTICULARLY APPARENT IN KIM THAYIL’S INTENSE PLAYING WITH SOUNDGARDEN SOUND ADVICE Though many bands took…

Gretsch Electromatic Center-Block 2017 Don’t tell Gretsch, but we reckon they’ve got something wrong with their calculator. Following on from 2016’s bargain Streamliner range, comes this latest update to the Electromatic line. The Center-Block has been added to three body styles (5620 single-cutaway, 5622 double-cut- and 5655 JR double-cut), and in addition, each model is fitted with a genuine Bigsby and Blacktop Filter’Tron/ Super Hilo’Tron pickups. They aren’t peanuts, but they’re serious bang for your buck. DigiTech pedals When it comes to effects, few brands are pushing the sonic boundaries at affordable prices like DigiTech. At this year’s NAMM, the Big D (along with sister brand DOD) lifted the lid on not one, but five brand new pedals. As well as the DOD Rubberneck Delay and Mini Volume/ Expression pedal,…

Irish singer and guitarist Andrew Hozier-Byrne, better known as Hozier, released this single in 2015 from his eponymous debut album. Although it’s based around some simple chord shapes, fingerstyle technique is used to give more control over the soul-style staccato chords and provide a warmer sound. Generally the thumb is used for the bass notes with index, middle and ring taking the higher strings. Occasionally the thumb (fleshy part) can brush/strum downwards through the chords, or the first finger can pull back in an upward motion for the opposite effect. As the verse develops, thumb and finger notes separate into broken chords. On some live versions Hozier uses a pick, so if you’re not used to the fingerstyle this can be a useful option. It’s a great technique to develop…

“The Weissenborn had what I was looking for – a complete sound” ‘I’ll tell you where I’m going, when I get there’, so says Martin Harley in his autobiographical signature song One For The Road . And after a dozen years of touring various continents, it seems to us that one of the country’s finest blues/folk/country/swing/slide guitar musicians (yep, he’s certainly versatile) might be nearing his destination on new album, Static In The Wires . “I feel like I’m in a great place,” he tells us. “And I’ve made a good record with people whose talents I’ve recognised and enjoyed.” It’s very good, in fact. And one of those people is US bassist Daniel Kimbro, co-credited on his second record with Harley following 2015’s…

Welcome to the GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome*) Station! Every issue, the TG scours the market for the hottest new gear and brings you transparent reviews that you can trust. From the smallest of accessories that make your life easier, to big investments such as brand new guitars, amps and effects pedals – if it’s worth your attention, you’ll find it here! HOW WE TEST CURATION Our product selection is driven by our love of gear. We select the most exciting products on the market every month to bring you opinions you can trust. FACE-VALUE REVIEWS We’re not gear snobs here at Total Guitar. We judge on it on whether it looks good, sounds good and plays well – not by the name on the headstock. NO SNAKE OIL You won’t…

Has there been a more misnamed guitar than the Jazzmaster? Introduced at NAMM in 1958, it was hoped that the Jazzmaster would prove a revolutionary alternative to conventional archtop jazzers. As it transpired, the artists who played them turned out to be the trailblazers. In the 60s, likes The Surfaris and The Ventures hijacked the Jazzmaster for the rolling skronk and twang of surf rock. A decade later, the Jazzmaster found its oddball body in the hands of Elvis Costello, and Tom Verlaine and Jimmy Rip of alt-rock pioneers, Television. Its niche was among the mavericks – Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore et al and of course, J Mascis: founder of Dinosaur Jr. And if that wasn’t far away enough from planet jazzer, Slipknot’s Jim Root uses one, too – albeit…

“WE WISH WE’D HAD THIS WHEN WE STARTED PLAYING” 1 GUITAR BODY  The 12e gives more for less, rewarding softer playing with dynamic resonance. So it’s a good practical option for fingerstyle and practising at lower levels 2 ARM REST  The choice of mahogany for the armrest does make it more visually conspicuous, but it really does enhance the playing experience here 3 ES-B CONTROLS Setting the tone flat at 12 o’clock is good for fingerpicking, but there’s plenty of treble for cutting through a band mix, and without any plasticky piezo quack AT A GLANCE BODY: Grand Concert electro acoustic TOP: Solid Sitka Spruce BACK & SIDES: Layered sapele NECK: Sapele SCALE: 632mm (24.875”) FRETS: 20 ELECTRICS: Taylor ES-B HARDWARE: Taylor 100/200 18:1 chrome tuners LEFT-HANDED: Yes, no extra…

The song that inspired me to play… Pinball Wizard – The Who “Pete Townshend’s the reason I play, he feels like a god to me. Then I saw a high school production of Tommy, with school kids playing those songs, and I thought, ‘You can be 15 or 16 and play songs that Townshend wrote?’ It cracked my whole head open; I thought, ‘Maybe I can have a go at this’.” I wish I wrote this riff… Don’t Fear The Reaper– Blue Öyster Cult “This is my ‘am I in tune?’ riff. That thing is timeless, there’s no one that doesn’t hear the first few picks and know that riff. I’m a real rock ’n’ roll romantic, you know when you hear the first few notes and everyone’s like ‘aaaah!’…

MXR DYNA COMP £79 If you’re new to compressors, this pedalboard staple is a great starting point. And with only two controls to play around with, it will ease you in to learning about the finer points of compressing your sound. That said, the lack of controls does limit your options if you want really to get your hands dirty – but for no-fuss compression, it’s the go-to. BOSS CS-3 COMPRESSOR SUSTAINER £79 Perhaps the most instantly recognisable compression pedal around, the humble CS-3 is used by guitarists from pub bands to arenas. It’s been popular for so long because it gives you a good trade-off between flexibility and being overwhelmed with too many options. TC ELECTRONIC HYPERGRAVITY £109 This comp includes different modes to replicate TC’s studio box wizardry,…

BLUES WAS AT THE HEART OF THE EMERGING NEW WAVE OF BRITISH HEAVY METAL IN THE 80S Some say traditional playing was lost in a sea of technical virtuosity, studio production and spandex in the 80s, but blues was at the heart of the emerging New Wave Of British Heavy Metal (aka NWOBHM). Acts such as Judas Priest, Saxon and Iron Maiden took a heavier turn compared to 70s pioneers Black Sabbath and Deep Purple. Eddie Van Halen’s influence spawned a generation of virtuosos, with Joe Satriani and Yngwie Malmsteen both citing Jimi Hendrix as a massive influence, too. Going against the grain, Guns N’ Roses’ rougher, less production-heavy debut, Appetite For Destruction, proved that the combination of Les Paul and Marshall amp still had all the attitude you could…

In recent years blues-rock has become more diverse and there has never been a greater variety of players to listen to. Bands such as the Black Keys, John Mayer, Jack White, Eric Gales, Gary Clark Jr and many more mix up country, funk, folk, rock and traditional blues techniques in a whole variety of ways, while virtuosos such as Joe Bonamassa inspire more technical players. Essentially we’ve come full circle, as guitarists explore influences spanning over 50 years – and it’s reflected in the gear too. Some players have stuck with simple valve amp rigs, but the vast array of retro combos, modelling amps and effect pedals makes it easy for any player to change their tone with a relatively small investment. SOUND ADVICE A marriage of high tech and…

Progressive rock (aka prog) developed in the mid-60s, with bands eschewing established pop conventions in favour of jazz and classical influences, sophisticated chord progressions and experimentation with effects. Pink Floyd, King Crimson and Yes were key early players who would go on to inspire later prog-metal acts such as Dream Theater and Opeth as well as a host of progressive alt-rock and art-rock bands, including Porcupine Tree and Radiohead. This month’s jam track blends Dark Side Of The Moon-era Pink Floyd and 90s Radiohead sounds to provide you with the ultimate prog jam! The verse is in E minor – the minor key and slow tempo provide a melancholy vibe. The chorus is much the same, but uses powerchords for a rock-style edge. The bridge brings a key change to…

These days, when seemingly everybody is influenced by everybody else, it’s worth remembering just how much of a pioneer Albert King was as far back as the 1950s, with his unusual set up and playing style. Using a right handed guitar flipped over to play left handed meant he was basically playing upside down, so, where a more conventional player pushes up to bend the treble strings, Albert would pull down. As if that weren’t enough, he played in lower tunings with very light strings and he picked using just his thumb. This trademark method would play a huge part in his note choice and phrasing. His playing was mainly pentatonic, but his unique method gave him his own sound. Even so, you can capture his sound and style in…

1. PREPARE “Getting experience with alternate tunings and alternate picking on regular guitar is a great basis to move to lap-steel. Have a comfortable fingerpicking technique like Travis picking. Because you don’t strum the Weissenborn with a regular pick; you’ll use thumb pick or fingers.” 2. DON’T OVERPLAY “I was fairly accomplished on a regular acoustic, but then when I went to slide, it became quite limiting. Accept that maybe you could do more with less notes. It’s deciding what to take away that gives you the benefit.” 3. CHOOSE THE RIGHT TOOL “The Weissenborn shines more as a solo instrument, so a duo or alone is where it’s at. If I’m going to be in anything that’s more than two instruments, as soon as electric bass and drums come…

ARIA 1532 RETRO Based on the 1968 Aria 1532T, this vintage beaut has a mondo bizzarro appeal and a warm, organic tone not dissimilar to a classic Jazzmaster IBANEZ RC220-AAM Featuring a similarly iconoclastic offset mahogany body, a bolt-on maple neck and rosewood fingerboard, this is serious option that promises warm, rich classic rock tones YAMAHA PACIFICA 112VCX Don’t be put off by the Pacifica’s ubiquity: you’ll find it for cheaper than list price, it’s incredibly playable, and has a similar tonal range…