Innehållsförteckning för March 2020 från Total Guitar

Someone once said, “Anything that’s successful is a series of mistakes.” Wise words indeed, especially when it comes to guitar playing. Whether you’re just starting out or tackling your next new tune, making mistakes is part of the learning process. As it turns out, that pearl of wisdom came from the guitarist on the cover of this very magazine: Billie Joe Armstrong – the frontman of a band who, let’s face it, don’t really take too many wrong turns. So, as you might’ve guessed, this month we’ve put together a gargantuan Green Day guide for you, maybe even the “father of all” Green Day guides! Over a full 15 pages we have an interview with Billie Joe himself, behind the scenes studio secrets from producer Butch Walker, lessons on Billie…

It had been a fair while since Sevendust had last performed on UK soil – seven years, in fact –something that the band members attributed to bad luck whilst on the search for new management. But, thankfully, despite the bumps in the road (and, in more recent times, having had to cancel tour dates), the Atlanta Georgia alt-metallers met with some good luck too… They would eventually sign up with the company who represent Alter Bridge and Mark Tremonti, inking a new deal with Rise Records for their twelfth full-length album All I See Is War, as well as landing a higly prestigious Grammy nomination on their prior album Kill The Flaw. Meeting with the band at the end of 2018, it was clear they were making up for lost…

With players like Eric Clapton and Vince Gill namechecking him as one of the finest slide players in the world, Sonny Landreth has maintained a steady and fruitful career since the early 1970s, recording a stream of solo albums, guesting on many more and maintaining a busy touring schedule with his trio. This month’s tutorial is based on the trio format with just bass and drums backing allowing the guitar to be heard loud and proud! However, before getting started, there are a couple of things you’ll need to prepare. Sonny’s sound isn’t just about his gear –he usually plays in an open tuning. Our tab examples use his favourite: open E (low to high: E B E G# B E). By tuning the third, fourth and fifth strings up…

“Last year, I put out the Anesthetic album and did a full live band tour, but after that, I got the opportunity to do some abbreviated acoustic sets – one at the South Temple Festival, in Columbus, Ohio, and one at Download last summer. That was really the first time I’d got to do something like that...” the Lamb Of God lead guitarist enthuses. Anesthetic is Morton’s debut solo release; a hard rock and metal record – perhaps what you’d expect the metal maestro to do. The acoustic gigs? Well, that was more of a change of direction... “It went really well, and I was kinda thrilled with the feedback I got from it. For me, it was time to stretch out, get out of my comfort zone a little…

1 LOCKING TUNERS If the KX500MS’s multi-scale design ensure’s intonation is bang-on, locking tuners are a welcome appointment to help keep things solid 2 TRUSS ROD  Making adjustments to the neck is a cinch with this heel-mounted spoke-nut. No more lost truss-rod covers! 3 FRETBOARD  The fanned fret design will feel intuitive in time, while the jumbo fretwire rewards a light touch – ideal for shredders “AND, AGAIN, IT’S ALL ANGLES, SHARP, KINDA DANGEROUS…” Occasionally you pick up a guitar and you’ll be a little unsure as to what you are going to get when you switch on the amplifier. But usually there are some subtle (and not-so-subtle) tells. Take the KX500MS. You might call Cort’s flagship seven-string a multi-scale extended-range exercise in not-so-subtle tells. It has…

1 AMP MODELS  The amp model knob cycles from the cleanest through to the dirtiest tones, with an 11th clean ‘line’ option for acoustic guitars and keyboards 2 TAP TEMPO / TUNER Exactly what it says on the tin! Tap the button to set your delay times by feel or hold it down to access the onboard tuner 3 I/O SOCKETS  Use the 3.5 mm TRS jack socket to plug in a digital music player and jam along. A headphone/line output includes speaker cabinet emulation for playing at home When it comes to guitar amplification it’s particularly hard to overstate the longstanding influence of Vox. Found in the rigs of pioneers such as Hank Marvin, Brian May, The Edge and, frankly, countless other icons of guitar, the…

JONATHAN HORSLEY Jonathan’s interview with Emperor guitarist Ihsahn (p32) has been tickling our treble clefs this month. A great feature, for sure, with plenty of well-considered and inspiring playing tips and even a bit of theory. And, as it turns out, the Norwegian multi-instrumentalist suffers with Gear Acquisition Syndrome just as much as the rest of us. STAN BULL Since joining the magazine in November, TG’s Production Editor has been hinting that he may be assembling a “super-group” for a new band/collective-type project. Tight-lipped as regards the line-up, we’re wondering if Stan’s using his newfound industry contacts to recruit the dream team. Only time will tell... AMIT SHARMA Total Guitar has kept Amit pretty busy this month. Hop over to p36 where you’ll find interviews, not only with legend of…

Paul Cochrane’s Tim overdrive was one of the original boutique overdrives, generating a dedicated following based on its open, un-compressed drive tone and good EQ options. The larger enclosure size put some off, however, and the boost wasn’t necessary for those who were using other pedals to stack with the Tim - one of its main strengths. As a result, Paul also offered the smaller, four-knob Timmy, which became possibly the first ‘transparent’ boutique overdrive. The Timmy is squarely in the Tubescreamer family tree, but lacks the pronounced ‘mid-hump’ bump of the Tubescreamer, and is less compressed, particularly at lower gain levels. With the clipping options set to minimum, it’s a very potent boost, useful for driving tube amps into valve saturation. Even after it exploded in popularity, the Timmy…

NICK JOHNSTON Canadian virtuoso and Schecter signature artist Nick Johnston has been melting minds since his 2011 debut. Much like Satch, he’s lauded thanks to his knack for choice – sometimes unusual –notes that feel infinitely more dramatic than busier lines. “Before listening to Joe, I don’t think I understood how important a role the melodies played in building compositions," Nick says. "He would place the solo in a different spot than everyone else, and open his songs in different ways, he would play the melody refrain in a higher octave, he would use effects differently and wasn’t afraid to be dynamic and pull emotion out of three notes. As I dove deeper, I realised he was the guy who’d really figured it out – the balance of technique, tone,…

How did you get involved with Green Day? My manager manages them, but it wasn’t easy to get the gig, obviously. Billie Joe is very particular, and has produced his own records for the last 10 years and he’s very good at getting that sound. He knows what he wants. But I think he was ready to venture out of his comfort zone. Meaning what? He was bringing in songs and ideas that were a little left-of-centre for them. It didn’t sound like typical Green Day, and I love that. I’m a huge Green Day fan and always will be, but I also love any band that’s been around for twenty or thirty years and wants to keep pushing the envelope and doing something different. When we spoke on the…

01 BLUE One of the most iconic guitars in punk-rock history, ‘Blue’ was a gift from Billie Joe’s mum on his 10th birthday. It appeared in most early Green Day videos, including Basket Case, Longview and Welcome To Paradise, as well as countless tours. Since its beginnings as a Fernandes Strat copy, it’s had the neck and middle pickups disconnected and the bridge pickup changed to a Seymour Duncan JB. 02 THE WHITE LP JUNIOR For American Idiot, Armstrong reinvented his guitar sound, switching from Blue to primarily Les Paul Juniors. The raw, spiky sound of P90 pickups propelled some of the angriest lyrics Green Day had recorded to date. His white Junior is immortalised on the Bullet In A Bible live DVD, featuring Green Day and 130,000…

Guitarists Mick Thompson and Jim Root draw on various influences here in this pounding lead single release from 2004’s Vol. 3: (The Subliminal Verses). From the grindcore-tinged intro, a rhythmic nu-metal breakdown, black metal-influenced verses and a melodic meat hook of an octave-based chorus riff, the metal giants offer up a broad set of techniques to get your zipper-mouthed teeth into. To play this song with the fearsome attitude and aggression it requires you might think you have to put all of your energy into picking hard and attacking the strings, but, in fact, Jim and Mick are both incredibly relaxed players. To play with Slipknot-level stamina, it’s a better idea to allow your hand to move naturally from the wrist (not your elbow or forearm) and let your picking…

Kid Charlemagne appeared on Steely Dan’s fifth studio album Royal Scam in 1976. The album featured the cream of the crop of session musicians of the time, including, as on this track, Mr 335 himself – guitarist Larry Carlton. It’s a great example of the fusion of styles that was happening in the 70s, where bands and musicians were mixing the grooves of funk with the harmony of jazz and the guitar sounds of classic rock, making this the perfect track to study for an insight into the genre of fusion. The verse features an Am-G6-F6/9-B b 13 chord sequence where the guitar is playing chord fragments with a funk rhythm and technique. Meanwhile, the solo is a masterclass in referencing chord tones. Larry is never too far away from…

Welcome to the GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome*) Station! Every issue, 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 it on whether it looks good, sounds good and plays well – not by the name on the headstock. NO SNAKE OIL You won’t find us…

TYPE:Digital modelling guitar combo with NuTube valve OUTPUT:50 watts SPEAKER:1x12” VALVES:NuTube 6P1 CONTROLS:Power On/ Off, Preset Write, Amp Type (Deluxe Clean, Boutique Clean, Boutique Overdrive, Vox AC30, Vox AC30TB, Brit 1959, Brit 800, Brit VM, SL-OD, Double Rec, Line), Gain, Treble, Bass, Volume, Modulation Type/Level, Delay/ Reverb Type/Level, Tap Delay, power level SOCKETS:Input jacks, footswitch, aux in, line out, headphones out with cabinet simulator, USB (type B) port WEIGHT:8.9kg DIMENSIONS: 410mm (h) x 452mm (w) x 240mm (d) CONTACT: Vox Amplification voxamps.com…

The 60th Anniversary DC59M comes in a choice of silver or blue MetalFlake finishes, which might be too disco for some, even for birthday celebrations. But then those people could always plump for the DC59M NOS+, which comes in black to best serve their fantasy that they’re actually Jimmy Page, the tune is Kashmir, and they’re standing atop the stage in some Midwest enormodome. Whatever, it’s all a matter of taste. Either way you’ll get the famous Danelectro construction, Masonite on the top and bottom with inside frame that gives the DC59M a lightweight homemade feel. When you pick it up and plug it in, it soon gets serious. This guitar might be fun with a price to match, but there are few rock ’n’ roll contexts, professional, amateur or…

We’ve got ubiquitous Coke bottle headstocks, Masonite builds and bolt-on maple necks with the most rudimentary of heel joints throughout. The South Korean factory has lost nothing in translation in bringing a real feel of American rock ’n’ roll to the collection. How to choose? Well, first, there is an obvious outlier, the 59XT12. It is a specialist instrument, perhaps too weird for the majority of players to consider for their number-one guitar. We love having an electric 12-string with both singlecoil and humbucker voicings in the bridge; allied to the neck pickup, there is a lot of room to play with. This setup suits the ‘64XT well, too. And this is the one if you are looking to cover all bases, if you’re searching for a sound and need…

The first song I remember… It’s A Kind Of Magic – Queen We had The Best Of Queen - the second one was the one I used to play around the house a lot. I used to listen to It’s A Kind Of Magic and jump up and down on the sofa, dancing around thinking I was Brian May. That was probably the first thing I became slightly obsessed with, it made me realise that I loved music with guitars in it. The song that made me want to play... Polly– Nirvana My brother brought back a MiniDisc - remember them?! - with MTV Unplugged in New York from Australia. It was one of those older brother moments of ‘Listen to this!’ I remember thinking, ‘Holy fuck, this is amazing!’…

Everything In Its Right Place Oxford musical polymaths Radiohead publish new online archive Whether or not you are a fan of Thom Yorke and Co.’s shapeshifting, genre-resistant music, the legacy of Abingdon’s most famous band is undeniably one of intrigue, mystique and more than a few classic riffs. For years, fans have created entire message boards to discuss long lost album outtakes and questionable footage of live rarities. Rejoice, then, for the five-piece have shared a new online archive, featuring material relating to the groups’ nine studio releases, as well as alternative art designs, merch and a variety of video content, including TV and festival performances and more. This, of course, is a must-visit for any self-proclaimed fan, but for casual listeners it’s a neat insight into the audiovisual world…

1 My first guitar was a Les Paul, when I was 15. In the 80s I played Charvel/Jackson S-types, but came back full circle to Les Pauls just after joining Def Leppard in 1992. For a long time, Gibson wouldn’t even return my calls. Eventually I got a call from Philip Whorton who runs the Gibson Custom Shop in Nashville, asking if I’d be interested in working on a signature model. I said, ‘Absolutely!’ I’m really pleased with it. I had the first one at the end of our 2017 tour, and Gibson released it at the Vegas Consumer Electronics Show. 2 We based the guitar on the bastardised Les Paul I was playing with Def Leppard at the time. It had a slim neck from a 1978 Les Paul…

Rivers has been spied playing this track on a Gibson SG and a Flying V – both humbucker-equipped guitars. These days he’s a Kemper user, having profiled his Diezel VH4 amp. Aim for a creamy, mid-rich distortion tone. A delay set to repeat in time with the first note of each triplet will help fill out the sound. Those repeats can help you stay in time, too. Dial in a 252 ms delay to play at the song’s 119 bpm tempo. Our video lesson was played at 30 bpm, so we timed the delay at 1000 ms.…

We get it – music theory divides opinion. Some guitarists are into theory and it helps them develop their playing. Others, well, just can’t be bothered with it. That’s fair enough – countless rock icons can’t read a note of music or tell you about the ins and outs of harmony. Still, we’d argue there’s plenty of easy theory that’ll help every guitarist improve their playing… Which brings us on to this month’s lesson on major chords. You’re bound to know plenty of these easy shapes – they’re the first things most guitarists learn to play. So how does knowing the theory help you? Well, let’s break it down. Once you know how chords are built you can figure out new shapes anywhere on the fretboard. And if you can…

“So many guitarists will approach an eight-string to basically do what they do on a six-string but lower! For me, lower is what you have basses for. It is not that interesting for me. The most important thing about getting a seven-string – and especially an eight-string – is that it skips my muscle memory, so I can write on guitar but not feel like I am repeating myself by doing what my fingers do when I pick up a six-string. “With the eight-string you can’t be doing the same chord voicings in that register so you have to rethink how you approach it. There are other colours there. You have to rethink how you would arrange the bass parts. It changes the timbre of the instruments and the arrangements.”…

ORANGE TERROR STAMP The Tiny Terror revolutionised the small amp game when it arrived, and now Orange is looking to do the same with the emerging trend for pedalboard amps. The Terror Stamp uses a hybrid design, incorporating an ECC83 valve preamp with a solid state class A/B power section to give you a 20-watt Terror at your feet. It’s equipped with a switchable master volume control (for psuedo two-channel operation), a gain control and orange’s classic tone shape feature. On the back is an effects loop, speaker output and an emulated CabSim headphone output. If you thought pedalboard amps were just a passing phase, the Terror Stamp might convince you to dip your toe! POSITIVE GRID SPARK 40 A practice amp equipped with an app for accessing more tones…

Billie Joe Armstrong sure knows how to make guitars sound big! Even shred god Paul Gilbert described him as one of the best guitarists in the world for his blistering downpicking. Billie Joe’s mastery of palm muting and powerchord riffing rivals even thrash metal giant James Hetfield. Here, we’re giving you the tools to deliver Green Day’s breakneck riffing and melodic solos. The outwardly simple delivery is deceptive, and you’ll need to develop highly accurate fretting to make it work. To play as hard as possible, Billie Joe often strums all six strings regardless of the chord, using his fretting hand to control which notes ring out. Check out our photos to see how small details make simple riffs sound so great. 01 HOLDING THE PICK Billie holds his…

Gypsy jazz is widely associated with Romani guitarist Django Reinhardt, who pioneered the genre in Paris during the 1930s. Now best remembered for his collaborations with violinist Stéphane Grappelli, Django was a musical genius, and his playing style continues to inspire jazz guitarists such as Angelo Debarre, Jimmy Rosenberg, Remi Harris and Biréli Lagrène to this day. This style of jazz is a slick musical form that demands good technique. Uptempo solos tend to be based on wide-interval arpeggios and fast scale runs, and regular chord stabs outline the progressions with each lick. Of course, this means that you have to know the progressions inside out. Our Jam Track shouldn’t pose too much of a challenge, but tougher diminished chords and fast changes are commonplace in the style. Take a…

Furch Guitars returned to NAMM earlier this year to present their first models with the new ergonomic Bevel Duo feature. This innovation, comprised of two bevels – one in front, at the forearm, and one in the rear, at the rib position – is said to provide ‘a significant increase in player comfort’. As Petr Furch, CEO of Furch Guitars, says: “A bevel is one of the most complicated manufacturing operations possible in the production of acoustic guitars. Even more complicated is to apply this to both the top and back. This is why most guitar makers only bevel the top plate. But we have decided to apply it on the back plate as well, and the result is really outstanding. Bevel Duo allows players to play all-out for extended…

Unveiled to the world in March 1995, sophomore release The Bends established Radiohead as a supreme alt-rock force that would be set on the path to global domination. And, though nearly every track on the album is a classic, Fake Plastic Trees offers an intimate, emotionally charged centrepiece – it’s also pretty easy to strum along to. With just six chords, all in the open position, there’s nothing too challenging for any guitarist to have a go at. Even the scary sounding Dmaj9/F# and Bm11 chords are easy enough to play. When you have the chords under your belt turn your attention to the strummed rhythms. Generally, there’s emphasis on every beat – assuming you’re counting to four in time with the 74 bpm pulse. Listen out for the variations…

IBANEZ RGMS7 IRON LABEL MULTI-SCALE Boasting a similar Mono-rail six-saddle bridge to the Cort for easy intonation adjustment and greater resonance, this Ibanez is a steal. SCHECTER REAPER-7 It’s a little more expensive, but the Reaper-7 is one of the best seven-strings we have played with excellent pickups and hardware, and poplar burl top. JACKSON X SERIES SLAT7 With a quilt maple veneer top, Jackson blade humbuckers, a 12” to 16” compound radius laurel fingerboard, the stylish SLAT7 is truly a modern shred machine.…

BODY: Chambered Masonite with centre block and spruce frame NECK: Maple, bolt-on FINGERBOARD: Pau ferro FRETS: 21 SCALE: 24.5” PICKUPS: 1x Danelectro Dual Lipstick humbucker (bridge), Danelectro vintage-style large housing singlecoil (neck) CONTROLS: 1x volume, 1x tone with push-pull coil-tap for bridge pickup SWITCHING: 3-position toggle HARDWARE: Wilkinson floating tremolo, vintage-style tuners FINISH: 3-Tone Sunburst [as reviewed], Gloss Black CONTACT: danelectro.com/0113 286 5381…