Innehållsförteckning för December 2023 från Total Guitar

Influence. It’s a word we musicians bandy around freely, but I do think it’s a difficult quality to assess. What does a noted guitarist have to do to be considered influential? And how much influence is more influence than the influence of another, er, influential guitarist (or something like that!)? These are fair, if slightly wordy, questions. For me, it comes down to changing the musical landscape. While no guitarist or band exists in a vacuum, there have been moments, albums and performances that have taken guitar music in new directions – and that’s different to just being one of the “greats”. Take Gary Moore, for example. Undoubtedly one of the greats. But I’d also argue that his 1990 album Still Got The Blues was instrumental in changing the landscape…

A few weeks back, TG conducted a poll on guitarworld.com to get your views on the most influential guitarists of all time. Now, admittedly, it’s a tricky question to answer. Let’s face it, influence is a difficult quality to assess – but you didn’t disappoint! In just a few short days of our poll being public, over 25,000 votes were cast. Over the next 30 or so pages we run you through the results. Alongside the poll listings you’ll find new interviews with a raft of star guitarists who explain the impact and inspiration these trailblazers had on their own playing. Jon Gomm, Eric Gales, Kirk Hammett and many more are featured. We also acknowledge the lasting influence of innovators in gear design – greats such as Leo Fender, Les…

TRAILBLAZERS What was the impact of still Got The Blues on you as a young guitarist ? Ghe Kind of like [Stevie Ray Vaughan’s debut album] Texas Flood, it just floored you. Just the song Still Got The Blues… the tone, the playing! I would have been 13 years old. It was one of those things where you go, ‘Wow, is this just unbelievable!’ My dad told me, “That’s a Les Paul,” and I’m like, ‘I need to get one of those.’ But Still Got The Blues made a lot of it and turned the gain up. The two trailblazers in the kind of music that I play were Walter Trout and Gary Moore because they were the ones, especially over in Europe, that took a more shreddy approach to…

01 TUNING IMPROVEMENTS Budget hardware on your axe? Try a set of uprated tuners from Grover, Sperzel, Schaller (and more) for improved tuning. A synthetic or bone nut is an improvement over cheapo plastic, too. Get your guitar checked by a tech first to eliminate other potential tuning issues such as worn/wonky frets, poor intonation, and neck relief. 02 SHIELD YOUR SINGLE COIL GUITAR Banish interference noise by lining your guitar’s electronics cavities with shielding tape. On a Strat, line the back of the pickguard too. The secret? All your shielding needs to be joined together electrically to create a circuit (called a Faraday cage), then connected to your guitar’s ground. Finally, make a connection from your shield to the bridge. 03 IMPROVE BOLT-ON NECK ANGLE Duff neck angle? A…

ERIC CLAPTONTRAILBLAZERS As a young guitarist, on the way to carving out his own gutsy blues rock sound in Rival Sons, Scott Holiday was heavily influenced by Eric Clapton. Like so many players, Scott cut his teeth learning rite-of-passage riffs such as Sunshine Of Your Love by Cream and Steppin’ Out from Clapton’s brief but hugely significant tenure with John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers. Speaking to TG during Rival Sons’ world tour in support of their new album Lightbringer, Scott hails Clapton as one of the most influential guitarists of all time, and explains why the Brit bluesman is an “ever-present force” in his own playing. Young Eric: Breaking the Blues in Britain and becoming ‘God’ There were English guys playing blues in the ’60s, but I think we all…

TRAILBLAZERS Eric Gales is no stranger to innovation. Over the last three decades he has managed to redefine the language of blues guitar with flair and finesse, drawing from all kinds of genres, styles and sounds to create a unique musical identity. In that regard, before you even factor in how Eric ended up using right-handed Strat-style guitars upside down, there are many comparisons to be drawn between him and Jimi Hendrix. Eric naturally counts Hendrix as one of his biggest influences alongside Eric Johnson, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Albert King. Here, he discusses why Jimi will never be topped in the annals of guitar greats… When you hear the name Jimi Hendrix, what are the first things you think of? It’s all about innovation. Jimi Hendrix was able to…

1 OPENHAGEN HANGERS If you’ve ever witnessed the terror of your guitar falling over, you’ll know the importance of a guitar stand. Openhagen’s range of guitar hangers is now available in the UK, and takes things a step further by giving you back your floor space. These elegant wall hangers are available in four wood types (oak, stained oak, cherry and walnut), they’re collapsable, and designed to work with any guitar featuring an asymmetrical headstock (like a Strat or Telecaster). £59 www.openhagen.com 2 ZOOM MS-50G+ Cramming over 100 effects into a single pedal, Zoom’s latest offering in its MS range is capable of storing 100 recallable presets, using up to six FX blocks per patch. There’s preamp modelling and speaker impulse responses too, plus an on-board tuner, colour-changing display (relating…

Fender’s legendary electrics tend to take centre stage when discussing the emerging guitar sounds of the early ’60s. So much so, that while the Californian guitar maker’s iconic models such as the Telecaster, Stratocaster and Jazzmaster enjoy their time in the sun, the company’s acoustics are sometimes relegated to the shadows, forgotten to time. Well, not anymore. Fender has decided to shed some light on their early acoustic creations by introducing the California Vintage Series. This retro-inspired range is populated by three distinct models, the Malibu, Palomino and the instrument we’re looking at here, the King. Snuggly sat in its vintage-style hard case with sunshine yellow interior, this all-solid dreadnought looks every bit as retro as the real deal – albeit without the awkward screwed-on pickguard and garish neck plate…

IN THE SPOTLIGHT Since the dawn of distortion, heavy music has been closely associated with catharsis and the release of negative emotions. But as Hawxx guitarists Anna Papadimitriou and Hannah Staphnill see it, metal has the potential to be all the more powerful, disruptive and healing if its intensity can be harnessed and redirected towards specific societal ills. “Metal is usually this blank canvas that people can project their feelings onto,” says Anna. “But we want to take that a step further and concentrate that catharsis specifically into feminist rage.” Their debut full-length record, Earth, Spit, Blood and Bones, does just that as it fuses Anna’s guttural seven-string riffs and Hannah’s “noisy, atmospheric squealing” with lyrical themes that decry violence against women and champion self-empowerment. The band also prioritises creating…

Mark Tremonti has had a hugely successful career as the guitarist in Alter Bridge and the recently reunited Creed. But as he admits: “Honestly, I wouldn’t be here right now if it wasn’t for Metallica and Master Of Puppets!” He now explains how his life was changed after hearing that classic album, and why down-picking has become one of his greatest strengths… What do you remember about your first time hearing Metallica? One of the most important Metallica tracks for me is Welcome Home (Sanitarium). When I heard my older brother playing that in the bedroom above me, I just couldn’t fall asleep. So I went up there asking, ‘What’s this song about a sanitarium?!’ He gave me Master Of Puppets and I did not sleep that night. I was…

As the creative visionary in Opeth, the Swedish band who started out making atmospheric death metal before moving further into the realms of progressive rock, Mikael Åkerfeldt knows a thing or two about embracing evolution and daring to dream. Much like Black Sabbath legend Tony Iommi, he’s guided his band through a smorgasbord of genres and sounds, away from their heavier roots and deep into the kaleidoscopic cosmic beyond... When we think of SG-wielding guitar gods, it’s usually either Tony Iommi or Angus Young who come to mind first… For me, it’s always Tony first. Then there’s Angus, Mick Box from Uriah Heep who used one for a while, and Jimmy Page with the double-neck. There’s even a famous picture of Jimi Hendrix using a white SG with a vibrola.…

After Edward Van Halen stunned the world with his fretboard pyrotechnics in the late ’70s, a new breed of technical guitarists rose up in the mid-’80s. One such player was Racer X/Mr. Big axeman Paul Gilbert, who is still considered one of the most advanced alternate pickers and most musical shredders to this day – using rapid-fire blues lines in tandem with lightning fast arpeggios. Paul now recalls how his life was changed by witnessing the magic of EVH live on stage, and how this served as an education in what it takes to be a guitar great… Eruption! I was lucky enough to see every Van Halen headline tour from 1979 until 1984. To be there in person was amazing. Because of technology changing and MTV coming out, the…

Thumb-over-the-neck barre chords Classical guitarists may balk, but Jimi’s ‘thumb over the neck’ barring technique allows him to position his fret hand in a way that those magical embellishments fall neatly under his fingers. It’s just a matter of wrapping your thumb round the neck to fret the sixth string instead of using your first finger to barre across all six strings. Try the basic G chord first, and hammer on to the extra notes for a Little Wing or Castles Made Of Sand vibe. Minor shapes The ‘thumb over the neck’ and one-finger barre techniques also apply to minor chords. Remember, Jimi would often play only two or three notes from each shape – an idea that allows you to ditch the occasional note you can’t easily reach and…

Ceilings appears on US singer-songwriter Lizzy McAlpine’s 2022 sophomore album Five Seconds Flat – a breakthrough song that catapulted her to international stardom after the video went viral on TikTok. Appearances on the Tiny Desk concert series and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon soon followed, establishing her as a major artist. Lizzy’s rhythm technique is controlled and focused, with her thumb taking strumming duties for a warm, less abrasive tone than when picked. The primary chords (Cadd9, Em7, G and D/F#) all share a D on the second string as their highest note. This creates a ‘pedal tone’, whereby the chords all “feel” more closely related to each other. Think of Wonderwall and you’ll get the idea. Check out YouTube for a solo performance on Lizzy’s channel, where there…

Before Fender made guitars they made amplifiers, with a heritage stretching all the way back to the ‘Woody’ designs of 1946 and even further, if you count the amps Leo made under the K&F brand during his short partnership with Clayton ‘Doc’ Kauffman. Ever since, the company that can arguably claim to have invented the first proper guitar amplifier has continued to innovate, not just with valves, but solid state and digital technologies too. Fender’s first modelling amp, the Cybertwin, wowed everyone when it appeared out of the blue in 2001, and their ongoing heavy investment in digital has paid off with other successes like the affordable Mustang and, more recently, the astonishing Tone Master range – which recreated some of Fender’s classic black-panel era designs, leveraging the latest heavy-duty…

REVIEW If you’ve ever fancied your own custom-made guitar, you’ll be aware such things don’t come cheap. But Jason Snelling, the one-man band that is Maybury Guitars, has come up with a neat spin on a custom build, using reclaimed materials and parts that he magically transforms into a hugely viable and individual build that comes in under £1,000. Meet the Upscaler! First off, our Upscaler uses Jason’s own Fish Hook S outline, an original spin on a Stratocaster with its hooked horns, a motif copied on the headstock. The body wood is spruce: reclaimed floor joists from a 1930s house that was being renovated. It uses a very rustic-looking finish that involves burning the outside of the wood (an old Japanese weathering process – shou sugi ban – that…

Catalysed by the plethora of regressive legal changes that have rocked the United States in recent years, Emily Wolfe is back with her third studio album – and this time, she’s pissed off. “It’s an intense record,” she tells TG, speaking from the room where she harnessed a storm of emotions into the 10-track explosion that is The Blowback. Reeling from the reversal of Roe v. Wade, the experience of protesting anti-trans/anti-LGBTQ+ legislation in her home state of Texas and learning to process deep personal trauma, Emily has delivered an album with the potential to resonate with the lived experiences of millions. “I wanted to write something that I felt would help not just myself heal from the insanity of the world right now,” she says, “but hopefully other people,…

She broke into uncharted territory with over 50 tunings… It used to be that tunings made logical sense. You’d think: ‘How can I play the chords I always play, but in a different tuning to allow me to do different technical things with my fingers?’ That’s where Joni started: messing about with open major chord tunings from the old blues tradition. The reason she was interested in them was because she had polio, and particularly her left hand could be really limited. She wanted to “paint” with sound, so she started to look at these tunings and experiment with them, moving the strings further apart from each other so that she had a bigger range or compositional matrix of pitches. …and devised her own system to keep track of them…

In her her solo work, American guitarist Nita Strauss is modern-voiced and metal-influenced in execution and production. But as a member of Alice Cooper’s band, cranking out classic rock hits with all the blues-based riffs and pentatonic solos that entails, it’s only natural that Nita has a deep appreciation for Jimmy Page’s work in Led Zeppelin and everything he has done to evolve guitar playing… When you hear the name Jimmy Page, what is the first thing that comes to mind? The first thing I think of when I hear that name is ‘innovator’. On guitar there are so many things that one person did first and a lot of the time that person is Jimmy Page. Whether it’s the crazy bow technique that he occasionally used or those really…

Standard picking Eddie’s picking technique is somewhat fluid, and he’d use both a ‘thumb and first finger’ approach, and what you see here – first and second fingers. Pick & fingers The adaptability in his technique ensured Eddie was always ready to use ‘pick and fingers’-style hybrid picking, as in Hot For Teacher. Tapping It also meant he could easily move his pick to the ‘instep’ of his second finger and use his first finger for tapping. Legato Eddie’s substantial finger stretches can be hard to achieve. Ultimately, efficient finger movements are the key to building speed and fluency. Harmonics Eddie uses a host of these techniques, from ‘natural’ type shown here, to pinched harmonics generated with a touch of the side of the thumb in the picking hand. Whammy…

CLASSIC TRACK Sweet Home Alabama was recorded by what many regard as the definitive Skynyrd line-up, with Gary Rossington, Ed King and Allen Collins all on guitar. With three guitarists, it’s important to be clear about who’s playing what, or the wrong kind of ‘wall of sound’ will quickly ensue. The three parts here are carefully arranged, making it easy to hear each line. The first thing you can hear is Ed King’s clean Strat playing the iconic intro, joined soon after by King’s overdubbed fills and solos. Allen Collins deftly doubles King’s rhythm, while Gary Rossington plays jangly contrasting chords. At several points, all three guitarists play the same part in unison. We’ve tabbed the lot, but we’ve left Allen and Gary’s rhythm parts on the backing mix for…

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 getting hung up on hokey mythology or nonsense marketing speak: we aim to bring you bullsh*t-free opinions on the gear you’re interested in. WE CAN’T BE BOUGHT TG review scores are a true reflection of our experts’ opinion on the product they’ve been testing. You’ll never find a rating in our mag that has been bought and paid for. REAL…

REVIEW Nothing breeds success like success, and Blackstar’s HT Venue series has been one of the world’s most successful mid-priced valve amp ranges since its introduction at 2010’s winter NAMM show. In 2016 and fully established as a market-leading range, the HT Venue amps received their critically-acclaimed first update. Now, roughly another seven years on and two years since the passing of co-founder and Technical Director Bruce Keir, the HT Venue series is once again reborn and rejuvenated, like the BBC’s famous Time Lord. What’s new? Well, on the outside of our HT Club 40 combo, there’s a smart new badge and generally tweaked cosmetics, giving the MKIII a classy, boutique vibe. The clean channel offers volume, bass and treble controls, while the overdrive channel sports a three-band EQ together…