Latest Features
“I think about Van Halen a lot. I have to play some treacherous licks, so I need the right kind of inspiration. I’m overplaying to an extent – it’s gotta be huge and bombastic”: Brendon Small on writing Dethklok’s brutal final act
You can cancel Dethklok but you can't kill them. As the world's biggest fictional metal band return, Small reveals how he takes inspiration from Reb Beach and Eddie Van Halen, why stand-up comedy helped his guitar performance, and what he hopes to learn from Nili Brosh
“You’re always trying to get rid of buzzes when recording, so I came up with the idea of trying to make them groove instead”: How Victor Wooten created a groove without touching his bass guitar
Victor Wooten gives a track-by-track tour of his second solo album, What Did He Say?
“They counted me in and I ripped through the first solo that came to mind. They stopped the tape, and Paul Stanley went, ‘Dude… will you wear high heels?’” Steve Farris on his close call with Kiss before he formed Mr. Mister (who he might rejoin)
Starting out with a $5 guitar and spending $25 on a life-changing lesson from Joe Pass, Farris is no longer professional – but could be persuaded to go round again
“I never really loved just playing chords. They eat up so much space, sonically and rhythmically. Doing things that were sparse was more effective to me”: Dante DeCaro on firing up his Jazzmasters for his Hot Hot Heat return
The reissue of the Canadian pop-rock quartet’s Make Up the Breakdown led to surprise new single Shock Me, and there’s more to come, says the Wolf Parade guitarist
“In trying to make this huge sound, she ended up with this ‘one-person band’ approach that was completely different to the guitarists that’d gone before”: Jon Gomm on how Joni Mitchell changed progressive acoustic guitar forever
One acoustic hero pays tribute to another, with Gomm pinpointing the pioneering approaches championed by Mitchell that make her one of the most influential acoustic players of all time
“When someone wants to rehearse before the session, that’s the kiss of death”: Watch Lee Sklar’s playthrough of Steve Lukather’s Stab in the Back
Bass legend Lee Sklar used his “Frankenstein 4-string” on Lukather’s 2008 nod to Donald Fagen
“I've always played with a pick, but up until the fifth Foo Fighters record, I never played downstrokes”: How Nate Mendel changed the way he played bass to “support Dave’s songs as best as possible”
From the Bass Player Archive: An interview with Foo Fighters bassist Nate Mendel
Tired? Bored? Small hands? These are the top 8 excuses for avoiding guitar practice – and how to beat them
A revealing (and possibly triggering) compilation of excuses for not practicing guitar
10 mistakes every beginner guitarist makes
From gear choices to learning paths, these are the most common beginner guitar faux pas that every new player makes – and how you can avoid them
“The process with Robert was so intense – I feel like I helped create almost a new genre with King Crimson with each piece of music we made”: Trey Gunn on what he learned from Robert Fripp – and how to tame the Warr Guitar
The 10-string instrument isn’t actually a guitar, says the former King Crimson member – and he doesn’t plan to ever stop exploring it in improv groups like Tu-Ner
