Guitar World

Sophie Lloyd: “Trolls got me down, so I made a ‘shredding to Justin Bieber‘ video as a retort. You can shred over anything you want!” The six-string social media phenom talks online shredding, her love of high-gain guitar tones and her approach to breaking down the classics

Steve Vai held a guitar chord for so long he had to undergo surgery The virtuoso reveals he “won't be able to play for a while” after going under the knife for trigger finger

Fender unveils stunning 2021 Custom Shop Prestige Collection One-off Master Built creations include the Sugar Surprise Strat, Acrylic Jazzmaster and Double Neck Marauder

Brittany Howard: “Sister Rosetta Tharpe created rock and roll as we know it” The Alabama Shakes leader and solo artist talks Tharpe’s significance and her unpredictable jams with Prince

Latest News

Tom Morello reveals why he never cuts the ends of his guitar strings

By Matt Owen

A budding young Morello was once told he had to be in the "baddest band in town" if he wanted to leave his strings uncut

The Pick Puck might be the smartest pick-holding solution yet

By Sam Roche

Thalia Capos' latest accessory uses micro-suction technology that mimics the surface of a gecko's foot

Way Huge and Joe Bonamassa join forces for new Penny Saver Royale Modulation and Overdrive pedal

By Matt Owen

The new pedal puts JoBo's favorite Way Huge effects into one housing, offering up high-gain Overrated Special Overdrive tones and layered Blue Hippo Chorus modulations

Lzzy Hale and an all-star group cover Pantera

Watch Lzzy Hale cover Pantera's Mouth For War with members of Baroness, Code Orange

By Jackson Maxwell

Playing Pantera on a Tele? The latest Two Minutes to Late Night quarantine video jam proves it can be done, and done incredibly well

Line 6 unleashes expanded version of its celebrated HX Stomp multi-effects pedal, the HX Stomp XL

By Matt Owen

The latest addition to the hugely popular Helix pedal lineup boasts five additional footswitches and features over 300 amp, cab and effects sounds

Fender expands its Artist Signature Series with new Ben Gibbard Mustang

By Sam Roche

The model recreates the Death Cab for Cutie frontman's modified '70s Mustangs, adding several modern appointments

Google's Tone Transfer uses AI to transform your guitar into a saxophone, trumpet, flute or violin

By Matt Owen

Andy Ferris of The Guitar Geek YouTube channel puts the sound-sculpting site through its paces, turning Stairway to Heaven's lead line into a sax solo

Justin Johnson demos the Baldacci Bighorn

Watch blues master Justin Johnson try out the ultra-responsive Baldacci Bighorn – and even help him name the guitar’s finish

By Richard Bienstock

Offset double-cut model boasts maple top, dual “Mountain” humbuckers and much more

Post-rock giants God Is An Astronaut give First Day of Sun and Luminous Waves an acoustic reimagining in these exclusive playthroughs

By Sam Roche

Jamie Dean and Torsten Kinsella demonstrate the unplugged potential of two of their most emotive tracks

Mick Fleetwood open to Fleetwood Mac reunion for farewell tour after building bridges with Lindsey Buckingham

By Matt Owen

"That has always been my vision and I am flatly confident that we can do that," says the Fleetwood Mac drummer

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Latest Features

How to build a pedalboard on a budget

By Chris Schwarten

For around $500 it's possible to build a fully-functional budget pedalboard, including pedals, cables and even the 'board itself

The 10 best budget guitar amps under $500 for 2021: affordable amps for new players and home practice

By Michael Astley-Brown

Get great sounds and features without blowing your budget – from affordable tube amps to wallet-friendly digital modeling amps and everything in between

Buck Dharma decodes the myriad styles behind Blue Öyster Cult's first new album in almost 20 years, The Symbol Remains

By Puneet Singh

”The current lineup has really come into its own... It just got to be criminal not to record it”

10 best pedal amps 2021: Including the top amp simulator pedals

By Chris Schwarten

As the best pedal amps prove, bigger doesn’t always mean better. Here we round-up top-rated pedal amps from Hughes & Kettner, Seymour Duncan and others

Musical director and bassist Adam Blackstone reveals how the spectacular Super Bowl 60 half-time show came together

By Bass Player Staff

Carefully directing sets by J-Lo and Shakira for 100 million sports fans, while playing bass at the same time... Tough gig

[L-R] Adam Christianson and Josh Middleton

Architects: “Some of the most fun we had on this record was without guitars… although guitarists might not want to hear that!”

By Amit Sharma

Adam Christianson and Josh Middleton talk the gear, guest stars and film score influences that forge expansive new album, For Those That Wish To Exist

Plini: "I’m really happy with everything on this record, which I don’t think has ever happened before"

By Matt Doria

Ironically, very little of the material on Impulse Voices – the long-awaited second album from scene-leading prog-rocker Plini – came from impulse. Instead a result of long, introspective stretches of time off-tour, the album shows a whole new side of the Sydney-based instrumentalist.

Tony Iommi names his top 5 Dio-era Black Sabbath riffs

By Greg Prato

Ahead of the reissues of two classic Ronnie James Dio-fronted Black Sabbath albums, the godfather of heavy metal takes a trip down memory lane

10 best beginner bass guitars 2021: our pick of the best four-string bass guitars for beginners

By Jonathan Horsley

The best beginner basses for young players, newcomers and the budget-conscious – featuring Yamaha, Squier, Ibanez and more

Gargoyl's Dave Davidson: "I like to have some technicality to my solos, but for me it’s more of a storytelling element now"

By Gregory Adams

This multifaceted new band’s brooding songcraft has Revocation axeman Dave Davidson re-evaluating shred

Latest Lessons

4 guitar tricks you can learn from Gary Clark Jr.

By Richard Barrett

Throwing some curveballs in among old-school John Lee Hooker callbacks, Clark's style is fresh, vital and liberating

Molly Tuttle performs at War Memorial Auditorium during AMERICANAFEST 2019 on September 13, 2019 in Nashville, Tennessee.

Molly Tuttle shows you how to play traditional bluegrass lines and Over the Line

By Molly Tuttle

Bluesy, chromatic licks are on the menu with this exercise in old-school bluegrass methodology

Shake up your leads with these one-string bend techniques

By Andy Aledort

Mastering precise bends on the B string can offer new ideas for pentatonic solos

4 guitar tricks you can learn from Jeff Beck

By Richard Barrett

Taking a closer look at Beck's Les Paul era, during the '60s British Invasion

Refresh your lead playing with Vinnie Moore's guide to superimposing triads within soloing sequences

By Vinnie Moore

This lesson will help you cast aside your go-to licks and think deeper about tonality

Molly Tuttle teaches you how to play Good Enough

By Molly Tuttle

Often performed unaccompanied, Good Enough will teach you to embellish chords with single-note melodies

How to use alternating four- and five-note patterns to add intrigue to your solos

By Vinnie Moore

Vinnie Moore shares his approach to adding a taste of the unexpected when playing lead guitar

A close up of guitarist Bill Frisell's hands as he performs on stage with The Bill Frisell Trio during a soundcheck, Rome, Italy, 10 July 2019. He is playing a Gibson SG guitar fitted with a Bigsby vibrato unit.

Create twists and turns in your solos with four-note 7th-chord arpeggios

By Andy Aledort

Expand your understanding by incorporating chromaticism and a “scalar” approach

How creating chains of dotted-eighth syncopations can revolutionize your rhythm playing

By Jimmy Brown

It's time to go against the grain with some tricky rhythmic phrasing

4 guitar tricks you can learn from Rory Gallagher

By Richard Barrett

Touch and feel is everything when trying to master the late Irish blues-rock maestro's style