Guitar World’s tracks of the month – our editors pick their guitar highlights
Featuring tortuous djent riffs, an 8-bit party rocker, Phoebe Bridgers’ grungiest song to date, a massive shoegaze soundscape, and Steven Wilson’s latest prog opus
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Guitar World’s tracks of the month – our editors pick their guitar highlights
Featuring tortuous djent riffs, an 8-bit party rocker, Phoebe Bridgers’ grungiest song to date, a massive shoegaze soundscape, and Steven Wilson’s latest prog opus
Players have asked for it for years. Now, Strymon has put one of its most celebrated tape circuits into a standalone pedal for the first time with the La Brea
Lifting the most cherished elements of the beloved tape saturation and double-tracker, La Brea takes things even further
Eric Clapton, John Mayer, Susan Tedeschi, Joe Bonamassa, Billy Gibbons, Jimmie Vaughan and more to celebrate Buddy Guy's 90th birthday with an unmissable concert: Here's how to watch Buddy's Got The Blues from anywhere
A who's who of guitar icons to pay tribute to a living blues legend for a once-in-a-lifetime, livestreamed concert
How Eric Clapton felt when he auctioned off his legendary Stratocaster – and why it was ultimately worth it
Clapton sold his Strat and a host of other iconic guitars to raise money for an important cause
John Mayer announces Sphere residency – featuring three distinct sets and the return of his blues-rock trio
It's Mayer's first Vegas residency as a solo act following his tenure with Dead & Company, and is set to kick off in April 2027
Rick Nielsen’s guitars are going up for auction – including his bonkers five-neck Hamer
The Cheap Trick star’s collection will be auctioned off in aid of charity, and also features his 1975 Hamer Standard electric, his workhorse in the ’70s and ’80s
Eddie Vedder lets Irish band play his guitar on stage after all their gear was stolen
The Pearl Jam frontman found a new slot on his Ohana Festival lineup for the hotly touted Irish rock band and gave them a guitar for the show
Artists
Laurence Juber on his bass lesson from Paul McCartney and the making of Wings’ 1979 swan song
As a Beatles fan, Laurence Juber was living the dream working with Paul McCartney, and with Denny Laine, formed a formidable team to support him on guitar for Back to the Egg
A degenerative nerve condition forced Amit Dattani to hang up his acoustic. A custom electric guitar saved his playing
Fans of Mississippi John Hurt and Big Bill Broonzy need to check the fingerstyle heroics of Amit Dattani, who is charting the blues’ future by exploring its past
“Crazy things happen when we play this song. Someone was crowdsurfing and threw out their prosthetic leg for me to sign”: How Drowning Pool made Bodies
Guitarist C.J. Pierce on how the life-changing 2001 track went from funk demo to nu-metal classic, and what people don’t understand about the song
The quintessentially French, impossibility brilliant Pierre Bensusan on the freedom of DADGAD and unpredictable magic of performance
We caught up with Pierre on the British leg of his current tour to discuss how to play guitar with freedom, heart and soul – without letting nerves or ego trip you up
How Jimmy Fallon’s bassist bonded with Bruce Springsteen over their shared love of 6-string bass
The Roots bassist Owen Biddle reveals how his 6-string bass caught the ear of Bruce Springsteen and Steven Van Zandt during his time on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
Tony Levin’s lessons from Steve Vai, Robert Fripp and Peter Gabriel
Goes to 11 The BEAT man charts his career from upright to his first Fender, sessions with Lou Reed and Alice Cooper, and the instrument you might be surprised to know he plays…
How George Thorogood stumbled across the Gibson that became his go-to guitar – a week before his first gig with the Destroyers
Thorogood recounts how he originally opted for a now-discontinued hollowbody – with a little inspiration from the Beatles and Keith Richards
Industrial metal pioneer Justin Broadrick on his punk salvation, Phoebe Bridgers collabs and burying Godflesh
In a rare interview, Broadrick opens up about how his autism shaped his career, his council estate beginnings, the terror that kept him off the road and what life after Godflesh holds
Gear
Eastman Kauffmann Series SC Classic review – individual new design
Another sharp-looking model from the Eastman stable, hailing from across the North Sea in Holland and built from super-lightweight Oregon pine
"It's a bit of an acquired taste, aesthetically": Washburn Scavenger SB4R review
A classic US brand shows some new signs of life…
Best mini amps for guitar 2026: power up your practice with these tiny towers of tone
My top picks of small guitar amps that pack a punch and let you practice when you're short on space
Best boost pedals 2026: lift your tone, push your tube amp and cut through the mix
Best boost pedals 2026: including the best clean boost pedals for guitar Vamp up your tone with the best boost pedals for guitarists, as well as the best clean boost pedals for making your electric guitar solos really sing
Why the neck-to-body join has a major impact on the way your acoustic guitar plays and sounds
Pondering the neck-to-body join on your next acoustic guitar? You’re not alone – we assesses this aspect of the acoustic's critical infrastructure
Behind the scenes at Well Strung Guitars – Farmingdale, NY's emporium of vintage treasures
Co-founder Paige Davidson offers GW some guitar-buying advice and tells us what makes Well Strung Guitars a special place to find your dream vintage guitar
Meet the Formula 1 engineer who started his own boutique tube amp brand, Woodfield Amplifiers
Mark Woodward tells us why he swapped F1 for tube amps and breaks down his debut build, the EL84-powered AFON 20
Lessons
Alex Skolnick shares his legato secrets – and how Holdsworth made the technique his own
Returning as a GW columnist after a 30-year gap, Alex Skolnick is wasting no time with a lesson that'll expand your scalar vocab and work on your legato
Charlie Starr on why choosing the right guitar for the song makes all the difference
The Blackberry Smoke frontman on how sometimes it’s the guitar's tone that’ll unlock the secret to the song
“The most common mistake is thinking it’s an out-of-tune guitar”: What people get wrong about microtonal music
You might think Angine de Poitrine are pioneering a new form of composition. They’re actually popularizing a very ancient approach to creativity
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5 ways to make the C chord much more interesting
Because guitarists are limited by fretboard geometry, it pays to get creative with chord voicings – as Jimi Hendrix and Nile Rodgers show, clever inversions can make rhythm parts pop
If you learn one thing from Johnny Marr it should be this…
The Smiths’ chord secrets revealed
Joe Bonamassa on how to saddle up a capo and get more out of your cowboy chords
The blues maestro demonstrates how a change of key can change your perspective and give your chord work new life
Charlie Starr on how the acoustic guitar can play a vital role in songwriting
Strumming a few chords is all it takes to open up a world of possibilities for new songs, and here the Blackberry Smoke frontman shows us how
Reviews
Eastman Kauffmann Series SC Classic review – individual new design
Another sharp-looking model from the Eastman stable, hailing from across the North Sea in Holland and built from super-lightweight Oregon pine
"It's a bit of an acquired taste, aesthetically": Washburn Scavenger SB4R review
A classic US brand shows some new signs of life…
“Truly an amp improver – you’d instantly miss it if you turned it off”: ThorpyFX Kudu review
Named after a huge antelope, the colourful new ThorpyFX drive pedal is a versatile tone-enhancer designed for stacking
“A game-changer? In some ways, absolutely”: Steadfast Stopbar review
If you have a guitar with a stopbar tailpiece, this changes everything
“Something genuinely original in a world of copies”: Steelyjam Delta Junior review
Is aluminum the future of guitar bodies? We put the Steelyjam Delta Junior, a hollow metal double cut with a single P-90, to the test
"Expensive, but it may be the only guitar plugin you ever need": Line 6 Helix Stadium Native review
Following the launch of the Line Helix Stadium hardware, it's now Native's turn for a glow-up.
“I can’t help but spend time admiring the guitar every time I pick it up.” Epiphone Futura ES-355 review
Epiphone iterates on the classic ES-355 with some stunning finishes and modern appointments
Buying Guides
Best mini amps for guitar 2026: power up your practice with these tiny towers of tone
My top picks of small guitar amps that pack a punch and let you practice when you're short on space
Best boost pedals 2026: lift your tone, push your tube amp and cut through the mix
Best boost pedals 2026: including the best clean boost pedals for guitar Vamp up your tone with the best boost pedals for guitarists, as well as the best clean boost pedals for making your electric guitar solos really sing
Best combo amps 2026: all-in-one tone, power, and versatility
From stage-ready tube icons to powerful digital modellers, here's our pick of expert-tested combos for every budget and playing style
Best 12-string guitars 2026: our pick of 12-string acoustic and electric guitars
Our expert guide to the best 12-string guitars from Taylor, Rickenbacker, Fender, and others
Best guitars for kids 2026: top electric and acoustic guitars for children
The top kid’s guitars available today and everything you need to know to get your child started with the guitar
Best reverb pedals 2026: from spring to shimmer, these are our top picks for your pedalboard
Take a deep dive into the cavernous world of 'verb and explore the best reverb pedals for every budget
Best signature guitars 2026: artist-endorsed electrics for every style
Discover the best signature guitars tested by the experts at Guitar World, with options from PRS, Epiphone, Ibanez, and Fender for every budget and style
