Latest articles by Amit Sharma
“Some of what you practice should sound s**t, because then you know you’re working on something that needs to be worked on”: Guthrie Govan on the art of improvisation – and how to make practice as effective as possible
The Aristocrats virtuoso is one of the finest guitar players of our generation, so when he offers advice on becoming a better player, we listen
“We’re doing this because Black Sabbath did it. Neil Young did it. Van Halen did it. Are you going to tell Eddie Van Halen he wasn’t playing guitar properly?” Soundgarden’s Kim Thayil recalls his battles with drop-D trolls
Thayil brought drop-D tuning to the mainstream with the grunge guitar revolution – but he had to contend with “purists and nitwits who would write into guitar magazines saying, ‘Drop D is cheating; you’re not really playing if you do that!’”
“The picking speed on that open A is insane”: YouTube’s go-to guitar teacher Marty Schwartz reveals the hardest track he’s had to teach
The online teacher has been pondering the most challenging lessons he’s recorded and says one song left him stumped
“If you have a semi-hollow with a tube amp and overdrive pedal, and you set it all up correctly, you can get your guitar to ring out forever”: Melanie Faye is bringing a new voice to virtuosic neo-soul guitar – and her own signature chord
The R&B guitarist and producer talks us through her new D’Angelico signature model, her unique approach to neo-soul guitar and how Wes Montgomery and Joe Pass inspired her love of semi-hollows
“To put it simply: no Beatles, no George, no me. I still feel very privileged to have called him a friend”: Bernie Marsden on the genius of George Harrison
In this previously unpublished interview, the late Whitesnake guitar great recalls how the Beatles’ lead guitarist inspired him to pick up the instrument in the first place: “The word ‘lead’ grabbed my attention immediately – I liked the idea of being a leader very much...”
“Every rock band is trying to write their own Seven Nation Army riff... It’s nice when you write something powerful that even a beginner could learn”: Simplicity is the key to a good guitar anthem – just ask Skindred’s Mikey Demus
The enterprising guitarist discusses his love of UK guitar brands, pedalboard epiphanies, and how he ended up forming a pedal company with the “best pedal designer” in Britain
“We’re not taking the p***, playing silly rock riffs. I work hard to honor the original players”: How prog icon Robert Fripp ended up covering – and loving – Megadeth, Metallica and Slipknot
The King Crimson leader’s madcap Sunday Lunch video series with wife Toyah Willcox saw him tackle some of the biggest rock and metal songs of all time – and return to standard tuning after 35 years away. He shares the similarities between his and Dave Mustaine’s guitar style, why Kirk Hammett is such a “stunning player”, and what happened when ZZ Top pulled the plug on King Crimson…
“When I flick the pickup selector, it turns my bass into a Stratocaster!” Mike Kerr on how he broke all the bass rules for his signature Fender Jaguar – and why his “lack of ability” is key to Royal Blood’s astronomical success
His earthquaking live sound is bigger than most other bassists and guitarists combined, and now Kerr has a signature bass worthy of his epic tone. He reveals the secrets behind his rig, why shredding won’t conquer arenas, and what makes short-scale basses “feel like the 10-kilo vest has been taken off”
“It suddenly made me feel so mature. I remember getting the shivers! It was not death metal”: How Jimmy Page, Stevie Wonder, Grand Theft Auto III and Steven Wilson helped Opeth become modern-day prog icons
20 years on, Mikael Åkerfeldt looks back at Opeth’s evolution from death metal heavyweights to prog mainstays on landmark 2003 album Damnation
Kramer Dave Mustaine Vanguard review – if shredding is your business... then business is good
The Megadeth main man's signature Kramer V might just be the most metal MegaDave model yet
Epiphone Dave Mustaine Flying V Prophecy review – the most versatile Mustaine model ever made
The Megadeth main man has three mid-priced signature Flying Vs on the market, but none can deliver the remarkable range of tones summoned by this Fishman-loaded monster
“Fenders give me so much versatility – I can go from rock to cumbia to funk to salsa to vallenato to metal”: He’s one of Colombia’s biggest-selling artists – now Juanes has a signature Stratocaster as multitalented as he is
The multiple Grammy winner on the touching story behind his all-new Luna White finish, how he landed a spot on The Metallica Blacklist after getting Lars Ulrich’s seal of approval, and what he learned from John Mayer’s guitar tutor
Epiphone Dave Mustaine Flying V Custom review – a metal-tailored V that virtually plays itself
MegaDave's signature 24-fret V reveals itself as a serious metal guitar at any price
“The first guitar that I really fell in love with was a Les Paul – going to Gibson felt very full circle because that’s where I started”: Mark Morton on his future with the guitar giant, his enviable vintage collection and touring with Pantera
The Lamb of God guitarist has big things in the works at Gibson: he discusses parting ways with Jackson, his favorite vintage guitars and the Les Paul that started it all
“Marty Friedman taught me to pick phrases that help tell the story. Resist the temptation to use your songs to show off your fastest licks”: Nita Strauss on how she stepped up her game for The Call of the Void
Nita Strauss can shred with the best of them, but her new solo album features ‘radio songs’ with guest-star vocalists – plus a showdown with mentor Marty Friedman
“I feel like every song has a tapping lick at some point!”: Wolfgang Van Halen on embracing solos – and his dad’s iconic gear – for the boundary-pushing Mammoth II
Wolfgang Van Halen is taking his playing to a whole new level on his second album as Mammoth WVH: he tells us about honing his technique, how djent shaped his rhythmic approach, and the likelihood of a Van Halen tribute show
The greatest guitar solos of the 21st century... so far
Featuring every kind of guitar hero – from old-school to cutting‑edge. And not one but two Van Halens…
“It felt like going fully digital would force me to think in new ways”: Guthrie Govan on his tech revolution and why he wrote a song about a rockhopper penguin
Don't worry, folks. Govan might have gone 100 percent digital on stage, but he hasn't forgotten about the fans in the front row who want to feel some air move
Wolfgang Van Halen explains the technique quirk he inherited from Eddie Van Halen
It's all over his most recent single, Take a Bow, but Wolfgang's approach to tapping is unlike many others – and he has his father to thank for that
“There were just ideas pouring out of him… then he got on that helicopter and took off”: The legacy of Stevie Ray Vaughan, and what could have been
How SRV followed Texas Flood, wrestled blues guitar from the club to MTV and became the guitar hero everyone wanted to copy – all before passing too soon
This unassuming guitar teacher’s epic America’s Got Talent audition went viral. Here’s how he landed – and nailed – the gig of a lifetime
John Wines, aka Old Grey Guitarist, has over 1m followers on TikTok and blew audiences away with his Brian May and Eddie Van Halen-channeling audition. He tells us how he put together the perfect rock-guitar showcase, and the secret to bossing the electric guitar’s greatest solos on social media
“With those thicker strings he used, it was like he was in a battle, fighting them with his fingers”: How Stevie Ray Vaughan made Texas Flood
Texas Flood is a touchstone of blues guitar and Double Trouble drummer Chris Layton witnessed the magic first hand. He looks back on how SRV's Popeye strength and god-like tone made for a classic
His playing took Eric Clapton’s breath away and David Bowie called him the most exciting guitarist since Jeff Beck: how Stevie Ray Vaughan became a blues guitar hero
Inside the rise of the Jimi Hendrix-worshipping Stratocaster master, who delivered some of the greatest solos and tones in guitar history
