Latest articles by Amit Sharma
“I’d like to remind all the perfectionist guitar nerds to listen to Jimmy Page’s solo on In the Evening. It sounds like the guitar is falling down the stairs… It’s brilliant”: Soundgarden’s Kim Thayil dissects his “dangerous” approach to guitar playing
The Soundgarden guitarist looks back on his most iconic riffs and solos, as well as the gear and tunings that guided him deep into the creative superunknown
9 ways to get more from your amp modeler and multi-effects pedals
Going digital presents guitarists with more options than ever before. We take a look at some easy ways to exploit DSP power to help you find better tone
“Buckethead made me want to explore the idea of using a kill switch. I love how creative you can get”: How John 5 revolutionized one of Fender’s oldest guitar designs with the Ghost Telecaster
The Mötley Crüe gunslinger explains how fashion brand Supreme inspired his latest signature guitar, what makes his favorite pickups ideal for everything from country to metal – and why no-one is a bigger Buckethead fan than he is
“Every guitarist should be in search of their toothpaste tone!” Larkin Poe explain how good guitar tone can make your playing better
Roots rock sister duo Megan and Rebecca Lovell on what makes drive pedals essential for shaping your soloing, why even blues players shouldn’t dismiss amp modelers – and what toothpaste tone actually is…
8 ways to get more from your guitar amp
How to find new sounds and rekindle your love affair with your amp
“We know amps and guitars are important, but your own DNA is bigger than that”: Nuno Bettencourt on why, when it comes to tone, your personality always comes first
The Extreme guitarist drops some tone wisdom and explains why you should be looking for a rig that gets out of your way and lets you be you
“Hearing Jaco Pastorius changed my life. I took the frets out of my first bass because of Jaco! He could make you like the bass, whether you liked it or not”: Victor Wooten names 10 bassists who shaped his sound
One of the bass guitar’s all-time greats on how Béla Fleck got him into Paul McCartney, the time Stanley Clarke sent him a broken bass string, and why Marcus Miller is “so good, he can play on something and you won’t know it’s him”
“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
