Latest articles by Matt Owen
Bill Kelliher on what started Mastodon’s Silverburst love affair
A jilted Les Paul and a chance trip to a guitar store set Kelliher on the way to a life-long affection for the finish
Fender launches first Squier Paranormal signature guitar, the Troy Van Leeuwen Telecaster XII
The budget model is based on the Custom Shop 12-string Van Leeuwen used with Queens of the Stone Age, Iggy Pop and Michael Stipe
Why Greta Van Fleet’s Jake Kiszka thinks more guitarists should be using combo amps
Kiszka says combo amps could help you sound better as a player
Kiss have “recorded a great new song that Paul wrote”, says Tommy Thayer
Thayer says rumors that Kiss are busy working on new songs behind the scenes are true
My pick of the best guitar gear launched this week
Big new drops from Gibson, IK Multimedia, ESP and Ibanez headline this week's roundup
Headless pioneer Strandberg is developing a guitar with a headstock for a mystery player
The radical design experiment will feature modular parts and interchangeable components
IK Multimedia’s touchscreen TONEX Board is its most ambitious modeler to date – and it’s biting at the heels of its biggest rivals
The sub-$1k modeler puts the entire TONEX ecosystem into one pedal and looks like a dangerous competitor
Phil X on the time his pedals died moments before opening for Steel Panther
The guitarist was going through a battery phase when a forgetful tech left him in the lurch
Bruce Springsteen shares the mods and mysteries of his Born to Run Fender Telecaster
Springsteen features in a new star-packed documentary celebrating the 75th anniversary of the Telecaster
One of the biggest brands in acoustic guitar tone just changed its name
The identity shift marks a new era for LR Baggs
Footage of Les Paul’s destroyed home surfaces after iconic studio was quietly ripped down
The legendary laboratory was where Les Paul pioneered some of modern music’s greatest advancements
Pete Townshend pulls out of Eric Clapton’s Crossroads Guitar Festival due to injury
Townshend has also quietly confirmed a reunion with The Who is in the works
![GW Aug 26 Editor's Picks [L-R]: Johnny Marr, Kele Okereke, Grace Bowers, Tim Henson, Phoebe Bridgers](https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/XzxK468Th8bnWsFFdxo92L-840-80.jpg.webp)
Guitar World Editors’ Picks – our favorite tracks this month
Featuring a tongue-in-cheek single from a certain Rivers Cuomo, a dash of microtonal pop, and jangly riffs from a very charming man
John Mayer pays tribute to Dolly Parton with instrumental I Will Always Love You cover
Mayer included a short tribute to the Queen of Country during his SiriusXM concert at the Stephen Talkhouse
Guitar Center unveils Crossroads 2026 collection with limited-edition Eric Clapton and John Mayer models
An exclusive PRS Silver Sky that will see action at the festival and a recreation of Clapton's Blind Faith Telecaster headline the drop
Gibson launches its first baritone in a decade – and it’s got all-new pickups
The latest entry to the revived Victory line takes Gibson further into extended-range territory
Polyphia announce new album Be Not Afraid, delay North American tour dates
New single Power in the Blood is out now
“The leading mini-modeler has reached another level”: Neural DSP Quad Cortex mini review
Its CorOS 4.1.0 firmware update raises the level of an already highly impressive multi-effects and amp modeler
Sleep Token’s first signature guitars have landed – and IV’s custom Jackson baritone has been brought to the masses
The arena-filling contemporary metal heroes have been honored with signature models from for two of its anonymous members in a historic Jackson and Charvel launch
John Mayer’s Neural DSP plugin joins the Quad Cortex as part of biggest firmware update in company’s history
A load of signature plugins and key workflow improvements have been added to the Quad Cortex and Quad Cortex mini
Hotone’s do-it-all Pulze Jr. is set to be the most fully-featured practice amp for under $300
With the latest in digital amp technology and cutting-edge AI features, this smart combo could be the only practice amp you’ll ever need
Carlos Alomar’s hazy first encounter with Paul McCartney
The session veteran provided some finishing tracks on Press to Play after a rather indulgent first encounter bonding with the Beatle
How a Fender Strat anniversary event led to Queen’s first world tour since Freddie Mercury’s death
From The Archive May shared the Strat Pack stage with a singer whose performance convinced him to get the Queen machine up and running again
