Articles by Matt Owen, Senior Staff Writer, GuitarWorld.com

Matt is a Senior Staff Writer, writing for Guitar World, Guitarist and Total Guitar. He has a Masters in the guitar, a degree in history, and has spent the last 16 years playing everything from blues and jazz to indie and pop. When he’s not combining his passion for writing and music during his day job, Matt records for a number of UK-based bands and songwriters as a session musician.

Articles by: Matt Owen

“It’s more important than ever that the music-making community has access to affordable musical instruments”: Fender has launched its first-ever Certified Pre-Owned program on Reverb – and it will sell pro-inspected, Fender-backed used gear at a discount

By Matt Owen published 21 August 24

New second-hand instruments will be added to the online store every week, and each item will be professionally checked, refurbished if necessary, and sold with a one-year warranty

“The most authentic emulation of the amp ever placed in a stompbox”: Universal Audio repackages Eddie Van Halen’s iconic Peavey 5150 in pedal form – with a built-in noise gate and overdrive

By Matt Owen published 20 August 24

The latest entry to Universal's The Edge-backed, highly praised pedal amp family sets its sights on harnessing the tones of an influential modern metal and heavy rock stalwart

“Randy has completed his time with Gibson as Master Designer and Pioneer of Mesa/Boogie”: Gibson confirms the departure of legendary amp designer and Mesa/Boogie founder Randall Smith

By Matt Owen published 20 August 24

The influential boutique amp builder joined the Gibson family of brands following the firm's acquisition of Mesa/Boogie in 2021

“Brings the all-in-one workhorse to more players than ever before”: Sterling by Music Man disrupts the entry-level guitar market with new Intro Series – debuting $199 Cutlass and $249 StingRay models

By Matt Owen published 20 August 24

The firm looks to take on the beginner gear market's more established models with a range of nicely spec'd – and nice-looking – affordable electric and bass guitars

Phil Collen of Def Leppard performs onstage during the "Summer Stadium" tour at Truist Park on July 13, 2024 in Atlanta, Georgia

“It’s got the fattest neck Jackson has ever made… I said, ‘Am I going to be able to play this thing?’” Jackson has made Phil Collen a Tele-style model with a neck twice as thick as a regular guitar’s – and a signature version could be in the pipeline

By Matt Owen published 20 August 24

The Def Leppard guitarist has remained loyal to Strat-style models for much of his career, but he's developed a new affinity for single-cuts

“I wanted to start playing Epiphones because of the Beatles”: Noel Gallagher’s Definitely Maybe Les Paul is going to auction – and it could sell for more than $100,000

By Matt Owen published 19 August 24

The humble Cherry Sunburst single-cut can be seen in the Oasis music video for Supersonic

“Rory was in a state of shock and couldn’t bring himself to step on stage. Afterwards he said, ‘It was lovely, but never do this to me again’”: That time Rory Gallagher got crippling stage fright because he was performing in front of his guitar hero

By Matt Owen published 16 August 24

Gallagher's brother secretly invited one of Rory's biggest heroes to attend a show at the Royal Albert Hall – and even had him introduce the blues rock legend to the stage

“He said, ‘Take this cassette home and see if you can come up with something.’ I plugged the Destroyer straight into the Marshall and that’s what came out”: Phil Collen's first Def Leppard solo is one of his most famous – and he did it in one take

By Matt Owen published 16 August 24

Recruited by Def Leppard in 1982, Collen was put straight to work on Pyromania, and contributed a rather notable lead effort he nailed in one go

Ernie Ball Music Man Jason Richardson Cutlass HT

“Tailored for today's guitar virtuosos”: Ernie Ball Music Man has given Jason Richardson’s signature Cutlass a serious upgrade, with some potentially game-changing pickups

By Matt Owen published 15 August 24

The prog virtuoso's latest signatures make use of some newly innovated humbuckers that are said to be the result of “decades of guitar string research”

Sterling by Music Man St. Vincent Goldie

“It’s ideal for players who prioritize comfort and offers a balanced tone”: This study claims to have identified the lightest tonewood of them all – and it’s not one you’d expect

By Matt Owen published 15 August 24

This new research piece compared the weight of 466 solidbody guitars to found out which tonewood makes the lightest instruments

“Embodies the limitless creativity within metal”: Jackson just made its genre-blurring American Series more accessible than ever with Seymour Duncan-loaded Virtuoso HT

By Matt Owen published 14 August 24

The latest addition to the firm's range of US-made workhorse electrics continues Jackson's quest to bring metal guitars to the mainstream

“No tricks, no tracks, no nothing”: Fred Durst wanted to see if Corey Feldman’s viral guitar playing was real – so he went on stage to see for himself

By Matt Owen published 14 August 24

Feldman is currently opening for Limp Bizkit on their Loserville tour, and caught some strays on TikTok after his guitar playing went viral

“Used in the studio to record In the Skies and Little Dreamer”: The Fender Duo-Sonic that helped launch Peter Green’s late-’70s comeback is going up for auction

By Matt Owen published 14 August 24

The late Fleetwood Mac legend returned after nearly a decade away from the limelight to record In the Skies – and he did so with the help of this Duo-Sonic

“Brings you closer to the sound of electric guitar’s heyday”: Seymour Duncan has launched its own guitar strings – and they could be the key to unlocking “true vintage tone”

By Matt Owen published 14 August 24

The pickup specialist has expanded its Antiquity range with a six-string set that looks to help players harness “true vintage tones of the most infamous guitars ever produced”

“Unlock the full tonal potential of your bass”: Fender’s Cobalt Chrome pickups will breathe new life into your Jazz or Precision bass – but developing an all-new bass pickup design wasn’t easy

By Matt Owen published 13 August 24

Voiced by tone titan Tim Shaw, Fender's latest Jazz and Precision bass pickups look to help reduce noise and add extra flair to your low-end tone

Emma Richardson of Pixies performs in concert during Noches del Botánico Music Festival at Real Jardín Botánico Alfonso XIII on July 28, 2024 in Madrid, Spain

“That was a big shift, but I kind of love it. I wouldn't look back now”: Pixies’ new bass player on how she ended up joining the band – and why it forced her to change her approach to playing

By Matt Owen published 13 August 24

Emma Richardson was recruited earlier this year to replace Paz Lenchantin in the alt-rock outfit – and that meant re-evaluating her playing

“He said, ‘We should make it look older.’ We’d hit it against curbs, use sandpaper, and put polish remover on the frets”: Julian Lage radically DIY aged his father’s prized Telecaster “before relic’ing was a thing”

By Matt Owen published 13 August 24

The jazz virtuoso has a close bond with the Telecaster, and one of his earliest experiences with the model involved some drastic relic'ing methods

Michael Lemmo playing a Fender Jazzmaster

“He goes, ‘You’re not going to believe it. Eddie Van Halen is at our friend’s house. I was hanging out with him!’ I was like, ‘I have to go over there’”: Michael Lemmo on the surreal time he met Eddie Van Halen – who was dating his friend’s mom

By Matt Owen published 12 August 24

Norms’ Rare Guitars’ resident virtuoso idolized Van Halen as a youngster, and miraculously crossed paths with him when a new kid arrived in town…

Ibanez doubles down on its quest to conquer the headless guitar market with four of its best-looking Q Series models to date

By Matt Owen published 9 August 24

As the popularity of headless guitars continues to boom, the Japanese firm has dropped four new models in a bid to make its Quest range more appealing than ever before

“I was at a soundcheck. I plugged it in, cranked it up, and said, ‘This is it. This is what I’m looking for’”: D’Angelico unveils its third Bobby Weir signature model – and the Grateful Dead legend has been playing it at the Sphere

By Matt Owen published 9 August 24

The semi-hollow stunner is the direct result of years of intense development and rigorous road-testing, and is said to be the pair's “best work yet”

Chris Buck playing Bernie Marsden's 1959 Beast Gibson Les Paul Standard

“I got a text off Bernie’s wife asking me if I’d like to play his ’59 Les Paul…” Chris Buck plays Bernie Marsden’s $1 million Beast Les Paul at all-star event in honor of the Whitesnake guitarist

By Matt Owen published 8 August 24

The Cardinal Black ace was invited to play the legendary LP at a recent festival that paid tribute to Marsden's memory

“She was on board with everything except that… She hated it. She said, ‘I will never sing that song!’” How an unsung session hero salvaged one of Cyndi Lauper’s biggest hits

By Matt Owen published 8 August 24

It's considered one of the greatest pop songs ever recorded, but as guitarist Eric Bazilian explains, it wasn't always smooth sailing for the smash hit single

“Designed to redefine the modern metal tone”: Peavey and Misha Mansoor’s Invective head is one of the most versatile high-gain amps out there – and it’s just been turned into a combo for the first time

By Matt Owen published 8 August 24

Periphery's resident djent specialist was brought onboard to help produce a downsized version of his hugely popular Invective 120. Could this be the versatile modern metal combo amp to beat?

“The sounds of the records are kind of bad, right? But you could record it in a tin can and still feel the power of his guitar playing”: St. Vincent explains why Jimi Hendrix’s playing is fire, even if she doesn’t love the sound of his albums

By Matt Owen published 8 August 24

During a deep dive into the songs that changed her life, St. Vincent also named a John Mayer track as “the worst song ever written”

Rick Nielsen, and an aritst render of a 62-foot replica of Nielsen's checkerboard Hamer Standard

A massive 62-foot guitar honoring Rick Nielsen is heading to Illinois – and it’s shaped like his iconic checkerboard Hamer

By Matt Owen published 7 August 24

The Cheap Trick star's Hamer Standard will be recreated as a monster installation that will sit outside the Hard Rock Casino in Rockford

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