
Matt Parker
Matt is Deputy Editor for GuitarWorld.com. Before that he spent 10 years as a freelance music journalist, interviewing artists for the likes of Total Guitar, Guitarist, Guitar World, MusicRadar, NME.com, DJ Mag and Electronic Sound. In 2020, he launched CreativeMoney.co.uk, which aims to share the ideas that make creative lifestyles more sustainable. He plays guitar, but should not be allowed near your delay pedals.
Latest articles by Matt Parker

Martin dazzles with its 3 millionth masterpiece – and a double-neck debut that has been 100 years in the making
By Matt Parker published
The double neck acoustic-electric Grand J-28E DN might grab the headlines, but there’s plenty to catch your eye in the firm’s special edition announcements

Joe Perry says he was planning to take Jeff Beck’s Strat on tour with Aerosmith – but its owner was the only special thing about it
By Matt Parker published
The Aerosmith great has been discussing friendship with the late, great Beck – and says he almost took his Strat on tour last year, before the shows were cancelled

Bad Cat marks the return of amp design guru Mark Sampson with the Era 30
By Matt Parker published
The legendary designer is famed for founding Matchless and his early Bad Cat builds – now he’s returned to the boutique firm after 20 years

Pantera’s Rex Brown has teamed up with Morley on a recreation of the wah pedal so good Dimebag used to borrow it
By Matt Parker published
The new pedal is based on the bassist’s faithful Morley Pro Series II wah that he picked up in the 1990s

You can now comment directly on Guitar World articles
By Matt Parker published
Join the conversation and have your say on all things six-string

The Boss VG-800 aims to make your guitar sound like any other electric or acoustic on the planet – plus sitar, banjo and synth
By Matt Parker published
Forget amp sims, the pedal stalwarts’ latest V-Guitar tech has the potential to model just about any stringed instrument using your guitar

Donner’s $29 Embark series is changing the ultra-cheap pedal game with metal enclosures and customizable designs
By Matt Parker published
The Chinese firm is looking to stir up the budget Amazon pedal market with its ultra-affordable entry-level series

He’s been sampled by Kanye, and played with Paul Simon – yet Delicate Steve is still the best-kept secret in indie guitar
By Matt Parker published
Steve Marion tells us why his career highlights include a severely negative Pitchfork review, making an album he hated and Kanye sampling him… then not releasing the track

The best guitar albums of 2024
By Jonathan Horsley published
The guitar albums that had the biggest impact in the guitar world and beyond, as chosen by GW editors and pro players

Allen Abbassi has overseen every Fender electric guitar since 2007 – but he’s still pushing the envelope
By Matt Parker published
The Director of Electric Guitars on the Ultra II line, the future of high-end offsets – and why Fender is keeping one eye on YouTube

The best guitar songs of 2024 – as chosen by Guitar World editors and pro players
By Jonathan Horsley published
With the help of pals including Eric Gales and Vernon Reid, we run down the songs that lit up the guitar-o-sphere this year, including a remarkable hardcore breakthrough, a virtuoso collab for the ages and the prodigy that everyone’s talking about

Musician's Friend Cyber Monday deals 2024: Last chance to score up to 60% off music gear!
By Daryl Robertson last updated
Our pick of the epic deals you need to check out in the Musician's Friend Cyber Monday sale

I think this Sterling by Music Man Cutlass is the smart buy of the beginner guitar market – especially as it’s now under $200 at Sweetwater for Cyber Monday
By Matt Parker published
The Cutlass CT30 looks like a clever pick, particularly for burgeoning lead players

Selling a Cry Baby was my worst-ever pedal deal. Now Guitar Center is offering a 20% discount on the classic wah – is it finally time to let go of my very real pain?
By Matt Parker published
A friend and I made a deal. A deal that has haunted me to this day. Specifically, Cyber Monday 2024...

Get your own Gilmour-style Black Strat with a $150 saving on this limited edition Fender Player Stratocaster at Guitar Center
By Matt Parker published
The Mexican-made Strat has a maple fingerboard and a black scratchplate that is highly evocative of the Pink Floyd man’s most iconic Fender

Here’s a list of Cyber Monday deals on guitars, amps, pedals and more that were all highly-rated by our reviews team
By Matt Parker last updated
Not every ‘bargain’ is a good purchase, so I've put together this round-up of deals on guitar gear that has scored at least four stars in our expert reviews

Fender’s Squier Debut Stratocaster took the fight to cheap Amazon guitars when it arrived earlier this year – now it’s dropped below $100 for the first time ever
By Matt Parker published
Fender’s ultra-affordable Amazon-only Strat has received a $20 reduction, right in time for Cyber Monday

This travel guitar had our expert reviewer questioning the concept of tone woods. Now it’s dropped to $279, its lowest-ever price on Amazon
By Matt Parker published
If you’ve been on the hunt for a travel guitar or silent practice option, the Donner Hush-X is a seriously impressive performer that still sounds good plugged-in to an amp

Guitar Center Black Friday deals 2024: you can still get the lowest prices of the year
By Chris Barnes last updated
Black Friday may be officially over, but Guitar Center still has loads of items on sale

The PRS SE NF3 was deemed one mod away from perfection in our review. Now you can grab one for $679 on Black Friday – and save $120 for the tweaks
By Matt Parker published
Guitarist said the Indonesian-made SE NF3 could be modded to make it “dangerously close to the US builds” with this quick control tweak

This Black Friday hack at Musician’s Friend gets you an iconic EHX reverb circuit and a Klon-style drive – for a fraction of the usual price
By Matt Parker published
One of EHX’s most underrated pedals – which bundles the Holy Grail Max circuit with the Klon-aping Soul Food – is currently available for less than the reverb costs on its own

It’s one of the all-time sleeper amps – and now there’s $100 off the Peavey Classic 20 at Sweetwater
By Matt Parker published
The firm’s vintage-inspired tweed ‘n’ tubes line has long earned its own place in player’s hearts – and there’s a great deal on the super flexible Classic 20 combo right now

When Richie Kotzen learned a Hendrix classic wrong, his mom called him out
By Matt Parker published
The guitar virtuoso says he had to face down criticism at the very outset of his playing career – albeit from his own mother

Schecter and Synyster Gates’ much-anticipated seven-string headless signature guitar has finally landed
By Matt Parker published
The Avenged Sevenfold guitarist’s latest signature model has been trailed on social media but now we have the full spec

“This poses a risk of serious electric shock”: Blackstar has announced an immediate recall of Debut 100R amps with these date codes
By Matt Parker published
The firm has highlighted significant safety issues with its Debut 100R 112 and 212 combos and is asking affected owners to get in touch
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