
Phil Weller
A freelance writer with a penchant for music that gets weird, Phil is a regular contributor to Prog, Guitar World, and Total Guitar magazines and is especially keen on shining a light on unknown artists. Outside of the journalism realm, you can find him writing angular riffs in progressive metal band, Prognosis, in which he slings an 8-string Strandberg Boden Original, churning that low string through a variety of tunings. He's also a published author and is currently penning his debut novel which chucks fantasy, mythology and humanity into a great big melting pot.
Latest articles by Phil Weller

“My only frustrations are with its unstable tuning, which dampens an otherwise fantastic playing experience”: Cort Space G6TR review
By Phil Weller published
Cort's well-spec'd Strandberg rival capitalizes on the headless guitar renaissance, but it's not without its flaws

Nancy Wilson’s first guitar was unplayable – so she kept stealing her sister’s
By Phil Weller published
Wilson needed to play a six-string that was better than the $30 rental guitar she had herself

The main problems with Telecasters, according to Paul Reed Smith
By Phil Weller published
PRS has a few T-types in its catalog – and building them allowed Paul Reed Smith to address the biggest issues he had with the classic guitar

Fishman brings Herman Li’s PRS Chleo Fluence pickups to the masses – but there’s a catch
By Phil Weller published
The Omniforce pickup set offers six distinct voices to capture Li’s wide tonal range

D’Addario just launched a glove to clean your guitar
By Phil Weller published
The Micro-Fiber Polishing Mitt might look like an oven glove, but it promises to help keep your favorite axes squeaky clean

“Blends performance and aesthetics into a single, uncompromising musical tool”: Harley Benton’s well-specced $285 eight-string finally gets a left-handed version
By Phil Weller published
The multi-scale axe is well-spec' d for its price – and now southpaws can get in on the action

Prince’s signature Taylor is back for the first time in 15 years – but you’ll have to go to Paisley Park to get it
By Phil Weller published
The guitar, which debuted on the 2004 Musicology tour, is being sold exclusively at Prince's former home

Nancy Wilson on the story of her stolen baritone – which made its debut at a Chappell Roan gig
By Phil Weller published
The custom build was stolen on the eve of Heart’s tour last summer. A few weeks later, it was backing up pop royalty

Ichika Nito shares unedited one-take performance – as ‘fake playing’ accusations spread on social media
By Phil Weller published
The First Take has launched a new social initiative that aims to put authentic playing in the spotlight with single-shot performances

Andy Summers was skeptical of Telecasters at first – until he found one that would become one of his main Police guitars
By Phil Weller published
The Strat-lover’s head was eventually turned by a modded Tele that ended up becoming one of his go-to guitars

Steven Tyler gatecrashed Jared James Nichols’ jam and invited him to hang out with Aerosmith
By Phil Weller published
Nichols ended up rubbing shoulders with Aerosmith and was even shown some early studio mixes

Deftones invite superfan onstage to play in front of sold-out arena crowd
By Phil Weller published
The fan seized his moment under the stage lights to play 7 Words alongside Chino Moreno and co

The heartwarming moment James Hetfield met a 10-year-old superfan
By Phil Weller published
The Metallica icon spent time with the young fan, and had one important message for him

Ex-Turnstile guitarist fired from new band after accusing Turnstile of misusing benefit show funds
By Phil Weller published
Brady Ebert has accused Turnstile of performative politics and misusing the benefit show funds generated while he was still in the band

How Don Henley got the Eagles back on track after Glenn Frey's death – with some help from Bono
By Phil Weller published
The guitarist’s passing sewed doubts over the band’s future, but the U2 frontman steered Henley in the right direction

The maker of the cult classic King of Tone pedal is thinking of hanging up his soldering iron
By Phil Weller published
Analog Man founder Mike Piera is facing an uncertain future amid increasingly unpredictable manufacturing costs

How B.B. King changed Billy Gibbons’ approach to guitar strings
By Phil Weller published
When the King speaks, his subjects listen

When a 13-year-old Jimmie Vaughan was stopped from watching B.B. King play, another blues great came to his aid
By Phil Weller published
Vaughan wanted to watch his guitar hero play live for the first time – and another hero saved the day

The Frog Pedal is a surprisingly versatile octaver that makes your guitar sound like, erm, a frog
By Phil Weller published
The monophonic octave pedal from Jordan Wav and FruitFX turns your guitar signal into a frog – but this isn’t a mere gimmick

Dave Mustaine says his hand problems are forcing him to end Megadeth
By Phil Weller published
His worsening condition means his playing days are numbered

Eric Gales tried to keep his guitar playing a secret – but Carlos Santana spoiled the surprise
By Phil Weller published
The blues great wanted to keep his chops hidden, but one talk show interview changed everything

“At long last, a DAW puts the guitar at the very heart of its operations”: Fender Studio Pro 8 review
By Phil Weller published
PreSonus' Studio One DAW has been rebranded and bestowed with a revised workflow, impressive AI features, and amp sims. Is this the DAW every guitarist has been waiting for?

Why Marty Friedman has no regrets leaving Megadeth
By Phil Weller published
Friedman says he's flourished in his time away from the group
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