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

Les Paul’s Klunker has been revived as a meticulous one-off replica by Les Paul's personal tech
By Phil Weller published
Renowned luthier Tom Doyle hopes it will deepen the public’s understanding of the guitar’s cultural significance

Tyler Bryant supercharges Supro’s flagship Black Magick combo for his new signature amp
By Phil Weller published
Featuring more power, headroom, and a greater bass response, the Black Magick has been given some major upgrades to suit the guitarist’s needs

Cort takes a leaf out of Strandberg’s book and begins its true temperament experiments with the KX700 TT
By Phil Weller published
With looks to kill – and tuning and intonation that promises to withstand even the most aggressive of play styles – Cort’s new high-end model drags the innovative fret design to a slightly more accessible price point

Tele obsessive John 5 provides the ultimate test for Fender’s new American Ultra II series
By Phil Weller published
The versatile shredder owns over 100 different Telecasters, but he’s full of praise for the upgrades that have been fitted to its latest iteration

Bare Knuckle and Adam ‘Nolly’ Getgood look to give PAF-style pickups a modern twist with new signature set
By Phil Weller published
The vintage-voiced humbuckers have been tweaked to work with low-tuned modern metal music, and promise a dynamic and versatile tonality

Jerry Cantrell’s Alice In Chains tone in a box for $110? Funny Little Boxes' Dirt distortion promises just that
By Phil Weller published
Made in collaboration with YouTuber Let’s Play All, Dirt looks to harness 1990s hard rock and metal tones without breaking the bank

Tosin Abasi has released his own compressor pedal that promises to fix common compression complaints
By Phil Weller published
Said to help deliver the dynamic response of a driven tube amp, the Micro-Aggressor becomes only the second stompbox of Abasi's gear firm

Balaguer ushers in a new era of progressive offsets with headless Growler line
By Phil Weller published
Fully customizable and available in multi-scale and extended range formats, the Growler Headless sees the high-performance offset specialist double down on its headless activities

EarthQuaker Devices’ new utility pedals are built to last a lifetime – and could be the key to a smooth-operating rig
By Phil Weller published
Featuring five handy utility boxes, the new collection promises to help players get the most out of their pedalboards and live rigs

Soldano revives two highly elusive rack units beloved by Steve Lukather and Vivian Campbell
By Phil Weller published
The X88-IR and SLO-100R reboot two of Soldano's most profound innovations from the late 1980s, and give them improved control and usability for modern players

PRS upgrades its CE range with new tonewoods and an expansive pickup switch
By Phil Weller published
Choose from Black Limba and Swamp Ash variants, as a PRS mainstay gets some choice cosmetic and tonal updates

EVH brings back Eddie’s daring Danelectro/Charvel hybrid – and gives it a unique hardware twist
By Phil Weller published
With a single humbucker, kill switch, and fast-playing neck, the latest limited edition Star pays homage to Eddie’s early 1980s axe – but updates it for modern players

Meet Clayton King, the riff machine using EDM and nature shows to wring fresh savagery from his custom Ibanez monstrosity
By Phil Weller published
The Nothing, Nowhere guitarist details his intriguingly tuned relic’d seven-string, and the riff-writing tricks he uses to get out of any creative rut in 15 minutes flat

Kenny Wayne Shepherd on why starting out with a budget guitar is the best way to go
By Matt Owen published
Shepherd now plays some of the most desirable boutique gear money can buy, but his own personal guitar journey started with a cheap Yamaha

He’s jammed with Tony Iommi, recorded at Abbey Road, now he’s cooking up hairy stoner riffs with Torus – and Alfie Glass is just getting started
By Phil Weller published
Torus’ self-titled debut album is a feast of mammoth riffs, gnarly energy and grooves that will stick in your brain, and one for all you fuzz freaks seeking “a bold, no B.S. rock sound”

Jerry Cantrell admits he can't help cursing when he’s recording solos
By Phil Weller published
The Alice In Chains man says his explosively expletive approach is a necessary weapon in the “battle” of tracking his lead lines

Kerry King picks out the hardest Slayer song to play – and the greatest showcase of Jeff Hanneman’s talents
By Phil Weller published
The thrash legend discussed the genius of the late Hanneman in a new fan-led Q&A

Eddie Van Halen recorded his Beat It solo in secret and his brother is still mad about it 42 years later
By Phil Weller published
Alex Van Halen says Eddie’s legendary appearance on the pop smash was a waste of his finite talents – and the perfect excuse for David Lee Roth to leave the band

Ozzy Osbourne’s all-star Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremony pays tribute to Randy Rhoads
By Phil Weller published
An all-star band comprising Zakk Wylde, Andrew Watt and Chad Smith assembled to pay homage to the singer’s solo work during a star-studded celebration

Supro makes a play for the top gig-friendly combo by placing “the iconic Supro sound” into the go-anywhere Montauk
By Phil Weller published
The conveniently sized 1x10 has been described as “a Swiss army knife for the studio and the stage”

Silktone has overhauled its germanium transistor fuzz pedal – and it’s got a ‘pickup simulator’
By Phil Weller published
The popular Fuzz returns with increased tone tweaking choices and better pedalboard integration

Taylor's new Legacy Collection revamps the spirit of its earliest acoustic designs
By Phil Weller published
Five acoustic electric guitars have been crafted, bringing together the old and new in order to celebrate half a century of craftsmanship

Jason Becker gifts guitar to viral 11-year-old metal star Maya Neelakantan following heartwarming meeting
By Phil Weller published
The rising metal guitar phenom played one of Becker's own Telecasters and Danelectro sitar guitars during the emotional visit – and ended up taking the latter home with her
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