Mick Mars: “I wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for Mötley Crüe. I don't regret anything we've ever done – good, bad or ugly” – only in the new Guitar World
Plus! Eddie Kramer, Marco Pirroni, Stone Mecca, Adrian Belew, Yard Act, DragonForce, history of the MXR Phase 90, Drop Nineteens, Blondie's Frank Infante, the Darkness and more!
(Image credit: Jeff Fasano/Future)
The June 2014 issue. That's how long it's been since Mick Mars last appeared on the cover of Guitar World magazine. And, as we all know by now, a lot has happened in Mars' personal "guitar world" since then.
So it's safe to say that – in some circles, anyway – Mars' return to our cover is just as "long awaited" as his debut solo album, 2024's window-rattling The Other Side of Mars. It's an album he's been talking about for years, and it was definitely worth the wait.
For this issue, Joe Bosso sat down with the former Mötley Crüe guitarist to discuss the making of the album and – to be frank – as much Mötley Crüe content as Mars felt comfortable discussing (and it's actually quite a lot). We've also spotlighted 10 of Mars' greatest lesser-known guitar riffs and provided a lesson dedicated to his technique, complete with tab and audio.
This issue also features...
>>> These days, somewhere amid the fire and the flames of DragonForce’s extreme power metal, you’ll detect a little something extra in Herman Li’s playing: an emphasis on melody and dynamics.
>>> Former Blondie guitarist (and former Jersey City lad) Frank Infante revisits his classic riffs and solos on One Way or Another, Heart of Glass, Call Me, Rapture and more.
>>> How guitarist Sam Shipstone’s sidewinding riffs (and G&L ASAT) keep Yard Act’s dark, dancey post-punk-funk deliciously off-kilter
>>> Veteran engineer/producer Eddie Kramer – the closest thing Jimi Hendrix had to a sonic wingman – looks back on his sessions with the Kinks, Led Zeppelin, Kiss and (of course) Mr. Hendrix
>>> The GW guide to Adrian Belew’s 10 definitive guitar moments.
>>> In 1992, Boston’s Drop Nineteens became unlikely stars of the overwhelmingly British shoegaze rock scene. A year later, they fell off the map – but their legend only grew. Now, after nearly three decades in the dark, the band has returned with Hard Light.
>>> In Lost Classics, we check in with Adam and the Ants guitarist Marco Pirroni, who discusses the making of 1980's Kings of the Wild Frontier.
We have new interviews with Stone Mecca, Logan Ledger, Robin Trower, Dan Hawkins of the Darkness, Alena Ciera, Ryujin's Ryoji Shinomoto, Alex Skolnick, Sue Foley and Robby Krieger.
Meanwhile, Joe Bonamassa shows you how to play like East Coast blues great Ronnie Earl, while Andy Aledort, Josh Smith and Andy Timmons provide new columns with tab and video.
This month's transcriptions are Joe Satriani's Satch Boogie, Ayron Jones' Blood in the Water and Bad Moon Rising by Creedence Clearwater Revival.
We have reviews of the PRS SE Series SE Custom 24 Quilt and SE Swamp Ash Special, the Xotic XW-2 Wah - Red Limited, the SOMA Cosmos Drifting Memory Station, Shed Pickups' HA-59 PAF Set and the Gibson Falcon 20 amp.
Damian is Editor-in-Chief of Guitar World magazine. In past lives, he was GW’s managing editor and online managing editor. He's written liner notes for major-label releases, including Stevie Ray Vaughan's 'The Complete Epic Recordings Collection' (Sony Legacy) and has interviewed everyone from Yngwie Malmsteen to Kevin Bacon (with a few memorable Eric Clapton chats thrown into the mix). Damian, a former member of Brooklyn's The Gas House Gorillas, was the sole guitarist in Mister Neutron, a trio that toured the U.S. and released three albums. He now plays in two NYC-area bands.
