Also in this issue: Animals As Leaders, the world's first official look at Line 6's new DL4 MkII, John McLaughlin, Eddie Phillips, Volbeat, Khemmis, Squeeze and more
(Image credit: Jen Rosenstein/Future)
Ah, yes, the May ’22 issue! There’s so much to tell you about; where should I start?
We’ve also got the exclusive first look at Line 6’s brand-new DL4 MkII delay – the followup to the beloved Line 6 DL4, which was produced continuously for 23 years (until just recently). During that time, it truly earned its status as a classic of the digital modeling era.
For some reason, a lot of respected manufacturers are celebrating major anniversaries in 2022 (as you’ll see in upcoming issues). In this issue, we celebrate 30 years of Eastman Guitars. Find out how they’ve successfully brought handcrafted stringed instruments to the masses.
We’ve also got an ode to Eddie Phillips of the Creation – the guitarist who, not so famously, used a bow on his Gibson long before Jimmy Page did it.
(Image credit: Jen Rosenstein/Future)
But the actual theme of this issue is instrumental guitar music. In our main feature, we celebrate 30 active, hard-working instrumental masters of all ages and genres – and, in many cases, we get their exclusive advice on how to keep your own instrumental music interesting. We hear from Plini, Lari Basilio, Yvette Young, Guthrie Govan, Angel Vivaldi, Jason Becker and many more.
We also shine a gigantic spotlight on four guitarists from that master list – providing full features and exclusive interviews with Animals As Leaders’ Tosin Abasi and Javier Reyes (new album!), plus Joe Satriani (new album!) and jazz/fusion great John McLaughlin (new-ish album and a recent run-in with the law!).
Sticking with our instrumental theme, we offer up a transcription of Mateus Asato’s new take on Crowded House’s killer 1986 tune, Don’t Dream It’s Over. In Tonal Recall, we explore Jeff Beck’s tone on Freeway Jam, one of the greatest instrumental tracks in all of guitardom.
Meanwhile, we catch up with My Morning Jacket’s Jim James (and his new signature ES-335), the guys from Khemmis, Billy Strings, Glenn Tilbrook and Chris Difford from Squeeze, the Flower Kings, Volbeat and Haunted Shores, a band featuring Mark and Misha from Periphery.
Gear reviews and song transcriptions
This month’s gear reviews include the new Blackstar Dept. 10 valve pedals, the new Martin SE-10E, the unique Emerald Virtuo guitar, the Fender Acoustic Go amp and more. This month’s song transcriptions are Don’t Dream It’s Over by Mateus Asato, plus XYZ’s Inside Out and Alice In Chains’ Heaven Beside You.
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.
