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B.C. Rich Andy James Assassin

B.C. Rich adds Five Finger Death Punch's Andy James to its artist roster – and his first signature guitar is one seriously dangerous metal machine

By Matt Owen published

Lord have mercy on anyone who crosses the path of Andy James and the Pitchfork headstock of his Assassin signature guitar

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken performs onstage during the launch of the Global Music Diplomacy Initiative at the U.S. Department of State on September 27, 2023

“If this doesn't clear the house...” Watch U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken cover Muddy Waters on his Fender Strat – at a state dinner

By Jackson Maxwell published

Now that's how you incorporate your artistic passion into your day job...

Juho Ranta-Maunus playing guitar in the music video for The Drift

A Young Guitarist of the Year returns and Toto’s Africa meets extreme metal: This week’s essential guitar tracks

By Matt Owen published

Fresh new tunes you need to check out this week, from Juho Ranta-Maunus and Marnie Stern to U2 and Bernie Marsden

Stratocaster leaning against a Boss Katana amp

Guitar World deals of the week: celebrate 40 years of Musician's Friend with up to 40% off a huge range of guitar gear

By Chris Barnes published

We've been scouring the 'net for deals this week and found big savings on gear from Fender, Ibanez, Epiphone, Focusrite, and loads more

Duff McKagan of Hollywood Vampires perform onstage during The 58th GRAMMY Awards & Nicky Wire of Manic Street Preachers performs on Day 2 of the Glastonbury Festival at Worthy Farm on June 28, 2014 in Glastonbury, England

“It sounds like Lindsey Buckingham meets The Clash!” That time Duff McKagan played bass for the Manic Street Preachers

By Nick Wells published

Nicky Wire on working with Duff and why Guns N’ Roses are the best band ever

Mark Tremonti

“I’m going after the Klon”: Mark Tremonti is starting his own pedal company – and he’s already road-testing prototypes

By Matt Owen published

The Alter Bridge guitarist, who plans to launch his own affordable brand with three new pedals, recently demoed his first unit – and it sounds pretty darn good

Larkin Poe

“Every guitarist should be in search of their toothpaste tone!” Larkin Poe explain how good guitar tone can make your playing better

By Amit Sharma published

Roots rock sister duo Megan and Rebecca Lovell on what makes drive pedals essential for shaping your soloing, why even blues players shouldn’t dismiss amp modelers – and what toothpaste tone actually is…

Drive pedals

Are your drive pedals sounding the best they could? Here are 19 ways to get more from your overdrives, distortions and fuzzes – and make them work with your rig

By Chris Bird published

Whether you’re using overdrive, distortion, boost or fuzz, there are plenty of ways you can tweak your setup for maximum tone

Al Di Meola playing acoustic guitar on stage in 2019

Al Di Meola in stable condition after suffering heart attack on stage

By Matt Owen published

The virtuoso has since posted a statement on social media, reassuring fans he's “receiving the best care possible”

Gibson Certified Vintage September 2023 electric guitar composite

An astonishingly rare Blue Silverburst Explorer, dot-neck 1959 ES-335 and short-lived ultra-luxe Casino alternative: Gibson’s latest Certified Vintage drop has our attention

By Matt Parker published

The new five-guitar release in the firm’s approved vintage program is full of beautiful obscurities

Bernie Marsden poses with a Gibson Les Paul

“Knowing Bernie's eagerness to get the album out there, we want to follow his wishes and release it as planned”: Posthumous Bernie Marsden album set for release in November

By Jackson Maxwell published

The late Whitesnake alum was able to finish recording the album, and oversee and approve its sequencing, mastering, and artwork, before his death in late August

David Gilmour and Roger Waters performing live in 2005

“Bob Ezrin has lied through his teeth about it for years”: Roger Waters rejects claims that David Gilmour’s iconic guitar solo in Pink Floyd’s Comfortably Numb was his first take

By Matt Owen published

Waters' comments come after The Wall producer told Total Guitar that “the second solo in Comfortably Numb, which may be the best solo of all time, is actually a first take”

Neural DSP Quad Cortex

After three years of waiting, Neural DSP reveals Quad Cortex plugin compatibility is finally on the cards

By Michael Astley-Brown published

Archetype: Plini will be the first plugin to be compatible with the all-powerful amp modeler, starting next month – well, sort of…

John Entwistle of The Who on stage, performing their album 'Quadrophenia', Ahoy, Rotterdam, 11th May 1997. He plays a Status Graphite Buzzard Bass guitar.

“I think a bass solo can be as exciting as a guitar solo – if not more”: Listen to John Entwistle’s live bass solo on The Who’s 5:15

By Nick Wells published

John Entwistle proves why bass solos aren't always a bad idea

Cesar Gueikian playing what looks to be a Gibson Victory

Is Gibson about to bring back its Victory Superstrat-style guitar from the ’80s, or did Cesar Gueikian just tease an entirely new model?

By Matt Owen published

The quirky offset double-cut looks poised to make a return – but its comeback might not be so straightforward

Fender Strat single-coils

Types of guitar pickups explained: learn the difference between single coils, humbuckers, P-90s and active designs

By Chris Bird published

If the wood is the soul of the electric guitar, the pickups are the brains of the operation. We walk through the most common pickup styles and what they mean for electric guitar tone

Eric Clapton, Brian May, Jimi Hendrix

15 icons of electric guitar tone – and how they can inspire your playing

By Jon Bishop published

Go behind the players with some of the most legendary guitar sounds in history – and learn how you can steal their style and make it yours

Charvel Pro-Mod San Dimas Style 1 HSS FR M Aqua Flake and Pro-Mod San Dimas Style 1 HH FR E Green Glow

Charvel has released some stunning guitars this year – but these two limited-edition Pro-Mod models might be its best-looking offerings yet

By Matt Owen published

Green Glow and Aqua Flake are the order of business for Charvel, which has seemingly set its sights on ending 2023 on a high

Friedman IR-X pedal amp

“IR-X isn't simulating a Friedman tube preamp. It is one”: This new pedal amp puts boutique tube tone on your ’board – for under $500

By Matt Parker published

Want a tube-driven Friedman rig that doesn’t break the bank? With impulse responses thrown into the bargain? Meet the Friedman IR-X

Brian May Guitars Vision electric guitar

Brian May Guitars unveils the Vision, a mash-up of the Red Special, a ’90s Guild and the Les Paul double-cut

By Matt Owen published

The Queen icon’s legendary signature model has filtered down into a dual-humbucker, hardtail-equipped build