Features

Alt-rock nomad Emma Ruth Rundle on channeling Smashing Pumpkins, her nylon-string awakening, and what made her sell her beloved Gibson SG

By Dan Bradley Published 14 September 26

The Portland alt-rock polymath returns to the full-band format for new album These Killing Times. She explains why she’s making uplifting, empowering music in a difficult era, and names the rare baritone she’ll never part with

Dave Mustaine’s life in guitars – how the Megadeth main man weaponized the Flying V

By Andrew Daly Published 14 September 26

From B.C. Rich to Jackson King Vs and and his current range of signature Flying Vs, we chart the evolution of Mustaine's guitar arsenal

How Bootsy Collins and his James Brown alumni brought the J.B.’s back to life for the Superbad soundtrack

By Nick Wells Published 13 September 26

With guitarist Lyle Workman at the helm, Bootsy Collins reunited with the J.B.’s for the 2007 Superbad soundtrack

How Lindsay Lou, Molly Tuttle and an all-star cast united to uncover the women behind bluegrass’ biggest songs

By Cheri Amour Published 13 September 26

After discovering women had written many of the standards she’d grown up singing, Lindsay Lou went digging into history. What she found inspired a four-day Nashville session – and a record designed to put the mothers of bluegrass back in the room

Marcus King on his new signature Epiphone acoustic, playing Tiger, and his brotherhood with Brent Hinds

By Andrew Daly Published 13 September 26

The El Dorado is based on his first-ever guitar, which he thought he’d never see again but came back to him. And while he’s at it, he has thoughts on a signature Marshall amp – but will it happen?

Mark Holcomb on how Periphery harnesses super-heavy guitars for a super-heavy album that takes djent to a dark place

By Joe Bosso Published 13 September 26

After burning the playbook and facing his demons on Periphery’s jet-black new concept album, A Pale White Dot, Holcomb tells us he owes a big apology to his guitar tech

“Gibbons has used his frequently on ZZ Top albums – he often plays through two at once”: Meet the world’s first ‘pedal’ – a steampunk wonderland you need Windex to use

By Chris Gill Published 13 September 26

Introduced in 1946, produced through the mid–1960s, the DeArmond Tremolo Control is the O.G. guitar effect and was used by Muddy Waters, Billy Gibbons and Canned Heat

Neil Giraldo on how a push from Rick Derringer led him to the B.C. Rich Eagle

By Jackson Maxwell Published 13 September 26

Giraldo beat out 200 other guitarists to get the coveted spot in Derringer’s band, but there was one condition

From teenage rigs to stage disasters – the life and times of Eddie 9V – the player Bonamassa says can bend it like King

By Gregory Adams Published 12 September 26

The South Carolina guitar phenom was cooking up some barbecue when GW called to talk dream collabs, Strats vs Les Pauls, and all kinds of guitar stuff

The Gibson Flying V – how a misunderstood design conquered the guitar world

By Charlie Wilkins Published 12 September 26

It's not the most player-friendly proposition, this triangular wedge of guitar – but is there anything cooler than a Flying V?