Best guitars for shredding 2023: unleash your inner guitar god with these supersonic six strings By Matt McCracken published 5 May 23 Shred the competition with our pick of the finest face-melting axes from Ibanez, Charvel, ESP, Schecter, and more
Lee Sklar: “If the drummer doesn’t swing – let him serve French fries in McDonald’s" By Nick Wells published 4 May 23 Session legend Lee Sklar was asked to name his studio pet hates: sequenced basslines, Pro-Tools and lacklustre drummers came out on top
Mike Dirnt: “Even Flea told me he wanted to play a P-Bass live” By Nick Wells published 4 May 23 Green Day’s Mike Dirnt reveals why so many top bass players switch back to Fender
In praise of the EBow, one of the most under-appreciated yet influential guitar tools of all time By Chris Gill published 4 May 23 An enduring niche product that still feels like a hidden secret after all these years, the EBow has been used on countless iconic recordings
Eric Bibb: “I find the most effective songs, the ones that resonate most with the people who hear my music, are songs that come fairly quickly” By Jamie Dickson published 4 May 23 With his new album, Ridin', Bibb paints moving, historical portraits of people on the road to a better life – with help from a six-string banjo and a host of acoustic possibilities
Best guitar cables 2023: recommended instrument cables for electric, acoustic and bass guitar By Richard Blenkinsop last updated 3 May 23 Plug in with confidence using our guide to the best guitar cables from Planet Waves, Mogami, Ernie Ball, George L’s and more
The British Invasion that failed: why Slade, Status Quo, the Sweet and Dr. Feelgood never conquered the USA By Mark McStea published 3 May 23 Slade’s Noddy Holder and Jim Lea join Status Quo’s Francis Rossi, the Sweet’s Andy Scott and Dr. Feelgood’s Wilko Johnson (in one of his final interviews) to explain what did – and didn’t – go down in the ’70s
Obituary’s Trevor Peres and Ken Andrews take you inside the Florida death metal legends’ caveman sound By Gregory Adams published 3 May 23 Dirty Rats, cranked Marshalls, slide guitar and an ear for the morbid, Dying of Everything is everything you could want from the Tampa death metal stalwarts
Dirty Honey’s John Notto on Les Pauls: “There’s such a great sound and great look that you put up with their charmingly difficult attributes” By Jenna Scaramanga published 3 May 23 A hard-riffing, Marshall-diming rock-and-roller, Notto swears that all the Gibson Les Paul's idiosyncrasies are worth it for that sweet, sweet tone
Pat Finnerty: “I knew millions of people were gonna get What Makes This Song Stink ’cause millions watch Rick Beato, and maybe 10% know how ridiculous this man is” By Adam Kovac published 2 May 23 YouTube six-string prankster Pat Finnerty on the philosophy behind his hit show and how a spoof band of his own imagination grabbed the attention of Justin Hawkins
Gabriel Akhmad Marin: “I don’t play many chords. I’m more of a melodic single-note player, and the fretless guitar is a great instrument for that” By Amit Sharma published 2 May 23 Meet Consider the Source’s fusion wizard, who’s channeling the sounds of Eastern Europe and Asia through his fretless guitar and a trio of pedalboards
How Billy Sheehan learned to slap By Nick Wells published 2 May 23 “I could never figure out where those notes were coming from. Then I’d go see Victor Wooten and just give up!”
Paul Gilbert names 12 guitarists who shaped his sound By Andrew Daly published 2 May 23 The Mr. Big guitar hero reveals how his strap length influenced his technique, why hearing Yngwie Malmsteen down the phone inspired him to give fast picking one more try, and what he considers to be "one of the biggest scourges" of modern guitar playing
8 Hollywood actors who are also bass players By Jon D’Auria published 2 May 23 A-listers who tug at the heartstrings – and the four-strings
Huey Lewis and the News’ Chris Hayes: “Am I an unappreciated guitar hero? Probably. But that’s OK” By Joe Bosso published 1 May 23 The guitarist whose stellar solos and riffs graced Huey Lewis and the News’ era-defining songs – including I Want a New Drug and The Power of Love – reflects on his storied career and drinking sessions with Stevie Ray Vaughan
10 last-gasp hair metal guitar albums that arrived before the grunge armageddon By Andrew Daly published 1 May 23 The ’90s arrive. Grunge was coming. But who knew these late-stage hair metal albums would mark the end of the party?
The Lowlist: INXS's Kick was the sound of a rock band taking on modern technology By Mike Brooks published 30 April 23 Slick, smoldering and able to fuse rock, pop, funk and dance rhythms, Kick was peak INXS
How Jeff Beck passed the Telecaster torch to Jimmy Page and changed the course of rock history By Matt Parker published 28 April 23 A tale of Jeff Beck’s generosity, Jimmy Page’s enduring gratitude and a 1959 Fender Telecaster that helped define a whole generation of rock music
Watch two bassists shred-off using Tosin Abasi's selective picking technique By Nick Wells published 28 April 23 Toby Peterson-Stewart and Jacob Umansky throw down: “Technique-wise, we really threw the kitchen sink at it”
Peter Dankelson on how guitar was shocked into his system by AC/DC, and why nothing was going to stop him playing By Joe Bosso published 28 April 23 A bona-fide guitar fanatic, weaned on blues-rock, Dankelson has a band behind him, a high-octane EP, and a decision to make: enroll in college or go headlong into music