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Norman’s Rare Guitars has been acquired by Carter Vintage Guitars and TNAG Global. The sale will see Carter Vintage Guitars acquiring more than 1,000 guitars, as well as Norman Harris’s personal collection, which he’s has been assembling for over 50 years.

Harris has been quite vocal about his desire to find a successor for his collection. In a 2024, a Norman’s Rare Guitars documentary saw the owner opening up about a slew of health scares, including a bout of cancer and a more recent heart attack. As a result, he’s been considering his legacy.

Time and time again, Harris has hinted that Joe Bonamassa was his first choice to inherit his collection. “For years, he’s been saying to me, ‘I want you to take over the store,’” Bonamassa revealed in the Norman’s Rare Guitars documentary. “But I have a job already.”

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“The problem is, if Norm’s not there to run it, then it’s just a namesake,” he continued. “It would just be a brand. When you take him away, you take away the heart and the soul. It wouldn’t be the same. There’s only one Norman Harris.”

In light of the news, Bonamassa has also shared his best wishes for the shop going forward. “I am extremely excited to see my Uncle Norm enter into this new chapter of his life and career,” he writes on X. “We all know that he will still be around being the master of ceremonies and dealing the coolest guitars in the world.”

“Congratulations to my friend Ben and the entire team at Carters Vintage on securing the legacy of the greatest guitar store in the world,” he continues. “With that said, you all can stop asking me if I am buying it now!”

I am extremely excited to see my Uncle Norm enter into this new chapter of his life and career. We all know that he will still be around being the master of ceremonies and dealing the coolest guitars in the world. Congratulations to my friend Ben and the entire team at Carters… pic.twitter.com/GOJL5J9vUM

— Joe Bonamassa (Official) (@JBONAMASSA) January 14, 2026

In a statement, Carter Vintage Guitars’ CEO Ben Montague is adamant that the acquisition will preserve the spirit of Norman’s Rare Guitars.

“To put it simply, our mission is to protect what makes Norman’s special,” Montague insists. “As we have with Carter Vintage Guitars, [we want to] preserve its legacy, and guide the business into its next chapter while expanding its reach to a global community of guitar players and collectors.”

As a result, the acquisition will see little changing about how Norman’s Rare Guitars operated. It will continue to have a home at its iconic San Fernando Valley location, with the same team, and Harris will also remain “actively involved” in Norman’s Rare Guitars operations.

“I’ve always known there would come a time when I needed the right long-term partner to carry Norman’s Rare Guitars forward,” Harris himself reflects. “I couldn’t imagine a better steward for the shop and its legacy than Ben Montague and TNAG Global.”

“The goal has always been to share my love of great guitars with the community, and this partnership allows that community to grow, while protecting everything that makes the shop special. I feel a deep sense of comfort knowing the shop, its history and its values will still be here for future generations of my family and for guitar lovers around the world.”

For more information, head to Carter Vintage Guitars.

The post “You all can stop asking me if I am buying it now!”: Joe Bonamassa weighs in on the sale of Norman’s Rare Guitars appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

“It was the first solo I cut on the album, and I was on the spot,” says guitarist Steve Lukather, speaking about his seismic, jaw-dropping lead run on Toto’s debut single, Hold the Line. “I was 19 years old, and I was scared shitless. I was in the studio with my guitar cranked to 10, and all of these guys were behind the glass looking at me like, ‘You better bring it, kid.’ They counted off four bars, and off I went.

“I had no idea what I was doing. I thought to myself, ‘If I fuck this up, I’m over.’”

• READ MORE: How Wheatus distorted an acoustic guitar to make Teenage Dirtbag an early 2000s classic

Given the circumstances, Lukather’s nervousness was understandable. It was 1978, and he was a relative newbie held to scrutiny by the watchful eyes and ears of the LA session scene crème de la crème. “Jim Keltner was there, so was Waddy [Wachtel] and Kootch [Danny Korthmar],” Lukather remembers. “I’m sure they were all going, ‘Who’s this young punk ass? How did he get in here? He must’ve jumped the line or something.’”

A couple of Lukather’s friends were there, too, namely keyboardist-singer David Paich and drummer Jeff Porcaro. The guitarist had played with them a year before on his first big-time tour backing up Boz Scaggs, then riding high with his smash album Silk Degrees (half of which featured songs co-written by Paich). At the conclusion of the tour, the three, along with fellow Scaggs’ alumni, keyboardist Steve Porcaro (Jeff’s brother) and bassist David Hungate, talked about playing together again.

Line In The Sand

Hold the Line would prove to be an important song for Toto; in many ways, it wouldn’t be untrue to say that it was a catalyst for the formation of the band. “I was invited over to Paich’s house, and some of the other guys were there,” Lukather remembers. “David had a spinet piano, and he started playing the song. We didn’t have our instruments with us, but we were rocking out. He played me the riff on the piano, and I could hear how good it would sound on guitar. It was exciting. Jeff looked at me and went, ‘Yeah, man, that’s the shit!’ We all knew it had something. Some songs aren’t there at first. This one was. It kickstarted us being in a band.”

And so it was on that fateful day in Studio 55, when Lukather, gripped with fear and eager to prove that he had the right stuff, let loose with a spontaneous one-take wonder that combined impeccable phrasing and flamethrower intensity. When he was done, he looked at the folks behind the studio glass and asked, “Am I still in the band?”

“I wanted to be in the band so bad,” he says. “I was young and hungry. I mean, as far as I was concerned, this was the ultimate band. It was insane. And [singer] Bobby Kimball was a firecracker of a human being. Being near him was like sitting next to an M-80 – he was a big presence. That voice of his could break glass. Boy he could sing.”

The solo – like the song itself – sounds so well composed.

“We got in the studio, and everybody played the right part the first time,” he remembers. “I think we did two or three takes – that was the record. There were no demos. All the sessions we did, there were no demos or rehearsals – for anything. It was just a guy or a gal playing an acoustic guitar or piano, and we’d go, “Okay, there’s a chord chart.” We’d make little notes and come up with our own parts. After that, it was a question of where we gonna take it.”

Did David have the lyrics written out?

“Probably. He’d come into the studio with finished songs.”

That powerful rhythm guitar crunch – where did that come from?

“That’s what I brought to the band. Truth is, it was the most obvious part to play. I mean, it wasn’t like, “Wow, that’s genius.” I was just following the bass and piano part. Now, in doing that, it toughened things up. It wasn’t going to be just a little pop song. Jeff dug in with his drums a little harder than he would have on some other session. We were just discovering who the hell we were.”

Were you using a Les Paul on that?

“Yeah, that was a Les Paul. I may have just bought a 1958 goldtop. I did the main track on a ‘71 Deluxe burst, and when I overdubbed the solo, I think I played the goldtop. I think. It was a little bit ways back.”

Do you remember the amp?

“Absolutely. I was using a Fender Deluxe Reverb modified by Paul Rivera. I bought it off of a buddy of mine. Oh, I loved the amp so much. I begged him for it. He sold it to me for a couple hundred bucks – God bless him.”

Was it always known that you would play a solo in the song?

“The solo was built in. Paich was like, ‘Oh, you’re going to solo over this section’. I said, ‘Oh, wow.’ I was in the hot seat. It was one take until the very end when I did the harmony guitars. Dave insisted on that – ‘I want that Queen-Boston thing.’ For that, he punched me in and I played the first harmony, and then I doubled it. We did it as a three-part thing.”

Let’s drill down a bit. So you knew there would be a solo, but you didn’t plan it out at all, even a little bit?

“No! It was like, ‘Go. Play. Now.’ It was improvised. The solo was one take out of fear.

You made quite an entrance at the start of the solo. You must have known you had to come on strong.

I played something like that, and the rest was a stream of consciousness. I flubbed one thing at the very end, and Paich said, “Don’t worry about it. I was going to make you do that again to put the three-part harmony in there.”

Were you happy with what you played? After the one take, did you say to the guys, “I think I can do it better”?

“No. I was just hoping I was still in the band. [Laughs] I mean, we all mess up. Everybody thinks, ‘one take’, but I mean, when I was young and cocky and confident, I could go in there and nail it. I was sure I could. I already knew I could nail it before I nailed it. I wasn’t an asshole about it, but I knew inside myself, ‘I’m going to bring this. I’m going to be one of those guys that gets one or two takes and it’s done’. I would do that.”

I understand that you ran around the house in your underwear the first time you heard the song on the radio.

“That’s true. I was in my first house with my first wife, Marie. The album had just come out, and back then there were two stations we listened to – KMET and 95.5 KLOS. Those were our local rock stations when we were in high school. They kept saying, ‘You’re going to be on sometime.’ Oh, man, that was the dream. I got a call from Paich – ‘Turn on 95.5 right now!’ I’m in my underwear, I had just woken up. I turned on the radio and started screaming. Of course I’m dancing around the house in my underwear. Who wouldn’t? We were on the radio.”

What was it like to hear the sound of your guitar on the radio? I imagine the EQ might have sounded strange at first.

“It was surreal – the dream had come true. But you know what they changed the most? They cut the solo the fuck out to make it shorter so it could be on AM radio. They cut it out like it never happened. I remember being in my car going, ‘All right, we’re on the radio!’ Then it gets to the end and I’m like, ‘What?’ That’s what stations did. Most of the time, they played the whole thing.”

Has Toto ever done a show without playing Hold the Line?

“No, man. I mean, there’s certain things you have to do. I don’t play the solo exactly like on the record because I’m too lazy to learn it.”

You even play the song with Ringo and his All-Starr Band.

“Well, that was scary. They made me sing it, and I had to lower the key and everything. I have [saxophonist-singer] Warren Ham cover the really high bubble parts. I’m not a lead singer per se, but at least I’m not lip syncing it. You know what I mean? Nobody’s perfect. That’s the whole thing about fakery – people expect it.”

What’s it like to turn around to see Ringo Starr playing one of your songs?

“That never gets old. Never, ever.”

The post “I thought if I f**k this up, I’m over” Steve Lukather on Toto’s Hold The Line: his ultimate guitar solo appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

When I tell people I play guitar, they’ll often ask me, “acoustic or electric?” to which I’ll reply, “erm, both?” But not every guitarist has time for both, like Biffy Clyro and Oceansize guitarist Mike Vennart, who pulls no punches on his thoughts on playing acoustic guitar.

In an interview in the latest issue of Guitarist magazine, Vennart explains how he “can’t think of anything more boring” than playing the acoustic guitar.

• READ MORE: Carlos Santana thinks guitarists who play fast are no better than gym bros flexing their muscles: “Big deal, so what?”

Asked about the best bargain he’s found when buying guitars, he notes the time he bought a Godin 5th Avenue – a ‘50s-inspired hollowbody archtop with F-holes – for just £350 on eBay, and how he’s able to “get away” with using it at acoustic shows.

“Over lockdown, I’d accumulated a ton of air miles and, obviously I couldn’t use them, so I changed them into points and bought a Godin 5th Avenue on eBay for like 350 quid,” he says. 

“It’s not my usual kind of guitar at all, but it’s got class, and I can kind of get away with using it at acoustic shows, even though it’s not really acoustic. It makes me feel a certain way, it’s got a beautiful sound, and it’s nice and easy to play.”

He goes on: “But I fucking hate playing acoustic guitar. I can’t think of anything more boring! [laughs], so this thing brings the best out in me – I can get a lot of inspiration out of this guitar. It’s got one single P-90 in the neck, and that’s all it does. It’s fantastic.”

Back in October, Biffy Clyro frontman Simon Neil weighed in on whether having a better understanding of technique can diminish your creativity as a guitar player.

“I’m still enthralled by the magic of the guitar, probably because I never conquered the technique side,” he said. “It’s this box of wonder that I approach as a creative instrument.”

The post Biffy Clyro touring guitarist says he “can’t think of anything more boring” than playing acoustic guitar appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

If your idea of great guitar playing is shredding scales faster than a coffee-fuelled gym bro curls dumbbells, Carlos Santana has a message for you: “Big deal. So what?”

Speaking on the new issue of Guitarist, Santana suggests that too many players mistake technical skill for musical expression, forgetting that music’s true power lies in the way it moves people.

“Music isn’t a sport at the end of the day, especially for the listener,” he says. “If you just practise all day and night going really fast, after a while it’s a bit like going to the gym and seeing somebody flexing their muscles. Big deal. So what? Playing with spirit is like giving someone a hug that lasts for infinity. Time stops.”

• READ MORE: “I’m not that fast on the guitar, but I don’t want to be”: David Gilmour explains why speedy solos never interested him

According to Santana, it’s the heart and soul that make a guitar player memorable: “The only thing people will remember about your music is how you made them feel. They are not going to remember all the fast scales and ‘Look at what I can do!’ moments,” says the guitarist.

“But they will remember those three notes that made the hairs stand on the back of the neck and tears come out of their eyes, even if they don’t know why. That’s a whole other element, one I call spirit. Some people don’t know how to play with spirit, heart and soul. Those are three very important ingredients.”

Improvisation, he explains, is central to this approach and it’s all about embracing the unknown.

“Anybody can practise scales up and down. But there’s something about coming down a water slide. You don’t know how you’re going to land; it might be on your head or on your feet. That’s what happens when you deviate from the melody,” says Santana.

He cites John Coltrane, Miles Davis, and Wayne Shorter as teachers of this art, recounting Shorter’s wry advice on practising: “He’d tell them, ‘We don’t know what we are going to play; how do you practise the unknown?’”

Santana also credits a wide array of influences beyond the usual guitar pantheon. “I learned improvisation from Coltrane. I learned cosmic music from Sun Ra. I learned down-to-earth music from the Grateful Dead because they were heavily immersed in the folk and bluegrass worlds. And don’t dismiss the guitar playing of Bob Dylan. He played a lot of great guitar, which worked beautifully with his vocals.”

Placing particular emphasis on learning from soul singers, Santana says that “playing along to soul singers is something nearly every guitar player could learn from. I don’t care who you are, whether you are Al Di Meola or not, I’d recommend this to any guitar player. If you spend even one day learning how to play and phrase like those lady soul singers, you will become a better musician. This is the truth.”

The post Carlos Santana thinks guitarists who play fast are no better than gym bros flexing their muscles: “Big deal, so what?” appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

Electro-Harmonix has announced the Effects Interface Hardware Plugin, a “first-of-its-kind” studio-and-stage tool designed to blur the line between physical pedals and software plugins.

At its core, Effects Interface is built to tackle two familiar problems for modern guitarists: running tracks from your DAW through real pedals, and integrating plugins into a physical rig. Rather than relying on special converters or direct boxes, the Effects Interface handles your signal and delivers it with care between your hardware and software via a single USB-C connection.

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The Effects Interface operates in three distinct modes. Hardware Plugin Mode allows users to send audio from their DAW through pedals or other outboard gear just like software plugins on a track. Vocals, synths and even MIDI instruments can be routed through guitar pedals with minimal setup.

Pedalboard Mode flips that concept on its head. Here, players can route their instrument into a DAW, process it with plugins, and send the signal back out to their amp or pedal chain – effectively turning plugins into stompboxes. For players who rely on software amp models or effects that don’t exist in hardware form, this opens up new hybrid rig possibilities, both live and in the studio.

Finally, we have the Audio Interface Mode, which allows the unit to function as a traditional 2-in/2-out USB audio interface.

Physically, the Effects Interface is designed to live comfortably on a pedalboard. It features straightforward controls, a single footswitch, stereo I/O with dedicated level control sliders, and a headphone output for monitoring. Power supply and USB-C cable are included, keeping setup as simple as possible.

EHX describes the Effects Interface Hardware Plugin as a way to “knock down the walls between physical and plugin effects”, and the concept will likely appeal to guitarists looking to bridge the gap between modern DAW workflows and traditional rigs.

The Effects Interface Hardware Plugin is available now for $359.

Learn more at EHX.

The post Turn pedals into outboard gear – and plugins into pedalboard-ready effects – with Electro-Harmonix’s new Effects Interface appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

When Mateus Asato announced last week that he’d ended his 12-year partnership with Suhr, speculation quickly followed. After more than a decade with the brand – and a run of signature models along the way – fans were left wondering if another guitar company might already be waiting in the wings.

• READ MORE: “The Stratocaster hasn’t really changed since 1954”: Outgoing Fender CEO Andy Mooney says electric guitarists have “generally been reluctant to really accept innovation”

Those questions only grew louder days later when the 33-year-old shared a video of himself performing Jimi Hendrix’s Little Wing on a Stratocaster.

“Could it be that Fender made a move and signed one of the best modern players around? (please say yes),” a fan commented on the post.

Though Asato was quick to shut down the idea: “You guys are funny. Imagine playing Little Wing on a guitar that isn’t a Strat… Could it work? Maybe.”

“In my case, I just picked this strat because it fits the storytelling the most. Regarding this topic, I’m really chill. ‘Single’ & happy where I am at this point. Tchau tchau!”

In a longer follow-up comment (translated from Brazilian Portuguese), Asato reiterated that the Strat appearance isn’t a hint at a new endorsement deal.

“Dude, 95% of this video is me performing Little Wing. Imagine the heresy if this wasn’t touched in a strat?! Can’t. I just wanted to live up to the story told. Concerning this matter, I’m calm and waiting on God for direction of whatever next chapter. Hug!”

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With brand rumours put to rest – for now – Asato is turning his attention back to music. The guitarist’s highly anticipated debut solo album is due in the coming weeks, and features the singles Cryin’ and The Breakup Song, which are now out.

“The album is definitely a journey through all the sides of Mateus,” Asato said in an interview with Guitar.com last year. “The Mateus who’s a sideman, Mateus as the Instagram boy, and then the Mateus that got more mature over the years. Who developed a different vision regarding music, regarding how I see guitar.”

The post “‘Single’ and happy where I am at this point”: Mateus Asato addresses rumours of him joining Fender following Suhr exit appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

Fuzz is the most honest of all the guitar effects. It has no interest in trying to sound transparent, organic or amp-like: buy a fuzz box and your tone is going to be truly, deeply, thoroughly messed up. That’s in a good way, of course – at least, as long as you get the right one.

The early fuzzes were, in a word, nasty. Pioneers like the Maestro Fuzz-Tone of 1962 brought heavy distortion with a brassy, mids-focused tone that cut through the mix but didn’t offer much sustain. It wasn’t until the Brits got involved – notably with the Fuzz Face and Tone Bender – that things took a turn for the smooth. Then came the Electro-Harmonix Big Muff of 1969, a sonic steamroller of full-frequency hugeness with violin-like sustain… and all the main foundations of fuzz as we understand it today were in place.

If you’re after a ‘normal’ fuzz pedal, then, the first thing you need to decide is whereabouts on that timeline you want to go for inspiration – from lo-fi buzz to silky sweetness – and whether you want your midrange to be strident, scooped or somewhere between the two.
There are, however, other options that go well beyond the basic brief of turning the plinky-plunk of the electric guitar into something bigger and angrier. Curious about octave fuzzes, gated fuzzes and filter fuzzes? They’re all covered below.

At a glance:

• Best classic fuzz: EarthQuaker Devices Barrows
• Best multi-voice fuzz: Walrus Audio Eons
• Best Big Muff-style fuzz: Electro-Harmonix Ram’s Head Big Muff Pi
• Best octave fuzz: Beetronics Octahive V2
• Best Harmonic Percolator type: Land Devices HP-2
• Best combined fuzz and overdrive: Great Eastern FX Co Focus Fuzz Deluxe
• Best fuzz for soundscaping: Noise Engineering Dystorpia
• Best fuzz for gated effects: ThorpyFX Field Marshal
• Best vintage-style nasty fuzz: Fredric Effects Nouveau Super Unpleasant Companion
• Best filter fuzz: Dreadbox Disorder
• Why you can trust Guitar.com

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Best classic fuzz: EarthQuaker Devices Barrows

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Of all the early Brit fuzzes, the best for many people is the MkII Tone Bender – and that’s the source material for this mini pedal from the ever-excellent EQD. It’s super-smooth and rich, with that extra punch in the midrange that really represents the main difference between a Tone Bender and a Fuzz Face. It’s also a real cutie, if that word can reasonably be applied to anything with a picture of human remains on it.

Just be aware that, while it may be powered by three germanium transistors in true vintage style, this is no faithful replica: it’s thicker and bloomier than a real MkII Bender, making it ideal for doomy rock chords but not for snappy punk riffing.

Need more? Read our EarthQuaker Devices Barrows review.

Best multi-voice fuzz: Walrus Audio Eons

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Not to be confused with the Ages (five flavours of overdrive) and Eras (five flavours of distortion), the Eons is Walrus Audio’s attempt to capture the universe of fuzz in one compact stompbox – and while it won’t replace any pedal geek’s whole collection, it covers an impressive amount of ground.

Its primary weapon is a rotary switch that lets you choose from five different clipping circuits, covering everything from traditional silicon fuzz to a raging high-gain roar. But just above that is another special feature: a ‘lightning bolt’ control that you can crank for maximum clarity or pull back for spluttery voltage-starved effects. For sheer versatility, this goat might just be the GOAT.

Need more? Read our Walrus Audio Eons review.

Best Big Muff-style fuzz: Electro-Harmonix Ram’s Head Big Muff Pi

This version is a nano-sized reissue of one of the very earliest models, so called because of the logo at bottom right (which was never actually supposed to be a ram, but never mind). It sounds enormous, naturally, and errs on the side of warmth rather than straying into the nasal buzz that can be a weakness with some Muffs.

Note that, while the link below is to our review of the J Mascis signature Ram’s Head, the plain grey version is the same on the inside – and cheaper.

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Need more? Read our Electro-Harmonix Ram’s Head Big Muff Pi review.

Best octave fuzz: Beetronics Octahive V2

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Octave fuzzes are a riot, but don’t get too hung up on the ‘octave’ part. Because while the Roger Mayer Octavia used by Jimi Hendrix on Purple Haze does bring out the squeals in a big way, many pedals of this type are more about boosting harmonics to create gnarly textures than actually generating extra notes. And the Octahive is a fine example.

In standard mode, this is a thick fuzz with all the warmth of a tiger’s cuddle. But double-tap the clever footswitch to engage octave mode and that tiger suddenly remembers it hasn’t had its breakfast, coming for your eardrums with a savagely snarly midrange. And yes, it will also give you an up-octave if you play single notes high up the neck.

Need more? Read our Beetronics Octahive V2 review.

Best Harmonic Percolator type: Land Devices HP-2

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In the 21st century, Interfax is the name of a Russian news agency. Back in the 1970s, it was a small electronics business in Milwaukee run by a man named Ed Giese. History doesn’t record whether Ed knew much about the Soviet Union’s GDP, but he certainly knew how to design a fuzz pedal – and that was the Harmonic Percolator.

Made famous by the late Steve Albini, the Percolator has a bucketful of gain and provides all the gurgles and splutters suggested by its name, but it’s actually tighter and more controllable than many fuzzes. The Land Devices HP-2 is one of the best-known and best-loved modern takes on that quirky circuit, and for good reason. It’s choppy and chunky, with great clarity, and sounds surprisingly sweet with the guitar’s volume backed off a few notches. Be prepared for some hiss, though: Percolators tend to be noisy.

Need more? Read our Land Devices HP-2 review.

Best combined fuzz and overdrive: Great Eastern FX Co Focus Fuzz Deluxe

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There are lots of overdrives that can be pushed into the fuzz zone when you crank the gain, perhaps the best example being the insanely good Hudson Electronics Broadcast. But the Focus Fuzz Deluxe does more than that: as well as nailing those prized Tone Bender sounds, it can serve as a medium-gain overdrive or even a clean boost… and has a second footswitch for engaging a raspy octave mode.

It also has the same midrange-tightening ‘focus’ control as the original non-Deluxe model, which is a feature that plenty of other dirt pedal designers would do well to learn from, and serves up all of this multi-mode magic in a little golden box that positively stinks of sheer handmade class.

Need more? Read our Great Eastern FX Co Focus Fuzz Deluxe review.

Best fuzz for soundscaping: Noise Engineering Dystorpia

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Noise Engineering isn’t really a guitar pedal maker – it’s a company that specialises in synth modules, but decided to knock up a couple of stompboxes just for a laugh. And that lack of baggage is probably why the Dystorpia is such a fearlessly radical device.

Despite being a digital fuzz, this pedal can create some more or less traditional tones… but you won’t stick with them for long, because its array of knobs and switches opens up all sorts of possibilities for extreme noise creation. That includes some wild glitching effects, and even a freeze function for generating fuzzy ambient drones.

Need more? Read our Noise Engineering Dystorpia review.

Best fuzz for gated effects: ThorpyFX Field Marshal

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The idea of ‘boutique fuzz’ originated in the 90s with two pedals: the Z.Vex Fuzz Factory from the USA, and the Lovetone Big Cheese from the UK. This is a reworking of the latter, made in collaboration with original designer Dan Coggins, and it’s every bit as fruity as the original.

Its first trick is rich, thick, gravelly fuzz that will win you over in seconds; its second trick is a mid-boost mode for something sharper and more focused; and its third trick is the same squelchy, splatty mayhem – ‘gating’ the fuzz by using voltage starvation to clamp down on notes as they fade – that first made the Big Cheese famous.

Need more? Read our ThorpyFX Field Marshal review.

Best vintage-style nasty fuzz: Fredric Effects Nouveau Super Unpleasant Companion

The Maestro Fuzz-Tone wasn’t the only 60s pedal to assault the ears with a lo-fidelity buzzsaw blast: Japanese company Shin-ei kept churning out raucous noise-bringers long after most makers had switched to the more easygoing Fuzz Face formula. This little black wedge is a tribute to Shin-ei’s FY-2 Companion Fuzz and FY-6 Superfuzz, offering both circuits in one enclosure and adding extra tonal options.

Mind you, those options don’t include anything that isn’t downright hostile. Our review included the words ‘obnoxious’, ‘fanatical’, ‘insect-like’, ‘belligerent’ and ‘tinnitus in a box’. Don’t expect the sonic equivalent of an Indian head massage, then – but do expect a whole lot of fun.

Need more? Read our Fredric Effects Nouveau Super Unpleasant Companion review.

Best filter fuzz: Dreadbox Disorder

There is a way to make high-gain filth sound even cooler, and that’s to pair it with powerful EQ filtering. In the case of the Disorder, that means running an analogue CMOS fuzz through dual filters with adjustable resonance and the ability to track the dynamics of your playing.

Even in fixed mode, those filters give you much more tone-shaping flexibility than you’ll ever get from a traditional fuzz box; and once you engage the envelope mode, that flexibility gains the power of movement, with notes and chords getting either brighter or darker as they fade. It can be subtle, but it can also be a recipe for outlandish sci-fi swoops.

Annoyingly, while you can control the filters using an external device via CV, you can’t do so with a standard expression pedal. For that you’ll probably want the (much more expensive) Collision Devices TARS or Death By Audio Crossover Fuzz.

Need more? Read our Dreadbox Disorder review.

Why You Can Trust Us

Every year, Guitar.com reviews a huge variety of new products – from the biggest launches to cool boutique effects – and our expert guitar reviewers have decades of collective experience, having played everything from Gibson ’59 Les Pauls to the cheapest Squiers.

That means that when you click on a Guitar.com buyer’s guide, you’re getting the benefit of all that experience to help you make the best buying decision for you. What’s more, every guide written on Guitar.com was put together by a guitar obsessive just like you. You can trust that every product recommended in those guides is something that we’d be happy to have in our own rigs.

The post The best fuzz pedals for all styles and budgets appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

£329 / $399, thorpyfx.com

Collabs are all the rage in the pedal world these days, but it’s still exciting when you see someone enter the field that hasn’t been there before. Jesse Hoff, the main man behind Lazy J, has won a reputation as one of the world’s foremost boutique amp makers over the last few decades. You’ll find his takes on vintage Tweed amps on stages and in studios with everyone from David Gilmour and Noel Gallagher to Ed O’Brien and Joe Satriani.

• READ MORE: Horrothia Effects Triage Deluxe review – the ultimate all-in-one gain machine for fussy tonehounds?

Hoff is also no stranger to effects either, having put out the well-regarded Cruiser boost/drive pedal well over a decade ago. But collaborations? That’s a new one.

Thorpy main man Adrian Thorpe is much more familiar with that sort of thing of course – whether that’s making signature gear for Chris Buck and Danish Pete, or collaborating with pedal legend Dan Coggins to revive both the Dinosaural and Lovetone brands.

Two tone connoisseurs teaming up to make something altogether a bit different for both of them then? Well, that sounds like a lot of fun…

“I like to work with good people who genuinely inspire me,” Thorpe tells me. “Jesse is such a great guy, one of the great amp builders. I’ve been an owner and huge fan of his Lazy J J 20 amp for years. It’s such a harmonically rich and beautifully tactile amp to play. It’s taken us about four years of collaboration to develop The J pedal, and we’re really proud of the result.”

Lazy J x Thorpy Fx The J – what is it?

As Adrian implies, the primary mission of The J is to faithfully emulate the tones and response of a J 20 amp in compact pedal format, itself derived from the classic Fender 5E3 Tweed Deluxe amp. To do that, The J includes a built-in transformer that can mimic the real amp feel, paired with a circuit chock full of high-grade audiophile capacitors and such. All of it is built to Thorpy’s famously military-grade specs, and differs from the usual Thorpy fare by squeezing it all into a rather lovely UV-printed enclosure. It’s still recognisably a Thorpy pedal of course, but one that feels equally indebted to the Lazy J boutique amp lineage.

As with the original, you get the option of a normal or bright channel, and the controls are suitably spartan for an amp based on the similarly simple J 20 – with independent volume for each, as well as a presence control, single tone and a master output. Things you won’t find on the top of the J 20 include a toggle switch to select X or Y mode – the circuit’s impression of either 12AX7 or 12AY7 valves – as well as a ‘supply’ switch, which is designed to emulate the J 20’s impressive attenuator.

Lazy J x Thorpy Fx The J – usability and sounds

I’ve owned, gigged and recorded with both vintage tweed amps and J 20 for over a decade, and so I approached The J with a bit of trepidation. Surely it couldn’t capture the magic touch-sensitive 3D sonic experience of an amp that’s simultaneously chiming with top clarity and snarling with chewy, barking midrange?

Plugging my Strat into a Deluxe Reverb set sparkly clean, I set The J in the lower gain 12AY7 mode and select the normal channel. One thing that’s worth being aware of here is that, like the J 20, the positioning of the volume of the channel you aren’t using does have an impact on the gain of the one you are – a weird eccentricity for sure but one that I respect Thorpy and Hoff going to the trouble of recreating here.

With the supply, output and normal volume set high (and the bright volume low), I’m greeted with a fat, harmonically rich, very sweet edge-of-breakup up tone, just what I love about tweed amps.

The bright channel is – as you’d expect – a touch brighter, but also more gainy than the normal channel. But utilising the additional controls I can dial in everything from a fat clean boost to snarling fuzz tone freakouts, much like a great old tweed amp.

Plugging in a Tele is Keef riff and Cropper heaven, and upping the gain with my P-90-loaded Les Paul has me revelling in the rich tonal spectrum of Neil Young. It’s a chewy feeling, slightly flabby, gorgeously addictive and crucially, superbly touch responsive guitar tone that the Thorpy J convincingly nails, even when tried back-to-back with my J 20 amp.

As a tweed emulator pedal The J responds magnificently to a lighter touch or guitar volume manipulation, and not only crucially captures both the playing feel and tone of a cranked amp, but also a lot of the quirky nature of the unexpectedly interactive control set. Hours of lush tonal experimentation await the tone curious player.

Lazy J x Thorpy Fx The J – should I buy one?

Thorpy has been producing some truly superb pedals for many years now, but The J might very well be the brand’s crowning achievement. It’s a superb tweed amp emulation that more than lives up to the Lazy J name, but there’s more to it than just that.

Even if you never cared about capturing the authentic sound of a tweed amp, The J is a fantastic overdrive pedal in its own right – in fact, it’s one of the best sounding, most tactile and responsive dirt pedals I’ve ever had the privilege of playing.

Lazy J x Thorpy Fx The J – alternatives

Capturing Tweed in a box is a notoriously tricky task, for a decent flavour however the Catalinbread Formula No. 55 ($189) is a JFET-based overdrive designed to replicate those classic Tweed Deluxe flavours. More pricey, but the Origin Effects Deluxe55 (£279) is an all-analogue tribute to the legendary Fender 5E3 with some twists. If you’re after a more digital emulation of the tweed thing, the Universal Audio Woodrow ’55 ($399) is worth a look.

The post Lazy J x ThorpyFX The J review: “one of the best sounding, most tactile and responsive dirt pedals I’ve ever played” appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

After the final Black Sabbath gig in early July last year, extremely high estimates of how much the mighty celebration of metal had earned its chosen charities were reported across the media.

Ozzy Osbourne’s son Jack has since spoken out about these figures, and has said that each of the three charities selected by the band received around £1.5–2 million, with the rough total coming in at around £6–7 million.

• READ MORE: Nuno Bettencourt recalls his final conversation with Ozzy Osbourne – as “the only guitar player who said no” to playing for him

The gig was held at Villa Park in Black Sabbath’s home city of Birmingham, UK. It raised money for Cure Parkinson’s, the Birmingham Children’s Hospital and Acorn Children’s Hospice. The show featured solo music from Ozzy as well as a performance from the original lineup of Black Sabbath, and a mighty roster of other rock and metal greats. Ozzy sadly passed away just a few weeks after the event.

Across the media, estimate figures of the gig’s earnings for charity were as high as $190 million. Sharon Osbourne also shut down these claims, and similarly to Jack, provided a rough total of around $11 million (about £8 million): a brilliant total that will have a real impact, nonetheless.

Speaking on the Punk Rock Sober podcast, Jack says, “This is how you know the news is probably 90 percent bullshit, ‘cause it was, like, CNN and New York Times was saying ‘Ozzy raised $150 million.’ And it wasn’t that. I think what it came down to was, like, when all was said and done, because it was a charity gig, you still have to pay for the actual gig. No bands got paid, and most of the crew donated their time.”

He adds, “But I think when all said [was] and done, each charity got, like, one and a half or two million pounds [approximately $2.7 million] each. So, it was, I think, six or seven million pounds [approximately $9.4 million]. That’s what was donated to the three charities. I mean, we would’ve loved it if it was hundreds of millions. We would have been, like, ‘Fuck yeah.’”

You can watch the full interview with Jack below:

The post “You still have to pay for the actual gig”: Jack Osbourne says Back To The Beginning charities received around “£1.5m or £2m” each, despite media estimates being much higher appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

Gibson has revealed a new partnership with Keith Richards, unveiling two new super-limited Collector’s Edition ES-355s based on the Rolling Stones man’s own treasured 1960 ES-355.

150 guitars are available as part of the launch – 50 signed both on the instrument and label, and 100 with only a signed label. Developed in close collaboration with Richards, these guitars expectedly don’t come cheap, with the former priced at $19,999, and the latter at $29,999.

• READ MORE: The ’58 Goldtop Slash couldn’t walk away from: “He said, ‘I don’t need any more of these.’ And then he plugged it in and said, ‘Alright, I’ll take this one!’”

Keith first used an ES-355 in 1969, both on the road and in the studio, namely during the recording sessions for Sticky Fingers and Exile on Main St. His black 1960 model, meticulously recreated for this launch, has accompanied him on every Rolling Stones tour since 1997.

According to the Gibson Gazette, the guitars have been handcrafted in the Gibson Custom Shop in Nashville, Tennessee, and are “exact replicas”. Its details were recreated using advanced 3D scanning, period-correct materials and construction techniques, with Murphy Lab hand-aging completing the guitars.

Both feature a multi-ply bound body made from three-ply maple/poplar/maple, with red spruce bracing and a maple centreblock for enhanced sustain and reduced feedback, weight-relieved at Richards’ request. Each has a mahogany neck with a custom Keith Richards profile, while premium hardware includes a Bigsby B7 vibrato tailpiece and Grover Rotomatic tuners with Milk Bottle buttons.

Each hosts a pair of unpotted Custombucker pickups with Alnico 5 magnets, wired to CTS 500k audio taper pots and paper-in-oil capacitors. These guitars ship in a Gibson Protector series case with a certificate of authenticity and a replica of the strap that Richards uses.

Check out the launch video below, featuring producer Andrew Watt, who worked with the Stones on their most recent album, Hackney Diamonds.

“This is my standard tuning six-string,” Richards tells Watt. “This is the other side of my thing. My six-string stuff has always been, you know, a great Gibson – that’s where I feel the most comfortable. And also with the sound. Put it through just about any amp, and it will sound the way you want it, because this has so much more room for expression.”

Find out more about the Keith Richards 1960 ES-355 Collector’s Edition at Gibson.

The post Gibson uses 3D scanning and period correct materials to create an “exact replica” of Keith Richards’ prized 1960 ES-355 appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

Following last year’s launch of Fender Studio – a GarageBand-style, beginner-friendly DAW app for recording and jamming – Fender is taking things to the next level.

Now, Studio One Pro, the renowned DAW software from PreSonus – which Fender bought in 2021 – is transitioning into Fender Studio Pro, bringing a number of updates to visual design and UI, new amps and effects, faster mixing workflows and loads more.

• READ MORE: “The Stratocaster hasn’t really changed since 1954”: Outgoing Fender CEO Andy Mooney says electric guitarists have “generally been reluctant to really accept innovation”

But Fender isn’t stopping there; PreSonus’s Quantum and AudioBox interface lines are also moving under the Fender name, and will now be the Fender Quantum Series and Fender AudioBox.

In addition to an updated UI, new amps and effects – 57 guitar and bass amp models via Mustang and Rumble Native plugins – and faster workflows, the reimagined Fender Studio Pro environment also introduces upgraded samplers, as well as AI-powered audio-to-note conversion.

“For more than a decade, Studio One Pro has set the standard for modern music production,” says Max Gutnik, Chief Product Officer, FMIC.

“Its balance of power, creativity and ease of use has inspired countless artists and shaped how music is made today.

“With Fender Studio Pro, we are taking those celebrated features and enhancing them with a modernised interface, Fender’s award-winning amp and effects models and new intuitive workflows and capabilities that make creating music faster, more inspiring and more connected than ever.”

Fender says it “remains dedicated to inspiring generations of artists and creators”, and that the new Fender Studio brand – which brings PreSonus’s Studio One and Quantum and AudioBox interfaces under its umbrella – is the “next evolution of that vision, where tradition and innovation meet in the service of creativity”.

To showcase the potential of Fender Studio Pro, Fender has tapped Nile Rodgers and Grammy-nominated producer Alissia Benveniste for a demo video. Check it out below:

“Having authentic Fender amps and pedals built straight into the DAW is a game-changer,” says Benveniste. “Fender Studio Pro delivers true analog warmth with a seamless workflow.”

Also worth noting, MyPreSonus – the platform through which you manage and access your PreSonus gear and software – is being replaced by the new MyFender platform. This platform will also serve the wider base of Fender customers who purchase guitars, amps and effects.

While Studio One Pro is becoming Fender Studio Pro, and the Quantum and AudioBox lines are moving under the Fender name, PreSonus will continue to serve customers with pro audio products including its Eris Monitors, StudioLive Series III SE Mixers, Air XD Loudspeakers and more.

In terms of pricing, a perpetual license for Fender Studio Pro comes in at $199.99/£169.99, while a monthly subscription is available at $19.99/$19.99 per month. A number of upgrade options are also available for existing users.

Alongside the launch of Fender Studio Pro, the company has also issued an update for its Fender Studio app, introducing a new transmit feature which seamlessly sends sessions to Fender Studio Pro, as well as new Chord Track, and Drum Metronome features.

To learn more about Fender Studio Pro, head to Fender.

Elsewhere in the Fender world, it was announced last week that CEO Andy Mooney would be stepping down, with the current President of the company’s Asia Pacific division Edward “Bud” Cole assuming the role of CEO from February 16.

“Leading Fender has been a highlight of my career,” says Mooney. “I’m deeply grateful for the creativity and commitment of the Fender teams around the world and proud of what we’ve accomplished. I’m excited to pass the baton on to Bud and confident that under his leadership, Fender will continue to inspire players for generations to come.”

During his tenure as President of Fender Asia Pacific, Edward “Bud” Cole has spearheaded the opening of Fender’s flagship Tokyo store, overseen the expansion of the brand into 14 countries across the region including mainland China and Korea, and played a pivotal role in numerous Made-in-Japan launches, like the widely publicised Godzilla Stratocasters back in October.

The post PreSonus Studio One is now Fender Studio Pro, as Fender launches its own fully-fledged DAW environment appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

Guitarist Matt Kwasniewski-Kelvin, who was instrumental in shaping the sound of Black Midi from its formation in 2017 until his departure in 2021, has sadly died at the age of 26.

His family say that the young musician had faced a “long battle with his mental health”. They announced his death through a statement which was shared on social media by the band’s label, Rough Trade Records.

It reads, “It is with deep sadness that we as a family regret to inform you that Matthew Kwasniewski-Kelvin has died after a long battle with his mental health. A talented musician and a kind, loving young man finally succumbed; despite all efforts. Matt was 26 years old. He will always be loved. Please take a moment to check in with your loved ones so we can stop this happening to our young men.”

Rough Trade also added its own statement in the caption: “Rough Trade Records would like to extend deepest sympathy to the Kwasniewski-Kelvin family who have shared this statement on the tragic passing of founding black midi member Matt – an incredibly talented person who will be truly missed,” it says.

“If you are struggling with mental health issues please reach out to your loved ones or one of the range of charities such as Mind, CALM and Samaritans who provide services and someone to talk to in any time of need.”

View this post on Instagram

Kwasniewski-Kelvin co-founded the band in 2017 while attending London’s BRIT School alongside members Geordie Greep, Cameron Picton, and Morgan Simpson. In early 2021, he stepped back from the band to focus on his mental health.

In their early days of gigging, the band established a residency at the Windmill in Brixton. It was here they met producer Dan Carey, who worked with them on their debut album, Schlagenheim. The venue has also released a statement regarding the tragic news in what it calls “the hardest post” it’s ever had to make.

“Our deepest condolences to his dad Tony (who came to loads of the early Black Midi shows) and the rest of the family. It’s so so emotional thinking back to those really exciting times when Matt would come in for soundcheck after a day’s work inspecting air vents (hence, the song Ducter) and produce some of the best sounds our little stage had ever witnessed, including this night with the late Damo Suzuki,” it reads.

“While it might look like someone has the world at their feet and all is great, things are not always what they seem. So please look and read the message from his family on slide two and keep checking in on each other so that we can all help to avoid tragic gut-wrenching news like this. RIP Matt, you were such a lovely guy.”

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In 2019, Geordie Greep spoke to Guitar.com, in which he explained why the sound of their debut was not restricted by genre: “At first we were much more conscious of the style of music we wanted to make and were careful not to let it fall into certain taboo genres. But as we played more and more, we stopped thinking about all that and did only what we found interesting in one way or another, sometimes without knowing why. This yielded better results,” he said. Black Midi entered an indefinite hiatus in August 2024.

If you’re struggling with your mental health, you can find a full list of helplines via Mind. You can also search for support in over 130 countries through Find A Helpline.

The post Black Midi guitarist Matt Kwasniewski-Kelvin has died at 26 after mental health battle appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

If three is the magic number, then Slash’s third collaboration with Seymour Duncan might just prove to be the Guns N Roses legend’s best set of pickups yet. The Slash 3.0 Pickups Set serves as rock legend’s most “aggressive” signature set to date, created especially for Slash’s appearance at Black Sabbath’s historic Back To The Beginning gig last July.

For over four decades, Slash has put his faith in Seymour Duncan pickups. From his first signature set, to the Slash 2.0 set’s bold, stadium-suited grandeur, each set of humbuckers has upped Slash’s game. In order to impress Ozzy Osbourne and the gang, Slash needed some extra oomph; the guitarist wanted new pickups for his Gibson SG.

• READ MORE: “What could have been”: Andertons and Chicago Music Exchange team up with Fender on exclusive Lavender Haze-finished guitars and basses

The Slash 3.0 is vintage-inspired and built with rough cast Alnico 5 magnets, allowing guitarists to dish out tighter lows, while also offering a more instant attack.

Slash describes the hand-built humbucker as a “step up” in his line. “You have more output, but still that same clarity and honesty of the sound of the guitar,” he explains in a promo clip. “The 3.0 is obviously a little bit raunchier than the 2.0… it gives that extra boost that I need in certain guitars.”

“I’ve got the best of all worlds now because I have my original Slash pickups that I’ve been using on most of my guitars forever, [as well as the] 2.0 and the 3.0  for different guitars and different situations where it calls for that,” he goes on to add.

As Slash notes, “pickups are really personal”, and Seymour Duncan has yet again helped him express his true sonic personality. “It really depends on the guitar player… if you want to get just a little bit more kick-ass out of your guitar sound, but you still want clarity, definitely try a 3.0.”

The set is also available to feel even more personal thanks to its multiple configurations. The set offers both single or four-conductor wiring, as well as standard or Trembucker spacing, and long and short-leg options.

In terms of pricing, you can get a pair of Slash 3.0s for $258, while each single pickup costs $129.

Learn more at Seymour Duncan.

The post Slash used specially designed pickups at Black Sabbath’s final show – now he’s releasing them as a signature set with Seymour Duncan appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

If you’re looking for a sign to buy your first headless guitar then let this be it – Sweetwater is offering a range of huge deals across Strandberg Boden models, including its Standard and Essential variations.

There is a generous range of Strandberg deals available, with some saving you over $300. The Boden Essential 6, which we reviewed back in 2024 and rated a perfect 10/10 no less, is one of many of its headless guitars that you can save your pennies on.

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The Boden Essential 6 is a six-string, conventionally fretted model that acts as a gateway into the headless guitar world thanks to its lower price point, as opposed to the majority of its more high-end models.

Just as its name suggests, this guitar may not offer fancy paintwork or any spectacular bells and whistles, but it does offer all the necessities, and is super lightweight at just 4.7lbs (2.15kg).

• READ MORE: The Sterling Kaizen was my favourite guitar of 2025 – but it looks like the new Ibanez Alpha Series is coming for the crown

Fitted with Strandberg’s in-house-designed OEM humbuckers, these guitars can handle “squeaky cleans and gut-punching grind”. The finishes on sale via Sweetwater include Black Granite, Future Dusk (lilac), and Galactic Blue.

To shop all deals on these Essential 6 models and more across the Strandberg range, head over to Sweetwater.

The post Looking for your first headless guitar? Save big on Strandbergs at Sweetwater right now appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

Most people wouldn’t characterise Mark Tremonti as an extreme metal shredder. Famed for his work in multi-Platinum-shipping hard rockers Creed and arena-filling alt-metal outfit Alter Bridge, he’s far more synonymous with soulful ballads and intense, immediate hooks. But it’s not a career that he envisioned for himself.

• READ MORE: Trivium’s Matt Heafy names the five up-and-coming metal bands everyone needs to watch in 2026

“When I was younger, I thought I’d be in a band that was, like, a metal band,” the guitarist says. “The first sign was my long hair. I had long hair and it looked terrible. I wanted to be that long, straight-haired, head-banging, Flying V-shredding, speed metal guy.”

Plans changed when Tremonti co-founded Creed with bassist Brian Marshall, drummer Scott Phillips and vocalist Scott Stapp in 1994, but his passion for the heavier end of metal did not. While playing guitar on such earnest anthems as With Arms Wide Open and Higher, he continued to harbour a love for the likes of Metallica, Slayer, Celtic Frost and Kreator. Eventually, Creed imploded and gave way to Alter Bridge, where Tremonti, Marshall and Phillips were joined by new frontman Myles Kennedy, and the guitarist got to unload some groovier riffs and wilder solos. Still, he was dealing in fare so melodic that it didn’t point towards an adolescence as a thrash addict.

“It just so happens that I ran into guys in college who weren’t into metal, so we did different styles of music,” Tremonti reflects. “Even in Alter Bridge, because I’m with the same rhythm section, when I come in with a metal riff, they kind of look at me funny.”

The guitarist also admits he’s more focussed on writing a good chorus than an intense knock-about section. “The chorus is arguably the most important part of any song,” he says. “So, if you start there and you have a great chorus, everything else will just boost that great chorus. But, if you don’t have a chorus and everything else is great, it’s never going to be a great song.”

Mercifully, Tremonti has his namesake solo band Tremonti on the side, where’s he free to let breakneck guitar parts fly with abandon. Also, the new Alter Bridge album has its fair share of gnarly moments. Self-titled for a reason, the platter explores the full breadth of the band’s sound, with songs ranging from acoustic ballads to white-knuckle ragers.

“Trust in Me is probably my favourite riff,” Tremonti says of the new album. “It actually has two of my favourite riffs. It has the main intro riff chugging part. I like something that can be heavy and slow at the same time. It sounds just like a train coming down the tracks that’s going to get you. And then the bridge and the outro of that song has a finger-picked part that I feel sounds very Alter Bridge. It’s something that feels big, but not poppy big.”

Frankly, Tremonti’s passion for the most brutal end of metal music is one of his most underrated characteristics. So, we asked him to list his favourite extreme metal guitar players. As he rallies off names from Dave Mustaine to Hank Shermann and Michael Denner, his passion for the extreme becomes very, very obvious.

Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman, Slayer

“Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman from Slayer, as far as riffs go, I think they’re my favourite writers of all time. Reign in Blood is probably the best riff record in all of the metal world: an incredible record.

“I think I discovered Slayer in seventh grade. My older brother, he was into extreme metal. My other brother was into more, like, Van Halen and Kiss and Ted Nugent and stuff, but my brother Dan had the Reign in Blood record. Back then, when you heard music like that, it was scary! It was like, ‘Ooh, this is intimidating music! This is edgy! I don’t want my parents to catch me listening to this,’ you know? And the kids at school that listened to it were the bad kids who’d be smoking weed. It drew me in. When I heard [opening song] Angel of Death, just the first 10 seconds of it, I was just like, ‘This is incredible!’

“Still, to this day, Reign in Blood is one of the most important records – probably in my top five records ever. Kerry and Jeff’s speed metal, right-hand-rhythm stuff, that spilled over [into my playing]. If you listen to Tremonti, there’s a lot of that – much more than in any of my other bands. But, that’s what I grew up on.”

Tom G. Warrior, Hellhammer / Celtic Frost / Triptykon

“As far as the chord progressions and the mood and the doom and the vibe, Tom G. Warrior is one of my favourite songwriters ever. I think he’s an absolute genius. I had a friend called John Hitchon back in sixth or seventh grade, and he would burn tapes and make copies of things, and he gave me [1987 Celtic Frost album] Into the Pandemonium. Right out of the gate, Inner Sanctum, first track on that record, I was like, ‘This is something different.’ And then you’d hear such creativity on that record. There are so many different, weird vibes going on.

“To me, Slayer made more sense – I grew up playing Dungeons & Dragons and stuff – but Celtic Frost were interesting. It was dangerous and different, and it was hard to understand the direction of it. I got to meet Tom and he’s great. He knew I had said that Celtic Frost were my favourite band for all of these years, and he thanked me for saying that probably in a million interviews. He said it would be interesting if I got up and played with his band at a festival or something. That would be cool to do.”

Dave Mustaine, Megadeth

“I’ll say Dave, but [I look up to] all of the guitar players who’ve been in Megadeth, especially Chris Poland. I think, when it comes to speed metal, James [Hetfield], Kirk [Hammett] and Dave were the guys who were the outlines for that. Mustaine, he had a fire in him and you could tell the music was intense. He’s underrated as an architect of the speed metal movement.

“[1988’s] So Far, So Good… So What! was the first record I bought from them, and then I went back and got Killing Is My Business… and Peace Sells…. So Far, So Good… So What! means a lot to me because I love that record. I probably wore that sucker out!”

Alex Skolnick, Testament

“When it comes to speed metal bands, Metallica were the biggest of them all, and they were the one that shaped me the most. Back then, I didn’t know who was doing what: James is rhythm and Kirk’s lead, but I loved every bit of it. I loved Alex Skolnick from Testament [for different reasons]. Alex is a big jazz fan, but back in the day you wouldn’t have known it. When he was playing metal stuff, it was dark and it was pointedly speed metal-ish, but it was tasteful. That’s what you could hear in his playing. In a lot of speed metal, the lead stuff was blistering and kind of harsh. His stuff had a smoothness and a polish to it.

“I used to hear rumours, ‘Oh, Skolnick’s the best, he’s the best in this genre,’ and you started paying attention to it more. You start buying the records and trying to see if you could learn a few riffs here and there. I was too young to be able to even think about playing his lead parts!

“If you were to ask me for my favourite Testament riff or solo, [1989’s] Practice What You Preach has them all. Trial By Fire [from 1988’s New World Order] is the song that got me to be a Testament fan, but I’d have to go back through Practice What You Preach and find the one.”

Hank Shermann and Michael Denner, Mercyful Fate

“The guys from Mercyful Fate were some of the most classic [guitarists]! For me, they just embodied that era with their tones. I think they were playing the old Marshalls and it just sounded so good! The riffs were so great. King Diamond is one of my favourite artists ever. Mercyful Fate, I remember seeing them at Hellfest or Copenhell, watching them live for the first time. I’d seen King Diamond, but never Mercyful Fate, and it was perfect. It was spot on. King Diamond crushed it; the band crushed it. I got to talk to King Diamond after the show for like half an hour.

“Mercyful Fate wasn’t extreme, blast beat-ey stuff at all. There weren’t a lot of guitar players [like Hank and Michael]. A big part of what I grew up on was Metallica and Slayer: that almost exclusively E-string open picking. The moodier, heavy, detuned stuff was just wanting to get vibes like Celtic Frost, but Mercyful Fate was more, like, almost dreamy and 70s. Moody. It didn’t even seem metal to me. It was more just badass hard rock.”

Alter Bridge’s self-titled album is out now via Napalm.

The post Mark Tremonti names his five favourite extreme metal guitar players appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

On this week’s episode of ‘guitar accessory or kitchen utensil’, we have a new guitar polishing mitt from D’Addario that wouldn’t look out of place among your finest collection of oven gloves.

As a guitarist, you’ll know the dust and other muck that can accumulate on your guitar with moderate to heavy use. And sure, a conventional cloth is usually enough to tidy up your instrument, but if you’re anything like us, you’ll have wished your whole life for a mitt you could wear to do the job instead.

• READ MORE: Sound System: is this up-and-coming next-gen game set to be the next Guitar Hero?

The Micro-Fiber Polishing Mitt is a reusable, chemical-free cleaning tool you can wear on your hand to remove dust, dirt, oils and smudges from your guitar.

Made using ultra-fine microscopic fibres, the mitt is designed to give guitarists “maximum control” when cleaning hard to reach areas like under strings, around hardware and tuning pegs, or inside cutaways. It can also be used to wipe down strings to extend their lifespan and preserve tone.

Of course, it’s essentially just a cleaning cloth in the form of a glove, so can also be used to wipe down other instruments including keyboards and even drum kits.

And the best part? It’s both reusable and machine washable, so you can say goodbye to filthy guitars for good.

We’d recommend, perhaps, keeping the Micro-Fibre Polishing Mitt away from your oven glove collection, as a mixup may end up proving painful…

The Micro-Fiber Polishing Mitt is available now, priced at just $7.99.

For more information, head to D’Addario.

The post Hot from the oven: this polishing mitt from D’Addario is the guitar accessory you didn’t know you needed appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

Today is your final chance to grab Universal Audio’s Paradise Guitar Studio plugin with 25% off.

Available from Plugin Boutique for £132 while the offer lasts, Paradise works with the DAW of your choice and was described by Universal Audio at its launch as “the most complete ‘end‑to‑end’ virtual experience we’ve ever built”.

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Given that the plugin arrived in December 2025, it’s still relatively new, meaning a deal like this one isn’t so common. We reviewed Paradise Guitar Studio following its launch, and gave it an 8/10 as it nailed all the basics.

We said that it offered a simple interface, top-quality amplifier sounds, and included all major effect types. We did, however, not recommend it for the high-gain guitarists out there, and noted that its simplicity means there are limited tweaking options.

• READ MORE: Victory sends blind guitarist custom braille amp in the most wholesome moment of 2026 so far

The plugin was essentially made to be a gateway to the studio of your dreams, offering everything you need for a pro guitar recording chain, including its acclaimed UAD guitar amp emulations along with classic cabinets and mics, pedals, and studio effects – all built upon its analogue modelling.

Inside, you get 11 hand-picked vintage and modified tube amps, over 300 presets – spanning genres such as rock, blues, indie, funk, and pop – as well as a generous range of effects like 1176 compression, vintage tape echo, and more.

Find out more in the video below:

Today is your last chance to shop this deal. Head over to Plugin Boutique to find out more.

The post We rated Universal Audio’s Paradise Guitar Studio plugin 8/10 – get it now at 25% off for today only appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

For a decade, the Guitar Hero franchise reigned supreme, before fading into the shadows after the release of 2015’s Guitar Hero Live. Now, some of the Guitar Hero team are back with next-gen rhythm game Sound System – and its free.

With plans to drop this spring, Sound System will pick up where Guitar Hero left off. Developed by the Echo Foundry Interactive team, the game revitalises the original franchise’s arcade-inspired roots, with the core Sound System experience available to play without paying a dime.

• READ MORE: Fender American Ultra Luxe Vintage Stratocaster HSS review: “probably the best marriage of vintage and modern features out there”

While the game is currently in its pre-alpha phase, the trailer already showcases some familiar Guitar Hero-like gameplay. The clip shows someone jamming out to Drist’s Decontrol, a track that was on the first Guitar Hero game back in 2005, notes racing down the iconic 5-string note highway.

The game is is also promising support for guitar, bass and vocals, as well as offering a mass of customisability. Users will be able to personalise their experience, with multiple themes and backgrounds to choose from.

There’s also the ability to flick between Classic and Pro modes to suit your personal playing style; Classic mode will allow a more relaxed playing experience, with “no-fail” states and more forgiving note timing, while the Pro option will suit those seeking a challenge.

The customisation even extends to the music and songs you’ll be performing. Creator Tools will allow users to create their own note charts and upload their own tracks. In fact, the ability to upload your own tracks will play a central role in Sound System, with the game heavily focusing on “free music” and “community-driven gameplay”.

Its an aspect that has already caused some waves amongst Guitar Hero fans. While the original franchise has always allowed normal people to feel like a rockstar, letting you jam out to classic rock bangers from the comfort of your own home, the focus on “free music” removes that appeal.

Of course, premium tracks can be accessed at a price; a Complete Edition of the game will include 60 launch tracks at a cost of $34.99, with other tracks available as DLC. However, Redditors are already voicing their concerns; “Seems kinda soulless to me… the game being built around copyright free music is missing the point of why we all loved Guitar Hero,” one user notes.

Its still early days, so there’s no saying how Sound System may advance prior to its release. When it does, its set to be available on PC first, with PlayStation, Nintendo Switch and Xbox versions also in development for the future.

The Sound System team is also working on adding drum pad and keyboard support later down the line.

But, for now, its worth digging out your old Guitar Hero controllers… or, if you’re wanting something fresh, Drakong’s latest InfinaKore Telecaster Edition dropped last year, almost like it knew a new rhythm game was in the works. The Fender collaborative controller is also fully modular, which falls perfectly in line with Sound System’s love of customisation.

For more information, head to Sound System.

The post Sound System: is this up-and-coming next-gen game set to be the next Guitar Hero? appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

If you’ve ever dreamed of owning a PRS McCarty model then now might be the best time to get your hands on one – Sweetwater has some pretty huge deals on, saving you over $1,000 on a number of McCarty models.

The models on offer right now are single-cut 594s with PRS’ revered 10 Top status, meaning each one has a clearly defined figure across the entire top. They’re now reduced to $4,399, saving you over $1,000.

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The 594 McCarty gets its name from its 24.594-inch scale length. Named after the late Ted McCarty, these guitars have a maple-capped mahogany body, two 58/15 LT pickups, a full yet comfortable Pattern Vintage neck profile, and much more. Across the sale, finishes on offer include Black Gold Burst, Charcoal Burst, Faded Blue Jean, Fire Red, and Grey Black.

• READ MORE: “What could have been”: Andertons and Chicago Music Exchange team up with Fender on exclusive Lavender Haze-finished guitars and basses

In more PRS McCarty news, the brand has teased that something related to the McCarty name will be unveiled later this month, just in time for the NAMM show. Although no details have yet been confirmed, it looks like either a new product or possibly a documentary exploring the life and legacy of Ted McCarty will be landing on 22 January.

In a video shared by PRS on Instagram, a video recaps how the original McCarty model first released in 1994 was unveiled at the NAMM show, and features footage of McCarty discussing how the guitar came to be. He says, “One day, Paul met me at the trade show in New York. We talked about guitars and he said, ‘how about if we make a Ted McCarty guitar?’

“I said, ‘well, perhaps it would be fine. And I would be very thrilled and honoured to have one of your guitars with my name on it, but who’s gonna buy it? Because I’m not a musician, I don’t go around and play guitars.’ Paul said that he didn’t think I knew quite the reputation that I had.”

Shop all PRS McCarty deals over at Sweetwater.

The post You can save over $1,000 on a PRS McCarty 594 10-Top with these huge deals at Sweetwater appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

Johnny Marr has recalled the “mind-blowing” experience he had playing with Paul McCartney when he was younger, waxing lyrical on the Beatles legend in a new interview on The Overlap podcast.

The Smiths guitarist says McCartney’s genius is such that “he’s like having your 12th man” when playing alongside him.

• READ MORE: Grateful Dead guitarist Bob Weir dies aged 78 – the guitar world reacts to the passing of a legend

“If you take a band like the Beatles – they always come to mind because they’re the yardstick everyone thinks about, you know. Ringo is so important to the sound. If it was anyone else it would be a completely different band,” Marr says. “But, pretty lowkey, George Harrison – speaking as a guitar player – [he was] one of the greatest guitar players ever.

“Paul McCartney on the other hand – and speaking as a musician – I had a mind-blowing experience playing with Paul McCartney when I was younger. He’s like having your 12th man.

“In a band he really is like having two guys. Because he’s so melodic, he’s so attitude-y, and just [has] amazing musicality.”

Marr adds that due to his massive fame beyond his time in the Beatles, it’s easy to forget about his prowess as one of the best bass players in the world.

“He’s so famous and has become such a cultural person now – there’s quite a lot of people like this in the culture, I think, not just musicians,” he goes on. 

“You forget, actually, about what their craft is. And Paul McCartney reinvented a way of playing the bass. You think of him as a songwriter and a singer really, but as a bass guitar player, it’s next-level, really.

“I think that was really deliberate. I think he took great pride in being – he wanted to be the best bass player in the world.”

Last month, it was revealed that Höfner – the maker of Paul McCartney’s legendary violin bass – had filed for bankruptcy. In a tribute post on social media, Macca wrote: 

“It is very sad to see Höfner go out of business. They have been making instruments for over 100 years, and I bought my first Höfner bass in the ‘60s. I have loved it ever since. It’s a wonderful instrument to play: lightweight, and it encourages me to play quite freely. It also offers pleasing variations in tone that I enjoy.”

The post Johnny Marr reveals “mind-blowing” experience of playing with Paul McCartney – and the unique thing that sets him apart from other bass players appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.