Great guitarists - The never-ending story

In a recent article I talked about guitarists that impacted my early development, leading up to the grunge and nu-metal eras where lead playing was less of a focus. Fortunately for me, The 21st century has been a rebirthing period for lead guitar. There were two key discoveries that mark the beginning of the next generation of lead guitar for me.

I remember one night, getting gas at a little indie station on El Camino in Redwood City, probably summer/fall 2005. Don't even remember what station I was listening to; I have this odd memory it was actually a "modern rock" station rather than a classic rock or metal station. That was the moment I first heard Avenged Sevenfold (aka A7X), their "Bat Country" single just blew my mind. A7X manages to meld a lot of different styles into their predominantly metal songs. For me, there's a level of musicality in their songs that sets them apart. Synyster Gates brought me back again to my deep love of neoclassical, melodic lead guitar in the context of metal. He has a remarkable ear for note choice; his lead lines travel with confidence across the underlying harmonic motion. And there's nothing better than watching the right-handed Synyster and Zacky Vengeance, a lefty, on stage, blowing through harmony lead after harmony lead.

In 2007, I decided to attend Uli Jon Roth's Sky Academy guitar workshop in Hollywood. It was an exciting experience to be surrounded by guitarists that love Uli's playing, all of whom inspired me to continue improving on the instrument I love. I finished that trip with a couple of new and great friends (Errol and Carl, you know I'm talkin' 'bout you!) but there was another key element of that workshop. I'd known of Paul Gilbert by name for quite a few years, but for no good reason had never quite immersed myself in his playing. Paul changed that with his performances at the Sky Academy concerts that week. Oddly enough, it wasn't his amazing neoclassical chops, his sweep picking or his uptempo Racer X instrumentals. Nope, it was his Hendrix covers (here's Foxy Lady as an example). Paul showed up in a T-shirt and jeans, carried out a combo amp and proceeded to let loose a combination of blues licks, Hendrix-esque vocals and some true PG gymnastics, punctuated by his ever-present sense of humor. That did it, I was hooked. I now count Racer X among my most listened to bands and look forward to someday getting to see Paul play live again. If you ever get the chance, see him...

Thanks to Synyster Gates and Paul Gilbert I began to dig into my truest musical love, heavy melodic classically influenced music. This marked the beginning of another guitar chapter in my life, one revolving around regular practice and my renewed desire to develop new chops. In a way, it's also been a very hard period for me. I've actively tried to move beyond the instinctive legato approach that developed in my Joe Satriani/hair metal days. I've worked for years trying to redevelop my right hand, learn sweep picking (arpeggios and scales) and get my two hands synchronized in a way that was never an issue with legato playing.

In the midst of my sweep picking quest, I finally got sucked into the 7-string trend. Before I bought my first 7-string, though, I did a lot of research trying to find an instrument that was right for me. I've never been that comfortable playing Ibanez guitars, and have for many years made Tom Anderson guitars my main tool-of-the-trade. At the time, however, 7-strings were a special order item from Anderson, and I wasn't ready to take that plunge until I'd had some 7-string experience. Enter Jeff Loomis and Schecter. The Jeff Loomis signature guitar was the first maple neck 7-string, with a Floyd Rose tremolo that was laid out just right for me. I ended up ordering the Loomis signature from our local music store, Music Villa, and my love affair with 7-strings began. My fascination with Jeff's playing began the same way. I'd never been a big Nevermore fan, perhaps because there was a little too much thrash and death metal in their material for me, but Jeff's guitar playing cannot be ignored. As I researched guitars, I started watching videos of various models and quickly fell onto this clip of Jeff. Finally, Jeff's right hand explained everything. He plays amazingly fast and yet his right hand is very calm. His combination of alternate and sweep picking, and minimal up/down motion made me realize the secret. Only move as much as necessary, pick the right notes with the right choices of up- or downstroke. I doubt I'll ever master the process the way Jeff has but it's great to have his example to follow.

While researching EMG pickups, I also ran across Andy Wood and this video. Andy is another guy with a very "quiet" right hand. He's also amazing in multiple ways, having only taken up guitar in his teens and being a virtuoso in country, bluegrass and killer metal chops. If you haven't heard Andy or his band, Down From Up, you must do so!

And that brings me to today, as I sit watching Jeff Loomis's latest EMG video. I strive desperately to maintain a 1-hour practice routine focused on sweep picking of scales and arpeggios. I play my Jeff Loomis signature and my recent Tom Anderson 7-string whenever I can. And I thank the Internet for the discovery of Jeff Loomis and Andy Wood. The best thing about music is that it's always new; it can't sit still or stagnate because there are always new generations of musicians ready to take it in new directions. Who have you discovered lately that renews your excitement about music?

Comments

[Jake]

As of late my taste in metal has been shifting to a genre known as technical death metal. I always found the genre kind of "difficult" to listen to because it can become a little over the top. But the more I listen to the genre the more I fall in love with the musicianship that goes along with it.

One such band that led me into the genre and one of my current favorites is The Faceless and Michael Keene.

Some other notable bands would be Obscura (Steffan Kummerer), Necrophagist (Muhammed Suiçmez), Spawn of Possesion (Christian Müenzner), Gorod, and Pyscroptic that I have been listening to almost daily. Caution: Harsh Death Metal Vocals on all of them. In fact, many of them have exchanged members throughout their histories.

Dave I would strongly suggest you check out a guy named Keith Merrow. He is good friends with Loomis and he commonly plays stuff with Loomis. I love the riffage and song writing this guy pulls off. Very interesting.

Finally, one of my last I promise. Mr. Mikael Akerfeldt of Opeth Amazing song writer and very original music and style. Great to listen to and emulate.

I, like you Dave, entered the 7-string world about a year ago. I currently play the Ibanez Universe UV777 Also, similar to you, I have tried to incorporate sweeping and arpeggios into my practicing. Especially within the last few months due to myself listening to more and more of this type of playing. I coolest thing about sweep picking is you can see yourself getting better everyday you practice it which is pretty cool.

Also, I did not get a chance to reply to your last post so I might as well tell about my setup. I have a Peavey XXX 100 watt tube head currently with Mesa 6l6's currently in place. Run this to a Hughes and Kettner 4x10 cabinet. This is not my "ideal" setup and would like to upgrade in the near future but it is good enough for now. I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to grab an ENGL powerball sometime in the future.

Sorry for the length, I could talk about guitarists all day long, but the ones I listed are my main go tos right now for my playing. I love your blog by the way. You have grabbed my interest and I may look at doing something similar :D Looks fun.

[David Hearst]

Jake,

You (once again) have added a bunch of great info to the blog. I will have to check out every one of the guitarists you mentioned. Even if I don't regularly listen to a band, I always appreciate the great musicians out there (across all styles).

You are welcome to borrow my Powerball, or the Sovereign any time (although that could make me guilty of aiding and abetting the emptying of your bank account).

David