CATEGORIES

LAVA - Blue Lava Touch

LAST MONTH, WE took a look at Lava's first smart guitar, the ME 3, which won an Editors' Pick Award. This month, we'll carry on with the brand-new Blue Lava Touch, which promises Lava's considerable innovation in a slightly more conventional, smaller and far more affordable package.

POSITIVE GRID: RIFF Guitar Interface and App

POSITIVE GRID EARNED a ton of well-deserved attention in 2020 with Spark, its groundbreaking guitar practice amp and app. The compact, 40-watt combo not only delivers a range of great amp emulations and effects powered by Positive Grid's BIAS Tone engine but also helps players practice, jam and learn with a variety of applications and features.

FENDER - 60th Anniversary Jaguar

IN 1962, FENDER rolled out the Jaguar, a new top-of-the-line instrument that company literature said offered "faster, more comfortable" playing. The Jag's offset waist gave its body a look that was very different

LINE 6 - Catalyst 100 1x12 Combo

AS MUCH AS tube amplifiers rule for tone, dynamic feel and raw punch, many players enjoy the benefits of modeling amps with their ability to deliver a multitude of sounds, not to mention their affordability and lighter weight. One of the newest contenders in the modeling arena is the Line 6 Catalyst series combos that include a 60-watt 1x12, a 200-watt 2x12 and the 100-watt 1x12 featured in this review.

SOURCE AUDIO: Zio analog front-end + boost

SOURCE AUDIO IS best known for its forward-thinking digital effects pedals, like the C4 synthesizer and Ultrawave distortion, as well as the Nemesis delay and Ventris reverb. But a few years ago, the company began working with Christopher Venter of Shoe Pedals to combine the "under the hood" tweakability of its Neuro editing system with more traditional sounds.

Better Call Walls

With old-school gospel roots and new-school guitar chops, Erick Walls has emerged as one of today’s most in-demand guitarists.

“You get this huge spread that's not possible on a six-string...”

The eight-string guitar opens up a whole new world of possibilities. Two of its leading exponents – Mårten Hagström of Meshuggah and Tosin Abasi from Animals as Leaders – Reveal all

“I have this whole other side of my musical personality”

Metallica guitarist Kirk Hammett is exploring new sounds on his first solo project. His aim: “to do something that’s never been done before…”

The Genius of Gilmour In 20 Songs

"He has this perfect guitar tone, whether it's acoustic or electric”

THE FIRST...CRAIG OWENS D.R.U.G.S.

CRAIG TAKES US BACK TO THE VERY BEGINNING OF HIS FASCINATING CAREER AND REVEALS SOME OF THE MOMENTS THAT KICKED THINGS OFF.

THE SHAKE UP

MEMPHIS MAY FIRE ARE BACK, AND IT FEELS... FAMILIAR. MATTY MULLINS EXPLAINS HOW HE AND HIS BAND WOUND BACK THE CLOCK AND MADE SOME OF THEIR MOST VITAL WORK YET.

SAY SOMETHING

THE FAIM ARE BACK FOR ALBUM TWO AFTER A LONG, LONG REST. JOSH RAVEN OPENS UP ON 'TALK TALK'.

PARTY HARD

IT'S BEEN A WHIRLWIND YEAR FOR BLIND CHANNEL, ENDING AT THEIR MASSIVE NEW ALBUM. HERE, JOEL HOKKA, NIKO MOILANEN, JOONAS PORKO AND ALEKSI KAUNISVESI TELL ITS STORY.

ON THE SPIN

SPECTACULAR. ENDURING. ESSENTIAL. DANCE GAVIN DANCE HAVE BEEN THROUGH MORE IN A FEW YEARS THAN MOST BANDS WOULD GO THROUGH IN THEIR ENTIRE CAREER, BUT THEY'RE NOT JUST MAKING IT THROUGH THEY'RE THRIVING. HERE, JON, WILL, TILIAN, MATT AND ANDREW WALK US THROUGH THE JOURNEY FROM 'AFTERBURNER' TO THEIR IMMENSE NEW ALBUM 'JACKPOT JUICER', TO THE PASSING OF THEIR BASSIST TIM FEERICK AND THE FUTURE OF THE BAND. IF EVER A BAND NEEDED TO WIN, IT'S THIS ONE. AND THEY'RE DOING IT.

PERFECT TEN 10 NEW RELEASES YOU NEED TO HEAR

VAXIS II: A WINDOW OF THE WAKING MIND'

MINT GREEN

MEET THE PEOPLE BEHIND WHAT MIGHT JUST BE ONE OF 2022'S BREAKOUT ALBUMS.

BUCKET LIST DANNY BEUS DUNE RATS

DANNY WALKS US THROUGH THE ACHIEVEMENTS HE'S YET TO TICK OFF HIS LIST.

NOW, NOW, NOW

NOVA TWINS AND THEIR SPECTACULAR NEW ALBUM ARE EVERYWHERE RIGHT NOW. WE SIT DOWN WITH AMY AND GEORGIA AS THEY EXPLAIN WHY...

ANY QUESTION ANSWERED NOAHFINNCE

NOAH WALKS US THROUGH HIS FASCINATING LIFE AND CAREER SO FAR AHEAD OF HIS NEW EP, 'MY LIFE AFTER THERAPY'.

15 questions with...John Newman

John Newman may already be known as the charttopping singer with hits like 2012's UK number one Feel The Love (with Rudimental) and global top 10 Love Me Again, but this year he's taken his own advice - "move on before it's too late". He's now embarked on a new chapter, John Newman 2.0, which is more dance-orientated, but actually returns to his production roots where he discovered computer music via some breakfast cereals...

TOP GUN

With fans that ranged from Pete Townshend to Eddie Van Halen and Yngwie Malmsteen, Leslie West inspired players across the genres with his singular playing style and a searing lead guitar tone that could belong to no other.

SHRED WHITE & BLUE JACK WHITE

HAS PUT HIS SIGNATURE STYLE ON GEAR — FROM ITS SOUND TO ITS LOOK. AS HE DROPS HIS LATEST ALBUM, FEAR OF THE DAWN, HE GIVES GUITAR PLAYER AN EXCLUSIVE LOOK AT THE GUITARS, PEDALS AND PASSION BEHIND HIS BLUE PERIOD.

MIAMI VICE

Nile Rodgers riffs on his famed Hitmaker Stratocaster as Fender releases a limited-edition replica.

SQUIER

40th Anniversary Telecaster, Gold Edition

MY CAREER IN FIVE SONGS

As The Police — Greatest Hits returns in a deluxe edition, Andy Summers reflects on five classic tracks from the band's timeless catalog.

LINE 6

DL4 MkII Delay Modeler Pedal

LAVA ME 3

SMART GUITARS

How I Wrote... "Fantasy"

Aldo Nova reveals how some free studio time led to his breakthrough 1982 hit.

ELECTRIC WARRIORS

Following a seven-year absence, Def Leppard return with the glam-inspired Diamond Star Halos. Phil Collen explains how they got it on like the old days.

CRAZY TUBE CIRCUITS (Phi) Golden Ratio

EFFECTS PEDALS