Shred Alert

Armed with a stash of rare and custom Telecasters, multifaceted guitar virtuoso John 5 launches Invasion, the most shred worthy album of 2019.

- Joe Bosso

While a sizable contingent of metal fans know John 5 from his longtime gig as Rob Zombie’s ghoulishly flamboyant shred master, guitar enthusiasts have a broader picture of him – that of a deeply eclectic and prodigiously proficient player schooled in country, bluegrass, western swing, jazz and flamenco. Whether he’s peeling off hyperspeed chicken-pickin’ lines, replicating cascading banjo rolls, or dispatching immaculate, sweep-picked solos, there seems to be no end to his knowledge or skill set.

“I appreciate anything that’s done well,” John states. “You could be throwing knives or juggling bowling pins, and I’ll be amazed.

“But with music, it goes a lot further. If I hear a bluegrass player killin’ it, I’m like, ‘I have to play that!’. And if I hear a metal player rippin’ it, my brain just fries. So I have to learn what they’re doing and execute it perfectly. I obsess over it, and I love it dearly.”

Being a musical omnivore comes naturally to John 5. Born John Lowery, he started playing the guitar as a kid from watching country pickers Roy Clark and Buck Owens on TV’s Hee Haw variety show. He eventually took a shine to rock after hearing bands like Kiss and Van Halen. John admits that some of his fans might have more parochial tastes, but he takes delight in spinning their heads around. “They might come to my instrumental shows because they like what I do with Zombie,” he says. “But they’ll see me play some bluegrass licks, and they just go crazy. That makes me feel so good, because they’re seeing me for who I really am. I’m the guy who sits on my couch, watches TV and plays whatever I want.”