JAKE KISZKA WAS born to rock. And since shuttering onto the scene back in 2017 with his band, Greta Van Fleet, he’s done just that. Of course, it hasn’t always been easy, considering the band is perpetually labeled as Led Zeppelin clones. But no matter; throughout three stellar records, the Frankenmuth, Michigan rockers have kicked all preconceived notions square in the teeth, leaving gain-drenched trails of destruction in their wake.
As for Kiszka, he’s soft-spoken and unassuming. Upon dialing in with him, it was immediately apparent he’s not the sort of six-stringer worried about accolades and hyper-commercialism. No, Kiszka is the spiritual type who wields his trusty Gibson SG as a sacred talisman through which he channels otherworldly notes, gargantuan chords and chugging riffs.
And what of those Zeppelin comparisons? After years spent explaining himself, Kiska now happily straddles the line between wearing his influences like a badge of courage and being entirely unbothered. Of course, there are worse comparisons to be made, and if Greta Van Fleet’s latest, Starcatcher, is any indication, the band — and its swaggering guitarist — are intent on letting the music do the talking.
“We’ve gotten to a place in this band where we’re able to communicate our ideas freely and openly,” Kiszka says. “We don’t only feel the basic emotions of happiness and sadness; there are other things — like jealousy, spite, love, hate, anger and kindness. I think there’s a duality in blending those emotions, and we’ve done everything in our power to have that present in our music.”
Esta historia es de la edición September 2023 de Guitar World.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición September 2023 de Guitar World.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 9,000 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
Caparison Dellinger-JSM V2
WAY BACK IN the dark ages (a.k.a. the Eighties), there were two distinct types of guitar shredders who occupied opposite sides of the spectrum: the hard rock player whose weapon of choice was a super Strat versus the country picker who inevitably opted for a Telecaster.
The Ultimate Guitar Shop
Christie’s Jeff Beck Auction offers a revealing look at numerous iconic instruments from the legendary guitarist’s entire career from the Yardbirds to Johnny Depp
Blown Away
Jeff Beck's landmark Blow by Blow dramatically transformed the future for instrumental electric guitar music. Fifty years later, it still remains an inspirational force
TAKE NO PRISONERS
In this exclusive excerpt from Dreaming Japanese, Marty Friedman's new autobiography (co-written by frequent GW contributor Jon Wiederhorn), the ace guitarist details his auditions with Ozzy, Megadeth and - what's this about Madonna?
MAGNIFICENT
Tearing up the blueprint with an octave G string, Johnny Marr's new seven-string Martin signature model is a distillation of all the British icon's most rebellious opinions on acoustic (and yes, there's also a six-string version)
Xotic XSS Super S-Style electric guitar
AS FUNNY AS this sounds, when a brand sends me a new guitar model outfitted with only one pickup, I say to myself, “That’s bold.” Releasing a spartan guitar like the Xotic XSS Super S-Style seems like such a throwback to a time when a guy with the initials EVH changed the entire guitar-world landscape by playing guitar with a solitary humbucker and making every guitarist around the globe realize that might be all we need.
IF GUITAR GOD IS A WOMAN
With renewed confidence and a slew of new guitar-forward songs, Larkin Poe's Rebecca and Megan Lovell are upping the ante of their blues-rock sound once again on seventh album Bloom
TC Electronic Plethora X1 TonePrint Loader
JUDGING BY THE abundance of effects that the TC Electronic Plethora X1 TonePrint Loader makes available to guitarists, it is obvious that TC knows what it means to have a plethora. Just the same, if having too much of a good thing brings you joy, then TC Electronic's Plethora will bring much delight with its many desirable and stellar-sounding effects - each offering a wealth of options.
1950-69, 1986-PRESENT FENDER ESQUIRE
IT’S PRETTY DAMN cool that the very first commercially produced solidbody electric guitar, the Fender Esquire, can still kick serious butt today; you can’t say that about too many 75-year-olds. Many guitarists often forget that the Esquire came before the Telecaster and that a two-pickup version of the Esquire, which came a few months after the single-pickup version, was essentially the first Broadcaster/Nocaster/ Telecaster. But here I’m just going to focus on the single-pickup version.
Tallon Electric "The Noise"
UNLESS YOU’VE BEEN living under a rock, you’ll know that collaborative pedals between artists and manufacturers are all the rage now.
