When we think of the innovators who shaped heavy music through the decades, Korn deserve recognition alongside more obvious names such as Iron Maiden, Metallica and Soundgarden. Formed in Bakersfield, California, Korn were, after all, the first metal group to popularise seven-string guitars – the band’s two guitarists, James ‘Munky’ Schaffer and Brian ‘Head’ Welch, using the subsonic weight of the added B string to explore new uncharted tonal depths, thus inspiring players from bands such as Fear Factory and Meshuggah to follow suit and embrace a whole new world of low-end.
Korn’s self-titled debut album, released in 1994, was a true gamechanger - its mix of heavy riffs and hip-hop rhythms shaping the sound of nu-metal and influencing generations of bands from Slipknot and Linkin Park to rising stars of today such as Tetrarch and Cane Hill. That signature sound is still very much in evidence on the new Korn album Requiem - the 14th studio recording of the band’s long career. The music is thunderously heavy and brilliantly melodic, with Munky and Head whipping up a seven-string storm. And now, when these guys look back on how it all started, they acknowledge the influence of one guitarist in particular.
It was super-shredder Steve Vai who helped develop the seven-string with Japanese guitar giants Ibanez in the 80s. And for Munky, a teenager back then, Vai was a hero.
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Denne historien er fra April 2022-utgaven av Total Guitar.
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"You Can Imagine a Song in a Completely Different Genre" - The mysterious Lord Phobos, guitarist for TWRP, has covered everything from disco to Def Leppard in his collaborations with tongue-in-cheek duo Ninja Sex Party.
The mysterious Lord Phobos, guitarist for TWRP, has covered everything from disco to Def Leppard in his collaborations with tongue-in-cheek duo Ninja Sex Party. He explains what makes a great cover version - and reveals the one guitar and the one pedal he couldn't live without...
Some Things You Want to Tweak and Make Your Own- How the Foos' Chris Shiflett reworked two rock classics on his recent solo EP
Foo Fighters guitarist Chris Shiflett is also a solo artist in his own right, and his latest EP Starry Nights & Campfire includes Lights covers of two great old rock tracks - Thin Lizzy's Cowboy Song and the ballad Don't You Ever Leave Me by Hanoi Rocks, the Finnish band that did so much to inspire Guns N' Roses.
"It Gives Me Physical Satisfaction To Play Funk Riffs!" - Into the groove with Giacomo Turra, the Italian guitarist who made his name covering classics by Stevie Wonder, Bruno Mars and more...
Into the groove with Giacomo Turra, the Italian guitarist who made his name covering classics by Stevie Wonder, Bruno Mars and more... Born in Milan, his funk guitar sensibility can be traced back to the dance studio where his mother taught, and the tunes he heard blasting out of her boombox. "I like to experiment with a lot of genres, but the really interesting thing for me is I really grew up on funk, and a little bit of jazz and fusion music," he says.
- Try out these creative tips and make your cover versions stand out
Try out these creative tips and make your cover versions stand out
BEAUX GRIS GRIS & THE APOCALYPSE
Heavily requested on rock radio stations thanks to their unique twist on bluesy Americana, Beaux Gris Gris & The Apocalypse are the kind of band that thrive in front of large crowds on hot summer days just as much as more intimate performances inside sweaty underground basements.
BOSS KATANA-50 GEN 3
The Japanese giant cuts through the noise with its new practice amp
SOLOKING MS-1 CUSTOM 22 HH
A great value guitar looking to clash headstocks with the big boys
IK MULTIMEDIA TONEX ONE
The most powerful amp modeller for its size, bar none
YAMAHA PACIFICA STANDARD PLUS PACS+12M
Yamaha's long-running doublecut finally gets a makeover
NO MORE MR.BRIGHTSIDE!
The 10 songs you should never cover. Or at least think twice before trying...