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Watch Paul Riario Demo Wired Guitarist’s String Drop Strings
In this fresh clip, GW Tech Editor Paul Riario discusses String Drop—a new set of strings from Wired Guitarist. String Drop strings are made to ensure progressive tension, meaning that the low strings are tight while the higher strings are more fluid, making bends much easier. The strings use an exclusive blend of alloys, giving…
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Prince’s Teal Blue Cloud Guitar Auctioned For $700K
Associated Press MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — A California auction house says a guitar that Prince used in the late 1980s and into the 1990s has been sold for $700,000. That’s the highest amount paid for one of the late rock star’s guitars. Julien’s Live auction house, based in Los Angeles, anticipated the teal blue Cloud guitar…
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Four Actionable Practice Methods to Help You Improve Every Day
FROM THE AUTHOR: If you disagree, keep it kosher. We’re just talking guitars. If you’re like me, you would love to spend more time playing guitar. Or at least you’d like to figure out how to be more productive with the time you already spend. Because even if you get to play sporadically, it doesn’t…
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Vixen Guitarist Brittany Denaro Talks Songwriting, Gear and New Music
After being discovered performing in an all-female Guns ‘N Roses tribute band, guitarist Brittany Denaro—or Britt Lightning—was invited to join the ranks of hard rockers Vixen. Denaro’s impressive musical resume also includes performing alongside such artists as Alejandro Sanz, Rachel Platten and Jason Derulo as well as on television shows like Good Morning America and…
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How to Eliminate Guitar Buzz
Noise seems to be every guitar player’s nightmare. It can be buzz, hum, hiss, air-traffic control… (This Is Spinal Tap, anyone?) I’ll start off by saying that guitar rigs are a noisy environment, to begin with. Gain has a lot to do with noise, but if things are clean before it hits the gain stage,…
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Blue Horizons: The Lyric Form
Chops: Intermediate Theory: Beginner Lesson Overview: • Let blues vocalists inspire your phrasing. • Get more mileage from your licks by varying their rhythmic patterns. • Emulate the call-and-response style of such blues masters as B.B. King, Freddie King, and Magic Sam. Click here to download a printable PDF of this lesson’s notation. “Phrasing” is…
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The Truth About Power Chords
Power chords are not really chords. No, really. Hear me out. Chords are 3 notes or more, whereas power chords only have 2 different notes. A correct name would be “power intervals” because they only contain two different notes. Usually, power chords are composed of the root, a perfect 5th interval, and the root note doubled at a higher pitch…
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When Do I Use Distortion?
Distortion is sugar. It tastes good. When I was 13 my first amp was, accidentally, a 10-watt Epiphone bass amp. A bass amp. The kale salad of making things louder. Yuck. But the first time I plugged in to a proper guitar amp … wow. My little cousin had a pink Hello Kitty Squier Strat…
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The Shred Decoder: Expand Your Melodic and Rhythmic Control
In my experience, constructing lines has always been about texture and structure. Developing ideas for soloing and writing melodies takes a keen sense of harmonic and rhythmic context. It’s about seducing the listener and delivering a ride that’s hard to forget—a ride that caters to the listener. Of course, it’s important to write for yourself…
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Punk-Rock Madness: It’s More than Power Chords
Many people cite the first wave of punk rock as lasting less than two years. An oversimplified timeline would run from the release of the Ramones’ self-titled first album in April of 1976 to the breakup of the Sex Pistols in 1978. In fact, however, these two years represent little more than a snapshot of…