“It was the last years of the dictatorship and imports were prohibited, so my first guitar was awful and my amp was my stereo system”: Angra’s Rafael Bittencourt had humble gear beginnings – but they inspired one of prog metal’s most dependable players
The Brazilian prog powerhouse is delighted with the emotion of latest album Cycles of Pain, but he laments the lack of string-bending in modern solos – and he’ll never forget the home-made dirt pedal that’s left him hating all fuzz effects