Latest articles by Phil Weller
Solar continues its relic awakening with “extremely worn and torn” Relik Series
The brand's flagship Relik model features some premium appointments and a finish that looks like it's been put through the meat grinder
Meet the Koch Ness Monster – Greg Koch’s new multi-effects, which offers an army of Jam Pedals effects
A standard edition featuring four Jam Pedals stompboxes, and a monstrous Supreme edition have both been released as Koch offers his own avant-garde take on the multi-effects design
Nuno Bettencourt has been using his custom Washburn ‘Bumblebee’ to cover Eddie Van Halen with Extreme
The virtuoso has tackled Ain’t Talkin’ ’bout Love and Mean Street over the past few weeks, with a little help from his custom-made 'Bumblebee' replica
Joe Bonamassa reveals how a cheap knockoff Les Paul kickstarted his partnership with Epiphone
Bonamassa has been working with Epiphone for over a decade – and it all started after he saw a budget LP in a UK music store
Meet the ‘Les Pallet’ – an electric guitar that has been fashioned from a shipping pallet
There’s no contouring or care for playability here – but if you’ve ever wanted to see someone shred a pallet, it’s your lucky day
Meet Hello Mary’s Helena Straight, the ’90s-inspired, time signature-twisting player whose guitar caught the Cure’s attention
We get the story on how the Big Apple alt-rock trio are evolving in real time, aided and abetted by a well-stocked pedalboard and Reeves Gabrels’ signature Reverend
Kramer offered Kayla Kent a guitar – but when it turned down her ideas, a Kramer fan group built it instead
Kent has been playing a rare JK8000 for most of her career, but when Kramer said it couldn't build her a backup, a fan forum stepped in to make her dream guitar a reality
J. Rockett’s new Phil X signature overdrive/boost is a ‘backline lifesaver’ that promises to make any amp sing
The Bon Jovi guitarist has helped mastermind a versatile drive/boost box that looks to be a tidy studio and stage companion
Los Bitchos guitarist Serra Petale on repurposing ’80s sounds and the tone so good she wanted to eat it
Talkie Talkie is a fun sophomore album featuring stellar tones and hooks from London's most exuberant stompbox enthusiast. She explains why the chorus is sad but human – and always on
Blackstar and Jared James Nichols team up for ground-breaking signature amp and plugin launch
The British amp builder says this is the first time an artist signature amp has been launched on the same day as a matching plugin
Boss gives players another reason to give its touchscreen GX-100 amp modeler a try with firmware update
New amps, quality-of-life improvements and some iconic Boss effects help keep the floorboard on top form in the competitive modeler/multi-FX market
With Thick Riff Thursdays, producer Nick Broomhall is teaching guitarists how to nail the sound in their heads
From drill samples to car-captured voice memos, the producer and guitarist behind Thick Riff Thursdays seems to have a supernatural ability to turn ‘head-first’ musical ideas into killer recordings
The home where Jeff Buckley was working right before he died is being made into an Airbnb
Buckley had moved to the tiny home in Memphis almost a year before he died
Dweezil Zappa on the first time he met Eddie Van Halen – after the guitar great unexpectedly called him
A Van Halen-obsessed 12-year-old Dweezil Zappa was minding his own business on a regular school night, when he received a call from the guitar legend himself...
The evolution of selective picking – one of modern guitar’s most expressive techniques
Tosin Abasi crafted it, but in the hands of countless others, selective picking has taken on a life of its own. We explore why it’s become one of the most personal guitar techniques around
How Zeal & Ardor are adding light and shade to black metal with plastic guitars, chunky strings and unlikely tube amps
By taking black metal into a more avant-garde plane, Manuel Gagneux and Tiziano Volante are stretching the definition of heavy. They reveal the tones and tunings behind their evolution
Warren Haynes recalls the first time he witnessed a young Derek Trucks play guitar
Haynes and his Allman Brothers bandmates took a night off to watch an 11-year-old Trucks play – and ended up sharing the stage for an impromptu jam
Mooer just launched a $45 wireless system – is the Air P05 cheap enough to convince you to cut the cord?
Offering a 65-foot range and a rechargeable battery, the Air P05 looks to extend cable-free playing to budget-limited players
Eddie Vedder recalls the time he received his first guitar – and mistook it for a vacuum cleaner
A Christmas to forget quickly became one to remember when a 12-year-old Vedder eventually got the present of his dreams
Mike Shinoda tried to give his daughter guitar advice – but she ignored him
Shinoda's daughter is currently learning the instrument – but only started listening to her father’s wisdom after discovering the extent of his talents
Wes Borland’s Limp Bizkit amps and pedals have made available as a signature Tonality plugin
Featuring three amps, five pedals and some meticulously crafted digital speaker cabinets, the plugin bottles Borland’s live rig for the digital realm
The 1942 Martin D-18 that Lester Flatt used to forge the sound of bluegrass is going up for auction
Legendary fingerpicker Flatt wielded this D-18 while he played with Bill Monroe’s Blue Grass Boys, and used it to help pave the way for traditional bluegrass music
