Latest articles by Richard Bienstock
St. Vincent, Ghost, Royal Blood and Rodrigo y Gabriela discuss covering metal classics for the Metallica Blacklist
Exit light! Enter some of the biggest names in popular music, whose interpretations of their favorite Black Album tracks helped celebrate its 30th anniversary
Watch Steve Stine conjure incredible tones with the Maton EBG808TE acoustic and AP5 PRO pickup system
The guitar and pickup, designed in conjunction with virtuoso picker Tommy Emmanuel, offers “stunning” tones and ease of playing
Dave “The Snake” Sabo: “I said to Kramer, ‘How about something like a snake coming out of a grave, with my birth date on there?’”
The Skid Row six-stringer unpacks the design choices behind his serpentine signature Kramer Baretta
Tracii Guns: “When it came to doing a signature guitar, there was no point in doing something ordinary, you know what I mean?”
The LA Guns guitarist walks through the design of his super-shreddable signature Kramer Gunstar Voyager
Metallica’s James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett look back on 30 years of The Black Album: "It really was the master key to everything"
How shorter, simpler songs and a bold vision helped the thrash pioneers make the biggest metal album of all time
What’s the secret to incredible tone? Guitarist Ruben Wan has the answer
Here’s a hint – it starts with his Elixir Strings
Watch Ruben Wan put the “amazing” Focusrite Clarett+ 2Pre audio interface to the test
The company’s newest edition of their Clarett range combines two mic/line/instrument combi inputs with ADAT expandability, four line outputs and much more
Watch R.J. Ronquillo conjure lush, ‘80s-style chorus – and much, much more – with the Eventide TriceraChorus pedal
New pedal boasts BBD-style chorusing alongside Eventide’s Micropitch detuning for insane swirls, shimmers, warbles and beyond
Charlie Parra: “I love tapping so much. The main reason I use a V is because there’s basically no wood between my tapping hand and the fretboard”
The Peruvian shred whiz discusses the shreddable design of his signature Kramer Nite-V Plus
Capo in style with Kyser x Fender Quick-Change capos, available in a variety of vintage colorways
Guitarist Molly Miller shows off her “period perfect” shell pink Kyser capo in this new demo video
John Mayer shares his advice on how to write the perfect guitar solo
You've got to build a ramp. And a rollercoaster. Then you've got to stick the landing... Easier said than done
Join Paul Riario for a 360 tone tour of the Reverend Gil Parris Signature GPS
A korina body, roasted maple neck and trio of Fishman Fluence pickups combine to create a modern classic
Watch Paul Riario demo the “top-of-the-line masterpiece” Taylor Builder’s Edition 816ce acoustic
Impressively-spec’d guitar boasts Grand Symphony body, ES-2 electronics and innovative soundport cutaway
Watch Paul Riario put Elixir Strings’ Acoustic Phosphor Bronze with NANOWEB Coating strings to the two-week tone test
Top-selling string brand features ultra-thin coating for long life and excellent tone
The hard-rocking return of Kramer Guitars
The top dogs at the new (and improved?) Kramer Guitars are looking back to their hairspray heyday while simultaneously concocting ultra-modern axes for today’s shred royalty
Watch Paul Riario test drive eight fast-playing, killer-sounding FU PRO guitars from hardware upgrades brand FU-Tone
Impressively spec’d guitars come pre-loaded with titanium tremolos, brass blocks, custom humbuckers and much, much more
Jinjer's Roman Ibramkhalilov: "I almost feel sorry for anyone who comes out to our shows, because we are going to smash them"
How the prog-metalcore stalwarts dialed in the power for new album Wallflowers
Black Pumas’ Eric Burton and Adrian Queseda on how two “rhythm players“ found an unintentionally retro sound
Burton and Queseda are looking to the future with album number two, where a Mobb Deep track may have as much influence as a Stax classic
Watch Justin Johnson try out the Maton Australian EA80C, “one of the best fingerstyle guitars I’ve ever played”
New model uses all Australian tonewoods for superior sound and style
Watch deathcore heroes Whitechapel rip through crushing new single Lost Boy in this exclusive playthrough video
The band’s eighth studio album, Kin, is out October 29
John Mayer: “We’re all in the same boat. We’re all sitting down with an electric guitar alone in a room, hoping to trip over something that we’ll never forget”
In this exclusive interview, the blues-rock superstar unpacks the '80s influences behind new album, Sob Rock, and celebrates chorus pedals, pink guitars and Journeyman-era Clapton
Guitar World and Line 6 explore the past, present, and future of the Helix family of amp and effects processors
The flagship processor, which continues to operate on the bleeding edge both sonically and functionally, recently received a major firmware update to version 3.0
“The future’s bright”: Gibson continues to push forward with new Slash, Custom Shop and Murphy Lab guitars, and raises awareness – and funds – via Gibson Gives
The company has also introduced new charity initiatives –including Epiphone Empowered, Kramer Kares and Mesa Mission
Umphrey’s McGee's Jake Cinninger: "I was trying to get that live feel, so it was nice to be able to cut loose on the album guitar-solo wise"
COVID-19 may have kept the American jam band off the road, but their new effort, composed entirely from live-set intro soundbites, was recorded specifically with the stage in mind
