News Latest News from Ultimate-Guitar.Com. en-US Copyright 1998-2026 Ultimate-Guitar.Com. All rights reserved. https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/modules/rss/news.xml.php?artist=894 Wed, 17 Jun 2026 21:00:50 -0400 Sun, 03 May 2026 21:16:20 -0400 60 Ultimate-Guitar.Com https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/static/_img/logo_trans.png https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/modules/rss/news.xml.php?artist=894 144 44 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/kurt-cobain-tried-to-find-the-overlooked-band-he-loved-os-mutantes-reunion-came-too-late-186764 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/kurt-cobain-tried-to-find-the-overlooked-band-he-loved-os-mutantes-reunion-came-too-late-186764 Features: In 1968, three young musicians from São Paulo cut one of the decade's strangest records. Fuzzed-out guitar, bossa nova, tape collage, and studio sabotage created the kind of strangeness that would win over none other than Nirvana's Kurt Cobain.]]> Wed, 17 Jun 2026 21:00:50 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/lessons/how-studying-jazz-actually-makes-you-a-better-rock-guitarist-the-real-transferable-skills https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/lessons/how-studying-jazz-actually-makes-you-a-better-rock-guitarist-the-real-transferable-skills Lessons: The old cliché claims that jazz musicians can play anything, but the operational reality is far more nuanced. An analysis of horizontal versus vertical improvisation, chord-melody layering, and clean-tone authority reveals the exact structural skill sets that successfully transfer from jazz study straight onto a rock stage.]]> Tue, 16 Jun 2026 19:33:34 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/it-was-a-non-existing-band-but-rolling-stone-actually-made-it-real-the-masked-marauders-became-a-real-hit-186761 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/it-was-a-non-existing-band-but-rolling-stone-actually-made-it-real-the-masked-marauders-became-a-real-hit-186761 Features: Under the pseudonym T.M. Christian, Rolling Stone editor Greil Marcus spiced things up in October 1969 with something that nobody was meant to take seriously: Dylan singing "Duke of Earl" and a Jagger doing a number called "I Can't Get No Nookie." Readers bought it anyway.]]> Tue, 16 Jun 2026 10:50:27 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/guitar_of_the_week/a-16500-guitar-made-of-two-aluminum-sculptures-bolted-together-teuffel-birdfish https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/guitar_of_the_week/a-16500-guitar-made-of-two-aluminum-sculptures-bolted-together-teuffel-birdfish Guitar Of The Week: German luthier Ulrich Teuffel has hand-built each one since 1995, machining the bird-and-fish frame, winding his own pickups, and running a waitlist measured in years. The idea is that the aluminum adds no voice of its own, so the sound comes from swappable wooden tone bars and five pickups that slide along a rail into any position.]]> Sun, 14 Jun 2026 14:22:07 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/how-silence-makes-guitar-parts-immortal-the-playing-styles-of-king-hendrix-and-gilmour-187025 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/how-silence-makes-guitar-parts-immortal-the-playing-styles-of-king-hendrix-and-gilmour-187025 Features: Using silence as a compositional tool can make riffs and solos even better, but many players are afraid to use it.]]> Sat, 13 Jun 2026 18:53:22 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/big-star-almost-no-one-bought-their-records-yet-they-shaped-rem-the-replacements-and-wilco-186758 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/big-star-almost-no-one-bought-their-records-yet-they-shaped-rem-the-replacements-and-wilco-186758 Features: Although the Memphis quartet Big Star had a head start, their 1972 debut record undersold. Eventually, the band fell apart, but a few thousand who did hear their music were inspired to start bands of their own.]]> Sat, 13 Jun 2026 07:57:23 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/gear/want-to-crank-your-tube-amp-into-distortion-without-neighbors-calling-the-cops-learn-what-headroom-is-first https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/gear/want-to-crank-your-tube-amp-into-distortion-without-neighbors-calling-the-cops-learn-what-headroom-is-first Gear: Wattage is a lazy shortcut. Rectifier type, speaker efficiency, and power tubes are why two amps with identical specs can feel like different instruments. Pedal players want an amp that gets out of the way, and amp-tone players want one that breaks up before the neighbors call the cops.]]> Tue, 09 Jun 2026 14:11:02 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/guitar_of_the_week/a-fender-meets-teisco-offset-built-from-reclaimed-wood-with-handmade-pickups-the-lord-guitars-mystic-deluxe https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/guitar_of_the_week/a-fender-meets-teisco-offset-built-from-reclaimed-wood-with-handmade-pickups-the-lord-guitars-mystic-deluxe Guitar Of The Week: Combining retro pawn shop guitar vibes with boutique craftsmanship, Lord Guitars stands out in the crowded custom build market. ]]> Sun, 07 Jun 2026 16:57:19 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/how-a-tuareg-band-won-a-grammy-while-fleeing-war-then-kept-recording-in-exile-from-mali-to-california-186908 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/how-a-tuareg-band-won-a-grammy-while-fleeing-war-then-kept-recording-in-exile-from-mali-to-california-186908 Features: It started with a guitar bundled from a stick, an oil can, and bicycle brake wire by a boy raised in the refugee camps of the Algerian desert. Four decades on, the collective he sparked has carried its Saharan sound out of a Libyan military camp, through a guitarist's kidnapping, and into a tent studio deep in the Mauritanian sands.]]> Fri, 05 Jun 2026 19:15:52 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/relicd-guitars-began-as-vintage-guitar-scams-fender-liked-the-idea-so-it-became-big-business-186872 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/relicd-guitars-began-as-vintage-guitar-scams-fender-liked-the-idea-so-it-became-big-business-186872 Features: Relic'd guitars often cost a lot of money, and creating them requires true craftsmanship. But they didn't begin as a novelty item. They were a scam.]]> Wed, 03 Jun 2026 16:09:30 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/gear/italian-handmade-sg-tribute-that-sounds-more-tele-than-gibson-unexpected-features-of-giungi-path https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/gear/italian-handmade-sg-tribute-that-sounds-more-tele-than-gibson-unexpected-features-of-giungi-path Gear: The handwound PAF replicas were the real surprise. In the bridge position, they delivered a sparkle and spank closer to a Telecaster than anything you'd expect from an SG-shaped guitar.]]> Wed, 03 Jun 2026 12:56:55 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/analysis-session-era-could-be-ending-its-due-to-the-collapse-of-industrys-mid-tier-musician-186842 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/analysis-session-era-could-be-ending-its-due-to-the-collapse-of-industrys-mid-tier-musician-186842 Features: Session playing was once a fantastic method of making a living as a musician, but the modern world has all but destroyed its viability, and there's no going back.]]> Sun, 31 May 2026 15:06:13 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/rockbitchs-genuine-controversy-made-it-nearly-impossible-to-take-their-music-seriously-186800 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/rockbitchs-genuine-controversy-made-it-nearly-impossible-to-take-their-music-seriously-186800 Features: The members of Rockbitch performed nude, threw golden condoms into the audience, and got banned across Europe. But was any of it actually about the music?]]> Fri, 29 May 2026 21:20:30 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/gear/a-compressor-wont-change-your-tone-the-way-distortion-does-its-about-consistency-and-country-and-funk-players-have-built-entire-sounds-around-it https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/gear/a-compressor-wont-change-your-tone-the-way-distortion-does-its-about-consistency-and-country-and-funk-players-have-built-entire-sounds-around-it Gear: Guitarists usually understand distortion the moment they stomp it on. Compressors are harder to pin down because they work on dynamics. The real controls that shape the sound are attack and release, and cheaper pedals tend to bury them behind a single knob. Once you understand how threshold, makeup gain, and release interact, the pedal stops feeling like an effect and starts feeling like the guitar just got more cooperative.]]> Tue, 26 May 2026 15:01:45 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/guitar_of_the_week/bolt-blue-has-colored-pencils-and-epoxy-for-its-explorer-type-body-10-pounds-4800-and-one-seymour-duncan-jb https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/guitar_of_the_week/bolt-blue-has-colored-pencils-and-epoxy-for-its-explorer-type-body-10-pounds-4800-and-one-seymour-duncan-jb Guitar Of The Week: Burls Art has built guitars from jawbreaker candies, copper, and epoxy before, but the Bolt - Blue might be the most visually striking yet. With a roasted neck, dark wood fretboard, and minimalist controls, the build lets the colored pencil body do the talking]]> Sun, 24 May 2026 18:28:34 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/post-malone-scaled-back-meghan-trainor-canceled-blue-dot-fever-is-emptying-arenas-across-america-186689 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/post-malone-scaled-back-meghan-trainor-canceled-blue-dot-fever-is-emptying-arenas-across-america-186689 Features: The so-called "Blue Dot Fever" is affecting everyone, and it's a sign of things changing for the worse in the concert industry. A band might not go on the road, and if they do, no one will buy tickets.]]> Sat, 23 May 2026 21:04:08 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/gear/most-guitarists-set-their-noise-gate-wrong-threshold-too-high-release-too-fast-sustain-gone https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/gear/most-guitarists-set-their-noise-gate-wrong-threshold-too-high-release-too-fast-sustain-gone Gear: The pedal that's often found in high-gain rigs, the noise gate is often used in not-so-optimal ways. In order to get things as tight as possible, you first need to understand what it really does. ]]> Sat, 23 May 2026 12:12:33 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/beyond-the-pentatonic-box-modes-chromaticism-and-how-players-like-plini-escaped-it-186677 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/beyond-the-pentatonic-box-modes-chromaticism-and-how-players-like-plini-escaped-it-186677 Features: The pentatonic scale is often considered to be a beginner's crutch, but it's actually a stepping stone into a wider world of guitar mastery.]]> Fri, 22 May 2026 15:41:29 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/gear/a-boost-into-a-clean-amp-makes-you-louder-a-boost-into-a-cranked-amp-changes-everything-else https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/gear/a-boost-into-a-clean-amp-makes-you-louder-a-boost-into-a-cranked-amp-changes-everything-else Gear: The type of boost matters as much as where you put it. A clean boost like the Xotic EP Booster passes your signal through untouched, a mid boost like the Tube Screamer pushes specific frequencies to cut through the mix, and a treble boost like the Dallas Rangemaster was the secret ingredient behind Brian May and early Tony Iommi tones.]]> Tue, 19 May 2026 20:39:46 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/analysis-using-legato-as-a-shortcut-is-why-your-pull-offs-sound-sloppy-and-it-stunts-your-fretting-hand-development-186614 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/analysis-using-legato-as-a-shortcut-is-why-your-pull-offs-sound-sloppy-and-it-stunts-your-fretting-hand-development-186614 Features: Instead of avoiding unnecessary effort, treating legato as a shortcut will help you avoid becoming a good player.]]> Tue, 19 May 2026 14:13:18 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/gear/vox-ac15-gets-there-at-bedroom-volume-and-fender-twin-might-never-get-there-thats-how-amp-breakup-works https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/gear/vox-ac15-gets-there-at-bedroom-volume-and-fender-twin-might-never-get-there-thats-how-amp-breakup-works Gear: True analog amplifier breakup isn't about a volume threshold. It's a dynamic transition into that soft, asymmetrical waveform clipping. While solid-state circuits hard-clip into harsh, odd-order harmonics, tubes generate even-order overtones accompanied by power supply sag and output transformer saturation.]]> Mon, 18 May 2026 10:05:21 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/guitar_of_the_week/theres-no-strat-or-les-paul-dna-in-tosin-abasis-larada-legion-thats-the-entire-point https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/guitar_of_the_week/theres-no-strat-or-les-paul-dna-in-tosin-abasis-larada-legion-thats-the-entire-point Guitar Of The Week: The Larada Legion is built around how Tosin Abasi actually plays: tapping, wide stretches, and classical-position sitting. The body, scale, neck profile, and controls all assume the same kind of player. In photos it reads as unconventional. On your lap, it makes immediate sense.]]> Sun, 17 May 2026 20:13:28 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/analysis-recording-yourself-reveals-timing-errors-because-your-brain-distorts-time-while-you-play-186566 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/analysis-recording-yourself-reveals-timing-errors-because-your-brain-distorts-time-while-you-play-186566 Features: When you perform an instrument, the physical act of execution hijacks your auditory processing, effectively blinding your conscious awareness to micro-latency. Peer-reviewed neurological research confirms that heavy cognitive load forces the brain to perceive tempo as shorter and faster than it actually is, making real-time self-auditing a physiological impossibility.]]> Sun, 17 May 2026 13:31:32 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/lessons/jazz-guitarists-are-gatekeeping-the-melodic-minor-scale-rock-players-can-use-it-too-it-takes-2-modes-to-get-started https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/lessons/jazz-guitarists-are-gatekeeping-the-melodic-minor-scale-rock-players-can-use-it-too-it-takes-2-modes-to-get-started Lessons: Rock guitarists rarely touch the melodic minor, yet it opens up new horizons for soloing. Out of its seven modes, only two matter for most rock contexts, but there's a lot more that can help you improve your vocabulary. ]]> Thu, 14 May 2026 17:05:38 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/he-produced-aerosmiths-toys-in-the-attic-lennons-last-album-and-knew-when-to-let-the-room-be-dangerous-jack-douglas-19452026-186503 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/he-produced-aerosmiths-toys-in-the-attic-lennons-last-album-and-knew-when-to-let-the-room-be-dangerous-jack-douglas-19452026-186503 Features: "Well-honed songs sizzle and explode under Jack Douglas' all-electric production."]]> Wed, 13 May 2026 18:03:08 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/the-originality-myth-guitarists-build-their-sound-by-copying-not-creating-from-scratch-186455 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/the-originality-myth-guitarists-build-their-sound-by-copying-not-creating-from-scratch-186455 Features: "The only art I'll ever study is stuff that I can steal from," David Bowie once said. ]]> Mon, 11 May 2026 11:52:07 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/guitar_of_the_week/deliberately-twisted-neck-that-matches-how-your-hands-actually-approach-the-fretboard-torzal-guitars-unorthodox-design https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/guitar_of_the_week/deliberately-twisted-neck-that-matches-how-your-hands-actually-approach-the-fretboard-torzal-guitars-unorthodox-design Guitar Of The Week: Your fretting hand and picking hand don't approach the guitar from the same angle, so why does the neck force both onto one flat plane? Torzal Guitars rotates the neck 15 degrees from nut to bridge, and the ergonomic logic is harder to dismiss than the look might suggest.]]> Sun, 10 May 2026 14:51:21 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/gear/a-decent-350-super-strat-that-could-use-a-pickup-swap-winzz-wgs150-works-better-as-a-mod-platform https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/news/gear/a-decent-350-super-strat-that-could-use-a-pickup-swap-winzz-wgs150-works-better-as-a-mod-platform Gear: ]]> Wed, 06 May 2026 20:25:50 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/jimmy-pages-mic-placement-accidents-created-the-led-zeppelin-sound-and-modern-recording-kills-that-by-design-186395 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/jimmy-pages-mic-placement-accidents-created-the-led-zeppelin-sound-and-modern-recording-kills-that-by-design-186395 Features: Back in the day, people created unique sounds purely by accident or thanks to faulty equipment, and modern bands would have a tough time recreating them.]]> Tue, 05 May 2026 22:20:08 -0400 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/focal-dystonia-ends-guitar-careers-the-players-most-at-risk-are-the-ones-practicing-the-hardest-186365 https://www.ultimate-guitar.com/articles/features/focal-dystonia-ends-guitar-careers-the-players-most-at-risk-are-the-ones-practicing-the-hardest-186365 Features: Endless hours of hard practice won't just stop you from getting better. They put you at a higher risk of ending your entire career. ]]> Sun, 03 May 2026 21:16:20 -0400