As a guitar teacher who also works out of a guitar shop, the question always comes up, "so who is your favourite guitarist?", a question that I find almost impossible to answer as someone who loves countless styles of music and appreciates several ways of expressive one's self with a guitar. That being said, I feel discussing our favourite musicians can give us a strong insight into each other's musical mindsets, so here we go, in no particular order!
Kyle Sipress
Kyle Sipress of metalcore legends The Devil Wears Prada is a stand out to me for a few reasons, simplest first, The Devil Wears Prada have been one of my favourite bands since I was a teenager, but when he joined the band he added a whole new level of expressiveness to the guitar parts that I had never considered before in a heavy music context. In my view Sipress has the perfect blend of strong flowing song writing and stand out guitar riffs that I can't get enough of.
Caleb Shomo
Most may know Caleb Shomo for his vocal prowess in his band Beartooth, but what sometimes gets missed about him is that on record, he plays ever single instrument, with his band mates only performing live. Shomo is a top tier song writer, every part flowing from one part to the next seamlessly with catchy guitar parts, variations and tonal ear candy to keep you coming back for more. Another thing i really enjoy about his guitar playing is the blending of heavy metal and hardcore riffs with more classic rock tendencies alongside pop-rock choruses, without any of it ever sounding jarring!
Guthrie Govan
For anyone who reads these blogs, you will recognise this man, who I previously stated was one of my favourite guitarists of all time, so naturally, here he is! Govan's use of groove, timing and melody never leaves me displeased, each listen I always take away something new. His approach to soloing is something I regularly bring up when teaching solo composition and improvisation! If you want to read me gush more about his playing, you can do so here!
Misha Mansoor
Misha Mansoor is the mastermind behind progressive metal heavy weights Periphery.
A producer in his own right, Misha has become synonymous with brilliant metal guitar tones (if you didn't know already, you are probably seeing I really like metal, see insight in to each other's musical mindsets!) so much so that he has worked with Peavey to make his own amp, with Bareknuckle pickups to make his own pickups, Jackson to create several signature model guitars and his own company Horizon Devices to create some great guitar pedals! Even if you put all of that aside, his rhythmic playing and soloing are bursting with character that is easily identifiable!
Mitch Stark
For the unfamiliar, Mitch Stark is the guitarist and primary song writer for metalcore band, Silent Planet, another one of my favourite bands (a theme is emerging here).
Over the years, his song writing and guitar playing has gone from strength to strength, incorporating very technical guitar passages with powerful and emotional soundscapes.
For a band so relatively new, they have already cemented themselves as wholly unique and that has a great deal to do with Stark's fantastic playing and writing!
Kurt Cobain
Here he is again, the man who changed music overnight in the 90s, causing the grunge boom and inspired generations of guitarists ever since! Kurt Cobain's guitar playing has always stood out to me, from his chromatic chord progressions to his chaotic and aggressive expressive outbursts that are near impossible to notate, trust me, I have tried! For me, the way Cobain plays guitar is art in its purest and most expressive form, it makes me feel strong emotions and I come back to his work time and time again.
Rabea Massaad
If you haven't seen this man play guitar, you are missing out! The perfect blend of technical proficiency and fun and creative song writing! Best known for his content creation on YouTube on his own channel as well as the Andertons Music channel, Massaad is one of the rare guitarists who can do a great deal of everything, without compromising quality. Shredding, check, riffing, check, smooth and cohesive song writing, check, bonus points for doing so with odd time signature prog rock songs!
Dylan Mattheisen
This man is possibly the most fun to watch on this list, using a great deal of unusual chord shapes and more two handed tapping than most guitarists have done in their whole lives! Dylan Mattheisen is the singer and guitarist for math rock/emo band Tiny Moving Parts. There was a few years from 2015-2018 where I was absolutely obsessed with everything emo/math rock and Mattheisen was the key guitarist that made me push myself more as a guitar player, learning a great deal of double handed tapping techniques and experimenting with open guitar tunings.
Rob Scallon
Rob Scallon is a YouTube video creator and multi-instrumentalist but he is best known for his solo guitar work, playing an incredibly diverse range of styles from clean solo guitar and double hand tapping math rock to crushingly heavy 8 string guitar metal tracks and death metal ukulele and banjo covers! The man simply loves music in all it's forms and it is utterly infectious. Scallon has greatly inspired me both as a guitarist and a guitar teacher as he has made countless educational videos over the years alongside his straight forward (and not so straight forward) musical ventures.
Adam Dutkiewicz
Last but by no means least, we have Adam Dutkiewicz from metalcore legends Killswitch Engage. His playing has had more of an impact on mine than any other. His blend of harsh dissonance, soaring melodies, heavy breakdowns and beautiful harmonies has stuck with me ever since I first heard Killswitch Engage back in the mid 2000s. I had the privilege of meeting the man himself several years ago and I told him he was one of my favourite guitarists, in his typically comedic and self deprecating style, he told me I should get better taste. As you can tell from the photo above, he is not the most serious of guys, but that's one more reason I look up to him!
It felt only fitting to share this horrific photo of a young and mop headed Dani alongside Adam D himself to wrap things up!
So, what do you think of my favourite guitar players? Are any of your favourites on here? If not, who are your favourite guitar players? I'd love to know! Until next time, play loud and stay safe!
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