Courses

Songwriting with Plini

Songwriting with Plini is an in-depth masterclass in musical composition and modern progressive songwriting, straight from the mind of one of Australia’s most innovative and legendary musicians, Plini. Best known for his work as an instrumental guitarist and songwriter, Plini...

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Courses

PROGRESSIVE PICKING with Stephen Taranto

The quintessential guide to modern picking techniques as taught by Stephen Taranto. "The purpose is to shed some light on how I traverse the strings, while keeping things as clean and as fast as possible.”

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Courses

Scar Guitar

Scar Guitar is a detailed journey into the modern playing styles of Per Nilsson, one of the world's finest guitarists. Best known for his work with Swedish melodic death metal group Scar Symmetry and progressive metal titans Meshuggah, Per offers...

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Courses

THUMP! - Tosin Abasi's Guitar Instructional

THUMP! is an in-depth exploration of the modern playing techniques of Tosin Abasi. This course focuses primarily on his approaches to the thumping technique, and also explores several other key techniques that offer insight into his music. Included are detailed...

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Courses

The Madness of Javier Reyes

Javier Reyes of Animals as Leaders and Mestis breaks down some of his key techniques and offers close-up demonstrations of four compositions. All lessons & performances are presented in crystal clear 4k video, with multiple angles covering all the action....

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Courses

Fingerpicking Foundations

Javier Reyes of Animals As Leaders and Mestis builds on fingerpicking technique basics introduced in the Madness of Javier Reyes series. The goal of this course is to develop a strong foundation for the fingerpicking technique. The program includes 5...

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Courses

The Madness of Tosin Abasi

This set of lessons offers an in-depth look at the Animals As Leaders tracks BACKPFEIFENGESICHT and THE GLASS BRIDGE. Featuring 4k video, detailed transcriptions, and downloadable Guitar Pro files, Tosin gives insight into some of the playing and writing techniques...

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Courses

PROGRESSIVE PICKING with Stephen Taranto

The quintessential guide to modern picking techniques as taught by Stephen Taranto. "The purpose is to shed some light on how I traverse the strings, while keeping things as clean and as fast as possible.”

The Madness of Javier Reyes

Javier Reyes of Animals as Leaders and Mestis breaks down some of his key techniques and offers close-up demonstrations of four compositions. All lessons & performances are presented in crystal clear 4k video, with multiple angles covering all the action. Each example is transcribed in great detail and can be looped, slowed down, sped up, transposed - all on the same page. Each example is also available for download in Guitar Pro format.

Scar Guitar

Scar Guitar is a detailed journey into the modern playing styles of Per Nilsson, one of the world's finest guitarists. Best known for his work with Swedish melodic death metal group Scar Symmetry and progressive metal titans Meshuggah, Per offers a close-up personal look at his unique approaches to music and the guitar. This course includes over 2 hours of lessons and performances, in-depth interviews, & bonus materials.

Songwriting with Plini

Songwriting with Plini is an in-depth masterclass in musical composition and modern progressive songwriting, straight from the mind of one of Australia’s most innovative and legendary musicians, Plini. Best known for his work as an instrumental guitarist and songwriter, Plini offers a comprehensive look into his unique methods for crafting memorable, inspiring songs.

THUMP! - Tosin Abasi's Guitar Instructional

THUMP! is an in-depth exploration of the modern playing techniques of Tosin Abasi. This course focuses primarily on his approaches to the thumping technique, and also explores several other key techniques that offer insight into his music. Included are detailed transcriptions, as well as backing tracks for select songs. The course is not limited to 8-string guitarists. All concepts can be applied to 6 and 7-string guitar.

Fingerpicking Foundations

Javier Reyes of Animals As Leaders and Mestis builds on fingerpicking technique basics introduced in the Madness of Javier Reyes series. The goal of this course is to develop a strong foundation for the fingerpicking technique. The program includes 5 etudes, offering a musical, fun path to synchronizing both hands and developing right-hand finger dexterity. A perfect course for beginner to intermediate guitarists looking to dive into the world of fingerpicking.

The Madness of Tosin Abasi

This set of lessons offers an in-depth look at the Animals As Leaders tracks BACKPFEIFENGESICHT and THE GLASS BRIDGE. Featuring 4k video, detailed transcriptions, and downloadable Guitar Pro files, Tosin gives insight into some of the playing and writing techniques that are highlighted in the tracks: Thumping, Selective Picking & Sweeping in Riffs, Hammer-On-From-Nowhere Riffing, Songwriting & Arrangement Techniques.

Articles

Joe Stump Interview

Shredlord Joe Stump is a professor at Berklee College of Music and is the head of the department of metal. GuitarOne Magazine rated him as...

Paul Masvidal Interview – Cynic (2014): Part 3

In the third installment of our interview series with Paul Masvidal, we discussed what Paul does to keep his hands busy when he’s not working on...

Sasha Ostrovsky Interview

This interview features a true guitar master. However, Alexander ‘Sasha’ Ostrovsky’s talent is not limited to just the one type of guitar – he plays...

Devin Townsend Interview

Following Devin Townsend’s career has been a diverse musical journey through the many facets of his compelling personality. First introduced to the world as Steve...

Michael Angelo Batio Interview

Shred virtuoso Michael Angelo Batio was rated by Guitar World magazine to be one of the “Top 100 Greatest Metal Guitar Players of All Time,”...

Joel Stroetzel Interview (Killswitch Engage)

Joel Stroetzel is best known for being one of the axe-slingers for Massachusetts-based Metalcore pioneers Killswitch Engage. In June 2009 the band released the self-titled Killswitch...

Mårten Hagström Interview (Meshuggah)

Meshuggah is a band that truly stands in a musical category of its own. Over the past two decades, the Swedish experimental metal group has...

Tim Sult Interview – Clutch

Consider Clutch the kale of a metal head’s diet: a superfood long growing in the underground, ever-ready to spread leaves sprouting a wealth of heavy...

George Bellas Interview 1

George Bellas is a guitar virtuoso and  one of the leaders of the neoclassical scene, with three solo albums released and a truly unique musical...

Guthrie Govan Interview (2009)

Guthrie Govan is one of the most versatile guitarists around. His vast range of influences and terrifying technique has allowed him to develop what seems...

Paul Masvidal Interview – Cynic (2014): Part 4

  Having covered the ins and outs of his musical past, present, and future in parts I-III of our interview series, Paul Masvidal now opens...

Chris Letchford & Travis LeVrier Interview (Scale The Summit)

Modern prog instrumentalists Travis LeVrier and Chris Letchford of Scale the Summit discuss their new album The Collective as they unfold a new and exciting...

Lessons

A Lesson On Tensions Part 2: Putting the Voicings Into Action

In my last lesson I bombarded you with tons of thick, gooey tension-filled voicings, and explained how they work. As we all know, with new...

Using a Metronome Effectively Part 2: Things Start to Click

Now that you know what to look for when you purchase a metronome (Part 1), let’s get started with actually practicing with one. A lot...

Francesco Artusato (Devil You Know) – Gear

Devil You Know’s Francesco Artusato walks us through his arsenal of Ibanez guitars that he’s currently using on the Revolver Golden Gods tour with Black...

Veil Of Maya: Marc Okubo Masterclass (Part 2)

Unbreakable Riff [Marc’s guitar is tuned to Drop-B for all examples in this Masterclass: B F# B E G# C#] This riff calls for left-hand flexibility...

Auditioning For Lady Gaga

Dear Fellow Musicians, In January 2010 I had the opportunity to audition for the guitarist position on Lady Gaga’s international arena tour. I made it...

The Almighty ii-V: Part 2 (Minor)

Sultry.  Spicy.  Rich.  Exotic.  No, I am not talking about your mother.  I’m talking about Jazz standards in minor keys.  Though they make up a...

Putting Jazz In Metal With Ever Forthright

Welcome to Guitar Messenger! I’m Nick from the band Ever Forthright. Today we’re going to use excerpts from two of our recent songs, ‘The Counter...

Using a Metronome Effectively Part 1: Nervous Tick?

If you are a half capable guitarist you’ve probably heard the words, “Play something really fast,” by your friends, and it’s usually meant as a...

Buying Your First Guitar: Part 2

Welcome back! In Part 1 of this article, we looked at various considerations and research tips to guide your search for the right guitar. Now...

Artist Riff: Mark Holcomb of Periphery Plays ‘Make Total Destroy’

[Mark’s Ernie Ball Musicman John Petrucci Signature Model 7-string guitar is tuned to Drop-Ab. Low to high: Ab Eb Ab Db Gb Bb Eb.]   ...

Artist Lick: Carl Verheyen

Renowned session pro, solo artist, and Supertramp guitarist Carl Verheyen presents his Guitar Messenger Artist Lick. This C minor lick is a great example of...

Artist Lick: Steve Morse

Guitar legend Steve Morse demonstrates his burning take on the blues, in an Artist Lick taken from the Dixie Dregs’ 'Rock & Roll Park' from...

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