5 Guitarists I Discovered In 2012

2012 was a year where I made time to play more guitar. Over previous years I’ve become busier in my work, as well as devoting more time to my family. This has come at the expense of my guitar time. So in 2012 I made a conscious effort to spend more time playing and learning guitar and it was great.

One of the things that’s helped me this year has been subscribing to Guitar Player magazine (@GuitarPlayerNow on Twitter). I subscribe to the iPad edition via Zinio and I’ve found this to be a convenient way to read the magazine. It takes up no space, I can bookmark the pages I like, and it’s way cheaper than buying the print version.

One of the things I love doing each month is reading about new guitarists and discovering their music. Which brings me to the other thing I’ve loved using this year.

Spotify. It finally made it to Australia this year. For those who don’t know, Spotify is a music site / app / program that lets you listen to music via the web either for free or via a monthly subscription. So you’re renting your music rather than owning it. I reckon I’ve listened to more new music this past year on Spotify than I have in the past ten years.

If I hear something cool on the radio, I can usually find it on Spotify and check out the artist’s other music. I’m finally able to listen to some of the classic rock albums that I couldn’t afford when I was younger.

So when I’m reading the new Guitar Player magazine, Spotify isn’t far away. I read about a new artist, start playing their music on Spotify and continue reading their interview. Those I like, I add to a play list.

Another source of new guitarists has been YouTube. You’ll know how easy it is to get lost on YouTube – you start out watching one video, then move onto a related one, then……half an hour later you’ve forgotten what you were doing.

This year I’ve discovered some great new music and new guitarists. Here are five guitarists I’ve discovered this year. I hope you like them.

Andy Othling / Lowercase Noises

I discovered Andy’s music on YouTube one night and sat amazed at the sounds he was getting. I’d never spend much time listening to ambient guitar music until that night. What an introduction!

He’s a great player and gets some great tones. I love the fact that he has a pretty high output of recordings – there’s always something that he’s working on.

Here’s an example of one of his songs.

His website is also a great example of how a musician can create a site that’s the hub of all they do.

Main Website: http://lowercasenoises.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/lowercasenoises
Twitter: www.twitter.com/lowercasenoises
YouTube: www.youtube.com/tubescreamer
Last.fm: www.last.fm/music/Lowercase+Noises
Tumblr: lowercasenoises.tumblr.com
Soundcloud: www.soundcloud.com/lowercasenoises

Karl Verkade / GuitarForWorship.com

I can’t remember how I discovered Karl’s blog, but I was soon hooked. He’s another player who writes a lot in the ambient style, and he (like me) also plays at church.

I’ve learnt a lot about effects, tone and playing from his blog.

Here’s one of his songs from his YouTube channel. Again, whilst I’m still learning about playing in an ambient style, I can appreciate what Karl and Andy are doing. It’s very unforgiving – one wrong note and it’s repeated over and over! And the ability these guys have to gradually build up a song and understand in advance what parts work together is amazing.

When you listen to this song, remember that everything you’re hearing has come from his guitar. No synths, no loops – it’s all guitar.

Main Website: http://www.guitarforworship.com
Facebook:http://www.facebook.com/KarlVerkadeMusic
Twitter: http://twitter.com/guitar4worship
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/Passenger95
Bandcamp:http://karlverkade.bandcamp.com

Philip Sayce

I came across Philip Sayce in a recent edition of Guitar Player magazine. I found his latest album on Spotify and listened to that, then went onto You Tube in search of videos.

I’ve been getting back into blues / rock music this year and Philip Sayce does this style well. He’s played with Jeff Healey, Melissa Etheridge and Uncle Kracker – a diverse bunch of people.

He’s a great player and I’ve learnt a lot from listening to his music. A lot of his older material will be released on iTunes soon so go and check it out.

Here’s a track called ‘Arianrhod’ from his latest album – Silver Wheel of Stars EP

Here’s another track of his called ‘Over My Head’. It’s a live song, and I wanted to add it so you can see him in action (the previous clip only showed the album art!).

Main Website:http://philipsayce.com
Facebook:http://www.facebook.com/PhilipSayceMusic
Twitter:http://twitter.com/#!/PhilipSayce
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/philipsayce
MySpace:http://www.myspace.com/philipsayce

Aleks Sever

Aleks Sever is another guitarist I discovered through the pages of Guitar Player Magazine.

She sounds a lot like Robben Ford and Larry Carlton crossed with James Brown. She has a great guitar tone and uses a DigiTech pedal into a Fender amp.

Here’s a video that highlights some of her playing.

Main Website:http://www.alekssever.com
Facebook:http://www.facebook.com/alekssever
Twitter:http://www.twitter.com/alekssever
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/aleksmusix

Gary Clark Jr

I only found out about Gary Clark Jr a few days ago when I read an article about him in Guitar Player. He’s considered to be a blues guitarist, but that doesn’t do him justice. Not only can he play blues, but I hear a lot of R&B, soul and funk influences as well. Someone said he’s a cross between Hendrix and Lenny Kravitz – that’s not too far off the mark.

Have a listen to this track and hear for yourself. I see he’s coming to Adelaide where I live in January – I’ll have to see if I can interview him while he’s here 🙂

Here’s a track of his called ‘Ain’t Messin’ Around’

Main Website:http://www.garyclarkjr.com/
Facebook:http://www.facebook.com/GaryClarkJr
Twitter:http://www.twitter.com/garyclarkjr
YouTube: http://www.youtube.com/user/garyclarkjr

So there they are – the top five guitarists I discovered in 2012.

Thinking ahead, I may need to do multiple posts like this in 2013 when I consider that I’ll have 12 editions of Guitar Player to read, plus Spotify!