“I’d be playing the synth, thinking, ‘Peter, do you see this? Sting is playing that part – and you don’t mind when Sting does it!’” Tony Levin explains the origins of his Funk Fingers appendages – and the friendly rivalry they sparked with Peter Gabriel trib.al/EYkFjtj

“I didn’t know Corgan, but I knew he wasn’t the easiest person to work with. I thought, ‘This isn’t going to last but it’ll be interesting’”: Jane’s Addiction’s Eric Avery on his brief stint with the Smashing Pumpkins and what he learned from Billy Corgan trib.al/fE6jnTv

“It was suggested we try making a Dumble-style clean. They’re so mystical – I’d never played one. You can look at the circuit and still be none the wiser”: The unstoppable rise of Victory Amps – and what comes next trib.al/zgHof7N

“I drank my liver into submission and snorted a mountain of cocaine, and I didn’t die. Now I’m trying to stay away from that stuff so I can still be around. I keep myself really busy with music”: The redemption of High on Fire and Sleep icon Matt Pike trib.al/9Uv6n3b

“They asked Billy Gibbons, John Mayer and me. I wish this would make me sound like Jeff Beck, but it won’t”: Steve Lukather confirms Jeff Beck guitar tribute project as he wields his iconic White Strat to cover Jimi Hendrix’s Little Wing trib.al/z9ke9eo

“A significant leap forward in both technology and user experience”: Fender’s Mustang Micro Plus looks to fill the void left by the Boss Katana:GO by making the firm’s market-leading headphone amp better than ever before trib.al/fEpM1nq

“Very much the upgrade that was needed for one of the most popular headphone amps for guitar”: Fender Mustang Micro Plus review trib.al/C8Tz6HB

“We were trying to put blues riffs on dance beats. We wanted to see what happens if you fuse those two worlds”: Meet Daniel ‘Dafreez’ Johnston, the “blues rave-up” pioneer combining folk fingerstyle and EDM trib.al/yu4Zukb

Fender vs Squier: what’s the difference? trib.al/nP6tCdz

“Anyone looking for a budget acoustic with retro looks will be charmed by ol’ Mr Dandy. It’s ahard guitar to put down”: Gretsch Jim Dandy Concert review trib.al/cEXty3B

“We don’t want to use guitar solos as a crutch. You know – ‘after the bridge, solo!’ When I do play a solo, I want it to stand out”: Following mega-tours with Muse and Royal Blood, sister act The Warning are riff rock’s next big success story trib.al/HnYYrLR

“A fan-favorite packaged down without compromising on quality and tones”: Amp-modeling multi-FX for $82? Harley Benton has somehow made its flagship floor modeler even cheaper trib.al/z8s4nax

Jeff Hanneman is a metal god whose evil phrasing and brutal downpicking gave thrash kings Slayer an unholy dimension trib.al/RTA4CsX

“In terms of electric guitars, I’ve never used anything other than Fender in my life”: UK post-punk band English Teacher just won one of the most prestigious prizes in music – they explain how it all started with Fender trib.al/YnlKQnT

“I heard some criticism that I didn’t play the parts enough like Criss, but I didn’t want to just go in there and try to be a clone of him”: When Alex Skolnick quit Testament – and was recruited to replace the late Criss Oliva in Tampa metallers Savatage trib.al/WqYbsPf

Guitar World deals of the week: save $200 on a Jackson, grab some bargain price Behringer pedals, plus a free Universal Audio plugin trib.al/P8dquXW

“I thought it was a bunch of noise. I left. Later, it almost felt like Jimi Hendrix was saying, ‘I'll make sure you never forget my name’”: Frank Marino on the time he left a Hendrix gig early – and the truth behind the bizarre Hendrix haunting story trib.al/deTkY3Z

“Delivering a resonance that speaks directly to the soul of your music”: The Hagstrom Megin is a double-cutaway guitar built for maximum tonal resonance to “unlock its tonal magic” trib.al/fOdTIMr

“There are a lot of guitars reaching the end of their playable lives – we want to make them useful again”: Re-Tuned turns old acoustic guitars into Bluetooth speakers trib.al/LL1V7bM

“We feel really empowered with this new lineup, their world-class talents, and the vibrant new music we’ve made together”: Linkin Park unveil new-look lineup, drop new single The Emptiness Machine trib.al/km3tMy6