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Rig Rundown: Power Trip

Learn about the lean-and-mean power tools these Texans use for their style of classic thrash metal.

Chris Whetzel tours with two Dunable R2 basses. Both feature Lace Aluma-P pickups and are strung with Ernie Ball Regular Slinky (.050–.105) strings.

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Bruce Springsteen: the last man standing.

Photo by Rob DeMartin

On Halloween, the pride of New Jersey rock ’n’ roll shook a Montreal arena with a show that lifted the veil between here and the everafter.

It might not seem like it, but Bruce Springsteen is going to die.

I know; it’s a weird thought. The guy is 75 years old, and still puts on three-hour-plus-long shows, without pauses or intermissions. His stamina and spirit put the millennial work-from-home class, whose backs hurt because we “slept weird” or “forgot to use our ergonomic keyboard,” to absolute shame. He leaps and bolts and howls and throws his Telecasters high in the air. No doubt it helps to have access to the best healthcare money can buy, but still, there’s no denying that he’s a specimen of human physical excellence. And yet, Bruce, like the rest of us, will pass from this plane.

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Featuring a slim Headlock system, water-resistant shell, and spacious front pocket. Available in classic Black and Ash, as well as new colors Moonlight Blue, Amazon Green, and Burnt Orange.

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Despite his early personal history in elementary school orchestra, Bohlinger says, “Classical musicians are a bit of a mystery to me, and probably most guitarists.”

Does the guitar player’s mind have the patience and focus of a classical musician, or are we on another tip altogether?

The first time I really played music was in fourth grade in my elementary school orchestra. Although I played terribly and was just one tiny cog in a huge musical machine—second to last chair in the second violin section out of 30 kids—being part of these incredible, interwoven melodies was a genuinely moving experience, regardless of how bad it must have sounded. But despite the personal history, classical musicians are a bit of a mystery to me, and probably most guitarists.

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Why Randy Rhoads Makes Chris Shiflett Cry
- YouTube

Your esteemed hosts of the 100 Guitarists podcast have been listening to Randy Rhoads’s body of work since they learned the word “pentatonic.” His short discography with Ozzy Osbourne has been emblazoned on both of our fingertips, and we’ve each put in our hours working out everything from the “Crazy Train” riff to the fingerpicked intro to “Diary of a Madman.” But in our extended Premier Guitar fam, we have an expert who’s been studying Randy’s licks since longer than either of us have been alive.

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