Guitar Interviews of the Year 2024
Published on 23 December 2024
What a tremendously varied and rewarding year 2024 has been! In terms of artist interviews, I feel like the last 12 months have been particularly special. Any opportunity to have a conversation with somebody about what they do is a privilege, but there are a few names on this year’s list that tick some very large ‘lifetime ambition’ boxes for me, and for that I’m very grateful indeed.
It’s all a hustle, and a victory every time I get a ‘yes’ response from artists, so before I even jog through this year’s list with you, I want to send out a huge, neon THANK YOU to everyone who let me speak to them, and very much to everybody who read and watched the interviews themselves. Every click, every comment and every share allows me to continue doing this, so a heartfelt thanks is being directed to you directly from me!
(photo: Emilie Bardalou)
Okay, now let’s check out these interviews, eh?
The Interviews of the Year, At a Glance
Uli Jon Roth
It was actually a frosty November morning last year when I ventured to Uli’s hotel in Irvine for a good in-depth talk about his art. I’m including it in today’s list because we put it out on 5th January, and because Uli was such an interesting wizard of a man to talk to!
The Ex-Scorpions guitar maestro was on top form, chatting about inspiration, innovation and more. His wonderful Sky guitars sat close by as we sipped coffee and tea in his suite and chatted guitar. It was pretty blissful, and here’s the piece itself…
Click to Read the Uli Jon Roth Interview
Robby Krieger
Never in a million years did I think I’d ever get to talk to one of the members of The Doors. Truly one of my favourite bands since I was a teenager, The Doors have always stood on that mythical pedestal reserved for the titans of music. When I learned that guitarist Roddy Krieger was releasing a new solo record, I hustled my requests through without really expecting a result.
The planets must have aligned though, because an affirmative response was sent across and we had our Zoom chat back in January! Robby is a very chill, relaxed guy, very pleasant to talk to and even though I was pre-empted not to hassle him with endless dumb questions about Jim Morrison (and you know I had them in my mind), he did let us talk a little about The Doors, which was pretty magical.
Click to Read the Robby Krieger Interview
Steve Vai
2024 was a momentously lucky year for Vai fans. Not only did he tour the USA with Joe Satriani at the start of the year, he also teamed up with Adrian Belew, Tony Levin and Danny Carey to form supergroup BEAT, a band dedicated to playing the 1980s Discipline era of King Crimson.
I was lucky enough to talk to Steve not once but twice this year: firstly to discuss the Satch tour, the impending BEAT tour and also to cover 20 years of guitar developments, since it was guitarguitar’s 20th anniversary. This would be Steve and I’s third time speaking together, and you can watch this video below…
Then, a few months later, I decided that for our Ibanez month (every month of 2024 was dedicated to a great guitar brand), I’d love to document the genesis, design and history of the Ibanez JEM guitar, a model I’ve always had a soft spot for. Who better to approach than the man himself? It’s Steve’s signature guitar after all! I’m glad to report that Steve was up for going over the whole story of the wonderful JEM, and you can read all about it by hitting that button just below!
The BEAT tour is now finished (for now), but Joe and Steve are regrouping as SATCHVAI for a UK and European tour in 2025, so keep ‘em peeled for more!
Click to Read our Exclusive Interview with Steve Vai about the Ibanez JEM
Dave Navarro
When the news went around that Jane’s Addiction were touring again - in their original lineup, no less - there was a huge buzz. These shamanic LA-based rockers are as ultra-influential as they are difficult to pin down. Guitarist Dave Navarro is a genuine rock guitar hero in an age when almost nobody is stepping into those shoes, and so I deeply desired a convo with him if the gods of rock could make that happen.
We missed each other at Glasgow (what a gig though!) but most happily, he was able and willing to Zoom from his hotel room in Amsterdam. Dave is as cool, friendly and witty as you’d expect him to be, with a nicely grounded energy. We chatted for a good hour and the results are below for you to enjoy!
The events that happened with the band later are very unfortunate (who knows what’ll happen next?) but this conversation was with Dave, in his prime, with the band kicking ass over Europe. Such moments are well worth taking stock of!
Click to Read our Exclusive Dave Navarro Interview
Billy Duffy
A gentleman, a witty, funny guy and an iconic rock star, Billy Duffy is the real deal. Both times I’ve had the chance to talk to him have been exciting, because he is always located deep within the backstage warren that surrounds a typical Cult gig: crew members building, musicians wandering the backstage corridors, people looking for people…and nestled in his own dressing room, Billy himself, signing photos as the kettle boils and a practice amp sits idling by.
He’s a very personable man to chat to, and happy to talk about pickups, post-punk and everything else that has become a part of his long-term story. On this occasion, I travelled through to Edinburgh’s Usher Hall to talk about 40 years of The Cult, new signature Gretshes and much more.
Click to Read the Billy Duffy 2024 Interview
Joey Santiago
The Pixies are one of those bands who I found out about years after they’d split up, when all 4 members were actively reinstating how much they weren’t going to reform. By that point, they were already one of my favourite bands, and remain so now, many years since they collectively buried the hatchet and got back together.
No mere nostalgia act, the Pixies are in a constant process of delivering new music and touring. I was really, really happy to have guitarist Joey Santiago agree to chat with me on Zoom from his London hotel, where I could finally try to decipher the finest mysteries of this man’s highly unique style.
Did I succeed? You tell me, after you’ve watched the exclusive interview below!
Blade Runner Live
I’ll often try to talk with people who are not directly guitar players. For guitarguitar? Why? Well, I feel like we are all a bit more 3-dimensional than being solely guitar fanatics (which we most definitely all are!) and I often think that if something interests me enough to get that special pull, then it’ll interest others, too.
On this occasion, it was a touring band who were recreating Vangelis’ electronic score for Ridley Scott’s movie Blade Runner. The film’s an acknowledged classic, so I knew enough people would want to know more about it all. I reached out to Pierre O'Reilly, the project’s Musical Director, and he was game for a chat! I tried to get as far underneath the process as I could in order to find all of the details about how such a show comes together. The interview brings in extra elements such as James Cameron as well, so any film buffs out there should give this one a good read!
Click to Read the Blade Runner Live Interview
Roger Dean
Talking about non-guitarists, somebody whom I’d never dreamt I could gain an audience with was legendary artist and album cover maestro Roger Dean. I’ve loved Roger’s work since I was a kid: I’m talking about the Shadow of the Beast video games for the Amiga, by the way - and enquired about the possibility of an interview after a chance meeting with a colleague of his.
Roger agreed, and I have to say that I really did learn as much in those 50-or-so minutes with him as I did during a full degree at art school! There’s wisdom and teachings in here for all walks of creative life, so don’t pass this one by!
Ndox Electrique
Formed by Senegalese, French and Italian members, Ndox Electrique is easily the most exciting band I’d heard all year. I spotted a pic of them in the Songlines mag, and decided to follow my curiosity towards a Youtube video of them performing live.
Put simply, I became an instant convert, and simply had to try my luck at a proper conversation. Francois and Gianna are two unbelievably busy musicians, but we managed to sneak an hour in at the tail end of the Summer, and I enjoyed the most delightful, not to mention inspiring, conversation about the Ndox Electrique project (Francois and Gianna also tour as Putan Club), how it happened, why it happened, and how to become self-sustaining musicians. If you wonder why you aren’t gigging as much as you should be, these two might have some motivating answers for you!
Tony Levin
Tony Levin’s CV is terrifying: Peter Gabriel, King Crimson, Tom Waits, John Lennon…it’s just as well he’s very down-to-earth and endearing in real life!
I’d interviewed Tony via email several years ago when King Crimson were blazing their way across the world, but news of the BEAT band and a new solo album from Tony gave me ample cause to seek out another audience with him.
As always, it’s the most experienced players who are also the most humble.
What a Year!
What a year indeed! Since it was guitarguitar’s 20th Anniversary this year, I knew I had to double down and aim for the stars. Looking back in the year’s interviews, the very fact that I had to leave out childhood hero Max Cavalera and top favourite Devin Townsend says it all!
Again, my humble thanks to all who agreed to be pestered by me, and even humbler thanks to everyone who clicked through to read or watch.
I’m now taking a few days off to relax before getting my hustling hat back on for 2025. Have a great one, I’ll see you soon!
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