Rafael Trujillo
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My Top (Lead) Guitarists
🕑 Added 2023-11-16 23:19:01 +0000 UTCI get so many questions about what inspires me and who influences my music. So I want to share that with you. Honestly, my inspiration comes from a blend of players, bands, composers, and producers who amaze me and create a particular feeling when I listen to their work. I might create different posts to share my favorite musicians in general (which also goes way out of the metal or jazz genre), but this time, I just want to focus on my top lead guitarists. And I have to say, my own list of the top lead guitarists has evolved over time, with each guitarist bringing something unique that I appreciate.
In my early years, around the age of 10, Angus Young fascinated me. I was deeply into ACDC, learning many riffs that sounded tight and groovy. Every note he plays is on point. As I delved deeper, I was exploring nearly every progressive band with virtuoso guitar players during that time. Symphony X particularly caught my attention, especially Michael Romeo's licks in between riffs and solo writing, which seemed unreachable for me at the time.
My hero then became John Petrucci, whose epic solos inspired me to practice more and transcribe a lot of Dream Theater music! Also the first metal concert I ever visited was Symphony X supporting Dream Theater, which was an amazing show! As I entered my teenage years, I got really interested in Jason Richardson because of his songwriting and playing he did in Born of Osiris' album "The Discovery." That was the time were I started discovering a lot of the arpeggio picking stuff I do today. Simultaneously, I found myself transcribing Matias Kupiainen's solos in Stratovarius songs. His solos are full of beautiful melodies and musical ideas, which I admire. And then of course Per Nilsson's exceptional guitar skills also stood out to me during this time.
As I delved deeper into studying improvisation, music theory, and taking my guitar playing seriously, I dedicated time to transcribing videos from Martin Miller, even taking regular lessons with him for over two years. My musical journey led me to the works of Scott Henderson, Frank Gambale, and Mike Stern, closely following their projects. They are just incredible improvisers and I studied their licks, concepts and methods.
In recent times, my focus has shifted towards fusion players like Allan Holdsworth, Greg Howe, and Tim Miller (whom I also had lessons with for a while). Studying these guitarists has become a lifelong project, shaping and evolving my musical style. Fun fact: They all play Kiesel Guitars. I’m really grateful to be part of this family, even after being with Kiesel for over 6 years now.
I'm not suggesting that you must follow these steps to become a better guitar player; not at all! There may or may not be parallels with your influences. It just highlights the individual nature of musical journeys. When you analyze all the music I create, you can undoubtedly hear these influences here and there. My only suggestion is to consistently explore different players, study them, and dive into their music.
What are your main influences when it comes to guitar players? That would be really interesting to read.
Comments
Thomas Helwig
Just listening to Paradise Lost. Crazy stuff. Until now Michael Romeo never caught my attention. Thanks!
Rafael Trujillo
also Michael Romeo's solo records are great if you haven't checked them out yet.
Rafael Trujillo
The whole "paradise lost" album is amazing in my opinion. It helped me really in terms of songwriting by just playing through the riffs and analyzing the structure of the songs.
Rafael Trujillo
thank you, I really appreciate that!
Rafael Trujillo
That's awesome! Thanks for sharing that. I think John Petrucci was a game changer for a lot of people. It's funny you mentioned Joscho Stephan, because I just transcribed some licks and watched a lot of his videos recently. And Brandon Ellis is an amazing player, yes!
Thomas Helwig
@Rafael Do you have particular songs you could recommend from Symphony X/Michael Romeo?
Guy Rozanes
Surprised about Jason, he is the god of technique. Well Synyster Gates was a big inspiration of mine for a long decade. Then I searched for something with more complicated rhythms and found Mark Morton (Lamb of God). Then i went to more progressive so inspired by Petrucci and Mark Holcomb (Periphery). And here i am now spamming your songs because I truly believe that you are the most complete guitarist ever.
Thomas Helwig
Surprised that you had taken lessons from Martin Miller! That is super cool. I started playing at the age of 14. I was fascinated by Glenn Tipton's song writing abilities, his solos (Electric Eye, You've Got Another Thing Comin', The Sentinel and so forth), his uniqueness. Glenn's stage presence blew me away. When I first saw Judas Priest in 1981 I knew I had to pick up a guitar. I got to know him a couple of years later (1986). Randy Rhoads (to name but one song: Diary of a Madman) and Ritchie Blackmore (in Rainbow, not Deep Purple) I love for the feel and classical stuff they integrated into metal and hard rock. Facemelting. German wizards like Michael Schenker and in the 90s Mathias "Don" Dieth (U.D.O) followed. Ronni Le Tekrø (TNT) who in my opinion has a style that separates him from everybody else. From Sweden Yngwie for his early work. The Game Changer was of course John Petrucci (precision, attitude). And then Coroner from Switzerland: Tommy Vetterli influenced me for years. He was way ahead of his time, very inventive, non-predictable! I love Coroner, especially the album Grin. Although I mainly listen to Metal, I also love Joscho Stephan, Frank Gambale, Holdsworth and so many others from different genres. Angus Young rules! Brandon Ellis has a phenomenal wrist and excellent phrasing... Anton Oparin's technique is outrageous. In 2019 I saw your Diluvium playthrough... Now I have a new guitar hero on my list (not only because of Diluvium).
