We’ve discussed tips before to help jazz up your improvised solos, but there’s even more preparation that can be done to help with your overall skillset when it comes to this technique – particularly for guitar players.  Before you start showing off, consider the behind-the-scenes work that should get its due time.

These suggestions from Ultimate-Guitar.com will help you get even better at guitar improvisation:

1. Thorough knowledge of music theory. Why? When there’s a chord playing, you need to know which notes sound good over the chord and which ones don’t. You need to know which scales you can play over the chords, chord theory to construct your own chords and inversions as you are playing, modal theory so you can open up hundreds of new scale options, intervals, inversions, and much, much more.  Knowing music theory massively expands your options.

2. Memorizing the fretboard. Why? When you know which notes you can play over which chords, the next step is knowing where they are on the guitar so you can instantly find them. This will make guitar playing easier for you if you can see the fretboard clearly as you are playing. If you can’t, then it’s a lot like driving along a road you’ve never been on before, in pitch black darkness, without a map.

3. Mastery of phrasing. Why? Guitar playing is like a conversation. You need to be able to phrase your licks in such a way that is interesting and doesn’t ramble on forever. Phrasing means targeting the right chord tones at the right time, “speaking” with your guitar, spacing your licks and using various techniques.

4. Understanding the basic 7 elements of music. Why? When you understand rhythm, harmony, melody, dynamics, texture, timbre and form, it becomes much easier to improvise a guitar solo and create an interesting sound in real time while playing. You can sense when there is an imbalance in the music, and try to correct it so that you and the listener can enjoy the music more.

Of course, working with a guitar instructor can give you even more hands-on tips if you’re struggling with specific techniques.  Search for a guitar instructor near you here.

Ready to try your hand at improvisation?  If you’ve learned other tips or techniques, share them with the TakeLessons community!  Leave a comment below or stop by our Facebook page and join the discussion. Like these posts?  Sign up to receive daily updates right to your inbox!  Click here to subscribe.

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Photo by Revealed Emotions.

I was excited to find out more about the Loog because I took guitar lessons when I was 8 years old, and it proved to be easier said than done. The guitar was added to the list of instruments that were uncomfortable for my tiny hands (which I thought would grow eventually, but never did – to this day, I still struggle to reach the octave on the piano!).

I became discouraged and quit after about 6 months, and eventually took up the ukulele many years later – which has been much easier for me to maneuver but even now, the ¾ size guitar is problematic for me.

Many of our TakeLessons instructors prefer not to teach guitar to young children for this very reason.  Now, with the Loog Guitar in the picture, instead of teachers having to focus on finding alternate fingerings and keeping a frustrated student focused on the difficult task of mastering an adult-sized instrument, they can focus on teaching the child to make music!  And isn’t that really what it’s all about?

I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to interview Rafael Atijas, the creator of the Loog Guitar, who provided insight into how his concept came about and what the benefits will be for children who want to learn the guitar.

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When did you realize that there was a need for a guitar made especially for kids?

I saw my 6 year old niece trying to make music with one of those $30 guitars when I thought “There has to be a better way.” It was then that I realized that kids’ guitars are usually just cheap, scaled-downed replicas of classical guitars.  They are not really designed with kids’ needs, comfort or even safety in mind.

Where does your knowledge of guitars come from?

I studied guitar and was in different bands during high school and college (as was almost every other kid I knew). I was very much into rock music and at some point I just fell in love with guitars – especially vintage electric guitars.

What age group do you feel would benefit the most from the Loog Guitar?

Time will tell, but I think kids ages 6 to 9 will be the ones that will get the most out of the Loog Guitar, since this is the guitar that allows them to build chords without the need to form complicated shapes with their little hands.

Where did you get the idea to call it the “Loog?”

It is my subtle but very meaningful homage to Andrew Loog Oldham, the first manager and producer of The Rolling Stones. I always found him to be a fascinating character (I’m a rock nerd, as you can see) and back when I had a band, I had a chance to meet him and he was super kind to us.

What types of learning materials are you planning on coming out with to assist with the learning process?

We plan to include a manual on how to play with three strings, and we will also offer video tutorials on our website.

What does this product mean for kids who have an interest in learning guitar?

Kids will have a friendlier instrument that will stimulate them to make music and get creative with it. What I like about the Loog Guitar is that it works whether you already know how to play guitar or not. And that’s what I hope it means to kids who have an interest in learning guitar: a fun and easy way to play music.

Anything else you wish to add?

I am truly humbled by the response the Loog Guitar project got on Kickstarter (the website that helped raise the money to launch the product), and one of the things I like the most is that so many people from the education field have reached out to me and had very positive things to say about the Loog Guitar. I know TakeLessons.com reaches a lot of music teachers, so I want to use this opportunity to extend my thanks to all of them.

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There you have it, folks.  I’m personally thrilled that there is now a product out there that will make learning guitar simpler for young children.  For teachers, what have you experienced in teaching guitar to young children? Parents and students, what are some of the challenges that you’ve faced learning guitar yourself or watching your child learn guitar?  I’d love to hear your feedback, so please leave comments below if you feel so inclined!  Now if only I could travel back in time and learn to play guitar on the Loog, maybe I would have stuck with it! To learn more, visit www.loogguitar.com or check out the Loog Guitar in action below:

The Loog Guitar in Action from Loog Guitars on Vimeo.

Like these posts?  Sign up to receive updates right to your inbox!  Click here to subscribe.

Monet Payne is the Community Manager for TakeLessons.com. She is dedicated to providing the latest on music education and technology to those who seek it. By night, Monet is a professional singing actress, starring in musicals, operas, and everything in between. Monet has her Bachelors in Music, with a concentration in Vocal Performance, and enjoys teaching voice, involving herself as Vocal Director in several productions. She proudly co-founded a non-profit organization for Voice Education and her next venture will be to start her own theater production company.

One of our talented guitar teachers, Jeff S. from New Jersey, sent us the following article with some ideas that helped one of his students practice guitar more effectively. Read on for Jeff’s tips on how to be your own Guitar Hero!

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I came up with the idea for this article in an effort to help one of my intermediate guitar students break out of a rut.  This particular student, a big fan of Eric Clapton and Carlos Santana, would frequently put on classic songs by those artists and just jam along with them.  I can also recall doing the same thing during my first few years of playing guitar, but I stopped once I learned the chord changes and tinkered around with some lead guitar fills because I realized that I didn’t get much out of practicing this way.

There’s a very logical reason that this tends to happen.  The solo is already impeccably played and virtually all of the best and most obvious places to play fills in these recordings have perfectly placed riffs and licks.  So you’re left with a very limited canvas to work with.  On top of that, each time you listen to these often-virtuosic lead guitar solos and licks, all you’re really doing is further cementing your idol’s seminal lead guitar work in your head.  Now how can you be adventurous (or even hear yourself think, let alone play) in that setting?  With this conundrum to overcome, I set out to find the antidote for my student and for you.

Rather than subjecting yourself to this very limiting makeshift jam session, I would suggest seeking out fully produced rhythm tracks (aka “jam tracks”) in whatever style you prefer or want to improve in. Many are offered online, either for free or at pretty reasonable prices; however, the quality of the musicianship and recordings can drastically vary, so listen before buying.  In case you’ve never encountered these types of tracks, they are fully produced rhythm section replications of famous songs or styles without the lead guitar parts.  {Note: they make these types of tracks without other instruments as well, so be sure of what you’re buying!}  One site I thought had good quality jam tracks is datamusic.org, and my student thought so too; he purchased a wide variety of tracks from them and is quite happy.

When you work with tracks like these, they offer you a wide-open expanse in which to develop your improvising and lead guitar playing.  After you get comfortable playing along with these types of recordings, I would suggest “flying in” the rhythm track (i.e. drag the tracks into Garageband or whatever recording platform you use) and record several tracks of you playing lead guitar along with it.  Concentrate initially on developing a complete guitar solo first before recording “fills” or other embellishments and “window dressing.”  After you get a take of a solo you feel pretty good about, you should then analyze the results and determine what passages or licks could be stronger or played with more precision and confidence.  “Punch in” (i.e. re-play and re-record) parts as needed, but it’s a good idea to leave your previous takes intact until you’ve got replacement tracks you feel certain are better.

If you don’t like or can’t afford these “music minus one” rhythm track recordings, another option is to lay down your own rhythm tracks (without lead guitar).  This is a great way to go because you can make all decisions concerning key, tempo and style, rather than be stuck with what the rhythm track companies offer.  With the user-friendly editing tools in virtually all recording platforms, you don’t even need to record 5 minutes of a song.  You can often get away with recording 1-2 minutes of a song or pattern and then copy and paste it together to create a longer track. If you do decide to record your own tracks, you shouldn’t burden yourself to create perfect takes on each instrument. As long as you play to a click track and stay with it, you should emerge with a track that’s going to suit your purpose.

If you feel your lead guitar results are not satisfying your inner critic, then I would suggest creating one memorable and well played lick at a time and connecting them until you forage a complete solo.  Keep a firm grip on what’s most important; develop your own style, create your own licks and have fun!

-Jeff S.

Matthew’s enthusiasm for music is infectious, and his students certainly agree; they say he is “easy to work with” and “gives great feedback.”  In addition to teaching, Matthew is an award-winning composer and songwriter with many film and television credits, including the new Starz series “Gravity” which premiered on Friday, April 23.  Awesome job, Matthew!

So…for the first time EVER, we are offering new students 40% off on your first month of voice or music lessons* when you purchase your lessons on Friday, November 27, 2009.

If you were thinking about getting started with music lessons or singing lessons, now is your chance. If lessons are not your thing, lesson packages make fun and unique holiday gifts for family members and friends. We have never offered a deal this great – and it’s for ONE DAY ONLY. You will not be able to get this deal at anywhere else.

We know that signing up for lessons is a big step. You are committing to something new and must find time in your schedule and room in your budget to get started. It’s a very involved decision and we definitely recognize that. But, that is also why we are really excited to offer our 40% off Black Friday sale to all new customers. With savings like these, you don’t really have an excuse to not pick up that guitar, tune up that piano or flip on the karaoke machine and get started with lessons.

You only have one day to take advantage of this offer. So once the tryptophan-induced sleepiness  from your Thanksgiving Turkey dinner wears off, pick up the phone and give us a call at 877-231-8505 on Friday to book your lessons. We will be looking forward to your call!

*For more information, click here or visit http://takelessons.com/black-friday-music-lessons. Customers must call in and mention the Black Friday 2009 offer to receive the discount. The offer is not currently available for online booking.

Bob C. writes:

Starting music lessons is a wonderful idea and can improve a person’s life.  It has been shown that students who seriously study music develop structures in their brain that MRI studies demonstrate are used for Math and Physics concepts.  In fact, Einstein credits his conceptual creativity on learning the violin at age four.  As you learn, your brain grows musically and you’ll enjoy music much more.

When my students start lessons, I am more than willing to help them obtain a reasonably priced, easy-to-play instrument.  Unfortunately students often show up with a guitar-shaped toy. Parents say “If he/she likes it, we’ll get a better one.”  Well, it rarely works like that. They are generally impossible to play; they hurt your fingers and the sound is not optimal. It might discourage the student to think they can’t play guitar when really it’s just the instrument.

My recommended starter guitar:

A steel string guitar has 220 pounds of pressure, and usually has a narrow neck.  It is much easier for the student to start on a nylon string, usually called a classical guitar. Nylon strings are much easier to play and there is more space between the strings making it easier to play chords.

Many children want to learn electric guitar.  However, electrics are a much more expensive proposition. You have to pay for a guitar, electronics, cables and an amp.

You also want to look for a solid top. Why a solid top?  That’s your speaker.  As it is played, it will quickly open up and sound better and better.  Plywood tops will never get the same sound, so look for tops made of quality woods.

I also recommend buying a tuner. Tuning is a fairly difficult task, and learning to tune a guitar with a tuner makes it much easier to do. Tuning is tricky since it involves listening and getting used to adjusting the pitch.   Tuning takes practice and is not easy to do, but an out of tune guitar can really sound terrible. Be sure to purchase a tuner that will let you set which string you are on.

If you go to a store to buy a guitar, there are a few basic things you can check.

1:  If you put a straight edge from the neck, it should hit the bridge, ideally, at the bottom of the saddle.  If not, the angle is off, and the guitar is not one you should buy.  A yardstick or ruler is ideal for this.  If the angle is wrong, the only repair is a neck reset which can cost about $150 or more.

2:  If you push the guitar string down on the top and bottom fret the string should come close to hitting every string, with no more than a 1/8th of an inch.  If not, it will be warped and difficult to play.  Sometimes you can adjust the truss rod and straighten the neck.

3: Play every note on the guitar and make sure that all of them clear the next fret and don’t buzz.

4: It should be as easy to press down on the 12 fret as the first fret.  The notes are closer together up high on the fingerboard.

I recommend that you go to a store to purchase a guitar with someone that knows how to play, whether that is your teacher or someone that works there.

In summary, a playable guitar is a musical instrument, not a toy.   If you buy a toy it may be money wasted and lead to discouraging your child from really playing.  A good student guitar is not very expensive, usually between $100 to $200.   I personally try and keep a few that I sell at cost to students as I want my students to be successful and have a great time.  One last thing to note is that a good guitar will likely appreciate in value over time.   So a good, used, solid-top guitar that is well taken care of can actually be a better investment than the toy option.

And once you purchase your new guitar, remember to always wash your hands before playing.  The acids and dirt on your fingers may ruin the strings and even the guitar itself. Washing your hands will prolong the life of your new investment.

Bob C. TakeLessons Guitar Teacher

Here is the latest entry from our excellent San Diego guitar teacher Jason M

So how do you play a Washburn acoustic?  One of the least asked questions I get is that of knowing your tone.  I don't play a Washburn acoustic but I think that it's important to note the tonal qualities of the guitar you own.  The sound that comes out of your axe will shape and define your unique voice to the point that it will eventually become "you". 

I use an ESP KH2 "Skully" Kirk Hammett signature model guitar with dual EMG 81 pickups.  It has 24 frets, an original floyd rose locking tremelo set up with a Jackson reverse dinky headstock and a body that looks like an MII Deluxe.  The neck is a little bit wider than your average electric guitar and has an almost "classical" feel to it when you grip it.  Rather than an old "file down the fret" cliche that allows for optimal shredding, my guitar has jumbo "rounded" frets which if pressed down hard enough can actually make a string bending sound.  The floating bridge takes some getting used to and if you haven't used one before you can actually make the guitar sound out of tune by leaning on it too hard with your right hand palm mute.  It has a 3 way switch which unlike a strat and more like a Les Paul you can "cut" the sound immediatly and make a really nice Morello sounding percussive "on off" sound. 

I also use a Line 6 upgraded AXSYS212 ampliphier with a floorboard that carries both a volume and a wah pedal.  The Line 6 was the first digital amp to master the art of "tube tone" back in the mid-nineties.  I don't think I've ever thought of it as a solid-state amp to be honest.  With 32 presets and 32 user presets with 4 channels each, the options are pretty infinite.  This model can not only replicate the greatest artists of all time but holds

countless configurations of individual amp models/effect pedals/cabinet sizes/ and even offers a "noise gate" that you can open or close at will. 

Now that's not my only rig.  I also play a Zakk Wylde custom Epiphone "Les Paul" with 22 frets that I've tricked out with his custom ".60" string set up.  Getting used to a set of strings of that caliber requires a huge change in the amount of hand strength that you need.  It's also got a set of dual EMG pickups and the ability to "cut" the sound out immediately when you toggle between the rhythm and treble pickups (having one volume all the way down of course) like the KH2.

I play that one through a Scott Ian signature Randall ampliphier that has an EQ option of being able to shave your eyebrows off under the right amount of pressure.  It's got a much more pure clean tone than the Line 6 and ultimately I think the distortion channel is superior as well, but it lacks in the pedal effect options.  I like this amp because it has an L and R input in the back that I can hook my CD player or digital studio into and use as a monitor while I'm training. 

As the amp and the guitar make up your unique sound I have a digital studio that completly changes all that.  I record with a Boss BR-532 digital 4-track that has it's own effects that just don't match up to the tones that I can get live.  So technically I have a "recorded" voice and "live" voice.  There are a lot of subtle things that you have to pay attention to in the studio like thinking about "loop effects" and pre-post effects that you can alter during a mastering. 

I bring these things up because as you continue playing you may start to realize that you can't sound like Dragonforce on an acoustic.  Black Sabbath unplugged only works for "Planet Caravan"… and maybe some of their Dio stuff.  If you want to develop your own tone I believe it's important to understand how to control those factors. 

Breakdown your own rig and let me know if you have any questions that might help create your ideal sound.

Until next time, enjoy your tone!

Jason M

Here is the latest blog entry from our talented guitar teacher Jason, covering his thoughts on Music Theory:

I'm pretty excited about some of the response I've been getting from my students about questions they have about Music Theory.  Some of my students are in college, some of them are looking for the lost art of grimoire, and some just wanna know how a chord is built.  I'm finishing up some touches on a book that I've been making and am pleased that my ability to make it has been solely on the requests of those that had the balls to question.

Why Music Theory? 

Music Theory doesn't really have a beginning in my opinion.  It is what it is and I don't abide by it.  I'm also not a hypocrite so let me give you some thoughts on how to know the rules and then break the rules. 

Things to know: Circle of Fifths… a basic diagram of the universe that is music.  Also known as the cycle of 4ths.  It's a circle that can help you determine the Major and minor key signatures and see how they relate to each other.

Modal Scales: Ionian/Dorian/Phrygian/Lydian/Mixolydian/Aeolian/Locrian….. all the same thing.  Ex: CDEFGABC, DEFGABCD, EFGABCDE, FGABCDEF, GABCDEFG, ABCDEFGA, BCDEFGAB.  But is that it?  No, you need to learn the interval structure as well.  W=whole step, H=half step Ex: WWHWWWH, WHWWWHW, HWWWHWW, WWWHWWH, WWHWWHW, WHWWHWW, HWWHWWW.  But is that it? No, now you need to be able to transpose those into all other keys.  Take the same intervalic structure and apply it to the Circle of Fifths in any Key to check out the magic.

Minor Scales: Aeolian is another term for minor, but there are two that you can meld w/the minor to form some almost european metal sound called the Harmonic Minor…. (looks like a minor scale 'sept the 2nd to last note is sharped in a Major fashion) And the Melodic Minor (looks like a Major Scale except the 1st 3 notes look like a regular minor scale ascending/descend just like a regular minor scale)

Chord Theory: Major (1,3,5) Minor or - (1,b3,5) Delta or "triangle" (1357) 7th (1235b7) Augmented or = (13#5) Delta 9 (13579) Know it to the point where you can just say…"so what" and mean it.

Relative Minor: Built on the 6th degree of the root or "1" tone.

The "5" Em minor pentatonic or G Major box patterns: Fun little thing to know before you can think outside the box is to learn the box you wanna think out of.  Move your box shape back three frets and you've uncovered E major or C#minor.

Arpeggios: Just chopped up chords played in a sequence that can be as little as say 3 notes up to 12 notes or more.  Typically you just need to know how far you need to reach to get a solid grasp when really your just playing (CEGCEGCEGCEGCEG) or (AC#EAC#EAC#EAC#E)

Composition:  I wouldn't be in the postion I am today if I didn't write all this down.  Start writing immediatly or you're just blowin' smoke.  Well, not really… but if you wanna understand what the heck you just played or what you're playing… jot it down/put it in ink/immortalize that sucker. Know what a G clef is know that an F clef is for bass, think above and below the ledger lines, understand the rhythm structures.  Write your own TAB.

Harmony: A lot of really great bands have 2 guitar players…those that don't often have a doubled guitar of themselves going while they lead.  Learn to build doubled guitar parts or add a bass part.  Add a vocal melody and you're good.  4 part harmony right there.

Chord progressions: I IV V, basic blues… everything else is out the door.

Now what?  "So what" man… don't quit, be yourself, and remember that everything I just mentioned is just a bunch of… well, second thought.  Study it, then play a few power chords of your own to create what you can call yours.

Rock,

Jason M

In this latest entry, our guitar teacher Jason M offers his in-depth insight on Blues Guitar, inspired by greats like B.B. King:

Now you've probably had your own path of music that you've been following since you were born and hopefully there was something magnetic about why you enjoy what you do and you thrive off that completely.

I mentioned some of my blues influences last time, and before I talk about the actual music itself I'd like to bring up the individuals.  Let's start with someone like B.B. King.  My dad is still a huge B.B. King fan, he's been to the shows, listens to the CDs or cassettes, tunes into the blues station on the radio, and when he's on T.V. he still watches him.  Now what makes B.B. King or any other bluesman a great artist?  Let's take what we know and figure out how to learn more ways to find out how to get their sound. 

The Guitar: Everyone should know that B.B. King plays a guitar named "Lucille"; a Gibson semi-hollow body with 2 "f-holes" for extra blues tone.

From there you discover what kind of amps he used/what kind of pedals he likes/ and where he prefers his settings when he plays.

Now to go a little deeper without getting personal… what gives B.B. his sound?  So you'll start to listen and discover that not only does he trademark a signature "A blues pentatonic" in 8th position, but with one single note… a single decending string slide from the 8va area on the high E you can tell it's B.B. King, or atleast someone trying to play like B.B. King.  Another thing you might notice is that he doesn't sing and play at the same time.  It's (line, lick, line, lick, line, lead, line solo etc…)

If you've made it this far; now you can look into see more about who the artist likes… is he a fan of Clapton, does he like Buddy Guy, who were his primary influences, who was influenced by him?  Those kinds of questions will help broaden your perspective to find more music as well as newer or older artists.  It doesn't really end…

Deeper perspective; B.B. King articles/biographies/books/ and columns are out there.  You can actually learn how to play like B.B. King…. from B.B. King.  A few years ago he had his own column in Guitar World magazine, and it's true you can use that same resource to get complete transcriptions of his stuff.  A common beginner mistake, which isn't necessarily a mistake is to try and figure out how to play a tune without hearing it first by reading the transcription.  (I've discovered how to play songs I didn't know before and years down the road I finally heard the song on the radio and was like "ah, I've known that riff for 10 years… that's how it goes") So what I suggest, and this is how I'll support the record industry is to go out and buy the CD… you'll never get the same experience through a download.  Ok, so let's say now you got the CD and you have the transcription… you've got the chords located at the top of the page, you know his scales he uses, you've got his tone. 

From there, there are a couple more things you can look at.  Who transcribed them?  Was is Jeff Perrin or Andy Aledort?  A lot of times the person that transcribed the material has reference notes available before the transcription that can help you get the strum pattern; be it "medium-shuffle" where an 1/8 and a quarter note has a triplet feel or a "down down up up down up" pattern.  Often they'll include a box scale pattern you can use to play that A minor pentatonic blues scale in 8th position.  Even some secret tricks the artist has used where the standard chords notated are actually played inverted for example.  From there transcriber will often breakdown the modes/notes played with some interval theory as well.  Study that stuff.

Last and not least is take a look at the record label B.B. is on.  Is he on Geffen, has he always been with Geffen?  Who else is on Geffen?  What label was he on before then… you'll discover her started off on Crown records and from there you can look to Crown Records to find similiar artists that you might enjoy as well.  Record labels like to maintain a diverse but similiar quality that can help you branch from there.

It might be fun just to start rockin' out to B.B. once you have your music on and guitar plugged in.  But here's a head's up if you have the transcription: learn to read through it with the song going before your 1st attempt playing it.  This way you'll be ready for the changes and will be able to follow through and anticipate the changes and see the techniques involved.  Either way, just have fun and enjoy rockin' out to some seriously great blues.

Jason M

Here's the latest entry from our awesome guitar teacher Jason:

Rock History 101 (the Atomic History)

One of the questions I get asked most from the ladies is, "Why do you like "Metal" so much?"  Or something similar to needing a way to find out what I'll call "Rock Appreciation".

It basically starts out as a "who's who" list and goes back into a bit of history.  So without giving you the official history of rock and roll, I'll give you the insight on what's exactly taken place to get you up to speed with this whole rock gig.

I grew up listening to my fathers blues tapes which gave me a glimpse of such artists as Robert Johnson, Buddy Guy, Eric Clapton, John Mayall, Jimmy Thackery, Stevie Ray Vaughn, ZZ-Top but didn't really get into rock until I hit 14.  The blues background is a great start for any guitarist as it resonates a feeling I think most people can relate to.

At 14 it hit, Metallica.  From there it opened up the doors to Pantera, Ministry, Megadeth, Anthrax, and White Zombie.  It's important to know the guitar players from these bands rather than just think "agro".  Metallica has James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett, Pantera had Dimebag Darrell, Ministry had Al Jorgenson, Megadeth has Dave Mustaine and a former Marty Friedman, Anthrax has Scott Ian, and White Zombie had J.Yeunger.  These are still very important players even in todays culture.  I believe it's important to see what these guys have to offer.

Around the same time I started discovering other bands.  Nirvana, Soundgarden, Hole, the Smashing Pumpkins, Alice in Chains, and Primus.  Nirvana had Kurt Cobain, Soundgarden had Chris Cornell and Kim Thayil, Hole had Courtney Love, the Smashing Pumpkins James Iha and Billy Corgan, Alice in Chains had Jerry Cantrell, and Primus has a bass player named Les Claypool.

It was at this time, circa' 97 that music really started taking a dive.  Record labels dropped most of their bands and there was no myspace yet to discover anything new so all you had to go on was MTV and they were doing this whole competitive thing between genres that was just really stupid. I got into the whole rockabilly thing for a about a month which was just long enough to learn Brian Setzer is a great guitar player and there was another great guitarist named Danny Gatton who was a like minded country-blues shredder.

Guitar wasn't around much again for a few years… sure you had Godsmack and Orgy, but they were following the industrial trend started by Nine Inch Nails (one of the great pioneers of industrial metal).

Now that you've got that solid background I can mention a few other bands that you can discover just by being fans of the previously mentioned:

Motorhead/Deftones/Darkest Hour/Obituary/Shadows Fall/Children of Bodom/Dope/Opeth/Powerman5000/Guns and Roses/ACDC/the Misfits/Dead Kennedys/Between the Burried and Me/Prong/Opiate for the Masses/Machine Head/Trivium/Queens of the Stone Age/Slayer/Exodus/Marilyn Manson/Black Sabbath/Deep Purple/Iron Maiden/Black Label Society/John5/Die Krupps/Butthole Surfers…. the list doesn't really stop, but this should be a good jump start.

I didn't really mention much in terms of classic rock like the Rolling Stones or Queen just cause that wasn't the route I took.  To me the Metal genre players have always had a bit more edge and a sort of excitement about their playing.  Regardless of whether or not it was rebellious most of the riffs are just really awesome to play.  And many times that riff is all you need before you realize that nothing else matters.

Rock,

Jason