John Petrucci | Fretterverse.com: Guitar Blog | guitar news & reviews, amps, effects, guitars, music theory, guitar lessons

CD Review: Dream Theater – A Dramatic Turn of Events

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

It is often said that our biggest periods of growth come after the most traumatic events. If that’s is true, then progressive rockers Dream Theater recently received an Olympic-sized injection of HGH when in 2010 it was announced that drummer and band patriarch Mike Portnoy was no longer with the band. It would be fair [...]

Picking Styles

Monday, April 12, 2010

9 Comments

I thought I would take some time today to talk about some of the different ways guitar players pick when playing. It seems to me that many beginners may not have a complete understanding of these techniques and how to use them. Since I think it’s of the utmost importance for us “seasoned” players to [...]

Why I Quit Playing Guitar

Friday, January 22, 2010

15 Comments

In 1992 I quit playing guitar. I was so frustrated with my playing and not being able to pull off what I wanted to play that I thought it better to just hang it up for good and find another hobby. Anything had to be better than picking up the guitar for five minutes, being [...]

What Are Your Favorite Guitar Solos?

Tuesday, January 5, 2010

7 Comments

We don’t get to hear very many good solos anymore due to the state of “popular” music today, which is really a shame. There is nothing better than hearing a truly inspired guitar solo, rewinding it several times in a row to hear the searing climax of a perfectly-bended note, just the right amount of [...]

20 Must-Have Guitar CDs

Thursday, December 31, 2009

4 Comments

Yes, you’ve seen lists like this everywhere, every year. We’ve tried to mix things up a little bit by including old and new, as well as a mixture of styles and genres that have produced amazing guitar recordings. There are tons more than this list, of course, so I invite you all to share your [...]