GEAR
Photo: Phil Langer
Angus backing TSO violinist Anna Phoebe in NYC in 2007
What do you think of those that drop to
notes like C to be heavy?
Crazy notes, but there’s some of that early
Sabbath where he’s got a low C# on the guitar, and he was playing eighths on a Gibson
scale guitar!
What’s funny about that early Sabbath stuff
is that every now and then I’ll notice a sound
coming out of my plexi, and I’ll listen and say,
“Is it supposed to do that?” Then I’ll put Black
Sabbath on and I’ll hear that same sound, and
I’ll say, “Okay, my amp is fine.” [laughs] I’ll be
worried until I confirm it with Sabbath.
Your MySpace page says, “A new breed of
guitar hero...”
A new breed of American guitar hero
[laughs]. That’s a tagline I got from Al.
What does it mean?
Well, this gets off the TSO track, but I just
think that... if you start from Eddie Van
Halen and move to guys like Yngwie—and
I’m an immense Yngwie fan—you had that
whole look and style just raining down on
everybody for five or ten years. And all the
guys that made their names then still have
a profile, this real gravitas to who they are.
But chops guitar is coming back. Bands like
Dragonforce are on Guitar Hero and everyone’s interested in technical playing. And so I
just think it makes room for a new generation
of guys who can make their names in that
realm of guitar, and I’m all for it.
You’re gonna have a new breed. John 5 is
an amazing player; Bumblefoot is amazing.
These guys are throwing down with the best
of them, and they’re able to make their own
names. It’s not like, “Oh man, you weren’t
there then, so you don’t get to be a guitar
hero.” We’re making room for guitar heroes
again, and I think that’s a great thing.
BOX
When Angus takes the
stage with TSO, here’s
what he’s caroling on.
GUITARS:
Jackson Custom Shop RR1T
Gibson ’ 61 SG VOS
Fender ’ 62 Stratocaster reissue
Atomic Guitar Works Strat-style
guitar w/humbuckers
AMPS + CABS:
POD XT Pro
Rocktron Prophesy
Mesa Boogie Fifty/Fifty
Power Amp
EVH 5150 Mk III head
Randall isolation cabinet w/
Celestion Vintage 30s
ACCESSORIES:
D’Addario strings, .011-.052
