General Interest

Editor’s note: Heritage Guitars and Guitar.com are both part of the Caldecott Music Group.

$699/£599, heritageguitars.com

If you read my review of the stunning H-150 last month, you’ll be aware the Heritage’s new Ascent+ collection is an attempt by the Kalamazoo-based guitar brand to offer a more modern proposition for the brand’s Asian-made affordable models.

• READ MORE: Heritage Ascent+ H-150 review: “if you’re looking for your first serious Les Paul-style guitar, you need to try this”

The regular Ascent electric guitars – and indeed the bulk of Heritage’s excellent USA-made instruments – are generally evoking the vibe of the guitars made at 225 Parson’s St when Gibson’s name was still above the door, but the Ascent+ is a little different.

With interesting colours and a whole lot of heavily figured wood tops, the Ascent+ in some ways sits closer to the traditional PRS vibe in terms of visuals – for good or for ill. It’s something that’s even more evident on the full-size semi-hollow H-535 we have here.

Heritage Ascent+ H-535 – what is it?

No prizes will be given for working out the lineage of this particular guitar, but beyond the visual similarities to Gibson’s most famous semi-hollow design, a close examination of the spec sheet is worthwhile.

So for starters we have a good-looking laminated curly maple top, sides and back – here accentuated by a classic golden sunburst that looks right at home. If burst ain’t your bag however, you’re outta luck as the only other finish options are the rather garish Scarlet Red and Royal Blue bursts. It fits in with the ‘modern’ stipulation of the Ascent+ range, perhaps, but I wonder how much more of these guitars Heritage would shift if they borrowed the black and cherry options from the vanilla Ascent range?

The neck is mahogany and comes with a two-way truss rod, a genuine rosewood fingerboard that’s nicely bound and a 12-16” compound radius. It’s also nice to see a more traditional heel design than the H-150’s contoured go-faster take, and the premium feel is further enhanced by pearloid dot inlays, a Graph Tech TUSQ XL nut and jumbo frets.

The pickups are a pair of the same Heritage own-brand units found in the H-150, and again they’re paired with Alpha Split Shaft 500K push-pull pots for coil-splitting purposes. It’s also nice to see a side-access jack input, which should help protect the guitar from the oft-seen mishaps on guitars of this type where a cable gets trodden on and pulled sideways, often damaging the valuable and delicate top of the instrument.

Heritage Ascent+ H-535 – feel and sounds

Unboxing the H-535 I once again find myself double-checking the price, as this is one unquestionably good-looking guitar. Removing it from the box I’m struck by the lightweight and nimble feel. Many budget-conscious guitars of this type can feel a bit bulky and unrefined, particularly if they are quite heavy, combined with the design’s considerable dimensions. This H-535 features a correct full-length internal centre block, yet still feels light and resonates well with my first unplugged strum.

The setup is great out of the box and the jumbo frets and Graph Tech TUSQ XL nut combine with that compound radius to create a very inviting playing experience, let’s plug in…

You often hear ES-lovers refer to semis as solidbody killers – and with good cause. In my experience, a good 335 or similar is more than capable of out-punching and out-sustaining its airless brethren – and with a broader range of tones on tap.

This H-535 is no exception, exhibiting many of the virtues that make this type of guitar such a versatile instrument. The unplugged tone is wider and richer than a solidbody, the air inside working in tandem with the solid centre section to give a slightly softer attack to notes and a rounder low end. The H-535 also exhibits none of the boxy midrange you can sometimes get with an all-solid guitar, making it more versatile across a range of genres as a result.

Plugged in to my Deluxe Reverb, the bridge pickup exhibits a sweeter, more rounded tone than found on the solid-body H-150, still with plenty of snap for lead lines, and turning up your treble on a good valve amp really will get you into Freddie King territory if biting blues is your thing.

With the pickup selector set in the middle for both pickups together, careful balancing of the volume pots gives the widest tonal smorgasbords. With both pots set about halfway I’m treated to a warm, sweet tone with hints of hollow midrange that is perfect for rhythmic funk or chordal comping or when hit with a bit of overdrive and winding up the bridge pickup along with neck set to about seven, a rich full rock voice perfect for anything from Foos-esque rock to Cream riffs.

The neck humbucker on its own is warmer and jazzier, and with some of the tone rolled down excels at the classic ‘Woman’ tone – a flutey vocal sound, perfect for blues soloing.

As with the H-150, the coil splits prove to again be the stars of the show, offering a slimline version of the above tones and adding to the myriad of sonic options by combining with the humbucker modes. A standout is both pickups together set to single coil mode, which treats you to a beautiful airy sound with not a hint of mud. It’s an almost-perfect 60s jangle, combined with better sustain than many guitars that are typically blessed with that voice.

This really would be a very versatile guitar in the studio or at a covers gig.

Heritage Ascent+ H-535 – should I buy one?

Great looks, decent build quality and superb specs combined with a broad range of tones make the H-535 a superb all-rounder in anyone’s arsenal of guitars – whether it’s as a main guitar or a rock-solid gigging backup.

The presence of a genuine rosewood fingerboard, and mahogany/maple construction is time-honoured for this type of design, and it’s not always seen on similar instruments at this price point from other brands.

Sonically, its semi-acoustic nature delivers a balanced, polished voice that belies its price. It would make a superb studio or live tool with easy access to a huge range of tones.

The only drawbacks are the limited finish options, and the lack of a supplied case – which is always an annoyance when you’re dealing with an instrument that doesn’t conform to the standard electric guitar dimensions, but it’s in line with most Asian-made electrics at this price point.

With many players from Noel Gallagher to Dave Grohl favouring classic semi-acoustic guitars live, there’s no reason why you couldn’t rock up with this at the latest blues jam or covers gig down your local and handle anything thrown at you with ease. It punches far above its weight and offers truly exceptional value for money.

Heritage Ascent+ H-535 – alternatives

You can’t escape the spectre of Epiphone in this argument, and the Inspired By Gibson Custom 1962 ES-335 ($1,149/£1,099) reissue certainly ticks all the boxes that you’d want from an ES-335 – this one even has the correct shaped headstock, but you’ll pay a hefty premium for all that. The standard Epi ES-335 ($599/£599) is a well-sorted alternative but it’s a laurel fretboard not rosewood. Threading the needle is the new Marty Schwartz signature Epiphone ES-335 ($899/£899), which offers a similarly upgraded feel to the Ascent+ including rosewood board and even Grover tuners. Away from the Gibson stable, Gretsch also knows a thing or two about making quality vintage-inspired budget semi-hollows, and you should definitely check out the G2622T Streamliner Center block DC ($629/£499) – it’s even got a Bigsby.

The post Heritage Ascent+ H-535 review: “this could easily become your new main guitar” appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

PG contributor Tom Butwin jumps into the Magnatone Baby M‑80 Slash Edition—12 watts of tube tone with clean sparkle, crunch, and high‑gain roar. With a master volume, Hi/Lo gain switch, effects loop, and backlit Slash logo, this amp brings full British flavor in a tiny frame. Whether you’re tracking at home or rocking live, it’s a compact beast you need to hear.

MagnatoneBaby M-80

SLASH SIGNATURE COLLECTION

Elevate your rig with the Baby M-80 “Purple Python” edition—where boutique tone meets bold style. Wrapped in hand-selected black and deep-purple snakeskin tolex with deluxe gold piping and hardware, this amp also features a gold-anodized faceplate with Slash’s “Skully” logo. This ultra-portable 12-watt powerhouse delivers the same legendary British crunch and creamy overdrive that Slash calls “the most kick-ass little combo I’ve ever played through.”

Beneath its striking exterior, the Baby M-80 is built around NOS 6AQ5 pentode power tubes that deliver 12 watts of warm, responsive output. The 12AX7 preamp section offers two gain settings, allowing you to move from clear, articulate cleans to gently saturated overdrive with the simple flip of a switch. A master volume knob ensures that the amp’s natural character remains intact whether you’re practicing at home or setting up for a small club gig. An effects loop sits between the preamp and power sections, preserving signal integrity when you introduce pedals or rack-mounted processors into your rig.

Each “Purple Python” Baby M-80 ships with a premium package of stickers and guitar picks. Handmade in our St. Louis workshop and crafted for tour-ready performance, it’s the perfect compact companion for studio, stage, or home. Designed under the guidance of engineer Obeid Khan, the Baby M-80 “Purple Python” series is offered as a combo, or a head with a matching 1×10″ extension cabinet loaded with a WGS ET 10 Speaker. For guitarists seeking an amp that balances portability, versatility, and a refined visual statement, the Purple Python Baby M-80 represents a thoughtful blend of form and function.

You can check out my latest Substack. 

Be warned, it’s not a quick read, though I do give some free advice!

PG contributor Tom Butwin jumps into the Magnatone Baby M‑80 Slash Edition—12 watts of tube tone with clean sparkle, crunch, and high‑gain roar. With a master volume, Hi/Lo gain switch, effects loop, and backlit Slash logo, this amp brings full British flavor in a tiny frame. Whether you’re tracking at home or rocking live, it’s a compact beast you need to hear.

Previously a limited run, this new signature model will be a constant

PRS Guitars today announced the return of a Mark Holcomb six-string signature guitar to the Core Series, 10 years after the original. Offered in 2015 as a limited release only, this new version will be a regular part of the Maryland lineup. Mark Holcomb, renowned for his groundbreaking work with progressive metal band Periphery, brings his signature style and precision to an updated guitar built for versatility and power.

The Mark Holcomb model features a mango top, a 25.5” scale length maple neck, and an ebony fretboard with a 20” radius—crafted for speed and precision. Equipped with Holcomb’s signature Seymour Duncan Scarlet and Scourge pickups, this guitar delivers focused low-end punch and crystal-clear articulation, ensuring complex chord voicings, coil-splitting, and drop tunings remain defined and dynamic. The 5-way blade switch unlocks a range of tones, from dual humbuckers in position three, to coil-split options in positions two and four.

“This new Core model is a culmination of all of the touring, recording, and writing I've done for the last 11 years with PRS and is a product of all the iterations PRS and I have done over that time. This guitar surpasses all of what we've established and is my new gold standard for tone and playability. Seeing it come to fruition is nothing short of a dream fulfilled. I couldn't be more proud of it, and I'm supremely grateful to PRS for their innovation and dedication to perfection,” said Mark Holcomb.

The model comes set up with PRS Signature 10-52 strings in Drop C tuning. It is appointed with satin black hardware and available in Charcoal Wraparound Burst, Holcomb Wraparound Burst, Holcomb Blue Wraparound Burst, Cobalt Smokeburst, Fire Smokeburst, Gray Black, and Purple Mist Wraparound Burst.

Holcomb’s innovative riffing, a cornerstone of Periphery’s dense triple-guitar sound, comes to life on stages worldwide with his PRS signature models. After the initial collaboration on a limited release of Holcomb signature Core models, Mark worked with PRS to create the SE Holcomb and the seven-string SE Holcomb SVN.

PRS Guitars continues its schedule of launching new products each month in 2025. Stay tuned to see new gear and 40th Anniversary limited-edition guitars throughout the year. For all of the latest news, click www.prsguitars.com/40 and follow @prsguitars on Instagram, Tik Tok, Facebook, X, and YouTube.

Brazilian pedal company Fuhrmann has introduced the Stellar, a stereo reverb processing unit in a compact pedal.

Featuring Fuhrmann's custom DSP and integrated 24-bit AD/DA converters, the Stellar’s reverb algorithm delivers a broad range of high quality reverbs, from short early reflections to long, floating tails.

Whether used for subtle spatial coloring or exploring more complex and dreamlike ambient textures, Stellar elevates performances to a new level while maintaining the “ease to use” characteristic of Fuhrmann pedals.

Like all Fuhrmann pedals, Stellar offers intuitive controls, allowing musicians to quickly get their ideal sound with minimal effort. In addition to the core parameters such as reverb time, effect Mix, Modulated, and Octave (which accumulates octaves to the reverb tail, providing a Shimmer effect), Steller offers variable high and low frequency filters to perfectly balance the reverb for your application. Furthermore, the analog signal is not processed (analog dry through).

Stellar includes memory to store 9 reverb scenes so that your favorite settings are always available. The pedal has two integrated footswitches that offer great convenience for programming your reverb sounds according to your needs. Through them, you will activate and deactivate the effect, navigate through the stored settings, or configure and save them, always practically and intuitively. It is worth noting that the presets are switched without delay.

In addition to stereo inputs and outputs, Stellar has MIDI I/O (TRS connector) to offer expanded control options, integrating it into any advanced setup. It can receive assignable commands from external MIDI controllers and devices, such as effects switchers.

Stellar uses 9-volt DC power from a standard external supply.

Fuhmann’s Stellar carries a $250 street price. For more information visit https://fuhrmann.com.br/

While Canadian singer Shawn Mendes is known for his chart-topping pop tunes, he also knocks out a guitar every now and then. In fact, he was seen grabbing a new guitar strap to spruce up his collection just last week.

Pop culture outlet Just Jared papped the 26-year-old pop star leaving a Los Angeles Guitar Center on 15 July. In his hand, he’s holding what appears to be a Perri’s Floral Burst Jacquard guitar strap. The red and yellow strap will surely serve as a nice pop of colour, considering Mendes’ go-to strap is usually an all-black Ernie Ball.

• READ MORE: “It’s a funny feeling to feel like you’re being written about, and maybe the whole picture’s not being expressed”: John Mayer and Shawn Mendes discuss having songs written about them by famous exes

Though Mendes doesn’t wield a guitar throughout an entire live set, he regularly whips out an acoustic and electric guitar onstage. In fact, he often uses his very own Martin signature, the 000JR-10E Shawn Mendes Custom Signature Edition.

Speaking to Guitar.com in 2023, Mendes explained that his custom acoustic Martin “fits like a glove”, thanks to its scaled down body. Medes also opted for the smaller body to encourage younger fans to pick up the instrument. “Getting my first guitar was a big deal, so I wanted the guitar to be as affordable as possible so that young musicians could have something to start their own journeys with,” Mendes said. “ I love the idea that this could be a ton of fans’ first guitar.”

The design was also inspired by one of Mendes’ most prized guitars. “It was partially inspired by a guitar I was gifted for my 21st birthday by John Mayer,” Mendes explained. “That had a custom inlay in the first few frets. I loved the look and just thought it would be a fun and unconventional way to make my signature guitar more unique.”

“I’ve been a fan of Martin guitars for as long as I can remember,” he said. “So having the opportunity to start working with such an iconic and respected brand, and to be able to play and help design my own guitar is truly special.”

Mendes’ choice to get down to his local Guitar Center is also a great way of supporting brick-and-mortar music stores. It’s no secret that physical stores are struggling nowadays, and Guitar Center in particular has recently announced that it has a new three-year plan to extend its loan repayments.

Mendes is set to embark on a European and North American tour this August, kicking things off in Pristina. He’ll be swinging by the UK to perform at London’s O2 Arena on 16 August.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Shawn Mendes (@shawnmendes)

The post Shawn Mendes spotted buying a guitar strap at an LA Guitar Center – as he proves even A-list musicians do their own gear shopping appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

Terry Marshall, the co-founder of Marshall Amplification, is supporting an initiative to secure the future of grassroots music venues in the UK.

Along with his wife Lesley, the pair have made a generous personal donation of £100,000 to the Own Our Venues funding initiative, launched by Music Venue Properties (MVP). The initiative first kicked off in 2023, and has already raised £2.88 million to secure five grassroots music venues by placing them into community ownership.

• READ MORE: Marshall amps up its home audio output with its first soundbar, the Heston 120

Grassroots venues are essential to the livelihoods of growing bands and artists, but they are closing down at an alarming rate across the country. Music Venue Properties recently announced a new £3 million fundraising Own Our Venues campaign, with the aim of protecting a further seven venues.

This funding round, now backed by Marshall and his partner, is hoping to protect The Joiners (Southampton), Bedford Esquires, The Croft (Bristol), The Sugarmill (Stoke), Peggy’s Skylight (Nottingham), The Pipeline (Brighton), and The Lubber Fiend (Newcastle).

Marshall, who worked on the first ever Marshall amp – the famed JTM45 – states, “Small venues have played a vital role over the years in my long career as a professional sax player, and, of course, created the path to success for countless other musicians too. But so many have closed their doors since I first started out at the age of 14.

“My wife Lesley and I get to grassroots venues whenever we can, as we both appreciate live music close up and personal (I still do the occasional guest appearance at 81). We hope that future generations of musicians and music lovers will be able to have these amazing experiences too. That’s why we’re supporting Own Our Venues with a substantial contribution. With enough support from others in the music industry and fellow artists, Own Our Venues can make that hope a reality. It’s up to you.”

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Music Venue Properties (@musicvenueproperties)

Matt Otridge, COO of Music Venue Properties, also comments: “Grassroots venues are where careers begin and ensure communities have access to local, live music. They’re rehearsal spaces, testing grounds, and second homes for countless artists. That’s why Terry and Lesley’s incredible £100,000 donation is more than generous, it’s leadership.”

Otridge continues, “It shows the deeply personal impact these spaces have on everyone and reminds the music industry that we all have a role to play. Their contribution builds on the belief already shown by over 1500 community investors, and we’re proud to welcome them into the Music Venue Properties family.”

You can support Own Our Venues by investing via its Crowdfunder page. Investments start from just £50 for under 25s.

The post Co-founder of Marshall and his wife donate £100k to support grassroots venues appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

Hello, and welcome back to Mod Garage. You asked for it, and Mod Garage delivers. Today, we will start a new little series and play “custom shop on a budget” together. We’ll talk about what is really important for the amplified tone of an electric guitar and prove all of this on the living object. We’re going to take apart a budget electric guitar down to the last screw, and we’ll see what’s possible to make it an excellent sounding guitar, step by step. I encourage you to follow along by getting yourself a similar electric and working in parallel to the column.

For this first installment, let’s have a closer look at the never-dying, snake-oil-drenched urban legends about tonewood on electric guitars and establish some parameters for our experiment. It’s very important to understand that we are talking about tonewood on electric guitars and their amplified tone exclusively; tonewood on acoustic guitars is a completely different thing. The rules for electric guitars are not applicable to acoustic guitars, and vice versa. In general, the whole discussion about tonewood is full of misunderstandings, inaccuracies, conclusions by analogy, biasing, and, of course, marketing bullshit of all kinds. And, sadly, a lot of this has developed into accepted internet knowledge by way of unfounded rumors.

Is the wood of an electric guitar the deciding factor of how it will sound? Or does the wood have no influence on its tone? I submit a resolute “no” to both theses: The truth here is much more complex, and, as usual, lies somewhere in between these two points. So, let’s try to find out exactly where that is!

There is no plant genus or tree called tonewood on this planet. That’s simply a word that’s intended to describe woods used to build instruments of any kind. In the context of stringed instruments, tonewood usually denotes woods that are traditionally used to build guitars. In the case of electric guitars, woods like alder, ash, maple, rosewood, and mahogany fall into this category, most of which have been used since the earliest days of electric guitar building. Let’s take alder and maple, for example. There are more than 40 alder and no less than 150 maple subspecies. Are they all tonewoods or only some of them? If it’s only some, which ones count? Did Leo Fender define what alder, ash, and maple subspecies get ennobled to tonewood? Let’s take a short journey back in time and see what Leo Fender cooked up in the early ’50s at 107 S. Harbor Blvd., Fullerton, California.

For his first electric guitars, Leo Fender used pine for the body (is pine a tonewood as well?) and maple for the neck. He soon switched to ash for the body, but stayed with maple for the neck. Why did Leo Fender choose these woods? Certainly not because of any tonal qualities. Ash and maple are lightweight, strong, easy to work with, and they were available in large quantities for a cheap price at the time. They were the perfect selections for Leo’s mass-production plans. Gibson decided to go with mahogany and maple, but for different reasons that also had little to do with tonal qualities. What exact types of maple, ash, and mahogany were used by Fender and Gibson? Well, nobody knows exactly, and the most likely answer would be: whatever was available cheap and in large quantities. It’s likely that even their wood suppliers didn't know exactly what subtype they were offering! These woods were probably chosen because of structural, optical, and economic reasons, yet they laid the foundation of the tonewood legend in electric guitars.

Interestingly, our bass-playing colleagues seem not to be caught in such paradigms, and all kinds of woods are used to build fantastic sounding electric basses today without the tonewood debate. Try to build a great-sounding electric guitar using cherry, pear, chestnut, oak, or birch; I’d venture that most people will tell you that it doesn’t sound right because it’s not made out of tonewood.

Now that we’ve established what tonewood is, let’s talk about the actual tone of these woods. Here’s a common comparison of ash and alder: In general, ash tends to produce a brighter, more articulate tone with good sustain, while alder is known for its warmer, thicker midrange sound. Ash, especially swamp ash, is often described as having a sweet, open top-end with a slightly scooped midrange. Alder, on the other hand, is perceived as having more pronounced mids and a potentially less defined low end. Sound familiar?

Here again, we have the problem of missing definitions and inaccuracies: Does this mean all kinds of ash and alder sound the same, no matter what subspecies they are? Is there a kind of general ash or alder tone? Assuming we’re talking about electric guitars, what tone are we discussing—the primary tone when strumming an unamplified electric or the amplified tone? Tonal descriptions are usually missing this important information.

“The correct question should be: How much of these tonal differences will be audible in the electrified tone of an electric guitar? Is the amplified tone simply a 1:1 copy of the primary acoustic tone?”

I think we can all agree that using different woods and hardware has an influence on the primary tone of a guitar, no matter if it’s an acoustic or an electric guitar. A cedar soundboard will create a much different tone than spruce or mahogany on an acoustic guitar, and an alder body on a Strat will sound different than ash, maple, or mahogany when playing it unamplified—not to mention the tonal impacts of different types of hardware on the guitar. So, the correct question should be: How much of these tonal differences will be audible in the electrified tone of an electric guitar? Is the amplified tone simply a 1:1 copy of the primary acoustic tone? Well, let’s try to find out.

A common scenario you can observe in guitar shops and on countless YouTube videos is the mandatory “dry test” when checking out a new electric guitar. The electric guitar is played like an acoustic guitar without being plugged into an amp. You can hear a lot of different answers for why such a test is important: You can feel how the wood resonates, what sustain it has, what overall tone it has, how much high-end chime is present, what the attack is like, etc.

Interestingly, all too often, criteria like playability and comfortability, defining how the guitar individually suits you, are omitted. How does the shape of the neck, the size of the frets, and the edge of the fretboard feel? How does the shape of the guitar fit your body when seated and standing? How does it intonate, how is the action, and how heavy is it? All of these factors determine to what degree the guitar will be a part of you, just like buying new jeans.

But what about the countless claims that the elements you hear in the dry test will be heard through the amp, too? Are these overly simplistic conclusions reached by analogy mixed with confirmation bias—an all-too-human reasoning process? Well, we’ll see.

You will have noticed that I haven’t made a single judgement until now; I’m just collecting facts and asking questions, and I encourage you to think and research about all of these things yourself until next month.

That’s when we will continue and finish our journey through the fantastic world of tonewoods for electric guitars, so stay tuned!

Until then ... keep on modding!

In light of Ozzy Osbourne passing away on Tuesday, a campaign has been launched to rename Birmingham International Airport in honour of the Prince of Darkness.

Started up by Dan Hudson, one half of the A Gay And A Nongay podcast, the Change.org petition proposes Birmingham’s airport should be rebranded as Ozzy Osbourne International. The campaign currently has over 3,500 signatures, a figure that is steadily rising.

• READ MORE: “We’ve lost our brother”: Black Sabbath’s Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward pay tribute to Ozzy Osbourne

“Ozzy Osbourne was the most important musician ever to hail from Birmingham,” Hudson writes. “He rose to fame as the lead vocalist of the pioneering rock band Black Sabbath, who invented the genre of heavy metal.”

“Ozzy’s influence on music and culture is undeniable,” he explains. “Naming our international airport after him would be a fitting tribute to his extraordinary career and contributions to the arts.”

His argument goes on to note other airports in the UK that honour famous local exports. With Belfast honouring one of its finest footballers with George Best International Airport, and Liverpool having the Beatles-inspired John Lennon Airport in Liverpool, Hudson believes Ozzy deserves to be honoured in the same way.

“Together, we can celebrate the legacy of Ozzy Osbourne and the incredible influence our city has had on the world stage, thanks to him,” he concludes.

Many supporters have left comments, further supporting the legacy Ozzy leaves in his wake. “Ozzy Osbourne’s music saved my life when I was in middle school and suicidal,” one supporter explains. “He was truly a living legend and if not for him, I wouldn’t be here right now. Naming Birmingham Airport after him would be HUGE, and the best nod to him possible.”

“When I was a teen I was guitar player in a band, and I was in horrible explosion,” another backer writes. “As a result I lost 2 finger tips, and believed I could no longer play guitar, and was very depressed. My uncle threw Black Sabbath’s Paranoid album at me and said listen to that, so I did. Later, my uncle said ‘Tony Iommi is the guitar player for that band, he is missing his fingers as well – so get you ass up and start playing!’”

“This was my introduction to Ozzy, who I also had many common grounds with,” he continues. “Ozzy had a way of making you feel understood and less alone in the world. Through his music, he’s the only celebrity I ever shed a tear for. Thank you so much for everything Ozzy, you are loved and will be missed by the world. He will always be with us, just press play.”

“Ozzy and the band felt Birmingham was important enough to them that they finished both Black Sabbath’s final tour there in 2017 and then finished their careers there a few weeks ago,” another person notes. “They loved Birmingham and carried it with them everywhere they went. Now Birmingham can welcome the world through Ozzy, by naming the airport for him.”

A handful of other petitions are also making the rounds on Change.org in honour of Ozzy. One petition is hoping to have a statue of the Prince of Darkness erected near Birmingham’s Children’s Hospital – a reminder of the nearly $200 million raised through the Black Sabbath’s Back To The Beginning benefit gig, with a portion going to the hospital.

Another petition hopes to rename Download Festival’s main stage, changing the name from the Apex Stage to the Ozzy Stage. Considering Black Sabbath quite literally invented heavy metal, it sounds like an absolutely fantastic way of honouring Ozzy’s musical legacy.

You can head to Change.org to sign the Ozzy Osbourne International petition.

The post A petition has launched to rename Birmingham Airport after Ozzy Osbourne – and it’s gaining momentum appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.

System Of A Down’s Daron Malakian has taken a trip down memory lane, recalling how the band felt like “aliens” when trying to make it in the US.

Known these days for their structurally-playful and extravagant brand of metal, the Armenian-American band found it pretty tricky in their early years to get signed to a label, as they didn’t fit the typical mould of the nu-metal bands that were gaining popularity at the time.

• READ MORE: “People think, ‘Oh, you’re a rich rock star.’ No. I sell shirts outta my f**king closet”: Gary Holt on the reality of being a metal guitarist in 2025

Despite feeling like outcasts, Malakian feels things worked out for the band due to their sheer resilience. After forming in California in the mid ’90s, they dedicated themselves to turning West Hollywood’s famed Sunset Strip venues upside down.

Speaking to Metal Hammer for its new print edition, Malakian explains, “At first nobody wanted to sign us, because we didn’t sound like Korn or Limp Bizkit, and we were four Armenian guys! I mean, what the fuck is an Armenian to somebody that lives in Kentucky?! They don’t even know what Armenians are!

“We looked like we were just fucking aliens to people, the way our stage presence was and the way our look was at the time. Serj [Tankian, SOAD singer] is a very different, unique kind of frontman, I’m the guitar player who sings and screams and does all the crazy stuff. People didn’t get it at first, but we got it.”

Asked what changed as time went on, Malakian replies, “We just went out and did what we did. We were young and hungry, we believed in what we were doing. You’ve got to understand, we were an army before we were signed, we were fucking tearing down the Sunset Strip.

“Our shows were packed when we weren’t signed,” he adds. “It started with our group of friends, but that shit grew and grew and grew, and we became the biggest band on the Sunset Strip.”

Daron Malakian has just released a new record, Addicted To The Violence, under his Scars On Broadway moniker. It is available to stream or buy now.

The post “What the f**k is an Armenian to someone who lives in Kentucky?! We looked like aliens to people”: Daron Malakian on how System Of A Down cracked America to become “the biggest band on the sunset strip” in the mid ’90s appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.