Marnie Stern’s five favorite guitarists

Marnie Stern knows a thing or two about shredding. With two critically acclaimed albums under her belt and a new album, entitled Marnie Stern, out October 5 via Kill Rock Stars, Stern is easily one of the most technical and skilled female guitarists playing today.  Here are her five favorite axe-masters.

Also, take a listen to a cut of the forthcoming album, which features contributions from Zach Hill (Hella) and Matthew Flegel (Women), by listening to the song “For Ash” below.

Marnie Stern: “For Ash”
[audio:http://alarm-magazine.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/Marnie-Stern-For-Ash.mp3|titles=Marnie Stern – For Ash]

1. Mick Barr

“I always say Mick, and he will always be my favorite. The only way I can describe his playing is to say that your jaw will drop for the entire time you witness his terrific playing style. He has influenced me tremendously.”

Weekly Music News Roundup

Hella returns as a duo; Converge posts a studio preview of a new song; Busdriver, Shining (Norway), Om, Russian Circles and Aphex Twin all have new albums on the way.

Hella Recording New Album as a Duo

Despite each releasing a solo album in 2008 and having plenty of other projects on their plates, multi-instrumentalist Spencer Seim and drummer Zach Hill are working on their first full-length album as Hella in four years.

Local Shows that Have Us Excited (9-26-08)

Being in Chicago means always having great show options, and this weekend (bleeding into early next week) is no different.  If you’re around our city this weekend, you may see one or all of us at the following shows, including sBACH, the buzzing Nintendo rock project of Hella guitarist and The Advantage drummer Spencer Siem (shown left).