By Fletch Whipp

Hi once again to another edition of backstage blog. Eric Kirkland is a writer with Guitar World magazine, amongst other publications. Flip open the latest issue of GW and have a look at the reviews sections, and there you will find Eric, reviewing and detailing some of the latest Musical Instrument offerings. We were fortunate enough to have Eric sit down and offer his thoughts and perspective on Guitar, the state of the industry and one of his more unusual ‘gigs’

You have been involved in the music Industry for a long time, could you give us your background and current role/s within the Industry?

(ERIC) My appreciation for music began with my father, who was a high-end audio enthusiast and himself an accomplished tenor sax player in the 50s and 60s. He would play all kinds of music through this monstrous stereo, sometimes straight thorough till morning, loud enough to move my bed upstairs. I took an official interest in the guitar at 16 and quickly began classical studies. My teacher, Christopher Anderson, is part of the Segovia lineage of study, himself having studied under one or more of Segovia’s master class students. So, the education I received was intense, complex and deeply rooted in the ideologies and theories, much like the ancient eastern philosophies that dictated samurai training. My intention was to study at Peabody Conservatory, the music branch of Johns Hopkins, but I was ultimately unable to raise the funds. From then on, I focused mostly on rock, metal and all of the derivatives. Along the way, I was keenly focused on tone and felt it necessary to modify almost every part of the guitar and other devices in the signal chain to achieve my goals. This naturally resulted in an appreciation for how everything affected the sound of the guitar and a certain degree of knowledge in that field. I started working on other player’s instruments and their rigs while studying behavioral science at the University of Maryland. This led to me to beta testing gear for certain manufacturers and writing about gear on a now-defunct website called Tonehunter. Several of my clients and the website owner remarked that the reports I sent them were very much like magazine reviews and they encouraged me to submit my work to the various publications. Guitar World Magazine gave me a shot six years ago and I’ve been writing for them ever since. I’ve also written for other magazines like Vintage Guitar and numerous websites. Besides writing gear reviews, I still beta test products and consult in the guitar and high-end audio industries. I am also deeply involved in theme related guitar projects such as the Headless Horseman Steinberger…that one has become the most talked about custom guitar built to date. Outside of the guitar/audio worlds, I have an unrelated white-collar career.

Did you deliberately chart your course in the music Industry to your current position, or did your path take you down an unexpected direction? Was there one ‘life marker’ that really stood out as being pivotal?

(ERIC) There was no set path. It was a natural progression that came from my passion for playing, critical listening, tone, analysis and music. There were a number of pivotal life markers where different choices would have sent me down radically different paths. But, do we really have choices?

The other day I was reading a short biography of P.Diddy, detailing his rags to Half Billion dollar empire. To succeed, an aspiring musician has to be more business savvy than ever. What best advice would you give to a newbie?

(ERIC) Go to where music is happening and offer to work for people in the field in exchange for their tutelage. There won’t be a lot of opportunities but make the most of the few you can find. If you can meet the right individuals, you can eventually parlay your experience into a career or at least a paying job in the industry.

The last decade in the Music Industry showed the advent of physical modelling, DAW home studios, digital media content and cost effective manufacturing from the Asia. Any thoughts on future potential mega trends?

(ERIC) I think that the melding of digital and tube technologies will be utilized to create the superamps of the future. The technology exists to put PC power into an amplifier or effect, it’s just a matter of time and money.

You have worked with, and interviewed an enormous list of artists and instrument manufacturers. Who positively stood out in both of these arenas?

(ERIC) There are so many artists and manufacturers who have graciously given their time and knowledge. I suppose some standouts among them are Yngwie Malmsteen and his long-time tech Larry Lashbrook. Yngwie loves sharing his passion and once invited me onstage during a soundcheck, where he put his vintage guitars in my hands and demonstrated his rig…Yes, he does play those Marshalls on 10! Lashbrook is a genius engineer who I can only equate to an old Doc Brown type character —Back to the Future. His innovations and inventions are mind-boggling.

What is the greatest thing we have not yet embraced/heard about?

(ERIC) This would probably concern resonance manipulation through the mechanical application of tonal memory theories and the science of directing tonal response. The related theories are used in everything from cable design to pickups, transformers, tubes, wood shapes, metallurgy, etc.

As a guitarist, what does you setup currently consist of?

(ERIC) My setup is extremely simple. I used a couple custom modified wah pedals from Dunlop and Morley and occasionally apply a delay or echo. Modulation effects really don’t interest me unless I am trying to emulate something specific. By and large, I play totally stock Malmsteen model Strats. I love scalloped boards, DiMarzio HS3s, Brass Nuts and Vintage Strat hardware, so they are a perfect amalgamation. Strings are 9s. I also have a Peavey HP special for the music that requires a Floyd Rose and I have a Custom Shop Jackson built by Mike Shannon—the same legendary builder who crafted Randy Rhoads’ guitars. It’s incredible response and huge tone is nothing short of magical! For amps, I switch between a Mesa Mark II C+, one of several Marshalls and a new EVH 5150 3. Digital delay is Eventide, echo is from Fulltone’s Tube Tape Echo and FJA Mods does most of my modification work. EL-34s are Mullards and 6L6s are from TAD. My amp switcher is a Framptone 3-Banger and I have two shelves of overdrives and distortion boxes. I have a lot of other stuff that I use from time to time and particularly enjoy the Marshall AVT20X for practice and Orange Tiny Terror through an Orange 4-12 cabinet. Cables are Planet Waves, Cardas, VandeHul and George’L.

Our Industry is ever evolving, and currently we appear to be in a turbulent time, both financially and creatively. While there are many positives like smart garage based companies getting worldwide exposure with their wares, do you have any concerns for the state of our Industry?

(ERIC) I don’t have a concern for the industry in general because Asian manufacturing has made nearly custom shop quality instruments available at very reasonable prices. A lot of the great gear out there is cheaper now than when I started playing.

If someone were to ask for my nomination for an award presented to the GMI (general musical instrument) manufacturer who has most positively influenced and advanced music in the last 10 years I would offer up Line6, and for the last few years the Guitar Hero creators, who would you nominate?

(ERIC) I would nominate all of the manufactures that have embraced the signature gear trend and put their full efforts into delivering a product that is identical the artists’ equipment.

When I was 22, a professional drummer friend asked me to wing this large, last minute function. At that time I was playing in some large corporate function bands, and was an Ibanez endorsee etc. From the ‘setlist’ to the P.A to the room (reverb chambers had nothing on this acoustic nightmare) to the people, it was an epic, comedy of disasters. Has there been any interview, or gig that you can now look back and laugh, or not laugh about?

(ERIC) Strangest gig? Okay, I played classical guitar unaccompanied at a teenage boy’s funeral. He was a huge fan of the guitar so I readily agreed to the request. But, they sat me right next to his coffin where I improvised for about two hours. More than 500 people attended the memorial. It was extremely uncomfortable and stressful, to say the least. After that, I felt like I could handle anything.

BONUS QUESTION: It is now 2018, what could we expect to find Eric Kirkland doing?

(ERIC) I hope by 2018 to have my Phd completed in one of my career fields and still be testing guitar gear. Specifically, I’d like to partner with more manufacturers to build theme projects and possible work directly for one of them as a Custom Shop manager or product specialist. Either that or I will go MIA and retire to some shanty on the beach.