Justin started playing guitar in 1999, and progressed to many more instruments in the following years including drums, bass, keys, and more. He’s a freelancer around Chicago playing in local bands, teaching guitar, and playing Musician’s Union shows. At zZounds, he’s often on camera as the host of Gear Wire, product demo specialist, and audio/mixing engineer. Off-camera, Justin is a burgeoning vinyl hunter and amateur astronomer.
Iconic Rigs (on a Budget): Eddie Van Halen
Iconic Rigs on a Budget is a companion to our Iconic Rigs series at zZounds, where we show you the gear of legendary guitarists. Here on the zZounds Blog, we’ll help you get really, really close to that sound without blowing your tour budget. This month: get the Brown Sound with just a single pedal! (Hot […]
Body Shop: Grand Auditorium
In my last post I gave some love to the mighty Dreadnought style of acoustic guitar, but this time we’re going to be scaling the size down to talk about the Grand Auditorium. This style is an incredibly popular choice for many good reasons, most of which I’ll be covering here. After all, Taylor Guitars refers […]
The Cinematic Orchestra – Every Day
For years, The Cinematic Orchestra have been a highly respected and beloved group dominating the UK scene with their fusion of jazz, hip-hop and electronic music and it’s about time they get the love they deserve over here in the US of A. Every Day is one of those rare albums that really showcases their at […]
Body Shop: The Dreadnought
Invented by necessity The dreadnought, perhaps the defining shape of acoustic guitar as we know it, has quite the storied past. Back in the early 20th century, most of the acoustic guitars at the time were of smaller-bodied design, with a more treble-focused sound that required the use of a bass instrument in the band to […]
Justin’s Picks: Sandblasted Strat and Wampler Plexi Drive
Fender Limited Edition USA Stratocaster Sandblast This year, Fender has been releasing tons of new limited-edition products, but the Sandblasted Strat is particularly unique. The sandblasting is partly responsible — no two finishes will look and feel the same way. But aside from the finish, this is a solid USA-made guitar with your time-approved specs: […]
Interviewing John Scofield
When I first got the news we’d be hosting an interview with John Scofield for his upcoming Ibanez signature guitar releases, I had a mild freakout…and that’s putting it lightly. Scofield has been one of my major influences on guitar and has certainly shaped my own improvisations and compositions (plenty of hours were spent by candlelight […]
