With the success of video games like Guitar Hero and high-profile memoirs from legends like Slash, the term “guitar hero” is growing increasingly ubiquitous in mainstream culture. While we readily embrace players who can actually, well, play, here we’re turning the focus onto the great guitar anti-heroes. In other words, “Paradise City” is classic, but if you haven’t played air guitar along to Dinosaur Jr’s “Freak Scene,” you’re missing out on a whole feedback-drenched world of guitar grandeur.
Nels Cline
The homepage of Nels Cline’s web site contains a quote from Lydia Lunch that says, “The only thing worse than a guitar is a guitarist!” and that pretty much sums up Cline’s approach to the instrument. One of the more recent additions to Wilco, Cline has been playing professionally for 20 years and his innovative, avant-garde style involves looping and effects pedals to create non-traditional sounds that are surprisingly musical. Despite his technical prowess, Cline’s strongest asset is knowing when not to play; that way when he gets around to one of his eardrum-defying solos, it sounds even more impressive.
Essential Anti-Hero Listening: “Impossible Germany”
Andy Cohen
Chances are, you haven’t heard of Andy Cohen—and that’s okay. As the former guitarist of indie rock band Silkworm and current axeman in the equally indie Bottomless Pit, Cohen is more of an underground icon than a commercial sensation. Mainstream obscurity notwithstanding, Cohen is one of the most inventive guitar players around today—and while plenty of guitarist can noodle aimlessly, his seemingly improvisational compositions have a beginning, middle, climax, and ending. Sure, there’s a level of trust involved in listening to Cohen at his most ambitious, but just when you think he’s gone completely off the deep end, he shows you a sonic cavern that you never knew existed.
Essential Anti-Hero Listening: Silkworm’s “Grotto Of Miracles”
Stephen Malkmus
Former Pavement frontman and current solo artist Stephen Malkmus may be best known as a slacker icon, but there’s nothing lazy about his characteristic approach to the guitar. In fact, Malkmus is able to do more with the subtleties of perfectly fuzzed-out guitar tone than most guitarists could do with an entire stage full of pedalboards. This is because—although Malkmus has been known to rip out jam-friendly solos—above all he’s concerned with what’s best for the song, and that’s what keeps even his oldest catalog material from sounding dated or self-indulgent.
Essential Anti-Hero Listening: Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks’ “Animal Midnight” Doug Martsch
Doug Martsch
Former Treepeople and current Built to Spill frontman Doug Martsch is often cited as an influence by Northwestern indie monoliths like Modest Mouse and Death Cab for Cutie, and it’s easy to see why. While Martsch’s classic rock-inflected playing is somewhat similar to Mascis, he uses less feedback and fewer superfluous effects. Instead, he plays with an unconventional sound but stays within limited parameters. His guitar acts more as a vocal melody than a wanky solo and serves the song more than it would were he to wear his ego on his strings. Which, when you think about it, is what being a guitar anti-hero is all about.
Essential Anti-Hero Listening: Built to Spill’s “Car”
J. Mascis
Whether J. Mascis is performing solo or fronting his legendary punk act Dinosaur Jr, he’s a guitar anti-hero in the traditional sense of the term. From Dinosaur Jr’s most recent release Beyond to classic albums like You’re Living All Over Me, Mascis’ shattering guitar riffs and solos have inspired generations of players more concerned with creating carefully constructed walls of noise than pitch-perfect power chords. In fact, Mascis’ out-of-key bends have produced some of his finest moments.
Essential Anti-Hero Listening: Dinosaur Jr’s “The Wagon”
Honorable Anti-Hero Mentions: Kevin Shields (My Bloody Valentine), Karl Hendricks (The Karl Hendricks Rock Band), Dave Knudson (Minus The Bear)