John 5 Interview - Issue 60

John 5 started playing guitar at the age of seven, inspired by the Saturday morning TV show Hee Haw: “I didn’t know any... musical genres. I was just in awe of the players”. His parents were supportive of his learning and permitted him to play in bars and clubs on the condition that he kept his grades up.

Aged 18, John moved to California to pursue a career as a professional session guitarist. In 1998, after narrowly missing out on an audition 2 years prior, John was asked to lunch by Marilyn Manson: “he asked me to join the band – right there”. The name John 5 bestowed on him that day, John joined Manson et al, for the Rock is Dead tour. Following the tragic events of April 1999 at Columbine High School, the group began work on “Holywood: In The Shadow of the Valley of Death”, an angry response to the media witch-hunt the band suffered, and was the first album John wrote on. In 2004, John 5 and Marilyn Manson parted company. “I had a great run with Marilyn Manson. It was a lot of fun [but now] I’m busier...than I was on tour”.

Work began in earnest on ‘Vertigo’, a deeply autobiographical album pulled from turbulent personal memories on the last Manson tour. Following the album’s release, John began working with cult rock artist and movie director, Rob Zombie, joining him for 2005’s Ozzfest tour: “[I] never thought I would have the chance to share the stage with him playing the Zombie songs we all know and love”.

Later that year, John released ‘Songs For Sanity’, a second solo album, grittier than the first: Guesting on the album were Steve Vai and Albert Lee. After touring for almost a year in support of Rob Zombie’s ‘Educated Horses’, John took time out to work on his third solo album. ‘Devil Knows My Name’ saw contributions from Joe Satriani and Jim Root. It also won him an accolade for Best Shred Album from Guitarworld.com.

– adapted from John 5’s bio at www.john-5.com

With the release of his fourth album, “Requiem”, one of the most unique and diverse guitar players on the planet today brings his most recent opus of hard-riffed jams and screaming solos - The kind of solos that make you wonder if he’s got a few extra sets of fingers to help him out. John 5 may very well be from another planet altogether as tracks like “The Judas Cradle” and “Requiem” seem to have been created for the listening pleasure of beings from other worlds. With an obvious affinity for the southern twang, his distinct brand of brutal head-banging shreddery would make any Guitar Center wannabe quiver with fear. Well rounded and constantly evolving, there’s no question as to why John 5 remains an icon in the eyes of guitarists worldwide…

Your guitar style is so diverse and unique...How would you describe your sound?

I enjoy playing different styles and try to incorporate different music such as country, classical, and western swing and try to incorporate that into rock music.

How is this release different from “Songs For Sanity”? How do you compose your songs?

I believe that this is a lot more intense than my other cds. When I was on tour with Rob Zombie, I would travel with a mini recorder and metronome. I would just work on the record during the day and during soundcheck before the show. Most of the records were done after midnight and in the middle of the night.

Who are some of your influences as a guitar player?

Jimi Hendrix at age 7, Van Halen, Yngwie Malmsteen, Paul Gilbert amongst many others.

Do you play any other instruments other than guitar?

I mainly concentrate on guitar, but I play bass guitar, some banjo, and basically a little bit of everything.

Where did that Honky-Tonk speed picking sound heard on “Pity Belt” and Songs For Sanity’s “Gein With Envy” come from?

That’s from my background. I love country pickers, and I love learning different styles like bluegrass, country and players such as Albert Lee and Chet Atkins.

Do you see yourself ever releasing a non-metal album?

I was thinking about doing more of a mellow album to change it up a little bit. So yes, maybe something like that in the near future.

What would you tell a person that wants to learn to shred like you? How does one get so damn good?

I would tell them to stay focused and try to learn something new at least once a week. Don’t try to be super fast right away, just take it slow and go at your own pace. It takes a lot of years and dedication.

Who would you be most excited to tour with?

I’ve always been into The Beatles and it would be a true honor to play with Paul McCartney. I set a really high goal for myself to do that.