With the current trend of metal pushing the boundaries of extended range instruments, causing the 9-string guitar to slowly come into demand, there’s no doubt that metal—for the most part—has a pretty wide range of tones available and is constantly getting lower. It would seem that the genre is on top of the extended range instrument market, but think again.
Elsewhere in the world of music, a man named Keith Medley has invented a 27-string acoustic guitar, and it’s quite the classy instrument. Dubbed the Medley guitar, the name seems to have an accidental double meaning; it effectively combines a bass, a guitar, and a harp—a medley of acoustic instruments, in a sense. In the wrong hands, this could be used as the source of some messy wank, but Keith Medley is a class act and a top-notch player. His compositions are often-times quite moving and beautiful. Check out a video of him performing his song “Ancestors”below.
He has one album out at the moment called Ride. You can stream and purchase it on his official website. I’m listening to it now and I can tell you that it is absolutely amazing. Give it a listen!
- JR