Top Guitarists Predict What Guitar Will Sound Like in 10 Years

Pop the champagne – we’re celebrating 10 years of Positive Grid.

As part of the festivities, we asked 10 of our favorite guitarists what they think the future of guitar will sound like a decade from now. The results range from revivalist, to metal, to everything in between. Pull up a seat and take a listen to some of the submissions below.

For guitarist, vocalist and songwriter Emily Hastings, the future of guitar is digital. She suggests that as technology continues to grow, so will our desire to make things easier and more compact. Whilst jamming Allman Brothers favorite “Ramblin’ Man,” the dynamic video creator demonstrates that her Spark Pearl is a happy marriage of simplicity, technology and portability.

Guitarist Jamie Slays sees things getting much heavier, giving his own tongue-in-cheek take on what the “dgenres” to come may look like. Alien Core, anyone?

If you’ve ever scoured YouTube for guitar lessons, tips or tricks, then you’ve likely come across the affable and uber-helpful Steve Stine. In his video, Mr. Stine prepares us for the future by sharing five tips he wished he’d learned sooner about guitar playing.

Certifiable riff monster Andrew Baena helps us commemorate 10 years with 10 of the most iconic deathcore guitar riff intros, all of which he plays on his trusty Spark amp. The Canadian guitarist rips through Whitechapel, Suicide Silence and Oceano riffs like butter, while using his (very impressive) lineup of green guitars.

The next 10 years sound pretty chill for musician Kazuki Isogai. In his video, the Japanese guitarist plays in his signature “sweet and soulful” style, suggesting that the future of guitar might actually be quite pleasant. With tunes like these, it’s sure to be!

Guitarist Josh Smith explains that “you can’t think about the future without looking toward the past,” which is exactly what he does when paying homage to the greats with his Spark amp. While he doesn’t know exactly where music will be in the next few years, he does know that the technology inside his amp will help to create some serious magic with its flexibility and screamin’ tones.

For musician, actress and director Allison Scagliotti, 2021 marks 10 years of both Positive Grid and her own journey learning how to play bass.

As part of her celebration, she spent 10 days playing along to songs with female bassists on her Instagram. We’re showcasing her cover of Hole’s “Celebrity Skin” here, but check out her Instagram for licks from the Talking Heads, The Beach Boys, White Zombie and more.

Fleet-fingered guitarist Max Ostro decided to wish us a very happy 10th with this stunning display of guitar mastery. The 16-year-old Ostro has been making videos from the time he was 12 while racking up close to 200,000 YouTube subscribers. And yes, we're one of them.

In this entry, Italian guitarist Danilo Vicari shares 5 riffs that he considers the most difficult to play, such as the opening solo in Van Halen’s “Mean Street” and the alternate picking pattern in Dream Theater’s “Dark Eternal Night.” He states that 10 years from now, he wants to be able to look back at this very video and say he’s mastered all of them. If anyone can do it, it's Danilo.

No matter where the metal landscape ends up going in the next 10 years, we’ll put money down that Simon Smith will be along for the ride. Check out his five extreme tones for Spark.

Want to prepare yourself for the future of guitar playing? Then you can't go wrong with a practice amp that fuels your creativity as you play. A powerhouse 40 Watt combo, Spark is a smart amp and app that jams along with you using Intelligent Technology, with backing tracks available for any style you play. Including over 10,000 tones (and counting!) on the Positive Grid ToneCloud, you’ll never run out of inspiration. Plus, you can use Spark as your USB audio interface for easy home recording and track your ideas with the included PreSonus Studio One Prime recording software. Find out more here.

Alexx Calise is an accomplished singer, guitarist, and songwriter. In addition to her musical pursuits, she also works in public relations and marketing, writes for a variety of publications, and hosts/creates content for Guitar World. More information about Alexx can be found at alexxcalise.net.