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Guitar Player* magazine is on the hunt for ax masters. Given that the venerable gear aficionado feeds on tech, pedals and shredders, it's cool to see Hawaii's Makana selected as a finalist for its fourth annual Guitar Superstar Competition. Slack key guitar can be as mesmerizing as "Eruption" can be epic.
Makana traffics in what he calls slack rock, a radio-friendly upgrade of centuries-old Hawaiian folk tradition fed through the contemporary prism of blues, bluegrass and more. He can dazzle old-school, especially on winding instrumentals like "Napo'o Ka La." But with nods from Kirk Hammett and flamenco virtuoso Pepe Romero, he's also looking to take slack key new-school.
this audio or video is no longer availableHe'll have some tough judges to impress when the finals land in San Francisco on September 13. The Police's Andy Summers is hosting the contest, and guitarists are going to have sore fingers swaying the likes of Metalocalypse mogul Brendon Small, The Cars' Elliott Easton, Joe Satriani and others. And while metal and rock usually dominate with tunes along the lines of "Satch Boogie" at right, they may bow to slack when all is said and done. Mahalo!
Photo: Vincent Dittmer
