Many of us have been scratching around for something while we’ve been homebound. Some of us might just enjoy watching an extra hour of Netflix, but there’s an increasingly large cohort of people picking up an instrument for the first time.While I’m not saying it’s uncool to pick up an oboe or a set of bagpipes, the guitar used to be the go-to choice for many of them.In the bygone era of rock ‘n roll, the instrument was essentially worshipped and its heroes like Jimi Hendrix and Jimmy Page did ungodly things thing with their six-strings.Then came the wind-machine in your face and spandex of the 1980s that culminated with Slash from Guns ‘n Roses playing four minutes of solos while standing on a piano — and we all loved it.Kurt Cobain changed the game again, as did the Britpop louts of the 1990s and the indie rockers of the 2000s, but the guitar was always cool. It had a versatile sound that was always recognisable.But then something changed in mainstream pop music.The charts started to fill up with processed “trap” beats and everything began to sound very digital. We even lost the human voice with the overuse of auto-tune.The warmth of real instruments had been lost forever, or so it seemed. However, the seeds of recovery have been sown, with more than one million people estimated to have picked up a guitar for the first time during the pandemic.One man who has been following this recovery is Justin Norvell, Executive Vice President of Fender Products.He told news.com.au that it’s becoming increasingly easy to make music these days.“It’s easier because of home recording, and it’s easier to learn to play,” he said. “And with all the excitement around guitar and bass over the last year, I think there’s a movement starting. He reckons there’s going to be a new generation of guitar players and bass players that’s going to be coming out in a couple of years from now. “And one of them could have the next Smells Like Teen Spirit up their sleeve,” he said.He said that while the guitar is making a comeback in popular music, it’s not being used in the ways that we might expect.“I don’t think guitar is used the same way it used to,” he said. “It’s not as much about having your foot on the monitor on the stage and having the wind machine in your face.“It’s more of a texture and compositional instrument. It might be simpler lines or heavyeffects that create a texture or a mood within a song.”It is amid this renaissance that Fender has announced the launch of the all-new Player Plus Series — an extension of the Player Series, which was the most widely-adopted Fender guitar series in 2020 and has sold over 400k units since its 2018 debut.As digital platforms like TikTok have opened up new pathways for artists to find worldwide audiences, Fender has designed Player Plus for the generation leading the charge: both online and as live music begins to roar back after its hiatus. Combining precise placability with unbridled style, these seven guitars and basses are engineered to remove any obstacle to effortless playing and are finished in vibrant, head-turning colours. The launch of Player Plus will also serve as the debut of Fender’s very own TikTok, @fender. Fender’s presence on the app will include exclusive content, product demos and educational content, tailor-made for both passionate musicians and aspiring artists. To highlight Player Plus on TikTok, Fender has teamed up with guitarists currently pushing the boundaries of genre and creativity in terms of what and how they are creating music. They include Blu DeTiger, Hannah Dasher, Gabriel Garzón-Montano, The Destroy Boys and the Nova Twins. To find out more about the series visit the Fender website.
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