10 Best Guitarists You've Never Heard Of

6. Paul Ortiz (Chimp Spanner)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UAPBY20gJ18 We're back to instrumental players here, but it's well worth it. Paul Ortiz is the madman behind the instrumental progressive metal band Chimp Spanner. As Chimp Spanner he has released two well received instrumental albums and one EP. Signing to the independent UK record label Basick Records - who then encouraged him to tour the records - what started as a bedroom project has evolved into a touring band which has been to all corners of the earth and even garnered him an endorsement deal with Ibanez guitars. The sound of Chimp Spanner is somewhat futuristic, almost like the soundtrack to a science fiction film. In fact, some of his songs take direct inspiration from science fiction concepts. The three part Terminus movement on his At The Dream's Edge album is an instrumental story detailing a war between man and machine. Ortiz makes use of seven and eight string guitars to bring his vision to life, leading some tracks to be crushingly heavy while others are lighter, but make use of the extended range afforded by the extra strings. Paul has a fluid style that has had him compared to (and lauded by) Steve Vai. He uses extensive production to expand the scale of what he is playing and create stunning soundscapes, sad well earning a credit being one of the first "djent" musicians, though whether he is happy with that is up for debate. Regardless, he is a phenomenal player who deserves wider attention. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C0pOYoVV6Ws