Hear Steve Vai Shred with One Hand on New Song, "Knappsack"
Not even a recent surgery can keep Vai from his hammer-ons, pull-offs, and dive-bombs.
A couple of weeks ago, Steve Vai revealed that he wouldn't be able to play guitar "for awhile" after holding a chord for so long he ended up needing trigger finger surgery.
On top of a recent, unrelated shoulder surgery, one would think that Vai might be out of the game for at least a few months to recuperate. They would, however, be well off the mark.
Above, you can watch the music video for "Knappsack," a brand-new song Vai executes entirely with one hand.
Mind you, this song ain't "Hot Cross Buns." Vai spices it with hammer-ons, pull-offs, and even, yes, a dive-bomb – all with one hand and his trusty Ibanez Onyx Black PIA guitar.
Saying what all of us are surely thinking, fusion guitarist Martin Miller commented “C’mon, that ain’t fair!” on the video, with Megadeth guitarist Kiko Loureiro adding “Master!! So awesome!! Get well soon.”
Vai also recently launched a new Patreon page, where – for a $5 membership fee – fans can access exclusive hour-long Q&A sessions, listening parties of new releases, guitar technique tips, and inspirational quotes.
You can check out Vai's Patreon page right here.
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Jackson is an Associate Editor at GuitarWorld.com and GuitarPlayer.com. He’s been writing and editing stories about new gear, technique and guitar-driven music both old and new since 2014, and has also written extensively on the same topics for Guitar Player. Elsewhere, his album reviews and essays have appeared in Louder and Unrecorded. Though open to music of all kinds, his greatest love has always been indie, and everything that falls under its massive umbrella. To that end, you can find him on Twitter crowing about whatever great new guitar band you need to drop everything to hear right now.
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