SHINE A LIGHT

As Greta Van Fleet prepare for a massive tour and the release of Starcatcher, Jake Kiszka talks tone, gear...and what everyone gets wrong about his 1970s hard-rock approach to guitar playing.

- JOE BOSSO

SINCE JAKE KISZKA burst on the scene six years ago with his hard-rock band Greta Van Fleet, the 27-year-old guitarist has captured the imagination of six-string fans and fellow players like few of his contemporaries. His adventurous and sophisticated approach to the guitar, much of it based on the traditions of blues and classic rock honed decades before he was born, has made him the preeminent axe hero for his generation. He's topped readers polls - Best New Guitarist, Best Rock Guitarist, Best Guitar Solo... You name it. It's enough to make any young player's head swell, but Kiszka seems to be taking the acclaim in stride. When asked to explain why so many guitarists are drawn to his style, he addresses the topic thoughtfully.

"I do seem to encounter a lot of people who admire my playing," he says. "They tell me that my type of playing is a lost art form. It's like I'm a relic - my approach to playing is something from the past." He chuckles at his own words. "I think people appreciate the way I embraced that tradition and evolved it to the contemporary world. I think there's a lot of soul in what I do. I mean, people have said that they can feel my soul when I play. They appreciate that I'm trying to communicate."