Former Whitesnake guitarist Adrian Vandenberg recently discussed how guitarists can make their tone stand out in a crowded music scene, emphasizing the importance of restraint over excess.
In a recent interview with American Musical Supply, the Dutch rocker explained that many modern guitarists often overuse distortion and compression, which can compromise clarity and character in their sound. “It doesn’t cut through anymore if it’s too much gain and too much compression going on,” Vandenberg said. “The sounds of pretty much nine out of ten guitar players are very similar.”
Vandenberg stressed the significance of leaving “space” in a mix, allowing music to breathe instead of cranking everything to maximum. He noted the importance of contrast in tones, suggesting that it creates a more dynamic and interesting sound. “It would be different when you would have one guy that plays, like, a more distorted guitar, and the other one plays like an almost clean one,” he added.
The guitarist also praised the tone of iconic musicians like Angus Young and Malcolm Young, explaining how the guitars in AC/DC’s music, despite not being overly distorted, have a powerful punch. “A lot of people don’t realise that, in AC/DC, those guitars are not very distorted. But it smacks you in the face because they are not so distorted. It had a lot of punch instead of getting compressed because of a lot of gain and stuff.”
Vandenberg also opened up about the culture shock he experienced when he joined the Los Angeles rock scene in the 1980s. Describing his initial immersion into Hollywood’s rock ‘n’ roll world as being “thrown into the Sodom and Gomorrah of Los Angeles,” Vandenberg recalled feeling out of place amid the dominant shredder culture at the time.
“It’s not necessarily when I joined Whitesnake, being in the band,” he said. “But [to] suddenly get thrown into this Hollywood thing coming, out of Holland, where everybody’s going [makes shredding sounds], you know? I wasn’t really aware of that, in Holland.”
Despite his journey into the Hollywood rock scene, Vandenberg revealed that he still listens mainly to musicians who inspire him, a group that doesn’t consist of many guitar players.
