Pointy guitars are like cigarettes. They´re not big, they´re certainly not clever and, if you go too far, they´re a serious danger to your heath: and, just like smoking, all this doesn´t seem to put anyone off designing, owning and playing such things.
We´ve corralled 15 suitable shapely axes with which to whet your whistle and although we´ve barely scratched the surface here, there are plenty to make the inner-metal player stand up and shout.
To start us off, here are three examples of the mega-customisable range of guitars from Abstract, as trumpeted by the hotbed of mental metal, Ed Roman Guitars.
This is the pointastic Rockingbird
And this is the Extendavee. Look at those points: you'll have someone's eye out!
And here´s the John Entwistle Foundation bass. D´you reckon that headstock was designed as an anti-Moon device? Maybe not...
BC Rich are always going to feature heavily on lists such as this, and here´s the monstrous five-string Widow bass. Five strings? It´s one louder, isn´t it?
This is the hard-tail version of Kerry King´s Beast V. It´d make blood rain down the inside of your kecks if you put a foot wrong thrashing about with this...
Dean are similarly unconcerned with producing scary axes: this is the Split Tail...
And this is the Commemorative Edition of Dimebag´s Razorback design to mark the 10,000th example sold.
Check out the signature ESP of Children of Bodom´s Alexi Laiho. Single EMG, Floyd and a brace of pointy points...it´s called The Scythe. Obviously.
We´ve always loved the Ibanez sharks tooth inlays, and they've rarely looked more unsettling than they do on this XPT700FX in (mmph!) Rusty Glitter finish.
Fire! Here´s the super hot Minarik Inferno, as occasionally played by Motorhead´s Phil Campbell...
Amongst the many pointy guitars that Jackson have produced over the years, this example - the new Signature model of Machine Head guitarist Phil Demmell - is just cakehole crazy. No wonder MH vocalist Robb Flynn is always pulling ‘that´ face: he´s got this embedded in his thigh...
Washburn´s HM Series if chock-a-block with shaped guitars that define ‘rock´. This is the WV40 (sorry about the dodgy image)...
And here´s the signature model of James Malone. His band´s called Arsis. Snigger...
Here´s a reissue of the Wayne Hydra. The original was built as an excise by one of Wayne Charvel´s peers in 1977, and a certain Eddie Van Halen saw it, and grabbed it! The reissue is a big old beast, but does sound amazing.
Who said Gibson was old school? Here´s the limited Gibson Zakk Wylde ZV Custom. Maggot farmers...
Finally, what sort of player uses an over-the-top, once-in-a-lifetime electronical guitar like these? Michael Angelo Batio, that´s who.
Can he play a four-necked Dean? Click here and decide...
We must have missed a few, so why not send your suggestions for pointy guitar in and we´ll set ‘em up here.
“There’s three of us playing guitar in Foo Fighters… A lot of tone details can get lost, which is what drew me to the Cleaver – that P-90 cut”: Chris Shiflett on how he found his weapon of choice with his Fender Cleaver Telecaster Deluxe
“Notes dance rhythmically, almost creating a reverb diffusion. Those notes are held together with tape-style effects”: Keeley Electronics and Andy Timmons unveil the Halo Core – same modulated dual echo magic, simplified controls
“There’s three of us playing guitar in Foo Fighters… A lot of tone details can get lost, which is what drew me to the Cleaver – that P-90 cut”: Chris Shiflett on how he found his weapon of choice with his Fender Cleaver Telecaster Deluxe
“Notes dance rhythmically, almost creating a reverb diffusion. Those notes are held together with tape-style effects”: Keeley Electronics and Andy Timmons unveil the Halo Core – same modulated dual echo magic, simplified controls
