5. Bryan Monte of 'Escape the Fate' (There's No Sympathy for the Dead - Dying is Your Latest Fashion)
Reason - Nowadays, while a very talented guitarist, Bryan plays a kind of guitar that repels me, other than his ridiculous solo in G3. But the first two CD releases of ETF's that I actually enjoyed are backed up by his phenomenal playing. However, his stage presence is absolutely terrible.
4. Ryan of 'For Today'
Reason - He practically invented the sweep. His playing is just jaw dropping. Not to mention he's absolutely flawless live. Even his dive bomb in Seraphim was pitch perfect. Love him. Very original and a great singing voice.
3. T.J. of Motionless in White
Reason - Now, I hear that Chris (the singer) actually writes most of the guitar parts, in which case Chris deserves this slot, but I'll just say it's T.J. His backing vocals are some of the best and the metalcore riffs they write are just so clean and natural, unlike the rigid mechanical style of Miss May I.
2. Zach of 'The Word Alive' (Empire EP)
Reason - He's just plain ridiculous. His average riffs are some of the most complex I've learned, and he uses every style of playing. Metalcore, freehanding, tapping, sweep picking, he's done it all, and his odd use of effects and bends gets him here.
1. Jason Hale of 'Chiodos'
Reason - One complaint of some people is that guitarists of the genre don't have a voice - a unique sound like Slash or Jimi Hendrix (two very identifiable guitarists.) Jason Hale is the exception. Everything about him is original - the sound of his distortion, the guitar he plays live, his stage presence; he even changes some of his riffs live almost like a freestyle. You can really hear him in his playing. It's natural. It's him. He doesn't make things that sound cool, makes what's in his head available for the rest of the world in the form of his guitar playing.