Zepparella guitarist Gretchen Menn’s new conceptual work, Abandon All Hope, is an eclectic study of guitar, art and literature.

The instrumental album, which puts elements of classical and romantic composition through a prog- and blues-rock blender, was co-produced by Daniele Gottardo (Steve Vai’s favorite new guitarist) and—most interesting of all—based on Dante Alighieri‘s epic 14th-century poem, Inferno.

You could say it’s a guitar album that’s 600 years in the making—with a masterful, 21st-century approach.

I recently spoke to Menn about Abandon All Hope, her gear and more.

How did the Abandon All Hope project begin?

I’ve always liked the idea of art that incorporates other art and how you don’t have to just make music but can also make images that accompany it. I’m the daughter of a writer and grew up reading a lot of classic literature. I started playing around with the idea of doing something that would be the music to a work of literature I really liked.

Around that same time, Guitar Player Editor-in-Chief Michael Molenda reached out about doing a collaboration. I remember we met in a coffee shop and he handed me this sheet of paper that said, “Dante’s Inferno: A Journey in 11 Different Musical Moods,” and I was just blown away. It was one of those rare moments where I knew exactly what I was going to be doing for the next few years of my life. That’s how it came about.

You said you pored over orchestral scores and listened to a lot of music to prepare for this album. How did that help you?
I read scores every day, and where some people do crossword puzzles, I do counterpoint exercises [laughs]. But I didn’t want to take “x” from Led Zeppelin, “y” from Igor Stravinsky and “z” from Kate Bush. Instead, I listened to whatever inspired me. I’d listen to Stravinsky’s “Rite of Spring,” but I also listened to Roger Waters’ Amused to Death –a concept album he did with Jeff Beck. I really wanted to explore structure and the intense interplay between instruments.

You can read the rest of my
Interview with Gretchen Menn by Clicking Here!