Jane Getter’s Anomalia is a mostly instrumental album that traverses the hypnotic seas of jazz-rock, with lyrics. A fusion of the bold, the ethereal, and the intense, her guitar is front and center as she nails a barrage of cool chord changes with finesse and harmonic sophistication. Guests include Alex Skolnick and Vernon Reid, but this is Getter’s world, and those guys are simply trying to keep up.

How did you arrive at your compositional style?
Bonnie Raitt was my first female guitar idol, and I got inspired to go further into the guitar. Then I got way deep into jazz. That’s all I did for a while. I got more into the modern, dissonant, intellectual type of jazz. When I’d play out, people would be sitting there, scratching their chin and saying, “Mmm, very interesting.” That’s the kind of vibe I’d get from the audience, and it really felt like I wasn’t reaching people.

Then I went on the road with jazz-blues organist Brother Jack McDuff, who plays party music – hard-swinging, happy, party music. People had a great time clapping their hands. It connected more with the audience and opened my ears to move from what I was doing to getting into groove-oriented music – backbeat, rock, and R&B. I started combining what I already did with jazz, rock, and R&B.

Then I got into fusion – Return To Forever, The Elektric Band, and groups like that. From there, I started getting into progressive rock. It opened a whole other thing and I started writing lyrics and singing more. I hadn’t really sung lead before, but I started writing my own material on lead vocals. After that, I was digging metal bands (laughs). My music is really a combination of a lot of different stuff. I write what I hear, what I like, and what sounds good to me. I’m not conscious of combining different styles; it’s just how I’m hearing the music.

Vernon Reid and Alex Skolnick are guests on Anomalia.
Alex tours and has done a lot of local shows with us, so I wouldn’t really call him a guest. He’s not on every track, but he’s on every Jane Getter Premonition album. Vernon Reid was a special guest at a few shows we did at the Iridium. Imagine Alex, Vernon, and me onstage (laughs). There’s a song called “Train Man,” where we all trade solos, and it was some of the most fun I’ve ever had onstage. When we started to record, I asked if he wanted to play on a song, and he’s on “Dissembler.” His playing is so recognizable with that first solo.

Your solo on “Lessons Learned” is breathtaking.
I wasn’t really crazy about that solo, but people seem to like it (laughs).

You endorse Peekamoose Custom Guitars. What’s different about the model you play?
My Custom Model 1 has custom Seymour Duncan humbuckers. Paul Schwartz, the owner and builder at Peekamoose, was the authorized Fender repair person in New York. I had an endorsement deal with Fender, and he knew how I liked my guitars set up. One day, he gave me a guitar that sounded great and had the neck set up perfectly for me. It’s very round and comfortable. The frets aren’t too big or too small. I like low action, but not too low. The Model 1 is also a good weight for me – my shoulder doesn’t freak out by the end of a gig. He also customized the color for me. I love the red neck. It’s the only red neck I like (laughs).

You’re playing through Fuchs amplifiers.
Yeah. I’m using the Full House 50 head and a 2×12 cab, running into a Tone Concepts Distillery. I don’t know what it does, but it makes it sound better (laughs). I look at it like a preamp that warms the sound. I put it after my gain pedals and before my delays. I also have an MXR Overdrive. Fuchs also makes a Plush Cream II Overdrive and a Plush Drive that I use, along with the Diamond Vibrato pedal, which is my new discovery which I love. Then I have a TC Electronics Stereo Chorus Flanger, a Jam Pedals Delay Llama, a Vox wah, and a Boss FV-30H volume pedal. My main distortion is from the Fuchs, when I have my amp with me. I used it on the album.

What’s next?
I’m looking at a European tour in 2022 and I’ll be booking local New York shows. I’ll also be streaming and planning another TrueFire guitar course on different approaches to play over blues, from basic to outside.

This article originally appeared in VG’s July 2021 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.