In October 2005, Korean guitarist funtwo broke the internet with his rendition of JerryC’s Canon Rock. It was the original viral guitar video, and 20 years later, it's been recreated with the very same guitar.
The electric guitar in question is an ESP Alfee Custom SEC-280TC – a black Super Strat with a distinctive golden pickguard. And it sounds as great as ever.
“It's been 20 years, and I'm so glad I got to play it again,” he says.
The neoclassical shredding was iconic. It was a video that helped carve the online guitar space into a breeding ground for bedroom shredders. A precursor to the online social media guitar world as we know it today.
Sentiments aside, the video is also clever marketing from Neural DSP, who recruited funtwo to help promote its Black Friday sale. The guitarist used a Archetype: John Petrucci plugin for his guitar tone on his Canon follow-up, and his preset is available to download for free.
The original video, meanwhile, paired his ESP with a Zoom GFX-8 multi-effects unit. Such was the virality of the video, funtwo would eventually end up playing the song on stage with none other than Joe Satriani.
Of course, there are now other mediums for guitarists to shine online, and one “country Nirvana” nylon-string guitar riff has recently taken TikTok by storm. John Mayer has even gotten in on the action.
