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Greta Van Fleet

4 guitar songs · Tabs, Lessons & Tone Guide Hard Rock

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Band Overview

History and Guitar Legacy

Greta Van Fleet emerged from Frankenmuth, Michigan in 2017, channeling Classic Rock through a modern lens. Guitarist Jake Kiszka draws inspiration from 1960s and '70s Blues Rock legends including Jimmy Page, Peter Green, Jeff Beck, and Jimi Hendrix. His playing combines pentatonic and blues scale foundations with raw, reckless energy that transforms even simple riffs into explosive moments. The band's sound immediately evoked Led Zeppelin comparisons, but Jake's approach reveals deeper study of blues rock guitar tradition beyond surface level imitation.

Playing Style and Techniques

Jake Kiszka's rhythm work relies on open position power chords, droning riffs in open tunings, and aggressive strumming patterns accessible to intermediate players. His lead playing demands more technical skill: fast pentatonic runs, wide string bends exceeding a full step, aggressive vibrato, and improvisational phrasing. He emphasizes fluid legato and hammer on/pull off combinations rooted in blues tradition rather than neoclassical shredding. His speed comes from expressive phrasing and feel over mechanical precision, rewarding ear training and musical confidence.

Why Guitarists Study Greta Van Fleet

Greta Van Fleet bridges accessible blues rock vocabulary with genuinely expressive lead playing, making them ideal for developing modern blues guitar skills. Jake's semi improvised solos offer freedom for learners, as there's no single correct version to memorize. This approach liberates players to focus on feel and tone rather than note perfect transcription. For guitarists loving classic rock while building contemporary blues fluency, the band provides one of today's most rewarding learning frameworks.

Difficulty and Learning Path

Songs range from beginner friendly to intermediate difficulty. Tracks like Highway Tune feature single driving riffs learnable within months of playing, while When the Curtain Falls introduces syncopated rhythms, dynamic shifts, and complex lead fills. The real challenge lies in tone and touch: achieving cranked tube amp sustain, controlling feedback, and developing confident vibrato. Success requires ear training and feel development alongside technical practice to capture the alive, expressive quality defining Jake's sound.

What Makes Greta Van Fleet Essential for Guitar Players

  • Jake Kiszka's rhythm playing relies heavily on open-position power chords and root-fifth patterns, often with the low E string droning underneath. This gives songs like 'Highway Tune' that massive, primal feel that's heavier than it looks on paper. Focus on consistent downpicking and controlled palm-muting to nail the attack.
  • His lead style is built on minor pentatonic and blues scale patterns, primarily in positions 1 and 2 on the fretboard, but he connects them fluidly with slides and legato runs. Practicing pentatonic sequences with hammer-ons and pull-offs across all five positions will get you closer to his fluid improvisation style.
  • Wide string bends are a signature of Jake's playing, he regularly pushes bends a whole step to a step-and-a-half on the B and G strings, often with pre-bends and slow releases for dramatic effect. Developing finger strength and pitch accuracy on bends is essential for covering songs like 'Black Smoke Rising.'
  • Vibrato is where Jake separates himself from bedroom players. His vibrato is wide, slightly fast, and controlled, more Jeff Beck than B.B. King. Practice wrist-driven vibrato (not finger vibrato) on sustained notes to capture that vocal, singing quality in his leads.
  • Dynamic control is a huge part of the Greta Van Fleet sound. Jake shifts from clean arpeggiated passages to full-throttle distorted riffs within the same song, using his guitar's volume knob and picking intensity rather than switching pedals. Learning to 'play your volume knob' is one of the most valuable skills you'll develop studying this band.

Did You Know?

Jake Kiszka was already gigging with his brothers when he was just 13 years old, and much of his technique was self-taught by obsessively listening to vinyl records from his parents' collection, particularly Cream, Led Zeppelin, and Fleetwood Mac's Peter Green era.

The riff for 'Highway Tune' was written when Jake was only about 14. It's built on a single-note, driving E minor pentatonic figure that he's said came together in minutes, proof that the best riffs are often the simplest.

Jake has been spotted using vintage-style wiring in his Les Pauls with 50s-style capacitor configurations, which preserves treble frequencies when rolling back the volume knob, a critical detail for his clean-up technique.

During early tours, Jake played through relatively modest rig setups compared to arena-rock peers, relying on a small number of tubes being pushed hard rather than a wall of pristine amplification. This gave the band's live sound a raw, compressed quality reminiscent of 1970s club gigs.

The band recorded their debut EP 'Black Smoke Rising' largely live in the studio with minimal overdubs, meaning what you hear on the guitar tracks is close to a single live performance, a rarity in modern rock production.

Jake frequently tunes to standard E tuning but occasionally uses open G and drop D for specific songs, keeping his approach rooted in classic blues-rock tradition rather than modern metal tunings.

Despite constant Zeppelin comparisons, Jake has cited Muddy Waters and Howlin' Wolf as equally important influences, and you can hear it in his use of repetitive, hypnotic blues riffs that prioritize groove and intensity over note count.

Essential Albums for Guitarists

Black Smoke Rising 2017

This debut EP is the purest distillation of Greta Van Fleet's guitar sound, raw, loud, and blues-driven with almost no studio polish to hide behind. 'Highway Tune' is a perfect beginner riff exercise in palm-muted single-note driving, while the title track 'Black Smoke Rising' features a more dynamic structure with expressive bends and a soaring solo that teaches phrasing and sustain control. At only four tracks, it's the ideal focused study session.

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Anthem of the Peaceful Army album cover
Anthem of the Peaceful Army 2018

Their full-length debut expands the sonic palette significantly. 'When the Curtain Falls' is a masterclass in tight, syncopated rhythm playing with a choppy funk-rock edge, while 'Lover, Leaver (Taker, Believer)' stretches out into extended jam territory that rewards improvisation skills. The album also introduces acoustic textures and softer dynamics, making it great for learning how to shift between clean and overdriven tones within a song.

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The Battle at Garden's Gate album cover
The Battle at Garden's Gate 2021

This album sees Jake Kiszka at his most ambitious, layered guitar arrangements, orchestral-scale dynamics, and more sophisticated chord voicings that go beyond basic power chords. 'Age of Machine' is a sprawling epic with arpeggiated clean sections, heavy riffing, and a climactic solo that tests your phrasing and endurance. It's the best album for intermediate players who want to push into more advanced territory while staying in a blues-rock framework.

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Tone & Gear

Guitar

Jake Kiszka's primary guitar is a Gibson Les Paul Standard, typically a '61 SG/Les Paul reissue or a late-'50s-style Les Paul with a solid mahogany body and maple cap. He's also been seen with a Gibson ES-335 for warmer, jazzier tones and a Fender Stratocaster for cleaner passages and single-coil bite. His Les Pauls appear to be largely stock, though he favors 50s-style wiring for volume knob roll-off that retains high-end clarity. He also uses a Gibson Firebird and a double-neck SG for live performances when songs require quick switching between six-string and twelve-string parts.

Amp

Jake runs primarily through a Fender Super Reverb and vintage-style Fender tube amps cranked to the edge of breakup, along with a Marshall Plexi-style head for heavier gain tones. The combination of Fender cleans pushed into natural saturation and a Marshall for thicker crunch gives him a two-channel rig that covers everything from glassy cleans to thick, sustained overdrive. He drives the amps hard, power tube distortion rather than preamp gain, which is critical to achieving that warm, compressed-but-dynamic tone you hear on the records.

Pickups

Jake relies on PAF-style humbuckers in his Les Pauls, moderate output (roughly 7.5–8.5k ohm), with an emphasis on warmth and dynamic response rather than high-gain compression. These lower-output pickups are key to his sound because they clean up beautifully when he rolls back the volume knob and break into rich harmonic overtones when he digs in. In his Stratocaster, stock single-coils provide the chimey, glassy tones heard in cleaner passages and arpeggiated sections.

Effects & Chain

Jake keeps his pedalboard relatively minimal, a Dunlop Cry Baby wah is the most prominent effect, used extensively in solos and funky rhythm passages. He also uses an Electro-Harmonix Big Muff or similar fuzz pedal for thick, sustaining lead tones, and an MXR Phase 90 for psychedelic swirling textures on select tracks. Reverb comes mostly from the amp's built-in spring reverb (particularly the Fender Super Reverb). Overall, his signal chain philosophy is 'less is more', the core tone comes from fingers, pickups, and cranked tubes, with effects used as occasional seasoning rather than a constant presence.

Recommended Gear

Fender Stratocaster
Guitar

Fender Stratocaster

Jake Kiszka uses the Stratocaster's stock single-coils for crystalline, glassy tones in cleaner passages and arpeggiated sections, providing chimey contrast to his Les Paul's thicker voice. The single-coil bite cuts through the mix when he needs sparkling texture without the humbuckers' natural compression.

Gibson Les Paul Standard
Guitar

Gibson Les Paul Standard

Jake's primary instrument, the Les Paul's PAF-style humbuckers and mahogany body deliver warm, dynamic tones that clean up beautifully when he rolls back the volume and break into rich harmonics when he digs in. Running through cranked Fender and Marshall tube amps, this setup defines Greta Van Fleet's signature vintage-rock sustain and power.

Gibson Les Paul Custom
Guitar

Gibson Les Paul Custom

The Les Paul Custom's thicker body and refined pickups extend Jake's warm, compressed-but-dynamic tone palette, offering subtle variations in harmonic response compared to his Standard model. This guitar maintains the same 50s-style wiring philosophy, ensuring smooth volume roll-off that preserves high-end clarity during lead work.

Gibson ES-335
Guitar

Gibson ES-335

Jake deploys the ES-335's warmer, jazzier voice for passages requiring mellower sustain and reduced bite, complementing the Les Paul's aggression in Greta Van Fleet's dynamic arrangements. Its semi-hollow body naturally adds resonance and subtlety, perfect for blues-influenced solos and atmospheric textures.

Dunlop Cry Baby Wah
Pedal

Dunlop Cry Baby Wah

Jake's most prominent effect, the Cry Baby wah defines funky rhythm passages and expressive solos throughout Greta Van Fleet's catalog, adding vocal-like movement to his lead lines. Used sparingly but effectively, it's the primary seasoning in his otherwise tube-driven, minimal-effects signal chain.

MXR Phase 90
Pedal

MXR Phase 90

The Phase 90 provides psychedelic swirling textures on select Greta Van Fleet tracks, adding spacious, hypnotic motion without overwhelming the core tube-amp tone. This occasional effect reinforces Jake's vintage-rock palette, channeling 70s progressive influences while keeping the primary focus on warm, dynamic guitar fundamentals.

How to Practice Greta Van Fleet on GuitarZone

Every Greta Van Fleet song page on GuitarZone includes a built-in Practice Toolbar. No app to download, no account needed. Open any song, then use the toolbar to slow the video to 0.5× speed, set an A/B loop around the exact riff you're working on, and jump between song sections instantly.

The toolbar appears automatically on every guitar tab, lesson, and cover page. Pick a song below, hit play, and start practicing at your own pace.

Practice Highway Tune - Guitar LessonPractice When the Curtain Falls - Guitar LessonPractice The Weight Of Dreams - Guitar Tab