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“Samuel Beckett's experiments at the intersection of music and literature are among the most unique and interesting of their kind. McGrath's study contributes new elements to our understanding of Beckett's work in this area, particularly in its potential to enrich the thinking of musicians and composers. Not "just" a book on Beckett, it makes Beckett the starting point for a number of fruitful meditations on repetition, representation, improvisation, and structural experimentation in the arts. The chapters on Morton Feldman and Scott Fields are especially welcome in this regard.” - Eric Prieto, University of California, Santa Barbara

"The thing about the guitar is that it has to be constantly re-imagined, de-constructed, then re-constructed if it is to continue to be a vital force in music’s future landscapes. '21st Century Guitar' is the new grimoire in this quest for the instrument’s ongoing reinventions". - Joe Satriani

"In sum, Samuel Beckett, Repetition and Modern Music benefits from having been written by someone who is as at home with music studies as he is with literature, as is evident from the wide-ranging references to historical and geographical musics with which the text is sprinkled. In all of this McGrath’s tone is just right and the discussion convincing. At no point is the impression given that literature or music have the upper hand over the other as the centre of discussion or in the author’s priorities...the text moves dynamically from one issue to another, shifting registers easily and profitably between the historical and the contemporary and trading cultural references, ‘high’ and ‘low’, so to speak, from James Bond and Batman to Joyce and Birtwistle, across several aesthetic media including film, pop, and commercial culture, in the playful course of which McGrath offers his clearly distilled and pertinent reflections. This is a study of great erudition that demonstrates admirable facility and awareness of a wide range of related fields, all of which are related to one another very much in the spirit of the topic. The text is supported by a generous number of figures and musical examples and is without doubt an important contribution to the field of Word and Music Studies." - Edward Campbell, Music & Letters

"His experimental approach, reminiscent of Jim O’Rourke, pushes at the boundaries of new guitar music and the UK avant folk scene."

-The Wire

"McGrath is like a jeweler, crafting small but perfectly formed pieces that tempt you to pick them up and hold them to the light, just to get a better glance."

-Bill Meyer, Dusted Magazine

"Bringing a touch of the 21st century to the guitar soli scene..."

-Tyler Wilcox, Aquarium Drunkard

"Bringing to mind the likes of Owen Pallett and Grizzly Bear, John McGrath is an artist capable of balancing classical and folk textures to great effect." 

-The Skinny

"Not only capable of channeling Britfolk greats as Bert Jansch, John Renbourn or Michael Chapman, he can also pick like John Fahey and his fellow American primitives."

-For The Sake Of The Song

“his clutch of haunted icy soundscapes sounds very much like wandering around half-remembered wintry dreams.”

-Bido Lito!

"a deft masterclass in cyclical finger-picking fused with subtle glitches, warped drones and rapping Autumnal taps."

-Peter Guy, Liverpool Echo

"One of the most innovative solo guitarists on the scene right now is John McGrath ... utilising seriously warped effects over John Fahey-esque musings."

-Deep Hedonia

"like Bert Jansch remixed by Four Tet, combining extraordinary technical mastery with warm drones and harmonic effects."

The Cube

"This important collection combines rigorous scholarship with knowledge gained from practical experience involving a wide range of musical explorations, from microtonal music to the use of augmented reality – a welcome and significant contribution to the literature on the guitar".  - Kevin Dawe, author of The New Guitarscape (2010)

"a wonderful new book ... McGrath dives deep into the musicality of Beckett’s work and how it has shaped certain aspects of modern music, focusing mainly on the works of Feldman and the guitarist Scott Fields. McGrath’s book isn’t the first to deal with music and Beckett, but it is an important step forward in that area." - David Menestres, Burning Ambulance