Dave Navarro

• Reverb is always on — unlike most rock players who keep reverb subtle, Navarro uses reverb as a significant part of the tone, not just ambience
• The wah is used as a fixed filter on rhythm parts — park it mid-sweep and leave it for a nasal, vocal quality rather than sweeping it
• Funk-influenced right-hand muting on rhythm parts — dead-string "ch" strokes between chord stabs, similar to Nile Rodgers's technique
• Clean → heavily reverbed is a Navarro signature — the combination of a very dry rhythm guitar suddenly going to a washy reverb lead is compositionally striking
• PRS neck pickup for lead solos — the wide-range humbucker at the neck produces the dark, sustained quality
• A light touch produces the clean dynamics; heavy attack produces breakup on the same amp settings — Navarro exploits this range
• Study "Three Days" from Jane's Addiction — the guitar arpeggio demonstrates his ability to build tension over a long repeated pattern
• Fuzz before reverb creates the singing lead character of his Jane's solos — try Big Muff into a large spring reverb
• The overall character is "heavy pop" not metal — despite the Marshall and fuzz, the musical context is more Floyd than Pantera

Dave Navarro of Jane's Addiction and Red Hot Chili Peppers blends funk-influenced rhythm playing with heavy reverb-soaked lead tones — a unique combination that is neither conventional metal nor conventional funk.