Izzy Sparks

Izzy Sparks is a fictional character featured in Guitar Hero,Guitar Hero II, Guitar Hero Encore: Rocks the 80s, and Guitar Hero 3: Legends of Rock on the Playstation 2, Xbox 360 , and soon on the Playstation 3 and Wii.

Appearance
Izzy Sparks is loosely based off of several glam metal icons of the 70's and early 80's, and also uses a top hat vaguely similar to one worn by Guns n' Roses guitarist Slash. He slightly resembles David Bowie in the face, and many people think he resembles Vince Neil or Nikki Sixx from Mötley Crüe because of his appearance. It has also been presumed he was based off of Alice Cooper or the White Stripes. Most likely, however, Harmonix took inspiration from a majority of Glam bands in order to craft the final image of Izzy rather than basing it all off of a single person or group.

Izzy's name may have been a direct reference to an employee of Harmonix by the name of Izzy "Sparks" Maxwell, a member of the band Count Zero, which has had songs in both Guitar Hero (Sail Your Ship By) and Guitar Hero II (Radium Eyes).

Gameplay
Izzy is an unlockable character in Guitar Hero, but is already available for play in Guitar Hero II. In Guitar Hero II Izzy has an alternative costume for purchase from the 'Unlock Shop'. He is the default character for numerous songs, including "Shout at the Devil", "Cherry Pie", and "Jordan" the latter of which is considered by many to be the hardest song in the game.

Personality
Izzy's personality is based off of the stereotypical 80's LA glam scene, showing him as excessive, hedonistic, as well as pouty when things don't go as planned. This is highlighted when a player fails a song with Izzy as he will often burst into tears on the stage. His on and off stage debauchery have lead to him being banned from performance in nine states. Izzy has been reported as saying that his guitar playing makes girl's think "Impure Thoughts". His excessive behavior has also lead him to customize his amplifiers to match his wild onstage costumes. Because of this Izzy often overshadows his band mates and receives most of the spotlight.

Equipment
Izzy Sparks is known to heavily customize his guitars in order to accommodate his fast style of playing. This shows he has a good knowledge of the mechanical aspects of the electric guitar.

Izzy also has had his amps customized, though it seems more for aesthetic reasons than for sound quality.

He seems to favor the Gibson X-plorer, as he had a one custom painted for him called the "Custom Rising Sun". It is a simple white and red design with the red paintjob seeming to symbolize a sun rising over a horizon.

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See Also

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