Ok, many people will tell you that "oh if you're gonna play this type of music you have to have this kind of guitar". This is mostly incorrect, Les Paul himself played jazz style, whereas Slash plays hard rock, and Matt Heafy plays metal....and they all use Les Paul guitars. Albert King played blues, and Rob Flynn plays metal....both use flying Vs.
You will find that the shape and construction of a guitar may contribute certain tonal qualities, for instance the extended wings on a V contribute to better sustain. You will also find again that different types of pickups will also contribute to the sound. Again for instance single coils sound vastly different than humbuckers, or p90s. Many guitars offer combinations of pickups so you can choose differnt tonal qualities on the same guitar. Next how do the frets feel, are there sharp edges, or have gaps where they've pulled away from the fretboard a bit....put it back if they do.
My advice is to pick a guitar you like, and this means more than picking a shape. You should actually go to a store, even if you are going to purchase off line in the end, and try some models. If you don't know how to play at all then at least pick them up see how the weight feels, hold it with a strap is it going to be too heavy....or maybe not heavy enough, how does the neck feel in your hand. Some guitars have extremely thin necks, some feel like a baseball bat, don't be afraid try a whole bunch.
Then plug it into an amp how does it sound? Is it pleasing to you....when you strum it does the tone "speak" to you? Do your ears prick up? Does it make you smile, or does it sound flat and lifeless....play with the volume and tone knobs on the guitar too, those change the sound. Generally the amp should be set to a flat 12 oclock low, mid, and high ajustments and let the guitar do it's thing for testing purposes, you can find tonal qualities of an amp later.
Once you find a model you like....or hopefully LOVE the feel and sound of you'll know it. Also don't buy "a cheap one for now", buy at least a mid range guitar. Nothing is worse than in a year shelling out for yet another guitar because you've outgrown the one you got as a starter. Far better to grow into a guitar than to outgrow one too quickly, and mid range guitars are more likely to be satisfactory for the long haul than a "beginner" guitar, mid range ($500 - $800 new retail) guitars provide far more bang for the buck and even many professionals use them.
Don't have the budget for a "new" midrange guitar...consider buying used, once you know what model you want, you will be able to find a used version. And honestly the guitar market has tanked for non vintage instruments in recent years so there are huge savings to be had for relatively new instruments. Also don't forget that there are different model types even within styles. Les Paul for instance has a dozen or more within that name identified by adding a name like studio, traditional, pro, studio deluxe, standard, junior, classic, ultra, custom, special, tribute etc etc.
The most important thing to remember, although some will dispute this, is that most of what you hear from your guitars sound is you. Your techinque and how you play creates most of the tonal quality, with the types of wood, electronics, and effects creating the rest. Satriani, Vai, Dimebag, Wylde, Slash....they all sound like themselves no matter what they play through....and once you find your style, so will you.
Don't let a sales person force a type of guitar on you because "this is what you should have for this type of music", there is no such thing......Telecasters are traditionally are a country music guitar....but you know what? John 5 (Rob Zombie) & Jim Root (Slipknot) play telecasters, albeit with humbuckers instead of the usual pickups.
In the end experiment and find your happy spot, if it's a les paul that gets your engine running get the les paul, but you ought to at least take a look at some other models before you jump in with both feet, you might find that a Dean ML or Caddilac is more you're style, or perhaps a Fender Stratocaster, or maybe an Ibanez super strat, or a bc rich mockingbird, or a flying v, explorer type, or a single cut of another type, and on and on the choices are endless.
Remember the guitar will be an extension of you and because of that you need to be comfortable with it, and no one else, in the end it doesn't matter the body style as long as it makes you smile, feels good in your hands, and sounds good to your ears you can play any style with any guitar. Given the right playing technique and a desire to make it happen.
PS: For the 2 grand you said you'd spend you can pretty much get a guitar that you can keep and use your entire life, or even 2 different ones with different tonal qualities.
whatever guitar you choose, pay to have it professionally set up and intonated until you learm to do it yourself. But learn to change your own strings.
PPS: If you would like to ask specific questions then I would be happy to answer, just send me a pm
