Category: Newswire

Styx is preparing a U.S. concert tour highlighted by the performance of 1977’s <em>The Grand Illusion</em> and 1978’s <em>Pieces of Eight</em> in their entirety. Both albums spawned such hit singles and Classic Rock radio standards as "Come Sail Away," "Renegade," "Blue Collar Man" and "Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)."

And as icing on the cake, a seven-song EP, entitled <em>Regeneration, Volume I</em>, containing six newly re-recorded classics–"Come Sail Away," "Crystal Ball," "Fooling Yourself (The Angry Young Man)," "Lorelei," "The Grand Illusion" and "Sing For The Day" – and a brand new track, "Difference In The World," will be available for sale at every stop along "The Grand Illusion/Pieces Of Eight" October/November tour route.

"This is the most unique Styx concert ever," says singer/guitarist Tommy Shaw. "It’s a hybrid experience of enjoying the artistry of the vinyl album and the energy and of our live performance. Some songs have never been performed live!"

Spawned from a suburban Chicago basement in the early ’70s, Styx would eventually transform into the virtual arena rock prototype by the late ’70s and early ’80s, due to a fondness for big rockers and soaring power ballads. Over the course of their 38-year career they’ve released 15 studio albums, 6 best-of compilations and 4 live albums, garnering 8 Top Ten singles. Styx has sold over 30 million albums worldwide.

To hear the new tracks and see concert dates, go to facebook.com/styxtheband.

The wait for new original music from platinum-selling rock band My Chemical Romance is over. MCR have announced that Reprise Records will release their highly anticipated fourth studio album, entitled Danger Days: The True Lives of the Fabulous Killjoys, on November 22nd, 2010. New Warner Bros. Records Chairman Rob Cavallo, who produced MCR’s platinum-selling album The Black Parade as well as albums by Dave Matthews Band, Jawbreaker, and The Goo Goo Dolls, among many others, produced the album.

Danger Days’ first official single, "Na Na Na (Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na Na)," will be available from all digital retailers September 28. It is the first new original music to be released by My Chemical Romance since October 2006 when the band unleashed their third album, <em>The Black Parade </em>, which shot to No. 2 on <em>Billboard</em>’s Top 200 album chart, selling more than 240,000 copies its first week of release, and spawning four Modern Rock smash singles. Dubbed "Album of the Year" by <em>Blender </em>Magazine, <em>The Black Parade</em> earned raves from critics (<em>Rolling Stone</em> called it "a rabid, ingenious paraphrasing of echoes and kitsch from rock’s golden age of bombast," while Spin called it "savage and heartfelt") and cemented MCR’s status as a world-class rock band. Following the album’s release, the New Jersey-bred MCR launched The Black Parade World Tour – their longest and most comprehensive trek yet that culminated in a triumphant hometown show at New York City’s Madison Square Garden in May 2008.

Learn more at mychemicalromance.com.

On the even of this weekend’s Experience 2010, Paul Reed Smith Guitars is set welcome more than 2,200 people from all over the world and will unveil six new electric guitar, several limited run amps, and new guitar appointments including the company’s new V12 finish, new neck shapes, new pickups, and a high-tolerance two-piece adjustable bridge.

Experience is a weekend full of clinics, seminars, factory tours, master classes, and home-recording-studio demonstrations, combined with performances by more than a dozen PRS artists including Ricky Skaggs, Orianthi, Zach Myers, Howard Leese, Davy Knowles, Martin Simpson, David Grissom, Cody Kilby, Bugs Henderson, Derek St. Holmes, and more.

PRS’ new "V12" finish is very thin and hard, non-weather cracking, crystal-clear, and thinner-impervious.

Prototyped on Private Stock guitars, the new two-piece adjustable PRS bridge now comes standard on two new PRS models – the SC58, and the JA-15. Bridge specifications include triple weight saddles, triple weight thumb wheels, large posts, and extra mass. The added weight increases contact points and creates a more resonant, musical instrument. Machining rather than casting give the brass and aluminum bridge a stronger sound, and the quick-change style stoptail doesn’t fall when the strings are removed.

Since the beginning of the company, neck shapes have always been high priority and a hallmark of PRS quality. A guitar should feel comfortable (like "home," as soon as you pick it up). The neck is a very important part of that connection. Perfected after years of prototyping, the new "Pattern" neck (a name derived from an old wood working term) is an updated wide-fat PRS neck style based on Paul’s pre-factory design. This neck is also based on theories used to make the instruments custom-made in the late ’70s and mid ’80s for Carlos Santana, Peter Frampton, and Howard Leese. The new "Pattern Regular" neck shape is similar to the traditional PRS regular neck found on guitars made in the late ’80s at PRS’s former Virginia Avenue location.

The 53/10 pickup is the latest in the series of humbucking pickups that already includes the full-sized 57/08™ and 59/09’s (and the smaller aperture 57/08 Narrowfield). First debuting as part of a limited run in the summer of 2010, the distinct 53/10 has scorched nickel covers (scorched covers only featured on the original 53/10 limited run model) and sounds similar to the original 57/08 but with a "sweeter" high end. The 53/10 coil wire is made on the same machine that supplied legendary guitar makers in the fifties and is the warmest-sounding of the vintage themed bunch. "The old machine is cranking out wire, and we’ve got three types from it – one for each of these three pickups," said Smith. Wire specifications for the 53/10 are different than the others and are made using a special process reserved for a single-coil bridge pickup circa 1953; however, the 53/10™ is a humbucking pickup. During the 53/10’s prototyping phase, Paul Reed Smith wound a pair of 57/08’s using the new 53/10 wire for Derek Trucks, and "He fell in love with them," Smith commented. "There are single-coil guitars from that era that are beautifully big, fat sounding guitars." The new JA 15 and the ME Quatro models both come standard with 53/10 pickups.

New models include;

• The McCarty 58. A vintage inspired double-cutaway body and a figured maple artist-grade top with PRS’s new V12 finish compliment the unique sound of the proprietary 57/08 pickups.

Additional features include mahogany back, natural binding, 22 frets, 25" scale length, mahogany neck, rosewood fretboard, rosewood headstock overlay, new "Pattern" neck shape, Modern Eagle II birds with mother of pearl and paua heart, "McCarty 58" truss rod cover, PRS Stoptail, PRS low mass locking tuners, hybrid hardware with a gold option, 57/08 pickups, volume and push/pull tone control with three-way toggle pickup selector.

• The JA-15 Paul Jackson signature. Designed with jazz archtops in mind, it has two 53/10 bass pickups, V12 finish, two-piece adjustable PRS bridge, a spruce top, curly maple back, mahogany sides, natural binding, 22-fret curly maple neck, 25" scale length, ebony fretboard, "Pattern" neck shape, mother of pearl and paua heart Modern Eagle II bird inlays and an abalone headstock signature, PRS low-mass locking tuners, nickel hardware with a gold option, and volume and tone control with three-way toggle.

• The DC3 and the NF3. DC3 is a modernized, vintage inspired three single-coil pickup guitar with an alder body. Its three proprietary PRS DC3 single-coil pickups are based on PRS’s award wining 513 platform and give the DC3 a warm, clear tone. The NF3 introduces a korina body and three proprietary Narrowfield™ pickups. Narrowfields™ use the same wire as 57/08s™, but are narrower pole to pole and deeper front to back, providing exceptional clarity. Both models combine a three-pickup configuration with a five-way blade switch to provide a multitude of sounds, and both feature bolt-on necks, 3-ply pickguards, and mounted electronics.

Other appointments shared by the DC3 and NF3 have 22 frets, 25.25" scale length, maple neck and fretboard with rosewood option, "Pattern Regular" neck shape, ring dot inlays, PRS low mass locking tuners, nickel hardware with gold option, and volume and tone controls.

• The new ME Quatro has the V12 finish, 53/10 pickups, and "Pattern" neck shape. As the fourth installment in the Modern Eagle series, the ME Quatro elegantly builds on PRS’ Modern Eagle tradition with premium woods, including an artist grade top and rosewood neck.

Additional features include a mahogany back, natural binding, 22 frets, 25" scale length, select dalbergia neck and fretboard, cocobolo headstock overlay, Modern Eagle II birds inlay with mother of pearl and paua heart, and mother of pearl and paua heart eagle inlay on the headstock. Hardware includes a PRS Stoptail with PRS Tremolo option, PRS low mass locking tuners, and hybrid hardware with the option of gold. The model also comes standard with volume and push/pull tone control, and a three-way toggle pickup selector.

• The SC 58 has a single-cutaway body shape, artist-grade maple top, and new Pattern neck shape, V12 finish, and two-piece adjustable PRS bridge, the SC 58 blends modern and classic elements.

Additional features include a mahogany back, natural binding, 22 frets, 24.5" scale length, mahogany neck, East Indian rosewood fretboard, rosewood headstock overlay with inlaid signature, Modern Eagle II bird inlays with mother of pearl and paua heart, "SC 58" engraved truss rod cover, PRS low mass locking tuners, hybrid hardware with gold option, 57/08 pickups . Volume and tone control for each pickup are included as well with a three-way toggle on the upper bout.

• The SE Santana features include a carved maple top, flamed maple top veneer, mahogany back, 22-fret one-piece "wide-fat" mahogany neck, rosewood fretboard with white perloid, old style PRS bird inlays. Electonics include treble and bass humbucking pickups, master volume and tone, three-way toggle switch, PRS tuners, and PRS tremolo.

Learn more at prsguitars.com.

The 1957 Gibson Les Paul goldtop used by Duane Allman on the Allman Brothers Band’s first two albums (the self-titled album from 1969 and 1970’s <em>Idlewild South</em>), as well as on the Layla album by Derek &amp; the Dominoes, is on temporary display at the Allman Brothers Band Museum at "the Big House" in Macon, Georgia through the end of the year. According to museum curator E.J. Devokaitis, the guitar would also have been played on some of Allman’s latter-day Muscle Shoals studio session, just prior to the formation of the Allman Brothers Band in March of 1969. The goldtop was used by Allman when he resided in the "Big House," and the museum also features numerous other guitars and basses owned and utilized by present and former members. Visit thebighousemuseum.org.

Alfred Music Publishing’s new iVideosongs DVD series teaches guitarists play favorite songs through personal, interactive instruction.

iVideosongs DVDs are a low-cost, cutting-edge alternative to expensive private lessons and the inaccurate TAB, unreliable tips, and fragmented lessons scattered throughout the Internet. Designed for any guitarist from beginner to advanced, each DVD contains accurate, step-by-step video lessons that guide you through playing your favorite songs from beginning to end.

Featuring instruction by both the original guitarists as well as studio musicians, iVideosongs lessons include tricks, tips, and techniques to play in the exact style of the artist. In addition, many of the DVDs also include exclusive interviews with the original bands’ guitarists who teach you some of the songs.

Rock guitarists can play their favorite songs from various decades in three exciting iVideosongs DVDs: <em>’70s and ’80s Rock Hits, Vol. 1, ’90s Rock Hits, Vol. 1, </em>and <em>2000s Rock Hits, Vol. 1</em>. From classic to modern rock, guitarists will enjoy personalized instruction to playing favorite songs such as "Carry On Wayward Son" by Kansas, "(Don’t Fear) The Reaper" by Blue Oyster Cult, "3 A.M." by Matchbox Twenty, "Yellow" by Coldplay, "All for You" by Sister Hazel, and more.

Also available are genre-specific iVideosongs DVDs, including <em>Southern Rock Hits, Country Rock Hits, </em>and <em>Singer-Songwriter Hits</em>. Guitarists will learn to play all-time hits such as "Sweet Home Alabama" by Lynyrd Skynyrd, "Ramblin’ Man" by the Allman Brothers Band, "Friends in Low Places" by Garth Brooks, "Fire and Rain" by James Taylor, "Pencil Thin Mustache" by Jimmy Buffett, and more.

R.E.M. singer Michael Stipe, guitarist Peter Buck, and bassist Mike Mills have just finished recording their 15th studio album, which will be released next spring by Warner Bros. Records. The band has re-teamed with Grammy Award-winning producer Jacknife Lee, who produced R.E.M.’s acclaimed previous album Accelerate. He is also noted for his work on albums by U2, Snow Patrol, The Hives, and indie stalwarts Kasabian, The Editors, Aqualung, and Bloc Party.

R.E.M. and Lee have been recording in New Orleans at the Music Shed and in Berlin at the famed Hansa Studios, where several legendary albums, including David Bowie’s <em>Heroes</em>, U2’s <em>Achtung Baby</em>, and Iggy Pop’s <em>Lust for Life</em>, were made. Additional recording and mixing was done at the venerable Blackbird Studio in Nashville.

The new album will be the follow-up to 2008’s charging <em>Accelerate</em>, which debuted at No. 2 on the <em>Billboard</em> Top 200 album chart, topped the Alternative, Rock, Digital, and Internet (physical goods) charts in the U.S., and debuted at No. 1 in Canada, the U.K., Ireland, Denmark, Norway, Switzerland, and the Czech Republic. It spawned three hit singles “Supernatural Superserious,” “Hollow Man,” and “Man-Sized Wreath.” The band also released a two-CD live set, entitled <em>R.E.M. Live At The Olympia</em>, last October.

International blues star, Robert Cray is rolling onto The University of Missouri campus to fill Jesse Auditorium with big time music and a whole lot of good will.
The concert is a fund raiser for cancer patients to help pay for meds and food for their familes. The concert is in conjunction with the Vincent P Gurucharri MD foundation that supports cancer patients‚ families. It is a cause that has touched every family.

"I lost my wife, Sandi, a little over a year ago to cancer," says Mark Smith, promoter of the event. "I really wanted to do something for the families that are going through this right now. I felt like I should use my connections as a musician to do the kind of event that would make Sandi proud."

For more, visit concertseries.org.

Fender’s Blacktop guitar series expand the sonic horizon of classic Fender guitars with high-gain humbucking pickups.

The series includes the Blacktop Stratocaster HH, Blacktop Telecaster HH, Blacktop Jazzmaster HS and Blacktop Jaguar HH guitars. All feature dual over-wound alnico humbucking pickups that deliver high-gain power and heavy tones (Blacktop Jazzmaster HS has a single humbucking bridge pickup and traditional Jazzmaster single-coil neck pickup), skirted black amp knobs that impart a distinctive Fender look, modern 9.5"-radius fretboard and medium jumbo frets for easy playability, and a gloss polyester finish that looks sharp and withstands aggressive playing.

In addition to the features above, Blacktop Stratocaster HH features a synchronized tremolo bridge that allows smooth bends with stable intonation, alder body, maple neck, choice of maple or rosewood fretboard, and chrome hardware.

Blacktop Telecaster HH also features a reversed chrome control plate putting both control knobs even closer at hand, a hard-tail bridge for solid tuning stability, an alder body, maple neck, choice of maple or rosewood fretboard, and chrome hardware.

Blacktop Jazzmaster HS has a Duncan Designed single-coil Jazzmaster neck pickup for classic Jazzmaster round tone; a Duncan Designed humbucking bridge pickup that delivers high-gain power and thickness; a Jazzmaster tremolo tailpiece for smooth, subtle bending with solid tuning stability; a lean control layout featuring a single three-way toggle switch; alder body; maple neck; rosewood fretboard; and chrome hardware.

Blacktop Jaguar HH has the shorter 24" scale the model has always been known for, an Adjusto-Matic bridge with stop tailpiece that takes a lot of punishment while keeping tuning stable, a lean control layout featuring a tonally-convenient single three-way toggle switch, alder body, maple neck, rosewood fretboard and chrome hardware.

For more, go to fender.com.

Vox has enhanced its popular Valvetronix amplifier line with the new Valvetronix VT+ Series. Enhancements include more amp models, more effects, more presets and more power.

Unique to the Valvetronix VT+ Series is a new Power Level control. Lowering the Power Level provides full gain tone at modest listening volumes. Turning the Power Level control up into the shaded area of the knob will summon up reserve power (up to an extra 40 Watts), useful for cutting through the mix.

As with all Valvetronix models, the VT+ Series incorporates the VOX Valve Reactor circuit, which places a 12AX7 vacuum tube in the power stage for true tube-amp tone. The preamp/modeling stage includes 33 musically accurate amplifier models, from coveted VOX classics to popular mainstays and exotic boutique amps. Each of the 33 models features three variations – Basic, with Effects and Song – for a total of 99 ready-to-use presets.

The 25 onboard effects are divided into Pedal, Modulation/Delay and Reverb categories, plus Noise Reduction. Multiple categories can be used at once to create richer complex sounds. The effects can be quickly edited and adjusted directly from the amplifier panel.

The Headphone/Lineout jack features Vox emulated speaker response, allowing for full amp/speaker sound when listening through headphones or recording directly. A stereo line input is also provided for jamming to MP3s, CDs, etc. The optional VFS5 footswitch allows hands-free control of effect and reverb on/off, plus control of tap-tempo timing, etc. Learn more at voxamps.com.