Zvex Effects-Vextron Series "Mastotron"

Thought it would be fun to get Amy a little drumpad doodad for her birthday...
Jenny's fancy drumkit...it's more like a work of art!
Really should just trash the Digitech RP80, serial number "p.o.s." Stopped by Guitar Center...wasn't impressed with the thin sound of the Boss Bass Overdrive. Ended up with the Zvex "Mastotron," which gives a nice distortion while maintaining a tight low end.

Love/Cirque du Soleil/The Beatles

Went to Vegas to check out Cirque du Soleil's "Love," which is based around the music of The Beatles. The soundtrack is magnificent--it's almost like listening to a whole new Beatles album. George Martin and his son did a magnificent job on it, layering multiple pre-existing melodies, weaving them almost into entirely new songs.

Don't want to spoil the show for anyone who hasn't gone to see it yet, so I won't talk too much about it. There's a great "Making Of" dvd about the show, that's well worth watching.

"Anvil" the Rockumentary

Just went to see an incredible rockumentary about a struggling Canadian heavy metal band called "Anvil."

It's a touching story--at the heart of which are two friends who met at age fourteen and made a pact to play rock and roll together until the day they die.

The best part of it all is surfing the internet after having seen the movie--it took thirty years, but the band "Anvil" is finally back on track towards the success they'd always dreamed of.

Recording Studio

Last night, I got a chance to walk around Rami Jaffee's recording studio in Van Nuys--he was the Foo Fighter's keyboardist on the album "Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace."
There were some beautiful vintage keyboards and pianos lining the hallways, along with framed record albums that he'd worked on.

The Green Fairy

Le Grand Guignol is the funniest, goriest puppet show in Los Angeles! The original Paris Theatre du Grand Guignol has a 200 year-old "legendary reputation for explicit violence...meant to terrify and titillate the spectator through a mixture of horror (and) laughter..." They retold several fairy tales, such as Rapunzel, as horror plays.

Before the show began, the Green Fairy demonstrated the preparation of absinthe (which among other things, involved setting a cube of sugar on fire). It was like stepping into a scene from "Moulin Rouge."

Aussie Pink Floyd

Despite the fact that they were not THE Pink Floyd, the Australians who performed at the Gibson this week, proved that they were worthy purveyors of "The Wall." At any rate, I was sitting front row center, and had an amazing view. To top it off, the band re-appeared for an encore performance, which lasted an additional hour-and-a-half.

The best performance of the evening was their incredible rendition of "Comfortably Numb." In all, the concert proved that "The Wall" is a work of undoubted genius.

Funny Quote from the Blue Man Group

The Blue Man Group has a new show, based on the idea of How to Be a Rock Star.

One of the best quotes from the founders of the Blue Man Group, is "You can make up for a lack of talent, by being funny."

McCabe's Guitar Shop

We've been trying to start a band at work, so I've left my Badtzmaru Fender bass at the office. With nothing to practice on at home, I've bought a red flamed-maple Hofner Icon. A coworker said I should give it a name like "Lucille"...maybe I'll call it "Abbey." I bought RotoSound black nylon strings for it--the same kind Paul McCartney used on the album "Abbey Road."

Unfortunately, the action is too high, and if you tune at the fifth fret, it isn't in tune on the rest of the fretboard. Jim recommended I have it properly set up, at McCabe's Guitar Shop in Santa Monica.

One of the first things the luthier said, was that the bridge should be closer to the pickup. Hope the neck isn't all out of wack...

I've also heard that McCabe's is famous for its concerts--the place is so tiny and crammed with guitars, I have no idea where they'd set up a stage. At any rate, I'll definitely try to check out their next gig.