Guitar Noize - guitar news, crazy guitar designs and cool guitar videos

The MXR Dyna Comp that was produced in 1976 has long been regarded as the ultimate stomp box compressor. There’s something inherently musical in the way it “tightens up” a guitar signal, raising the volume of quiet notes and leveling off peaks to create rich, full bodied sustain. From country twangers to metal monsters, guitarists have long relied on the MXR Dyna Comp to make their riffs stand tall in any live or studio mix. Now the MXR Custom Shop brings back that highly sought-after sound with the ‘76 Vintage Dyna Comp. Meticulously researched and superbly crafted, it features the exact same circuitry used in the original 1976 Dyna Comp, identical in its component layout, silkscreen and handmade wire harness. The key component is the old school CA3080 “metal can” integrated circuit (IC), which yields quieter operation, greater transparency and increased dynamic range. These ICs have been out of production since the ‘80s, but MXR has tracked down a stash of them - enough to produce a limited run of these little red boxes of compression bliss. With supplies limited, the MXR ‘76 Vintage Dyna Comp is destined to quickly become as ultra collectible as its noble ancestor. So get yours now. Available only from the MXR Custom Shop.

I think you will agree when you hear the demo above that this is a really nice sounding compressor. This is a really vintage tone lover’s pedal so if you are put off by the lack of LED and mains input you can get the pedal modded by your local effects specialist. If you are in Australia then Christian from Cubis Effects is your man.

In this first demonstration of my stunning new Suhr S4 I show the different clean sounds possible from each pickup selector position. To add a bit of top end sparkle to my Genz Benz Black Pearl amp I used a Suhr Koko Boost set to halfway, this pedal is an amazing clean boost which really brings out the character of my amp and seems to add a little extra clarity. I mic’d my amp using an Audix i5 Dynamic Microphone held in place by an Audix CabGrabber (http://audixusa.com).

Coming soon I will post a demo of my S4 with Overdriven tones to show you how this Strat style guitar is capable of incredible rock tones.

The riff in the demo is an attempt at the intro to Hairflip by Josh Smith from the album Inception. Check out my review of the album here and to hear some of the tracks streaming check out Josh’s MySpace page.

http://joshsmithguitar.com

Pre-order your copy of Black Rock here.

I think I said something similar last release, but I can’t believe Joe Bonamassa is only 32 and Black Rock is his 10th, yes you read that correctly, 10th solo album release. That doesn’t include the Bloodline album either… crazy. Last year Joe released in my opinion his finest album to date, The Ballad Of John Henry, not only that he sold out the Royal Albert Hall which he filmed for an awesome live DVD. You would think after such extensive touring and appearances on shows such as Jools Holland he would take a break, but no, not only is Joe currently recording an album with his new project Black Country with Jason Bonham but he has somehow found time to record a new solo album!

Black Rock was recorded at Black Rock Studios, Santorini, Greece hence the album title. It has a few greek influences thrown in such as on the track Bird On A Wire, one of the outstanding tracks on Black Rock, which has a Clarino I believe in the intro and it sounds like a Bazouki and maybe Mandolin in the background fused with drums that sound like John Bonham. This track is actually a cover of the Leonard Cohen track and yet again Joe Bonamassa shows his excellent arrangement skills by transforming not only this track but also Jeff Beck’s Spanish Boots and Otis Rush’s Three Times A Fool.

One of the highlights on this album is Joe’s cover of Willie Nelson’s Night Life featuring the always incredible B.B. King, the man who recognised the talent of Joe at an early age. Joe and B.B.‘s playing compliment each other well, as do their vocals. I love hearing how different their styles of playing are, B.B. is tasteful and soulful and Joe has more of an aggressive attacking style with a smoking tone.

There are a couple of tracks on this album, Three Times A Fool and Look Over Yonders Wall that reminded me of Clapton, both in tone and playing. It is amazing what a Chameleon Joe is. Joe plays slide on a track called When The Fire Hits The Sea which at first I thought he sounded like Derek Trucks on then I realised, no he sounds like Joe Bonamassa with thick creamy tone and phrasing that draws on classic blues slide players mixed with modern influences.

I can’t review this album without making some Led Zeppelin references, Joe is obviously a fan and has even recently formed a band with the late Zep drummer John Bonham’s son Jason as I have already mentioned. There are a few tracks on this album that obviously draw inspiration from Led Zep and he even seems to replicate some Jimmy Page tones on certain tracks. The opener Steal Your Heart Away for instance, which is a cover of the Bobby Parker track, has a Jimmy Page kind of stomping rock riff and tone but then launches into a solo that would make Eric Johnson himself put his guitar down and weep. Also Blue and Evil, another great track has with some breath-taking guitar playing and a riff that wouldn’t be out of place in Kashmir. I’m not saying that the album is ripping off Led Zeppelin I can just hear a lot of influence in Joe’s playing, tone and writing which not many people could achieve with such originality and style.

The Ballad Of John Henry was quite an album to try and follow, Black Rock is a great album and an example of great songwriting, arrangements and of course guitar playing and tone. Joe experiments with guitar tone more than most which brings a nice quality to each track, you never tire of hearing that same sound although and yet it is always unmistakably Joe. Is this album better than The Ballad Of John Henry? Well it is difficult to compare because this album has a totally different feel to it. I love The Ballad Of John Henry, it was my favourite album of 2009 chock full of incredible covers and originals. Black Rock doesn’t quite have the same initial impact for me but grows on you with each listen and after 10 or so listens start to finish I can say that this is probably going to be one of the most played albums in my iTunes this year.

UPDATE: after being asked whether it is a “...heavy-blues album? or a more melodic one such as the last one?”
Well the answer is a bit of both but it definitely has more of a rock vibe than the last album and has some great dirty heavy blues tracks such as When The Fire Hits The Sea, Three Times A Fool, Wandering Earth (very “Since I’ve Been Loving You” - Zep). Also a folky old school acoustic blues style track called Athens To Athens. But then it has moments of Rock Blues that will knock you off your feet.

I hope Joe pulls a few of these new tracks out when he plays Sydney next month!

You can pre-order your copy of Black Rock here.

Joe Bonamassa Official Website

I’ve found a new guitar hero and he’s not a pointy guitar wielding shredder, don’t get me wrong Josh Smith has the chops to keep up with the most seasoned fretboard gymnast but Josh plays a combination of instrumental blues, funk and jazzy pop with a kind of Hendrix feel. I was sent Josh’s new release “Inception” after hearing a few tracks on his MySpace page and being immediately impressed. I’m not sure I’ve ever owned a blues guitar instrumental album before, those albums usually come in a rock flavour and can wear your ears down pretty quickly, not so with Inception this album oozes some of the greatest blues tones you will ever hear. Josh plays a combination of Bludotone and Mad Professor amps and he also endorses guitars by Chapin, Ruokangas and Gibson which produce some incredible combinations.

The album opens with a track called Bemsha Swing which I believe was originally written by Thelonius Monk and features a brass section and some beautiful jazzy blues playing. It is a nice way to open the album but doesn’t have the impact of my favourite track Fulfillment which I would have chosen, this track is just a brilliant swinging track from start to finish with the Hammond jangling away and the horns playing dissonant stabs. It also features some tasty playing with a great “chewy”, I believe is the adjective I’m looking for, tone.

The next track Hairflip is another favourite for me, great funky melody and nice use of the Hammond and Horn section who leave plenty of room for the melody to breathe. Also another track that tickled my fancy is Penance which is a slow blues, kind of reminded me of Gary Moore but without the singing and a single coil guitar! There is a great crescendo at the end of the track Canyon where Josh has a Hendrix/Trower moment with overdriven Wah.

Josh shows that he is not a one trick pony with his slide playing on Just Within Reach and his chicken pickin’ on the rockabilly track Propulsion which as always with these kind of tracks are a lot of fun to listen to and I bet much harder to play than they sound!

This album is a serious contender for the album of the year for me and its only the 3rd week of January but it is so much fun to listen to I’ve had it on constant rotation since Josh sent it to me.

In case you haven’t heard of Rob Balducci yet here is a little background for you, Rob is a native of New York where he won a contest back in 1990 sponsored by Guitar For The Practicing Musician (I loved that mag!) proclaiming him as New York’s best guitarist. Since then Rob Balducci has defined himself as a guitarist, musician, composer and one of the most sought after instructors in New York. Rob has a popular YouTube Channel where he does “Lick Of The Week”, not to be confused with fellow Favored Nation’s artist and Steve Vai band member Dave Weiner’s Riff Of The Week. Don’t worry they are friends, Dave even features on Violet Horizon!

Rob has this to say about his music:

“There’s this cliche that instrumental guitar music has gotten to be too much of a vehicle for soloing and showing off technique. That’s completely the opposite of what I’m trying to do. My music is really like vocal songs with the guitar as the vocals.”

Balducci’s newest 2009 Favored Nations CD (Steve Vai’s label) is titled Violet Horizon and features 15 new tracks with special guest appearances by Guthrie Govan and Dave Weiner. The album essentially follows in the footsteps of the great guitar albums of the 80s with rocking rhythms and tasteful melodies with a smattering of jaw dropping shred solos. There are some great riffs like the George Lynch-esque Shape Shifter intro and the Wah octave bends in Friction that Steve Vai would be proud of. Guthrie’s solo on Sleestack is, as always, enough to make you want to give up playing guitar and a great conclusion to a track full of blistering solos and moments of “neo-classical” style licks. Dave Weiner also lays down a nice solo among the twisted melodies and driving rhythms of Devil’s Juice,

The album isn’t all fast paced rock though there are plenty of slower tracks which give the album a bit of light and shade. The title track for instance is a bluesy solo that wouldn’t be out of place on a Pink Floyd album and there are a couple of ballady tracks such as The Essence which has a nice bit of Whammy Pedal usage throughout. Trinity is another slow track with a bluesy swing to it.

If you like listening to guitar instrumental music from artists as Steve Vai, Joe Satriani and Andy Timmons then check out Rob Balducci’s Violet Horizon.

Rob is also currently working on his debut instructional DVD for The Rock House Method.

Rob Balducci’s official site
Rob’s MySpace page
Rob’s Facebook Page
Rob’s YouTube Channel - Lick Of The Week

Regular readers of Guitar Noize will know that I have a penchant for blues and I get very excited when I discover a new artist who is following in the footsteps of the greats who have preceeded him.

Here is a little background on Marcus:

Marcus was born in North London and from an early age was played Joe Cocker, Janis Joplin, Jimi Hendrix and an array of blues and folk by his mother and father who made him tapes of old LP’s he owned, Marcus proceeded to break these tapes through over playing quicker than his dad could make them till he was given a guitar made from a shoe box and elastic bands to keep him occupied. It wasn’t till 12 years later at the age of 15 he actually picked up a real guitar.

Heavily steeped in delta blues his music combines elements of folk, rock and soul. He has been likened to a modern John Martyn, Seasick Steve and Tom Waits.

“What Good Am I To You?” opens with a track called “Will Not Play Your Game” and it is impossible not to make a comparison to Seasick Steve, especially the gravelly voice which defies his youthful looks and fingerpicked acoustic guitar playing but Marcus isn’t a one man band and when the band kicks in this track falls into a deep funky blues groove that will instantly make your foot tap and head nod. The production is very slick and everything sits perfectly in its virtual audio space when you listen with headphones, the electric slide sitting just off to the right and the hummed multiple backing vocals that seem to sit on either shoulder and make the sides of your head vibrate. This is a killer opening track that sets the album up very nicely.

There are elements of southern rock, country and folk all over this album which can be heard on the 2nd track “Goin Down” whereas the 3rd track “Messin Round No More” is a more traditional blues style which you could expect someone like Buddy Guy to play, and he pulls it off perfectly.

There is some nice acoustic fingerpicking across this album too as I mentioned on the opening track, and the track “Devil Girl” which has a folky laid back feel and a strong groove akin to the John Butler Trio.

There is also a great track called “Tweed Blazer” which is like Stevie Ray Vaughan’s “Rude Mood” although the guitars with the slapback on sound a bit more surfy.

The title track “What Good Am I To You?” is in 2 parts, the first part reminded me of Keb Mo’ whereas part 2 is more Rolling Stones with its honky tonk piano parts.

“God Only Knows” is just voice and blues harp and you can imagine Marcus buskin’ this track on the streets of London. I still can’t believe this music is by a white guy from London?!

The cheekily titled track “Give Me Your Cash” is available as a free download using the widget below so I will let you listen and make your own mind up about this track, it displays Marcus’ slide skills and some down and dirty blues riffin’.

It is not often I come across a new blues artist that has a complete mastery of all the different styles of blues and roots that even though there are hints of influences on all of his music Marcus Bonfanti still has his own defined voice. Marcus doesn’t try to reinvent the wheel, he simply uses his influences to guide his compositions and mould them into great songs.

www.marcusbonfanti.com - Official Site
www.myspace.com/marcusbonfantimusic - Marcus on MySpace