The Guitar Channel

Paul Gilbert Interview for Guitar International

Matt Warnock has conducted a great interview with Paul Gilbert for Guitar International. Gilbert discusses gear, his time on the G3 tour, and his latest album Fuzz Universe.

Guitar International - Paul Gilbert: The "Fuzz Universe" Interview

My Interview with Alex Machacek

Guitarist Alex Machacek's latest album 24 Tales - featuring drummer Marco Minnemann - is one of the most amazing releases of 2010 (read my full review here). I interviewed Alex recently for Abstract Logix to discuss the inner workings of this incredible disc, as well as his approach to composition, and his plans for the future. You can read the interview at ABLX, or here at The Guitar Channel via the link below.

Interview: Alex Machacek

Videos: Kirk Fletcher with Phunkalotapus - Live at The Baked Potato

Two videos of Phunkalotapus playing the Baked Potato on May 26th 2010. Check out the XoticGuitars YouTube channel for more clips. Phunkalotapus features Kirk Fletcher on guitar, Gene Coye on drums, Travis Carlton on bass, and Luke Miller on keys.

Jimmy Herring to sit in with the Les Paul Trio

The Iridium Jazz Club in New York hosts a Les Paul Tribute every Monday featuring different guest guitarists sitting in with the Les Paul Trio (Les played the Iridium every Monday night for 13 years before his passing in 2009). It was recently announced that Jimmy Herring will be the guest on Monday August 16th. Jimmy will be playing the Iridium Aug 13th-15th as well with Lenny White's band.

Review: Mark Papagno Trio

The debut album from Baltimore's Mark Papagno Trio is a fine fusion recording that has strong shades of Allan Holdsworth's work, mixed with straight-ahead jazz sensibilities. Joining guitarist Papagno are Joshua Davis (Tim Miller) on double bass, and Todd Harrison (Jazz Ambassadors) on drums. All of Trio's tracks were written by Papagno, and are largely driven by his jazzy chordal melodies and lyrical improvised lines. The music is very advanced from a harmonic standpoint, but it's delivered with a raw, live approach that allows the songs to breath.

With his smooth overdriven lead tone, fast legato lines, and head scratch-inducing chords, Papagno will certainly draw comparisons to Holdsworth. However, there's an airy, Tim Miller-like quality in his playing and writing as well. And while Papagno's solos do have that inquisitive, searching quality that many legato-style players possess, he rarely sounds like he's "noodling." No matter how crazy his lines may be, he always manages to land on his feet, thanks in large part to his strong vibrato and phrasing.

One of the 'X' factors that gives Papagno's trio it's own sound is Davis' double bass work. It's a refreshing change to hear acoustic bass utilized in a genre so dominated by the electric variety. Davis adds a welcome, straight-ahead touch to this music, not only with his sound, but with his chops as well.

Trio features 14 tracks in all, with several of the tunes clocking in at under two minutes in length. These short pieces have an interlude-like quality which really ties the album together when listening to the disc from beginning to end. The record opens with a bang with the appropriately titled "Open" - a minute-long barrage of wild guitar runs played over Harrison's frenetic drumming. The second track "Alchemy" follows a more standard format, and provides a good example of Papagno's improvisational skills. His solo is loaded with great fast runs, and chromatic patterns. "Textures" and "Guiding Lines" are two more great showcases for Papagno's playing. Davis' contributions really come to bear on "The Constant" where he takes a great extended solo over some fine drum work by Harrison. The album's strongest piece, however, may be "Halo." While is does feature rich, clean-tone chords which is a common trait throughout the disc, this song also builds in intensity like no other track. By the time Papagno reaches his solo spot, he's laying into the chords with an overdriven tone, and the whole band is right there with him.

There are several solo guitar pieces on the album as well, such "Grey" which features some beautiful arpeggiated chords, and "Echoes" where Papagno uses volume swells to add a haunting, atmospheric mood. With "Light And Dark," Papagno take a different approach and kicks in the gain for some single-note lines in the middle of the piece.

Trio is a strong debut from Papagno, and is a fine showcase for his highly developed playing and improv skills. He also proves himself to be a great writer in the jazz fusion realm, and he clearly has the right bandmates to pull off his songs in a compelling way. I definitely want to hear more from Papagno and his trio in the future.


Mark Papagno Trio

Personnel:

Mark Papagno - Guitar
Joshua Davis - Bass
Todd Harrison - Drums

Tracklisting:

1. Open
2. Alchemy
3. Grey
4. Textures
5. Edge
6. Light And Dark
7. The Constant
8. Guiding Lines
9. Arrow In The Blue
10. Synthesis
11. Wave
12. Halo
13. Echoes
14. Across Night Skies

http://markpapagnomusic.com/

Rich

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Win a copy of the new Lee Ritenour album!

Contest time! I'm giving away one copy of guitarist Lee Ritenour's new album 6 String Theory. This amazing tribute to the instrument features 20 guest guitarists including Steve Lukather, John Scofield, B.B. King, Mike Stern, Joe Bonamassa, Guthrie Govan, George Benson, Pat Martino, Neal Schon and Slash, among others. Bassist Tal Wilkenfeld also appears on several tracks, as does drummer Vinnie Colaiuta.

For your chance to win, send an email to [email protected] with the subject Lee Ritenour CD Giveaway. On Monday July 19th, I will choose one email at random and announce the winner on the site. One entry per person please; past Guitar Channel contest winners are not eligible. Good Luck!

Michael Landau Fall European Tour Dates

Here is the current list of Michael Landau European tour dates for this coming fall. These shows will feature Andy Hess on bass, and Gary Novak on drums.

OCTOBER 16 - MUNSTER (Germany), HOT JAZZ CLUB
OCTOBER 18 - ZOETERMEER (Holland), DE BOERDERIJ
OCTOBER 19 - VERVIERS (Belgium), SPIRIT of 66
OCTOBER 20 - INGOLSTADT (Germany), BUERGERHAUS
OCTOBER 21 - INNSBRUCK (Austria), TREIBHAUS
OCTOBER 22 - STOCKHOLM (Sweden), FASCHING JAZZ CLUB
OCTOBER 23 - GOTHENBURG (Sweden), NEFERTITI JAZZ CLUB
OCTOBER 25 - OSTRAVA (Czech Republic), PARNIK CLUB
OCTOBER 26 - PRAGUE (Czech Republic), LUCERNA MUSIC CLUB
OCTOBER 27 - KARLSRUHE (Germany), JUBEZ CLUB
OCTOBER 28 - KASSEL (Germany), KULTURZENTRUM SCHLACHTHOF
OCTOBER 31 - BUDAPEST (Hungary), A38 CLUB
NOVEMBER 02 - GRAZ (Austria), GENERAL MUSIC DIRECTION
NOVEMBER 06 - MILAN (Italy), BLUE NOTE CLUB

via Huge Racks Inc and EMMECI

Jeff Beck Video Interview for Guitar Center

Saw these on Guitar Noize: Three video clips of a recent Jeff Beck Interview for Guitar Center TV.

Chasing the Treble

Genre Jumping

Page, Clapton and the Yardbirds