* updated 7/1/2009
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Featured in Premier Guitar, December
2008!
July 2009:
| * The Nutcutters (6 picks) | * Darkest Hour (6 picks) | * Winds of Plague (1 pick) |
| * Evergreen Terrace (1 pick) | * Rovballebandet (Finland; 3 picks) | * Payable on Death (P.O.D.) (1 pick) |
| * Tumbledown (Mike Herrera; 1 pick) | * Astral Doors (Sweden; 1 pick) | * A Skylit Drive (1 pick) |
| * Attick Demons (19 picks) |
June 2009:
| * monkEyPuzZLe (2 picks) | * Guitar Center (22 picks) | * Default (13 picks) |
| * 10 Years (4 picks) | * Tesla (6 picks) | * Korn (3 picks) |
| * Disturbed (16 picks) | * Ithaca College Bureau of Concerts (1 pick) | * Gojira (4 picks) |
| * Maroon 5 (2 picks) | * The All American Rejects (15 picks) | * Bon Jovi (7 picks) |
| * The Used (1 pick) | * Ten Years After (13 picks) | * Dweezil Zappa (3 picks) |
| * Pete Griffin (1 pick) | * Epica (Netherlands; 3 picks) | * Sander Veenstra (Netherlands; 34 picks) |
| * Peavey (1 pick) | * Wild West Guitars (California; 1 pick) | * Alice in Chains (1 pick) |
| * Moke (Netherlands; 2 picks) | * NyXx (Netherlands; 3 picks) | * Mooi Wark (Netherlands; 6 picks) |
| * Unwritten Law (1 pick) | * Queensryche (6 new 2009 picks!) | * Bad Company (1 pick) |
| * Deana Carter (5 picks) | * Trace Adkins (1 pick) | * Hepcazz (Germany; 3 picks) |
| * ST (Netherlands; 2 picks) | * The Breeze (Netherlands; 4 picks) | * Misse Varve (Netherlands; 4 picks) |
| * Hail Satan (1 pick) | * Cor Smit (Netherlands; 2 picks) | * Stone Sour (2 picks) |
| * Roland (1 pick) | * Trans-Siberian Orchestra (14 picks) | * Elco Doctor (Netherlands; 1 pick) |
| * Aidan Mullen (2 picks) | * Pascal Ferrazzini (Switzerland; 13 picks) | * Stryper (3 picks) |
| * Kreator (3 picks) | * The Shotgun Suicides (Chicago; 1 pick) | * Cropment (1 pick) |
| * AC/DC (9 picks) | * Back in Black (AC/DC Tribute; 8 picks) | * High Voltage (AC/DC Tribute; 9 picks) |
| * Def Leppard (10 picks) | * Disaster Control (Canada; 5 picks) | * Walls of Jericho (2 picks) |
| * Cradle of Filth (1 pick) | * Vital Remains (1 pick) | * Unrest (Germany; 1 pick) |
| * Rage (Germany; 1 pick) | * Unleashed Power (New Jersey; 1 pick) | * Weezy Bottom (Kentucky; 7 picks) |
| * Halestorm (6 picks) | * No Use For A Name (2 picks) | * Alligator Music (Sparta, Illinois; 1 pick) |
| * Budweiser (2 picks) | * Less Than Jake (4 picks) | * Ace Frehley (24 City picks!) |
| * Lynch Mob (15 picks) | * Soul Invaders (Germany; 1 pick) | * Engel in Zivil (Germany; 2 picks) |
| * Ian Wilson (Toronto; 1 pick) | * The Goo Goo Dolls (3 picks) | * Gigart.com (rock poster artist; 8 picks) |
| * Diecast (1 pick) | * Bob Duperry (Gainesville; 1 pick) | * Robert Vutolen (Sweden; 3 picks) |
| * Jewel (1 pick) | * Pat Beijers (Netherlands; 3 pick) | * Heart (5 picks) |
| * Sacrilege (2 picks) | * Little Feat (1 pick) | * Miranda Lambert (3 picks) |
| * New Found Glory (2 new picks!) | * Testament (34 picks) | * Helloween (19 picks) |
| * Dragonlord (3 picks) | * Sadus (3 picks) | * Savatage (8 picks) |
| * Disincarnate (1 pick) | * Nevermore (5 picks) | * Skid Row (46 picks) |
| * A Day To Remember (5 picks) | * The Devil Wears Prada (4 picks) | * Underoath (2 picks) |
| * In This Moment (7 picks) | * Thrice (3 picks) | * Warped Tour (4 picks) |
| * Black Tide (2 picks) | * Bayside (5 picks) | * Saosin (4 picks) |
| * Anti-Flag (1 pick) | * Gallows (1 pick) | * Toy Grenades (Gainesville; 1 pick) |
| * Shadows Fall (1 pick) | * Poison (35 picks) | * Snowchain (Switzerland; 1 pick) |
| * Immortal (1 pick) | * Killswitch Engage (17 picks) | * Southgang (4 picks) |
| * Senses Fail (1 pick) | * Papa Wheelie (Jason Newsted; 1 pick) | * Supernova (1 pick) |
| * Skumlove (Hollywood; 1 pick) | * Metallica (1 new City pick!) | * Hippies & Pilots (Gainesville; 2 picks) |
| * 13 Sins (Gainesville; 1 pick) | * Stevie Leavitt (Boston; 2 picks) | * Fuze (1 pick) |
| * Pat Lucero (Las Vegas; 6 picks) |
May 2009:
| * Sonic Youth (1 pick) | * Destruction (5 picks) | * Stephan Gehlhaar (Germany; 1 pick) |
| * Silent Memories (Barcelona; 2 picks) | * EGOpicks (9 picks) | * Crisis Jane (Winnepeg; 3 picks) |
| * Happy Mayhem (Winnepeg; 2 picks) | * Fusebox (Niagara; 2 picks) | * Saga (Ontario; 2 picks) |
| * PRB Experience (Netherlands; 2 picks) | * Corelyn (Barcelona; 2 picks) | * Wedgie (Tucson; 2 picks) |
| * Makeshift Innocence (Calgary; 2 picks) | * Step Echo (Ontario; 7 picks) | * Lift 15 (Calgary; 2 picks) |
| * Rustin Hiatt (South Carolina; 1 pick) | * Cold (3 picks) | * The Haunted (5 picks) |
| * Macbeth (Italy; 1 pick) | * Chris Cornell (8 picks) | * Smile Empty Soul (1 pick) |
| * Bad Moon Rising (4 picks) | * KISS Expo Canada 2003 (1 pick) | * Motley Crue (22 picks) |
| * Sixx AM (10 picks) | * Confront (Boston; 1 pick) | * Haloburn (Boston; 2 picks) |
| * Kaledon (Italy; 1 pick) | * MxPx (11 picks) | * KISS (19 Ace 'city' picks!) |
| * The Last Vegas (1 pick) | * Rise Against (4 picks) | * moe. (5 picks) |
| * All That Remains (6 picks) | * Static X (2 new picks!) | * Dope (4 picks) |
| * Laguna Guitars (1 pick) | * Relentless Energy Drink (1 pick) | * George Lynch (4 picks) |
| * Chimaira (8 picks) | * Dokken (2 picks) | * Dirge Within (1 pick) |
| * Santana (2 picks) | * Kill the Alarm (New York; 2 picks) | * Sacred 13 (Pennsylvania; 1 pick) |
| * Bai Bang (Sweden; 3 picks) | * Ricardo Primata (Brazil; 2 picks) | * Filter (1 pick) |
| * Alan Ralph (San Francisco; 2 new pick!) | * The Matches (2 picks) | * Supersuckers (1 pick) |
| * Revolver Magazine (1 pick) | * Candlebox (7 picks) | * Silver Needle (Los Angeles; 1 pick) |
| * Revolution Mother (Long Beach; 1 pick) | * Pat Green (1 pick) | * Pantera (4 picks) |
| * Sum 41 (3 new picks!) | * Brah (Louisiana; 1 pick) | * Lit (1 pick) |
| * Korpiklaani (Finland; 1 new pick!) | * Buckcherry (5 picks) | * Blackguard (5 new picks!) |
| * Chickenfoot (3 new picks!) | * John Mellencamp (2 picks) | * Sevendust (24 picks) |
| * Sex and Violins (1 pick) | * KISS (11 picks) | * SR-71 (2 picks) |
| * Big Vin Records (1 pick) | * Vincent Stamile III (1 pick) | * Gruhn Guitars (Nashville; 1 pick) |
| * Toneman (Houston; 1 pick) | * Mongrel (Massachusetts; 1 pick) | * B.B. King (1 pick) |
| * Guns N Roses (2 picks) | * David Allen Coe (3 picks) | * Drive A (Los Angeles; 1 pick) |
| * Saints of Ruin (San Francisco; 3 picks) | * As I Lay Dying (19 picks) |
April 2009:
| * Anthrax (73 picks) | * Stormtroopers of Death (1 pick) | * The Cult (7 picks) |
| * San Jose Sharks (Brad Lukowich) (2 picks) | * Norma Jean (2 picks) | * Alesana (2 picks) |
| * Saves the Day (1 pick) | * Robert Earl Keen (1 pick) | * 3rd Encore (1 pick) |
| * Farewell (1 pick) | * Relentless Seven (1 pick) | * Lamb of God (1 new pick!) |
| * Forbidden (4 picks) | * God Forbid (1 pick) | * Suicidal Tendencies (2 new picks!) |
| * Children of Bodom (1 pick) | * Frehley's Comet (12 picks) | * Bleeding Through (3 picks) |
| * A New Revolution (3 new picks!) | * A Fire Inside (AFI) (1 pick) | * Ryan Adams (6 picks) |
| * Papa Roach (6 picks) | * Megadeth (3 picks) | * The Expendables (1 new pick!) |
| * Thornley (5 picks) | * Metallica (3 new picks!) | * Cheap Trick (5 picks) |
| * Linkin Park (2 picks) | * Green Day (12 picks) | * Robben Ford (1 pick) |
| * Fall Out Boy (1 pick) | * Dragonforce (17 picks) | * Edguy (4 picks) |
| * CellOut (19 picks) | * Marilyn Manson (1 pick) | * Jo Dee Messina (10 picks) |
| * KISS Coffee House (Myrtle Beach; 5 picks) | * The Black Crowes (3 picks) | * Luke Bryan (2 new picks!) |
| * The Academy Is... (6 picks) | * Hanson (1 pick) | * Doobie Brothers (1 pick) |
| * Switchfoot (2 picks) | * Mago de Oz (3 picks) | * Advent (Mexico; 1 pick) |
| * Pink (1 pick) | * Avatar (Mexico; 1 pick) | * Dali Gaggers (1 pick) |
| * Y&T (2 picks) | * Pearl Jam (2 picks) | * White Lies (1 pick) |
| * Styx (10 picks) | * Koen de Gussem (1 pick) | * Atreyu (13 picks) |
| * Scum of the Earth (1 pick) | * Mudvayne (2 new picks!) | * Belladonna (4 picks) |
| * The Black Mollys (1 pick) | * Praxxis (Houston; 2 picks) | * MyFineVine.com (1 pick) |
| * Helmet (5 picks) | * The Drama Club (1 pick) | * Taylor Swift (3 picks) |
| * Intronaut (2 picks) | * Leland Nelson (1 pick) | * Chimaira (4 new picks!) |
| * Asesino (1 pick) | * Spineshank (3 new picks!) | * Exodus (10 picks) |
| * Pat Benatar (3 picks) | * Foreigner (1 pick) | * Whitesnake (57 picks) |
| * Bring Me The Horizon (2 new picks!) | * Plain White T's (4 picks) | * Smash Mouth (4 picks) |
| * Keith Urban (1 pick) | * Nickelback (11 picks) | * Simple Plan (3 picks) |
| * Trapt (10 picks) | * Breaking Benjamin (19 picks) | * Wett Boxx Entertainment (8 picks) |
| * Shinedown (23 picks) | * Meep's World (1 pick) | * Theory of a Deadman (16 picks) |
March 2009:
| * Slayer (4 picks) | * Pop Evil (7 picks) | * Helix (17 picks) |
| * Nonpoint (12 picks) | * Keith Anderson (2 picks) | * Black Stone Cherry (3 new picks!) |
| * Bobaflex (1 pick) | * Lacuna Coil (16 picks) | * Umphrey's McGee (1 new pick!) |
| * Hotel California (1 pick) | * Jamie Kime (1 new pick!) | * Cancer Bats (1 new pick!) |
| * Set Your Goals (2 new picks!) | * Deadstar Assembly (1 pick) | * 38 Special (1 pick) |
| * Carcass (3 new picks!) | * Death Angel (2 new picks!) | * Darkane (2 picks) |
| * Tempestt (Brazil; 4 new picks!) | * Black Label Society (photo pass) | * Anthrax (4 picks) |
| * AC/DC (5 picks) | * Kagrra (1 pick) | * Saliva (1 pick) |
| * Fear Factory (14 picks) | * Sepultura (8 picks) | * The Black Dahlia Murder (1 pick) |
| * Rob Zombie (2 picks) | * Madonna (5 picks) | * Barenaked Ladies (1 pick) |
| * Van Halen (2 picks) | * Hard Rock Casino (Tampa; 9 picks) | * Pretenders (3 picks) |
| * Jason Aldean (1 pick) | * All Shall Perish (2 picks) | * Nine Inch Nails (2 picks) |
| * ROKK Clothing (1 pick) | * Lenny Kravitz (1 pick) | * Mobile Deathcamp (1 pick) |
| * Sheryl Crow (1 pick) | * Seymour Duncan (1 pick) | * Paul McCartney (3 picks) |
| * Audioslave (1 pick) | * Queens of the Stone Age (1 pick) | * The Faceless (1 new pick!) |
| * Surrealm.net (4 picks) | * Iron Maiden (6 picks) | * DOWN (2 picks) |
| * Impending Doom (3 new picks!) | * Overkill (3 picks) | * Changes (Germany; 31 picks) |
| * Joe Bonamassa (1 pick) | * Asher Guitars (2 picks) | * Blue October (4 picks) |
| * Millencolin (1 new pick!) | * The Briggs (1 pick) | * Anarbor (1 pick) |
| * Wicked Sins (1 pick) | * Converse (2 picks) |
February 2009:
| * Wednesday 13 (2 new picks!) | * Black Label Society (9 picks) | * Molotov (Mexico; 1 new pick!) |
| * Halford (1 pick) | * Trash Monkey (U.K.; 1 pick) | * Blondie (1 pick) |
| * Avenged Sevenfold (2 new picks!) | * Slipknot (2 Mick Thomson picks!) | * Gigan (1 pick) |
| * Counting Crows (2 picks) | * Damageplan (1 DIME pick) | * Doug Wright (1 pick) |
| * Billy Idol (1 pick) | * Black Sabbath (3 picks) | * Hall and Oates (2 picks) |
| * Katy Perry (1 pick) | * Sammy Hagar ('Sam I Am' pick) | * Velvet Revolver (1 pick) |
| * Meshuggah (1 pick) | * Cynic (1 pick) | * Attick Demons (Portugal; 8 new picks!) |
| * U.D.O. (1 pick) | * Dave Sixx (Italy; 1 pick) | * David Shankle Group (1 pick) |
| * Lava Cable (6 picks) | * Pickin' For Sick Children (2 picks) | * Breedlove Guitar Company (5 picks) |
| * Guitar For Dummies (1 pick) | * Guitars in the Classroom (1 pick) | * Unk Guitars (1 pick) |
| * Palmerino Music (Windsor, CA; 1 pick) | * Fat Boy Accessories (2 picks) | * Bourns (1 pick) |
| * WaveAngle (1 pick) | * Guyatone (1 pick) | * Satellite Amplifiers (1 pick) |
| * Dropkick Murphys (4 new picks!) | * Deicide (1 new pick!) | * Zebrahead (6 picks) |
| * Dirty Rotten Imbeciles (1 pick) | * Twisted Sister (3 picks) | * Slipknot (4 picks) |
| * Britney Spears (Skip Dorsey; 2 picks) | * Black Label Society (10 picks) | * Keel (1 new pick!) |
| * Robbie Williams (2 new picks!) | * Skinless (1 picks) | * Black President (1 pick) |
| * Bright Light Fever (Sacramento; 3 picks) | * Rev Theory (1 pick) | * Michael Bolton (1 pick) |
| * Seether (1 pick) | * Daughtry (2 picks) | * Dope (1 pick) |
| * Resurrection (1 pick) | * Hatecore, Inc. (Akron, OH; 1 pick) | * Napster.com (1 pick) |
| * NOFX (3 picks) |
January 2009:
| * Ratdog (3 picks) | * The (Grateful) Dead (19 picks) | * Reel Big Fish (1 pick) |
| * Machine Head (4 brand new picks!) | * White Lion (1 pick) | * F5 (Dave Ellefson; 1 pick) |
| * Toxic Holocaust (2 new picks!) | * 3 Inches of Blood (1 pick) | * Dimmu Borgir (2008 photo pass) |
| * Velvet Revolver (2008 photo pass) | * Rancid (2008 photo wristband) | * Serj Tankian (2008 photo pass) |
| * Children of Bodom (2008 photo pass) | * Foo Fighters (2008 photo pass) | * In Flames (22 picks) |
| * Sammy Hagar (4 picks) | * Cavalera Conspiracy (2008 photo pass) | * Alkaline Trio (2008 photo pass) |
| * Bullet For My Valentine (2008 photo pass) | * All That Remains (2008 photo pass) | * Steel Tormentor (1 pick) |
| * Elvis Presley (1 pick) | * Opeth (2008 photo pass) | * Mudvayne (2008 photo pass) |
| * Flogging Molly (2008 photo pass) | * Judas Priest (2008 photo pass) | * GWAR (2008 photo pass) |
| * Scorpions (1999 VIP, 2008 photo pass) | * Extreme (2008 photo wristband) | * Dethklok (2008 photo pass) |
| * Teenage Casket Company (2 picks) | * Sammy Hagar (2008 photo wristband) | * Iced Earth (2008 photo pass) |
| * Danzig (2008 photo pass) | * Quartershackle (Austin, TX; 1 pick) | * Ted Nugent (2008 photo pass) |
| * Ministry (2008 photo pass) | * Trash Pit Magazine (1 pick) | * Queensryche (2008 photo pass) |
| * Pikcard (10 new cards!) | * Katy Perry (2009 photo pass) | * Ozzy Osbourne (2 picks) |
| * Ernie Ball (6 new employee picks!) | * Playboy (5 picks, NAMM exclusives!) | * Gary Hoey (1 pick) |
| * Kid Rock (2 picks) | * Alice Cooper (7 picks) | * Eric Singer Project (1 pick) |
| * Billy Sheehan (1 pick) | * Speed X (1 pick) | * Rick Springfield (1 pick) |
| * Kobra Kai (Boston; 1 pick) | * Red (1 pick) | * Coffin Case (1 pick) |
| * Hot For Teacher (2 picks) | * Staind (2 picks) | * Bulletboys (2 picks) |
| * Dip (2 picks) | * Soil (3 picks) | * Brainstorm (Germany; 1 pick) |
| * Puddle of Mudd (9 picks) | * Pam Tillis (1 pick) | * Boston (1 new pick!) |
| * 311 (15 picks) | * Vincent Bell (1 pick) | * Willie Nelson (5 picks) |
| * Lagwagon (1 pick) | * Mower (1 pick) | * Beck (1 pick) |
| * Hinder (4 picks) | * Mountain (PikCard) | * Orgy (3 picks) |
| * Vains of Jenna (1 pick) | * Pennywise (1 pick) | * Jeffree Star (1 pick) |
| * Hookers & Blow (1 pick) | * Anthenora (1 pick) | * Testament (1 new Nady pick) |
| * Panic at the Disco (3 picks) | * Kings X (19 picks) | * Night Ranger (1 new Nady pick) |
| * Sign (Iceland; 1 pick) | * Hip Kitty (1 pick) | * Sick Puppies (1 pick) |
| * Semisonic (1 pick) | * Paul Gilbert (2 picks) | * Best Buy (1 pick) |
December 2008:
| * Dir En Grey (6 new picks!) | * George Clinton P-Funk Allstars (2 picks) | * Helloween (18 picks) |
| * The Metal Awards Show (1 pick) | * Metallica (14 new picks, photo & VIP pass!) | * Lamb of God (5 picks) |
| * Avril Lavigne (3 picks) | * The Sword (2 new picks!) | * The Gazette (Japan; 1 pick) |
| * Ill Nino (2 picks) | * The Mighty Mighty Bosstones (1 pick) | * Slayer (8 picks) |
| * Deep Purple (2 picks) | * Drivin' N Cryin' (2 picks) | * Great White (11 picks) |
| * Phantom Planet (1 pick) | * Trixter (4 picks) | * David Bowie (5 picks) |
| * All Time Low (1 pick) | * Danzig (19 picks) | * Alter Bridge (2 picks) |
| * Vomitose (Michigan; 4 picks) | * Hatebreed (2 picks) | * Cinderella (1 pick) |
| * The Who (1 pick) | * M.I.R.V. (2 picks) | * Stella Artois Music (1 pick) |
| * Ted Nugent (4 picks) | * Yellowcard (1 pick) | * Dirtbag Clothing (1 pick) |
| * Dio (1 pick) | * Susan Tedechi (1 pick) | * Rush (4 picks) |
| * Iron Maiden (2 picks) | * Nothingface (1 pick) | * Monster Magnet (1 pick) |
| * The Starting Line (1 pick) | * Professional Murder Music (1 pick) | * G.G. Allin (4 picks) |
| * Machine Head (4 picks) | * Pantera (23 picks) | * Wheelchair Motherfuckers (1 pick) |
| * Nightwish (11 picks) | * Night Ranger (1 pick) | * November's Doom (1 pick) |
| * 97.1 The Eagle (1 pick) | * New Radicals (1 pick) | * Near Life Experience (1 pick) |
| * Noosphere (1 pick) | * 98 Degrees (1 pick) | * Noise Therapy (2 picks) |
| * Nashville Star (1 pick) | * The Nixons (2 picks) | * No Doubt (3 picks) |
| * 3 Doors Down (2 picks) | * Flickerstick (1 pick) | * Five Finger Death Punch (6 picks) |
| * Tommy Lee (6 picks) | * The Fall of Troy (2 new picks!) | * Gary Allen (4 picks) |
| * Jet Lag Gemini (1 pick) | * The Rolling Stones (5 picks) | * Appetite For Destruction (1 pick) |
| * Limp Bizkit (6 picks) | * Amon Amarth (1 pick) |
November 2008:
| * Detklok (5 picks) | * Dimmu Borgir (6 picks) | * The Mars Volta (4 picks) |
| * Alkaline Trio (4 picks) | * KISS (10 picks) | * The Offspring (1 pick) |
| * GWAR (7 picks) | * Nocturnal Rites (1 pick) | * Intricate Unit (New England; 1 pick) |
| * The Allman Brothers Band (1 pick) | * Bury Your Dead (3 picks) | * Bile (1 pick) |
| * Arch Enemy (3 picks) | * Lynryd Skynryd (3 picks) | * Life of Agony (3 picks) |
| * Stemm (4 new picks!) | * Kingdom of Sorrow (2 picks) | * Trivium (1 pick) |
| * Mastodon (1 pick) | * Mountain (Leslie West; 1 pick) | * Dropkick Murphys (1 pick) |
| * Changes (Germany; 1 pick) | * Vixen (1 pick) | * Behemoth (1 pick) |
| * Bile (1 pick) | * NOFX (2 picks) | * Dr. Chud's X-Ward (1 pick) |
| * Hot Picks USA (10 picks) | * Eagles (1 pick) | * Running Wild (1 pick) |
| * Gov't Mule (1 pick) | * Roadrunner United (3 picks) | * Vinnie Vincent Invasion (1 pick) |
| * Ace Frehley (1 pick) | * Stu Hamm (1 new pick!) | * Godhead (5 picks) |
| * Prince (3 picks) | * Warmachine (1 pick) | * Skinlab (1 pick) |
| * Terror (2 new picks!) | * Hemlock (1 pick) | * Jackyl (9 picks) |
| * Dream Theater (1 pick) | * Deftones (2 picks) | * Scorpions (2 picks) |
| * Tenacious D (1 pick) | * Constricted (1 pick) | * Joe Satriani (1 pick) |
| * Rev Jones (1 pick) | * Powerman 5000 (1 pick) | * Sirsy (Albany, NY; 2 picks) |
| * Steve Miller (1 pick) | * Prong (10 picks) | * Skeletonwitch (2 picks) |
| * Moonspell (1 pick) |
October 2008:
| * Rancid (4 picks) | * New Found Glory (38 picks) | * Last Call with Carson Daly (5 picks) |
| * Four Year Strong (1 pick) | * Into Eternity (2 picks) | * Devildriver (13 picks) |
| * Hatesphere (5 picks) | * Toadies (2 picks) | * Dead Birds and Blind Kids (2 picks) |
| * Foo Fighters (16 picks!) | * Bullet For My Valentine (8 picks) | * Lost Prophets (2 picks) |
| * BendOver (Finland; 2 picks) | * Arise (Sweden; 3 picks) | * Bleeding Through (1 pick) |
| * Slash (1 pick) | * Nashville Pussy (2 picks) | * Amorphis (1 pick) |
| * Stemm (5 picks) | * Straight Line Stitch (3 new picks!) | * Jordin Sparks (1 pick) |
| * Stevie Salas (1 pick) | * Gamma Ray (5 picks) | * Obituary (4 picks) |
| * Social Distortion (3 picks) | * Philip Sayce (1 pick) | * Bison b.c. (3 picks) |
| * R.E.M. (1 pick) | * Jeremy's Rock Pages (3 picks) | * The Acacia Strain (2 picks) |
| * Snot (3 new picks!) | * Mocktigers (Austin, TX; 2 picks) | * Def Leppard (Pikcard & 1 new pick!) |
| * Spock's Beard (2 picks) | * Catastrophic (Trevor of Obituary; 1 pick) | * Gym Class Heroes (3 picks!) |
| * Samael (10 picks) | * Whitechapel (4 new picks!) | * Street Dogs (7 picks) |
| * Protest The Hero (1 pick) | * Unearth (1 pick) | * Flogging Molly (5 picks) |
| * Backyard Babies (3 picks) | * Angels & Airwaves (9 picks) | * Cobra Starship (1 new pick!) |
| * Toby Keith (7 picks) | * Int'l Superheroes of Hardcore (1 pick) | * Iced Earth (1 pick) |
| * Yngwie Malmsteen (1 new pick!) |
October 17, 2008:
Tonight was a very
special private METALLICA rehearsal show (roughly
400 guests total).
Metallica has been renting a small arena just
outside of SF for a month and I think tonight was one of their last nights in
the building, as they began to load-out as soon as the show ended, because they
begin a 3-month tour in a few days.
Great show (of course!), in-the-round, complete with fire, a bit of
pyro, laser light show (for the first song) 8 huge lighting rigs shaped
as coffins, and a setlist that went from Harvester of Sorrow to 5-6 Death
Magnetic tracks to Fight Fire With Fire, Master of Puppets, and Seek & Destroy!
Unfortunately: they didn't play Creeping Death, they played 3 slow songs, and
they played a 'St. Anger' or 'Load' song (I think... I am so not familiar
with those albums, because I listened to them maybe only once, too long
ago...)
I brought in my D-SLR camera and got 150+ amazing photos -- check out
www.flickr.com/photos/AlanR666 soon, the photos aren't there yet -- I wasn't
supposed to have that camera inside but took my smallest lens and removed the
battery grip to make it look more like a regular point&shoot camera, and I got
it past the inept security :)
During the show, Metallica didn't throw out a single
pick. At the end of the encore, they tossed out a bunch of picks, Rob
Trujillo throwing out the most. I don't know if you can expect this when
you see the show, or if that was just something he did because there was only
400 guests inside the building, and one less thing to load-out. I was in a
great spot for photos, the wrong spot for picks. By the time I made it
over to where Rob was throwing out so many picks, everybody else was there too,
and then Rob stopped throwing them out.
I managed to get 3 picks though --
http://www.guitar-picks.com/
That's about it! Thanks to Harald O. (bass player of
D.R.I.) for the hookup to that show!
September 2008:
| * 36 Crazyfists | * Brooks & Dunn | * Julien-K |
| * The Movielife | * Agent Orange | * Hurt |
| * Foo Fighters | * 311 | * Jonny Lang |
| * Bowling For Soup | * Five Foot Thick (R.I.P.) | * The Ringers |
| * A Perfect Circle | * Bad Religion | * Tokio Hotel |
| * Good Charlotte |
August 2008:
| * Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals | * Ministry | * Motorhead |
| * Tommy Cluefetos (Rob Zombie drummer) | * Cross Canadian Ragweed (Bud Light pick) | * Judas Priest |
| * Journeyman Precision (JP) Tool | * Glay (from Japan) | * The Randies |
| * Nailed (from UK) | * Nine Inch Nails | * Rod Castro |
| * Everclear | * Vic Johnson (Sammy Hagar guitar) | |
| * John Inman | * Midline | * Scorpions |
| * Lo-Pro | * Nikon LIVE |
May 8,
2008: I'm (almost) famous in Japan!
Just back from Japan. Great times. The purpose of my trip was not for Guitar
Picks, but I did make a point to stop into my favorite music store in Osaka (Miki
Gakki).
Quick funny story: My wife and I went to the Hard Rock Cafe (HRC) in
Nagoya. I like to visit HRC's, check them out and buy a guitar pin. This HRC is
2 levels, the first being the merch store, so you have to walk through it to get
to the restaurant. We bought the pin first, and had to wait for the staff to
bring one down from storage upstairs, so while my wife waited to pay for it, I
went upstairs to check out the restaurant. She comes up a minute later and tells
me that after I left, the cashier girl asked 'excuse me, is that guy in a
band, is he famous?' HAHA, I'm famous in Japan! Actually,
At the Gates, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Mayhem, Pig Destroyer, and Into
Eternity were playing in Nagoya that night, and if only I had remembered to put
a few of my guitar picks in my pocket to hand out, I probably could have played
the role and said I was part of that tour :)
I did see AT THE GATES, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Mayhem, Pig Destroyer, and
Into Eternity the night before in Osaka. This was to be the very first AT THE
GATES reunion show (their first show in 12 years). I had a photo pass
and was able to shoot whole show! My ATG photos are
here.
I also managed to get 2 THE HAUNTED picks at the show. The Dillinger Escape Plan
use Monster Energy Drink picks, but not sure if they had them in Japan, and the
guitar player of Into Eternity told me that they have been waiting for 6 weeks
to get their order shipped, but they will have a set of 2 InTuneGP picks for
their next tour.
MIKI GAKKI: 3 years ago, I went to Japan and came across a music store
called MIKI GAKKI. This particular store has a big counter for picks, mostly
generics and a few artist picks that you can find at every music store in Japan,
but they also had an Igloo cooler that was 1/2 filled with picks for .50 cents
each. 3 years ago, I scored some really good picks in this cooler, including a
bunch of old DUNLOP SERIES picks (AIC, Pantera, DeMartini, Stevie Salas,
Rush, Manson, Janes Addiction, King Crimson, Sepultura, Satriani, White Zombie,
Zakk Wylde), as well as Korn, Vai, Loudness, Balzac... so I was really
excited to see what kind of gems I would score this time at MIKI GAKKI. The
Igloo was still there, but only sparsely filled. I did find one cool Vai pick
and got a few others that looked nice, but overall, was rather disappointing. 3
years ago, I spent like $50 on picks from the cooler, and this time I spent like
$10. There was just nothing in there, but I would still recommend going if you
are ever in Osaka.
I have NOTHING for trade, I didn't buy anything extra because my wife was
already ready to kill me for wasting an hour of her time in the store just to
find the picks that I did buy for myself.
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