The minis

Got my mini Mods. Will tell you how they are soon... Little tired. Can feel the sickness creeping in.

The Nighthawk once more

Gibson's Nighthawk returned to production last year as a limited run selection: CLICK

Subsequently, Epiphone featured the Nighthawk as regular production units earlier this year: CLICK

But come summer 2011, the Gibson Nighthawk is here to stay. For how long? I've no idea whatsoever. But the Nighthawk is one of those memorable Gibsons in my books because it features a single coil pickup, something which is not a Gibson staple. Well, the manufacturer dared to consider this inclusion because the Nighthawk is 25.5"; it's the most appealing scale length for that unmistakable single coil snap. Now you know why Fender keeps it within this scale length- it's done for a reason.

Karao-guitar-ke

I went across the Causeway yesterday despite people warning me about the biometric i/d-causing traffic jam which could last about 4hrs or more. That's very damaging to the kidneys & bowel unless you do not mind answering the call of nature on the Causeway asphalt. My answer to this was simple; it's all about the timing. I left early in the morning & experienced no aberrations in traffic flow. Ditto the journey home.

But that's not the highlight of this post, it's about the karaoke sound system you see above. Judging by the build & finish, it's very much an in-house product which doesn't cost very much considering it's capable of collapsing a small theater as indicated by the wattage rating of its sibling underneath it. 

But the only concern here to us guitar dweebs is its capacity to accept guitars. So if you live in Malaysia, especially in the JB vicinity proximate to a certain Hindu temple, just a stone's throw away from the customs, you have yourselves an alternative.

Up close- decoded (I think...)

I am feeling a little down. I am in search of some inspiration for my art (project) & was wondering what makes a good art piece. Many breakthrough art pieces are really simple ideas, these are deconstructed & regenerated according to the artists' interpretations. I ended up looking at Eric Johnson's Up Close album & thought what a simple but effective art piece it was. I was trying to find meaning to it because in art, if you can relate the end product to some meaning, then it becomes an acceptance, not mystery. I stared at it hard for some time but couldn't manage to decipher the hidden meaning. Frustration drove me to look at the album title which is UP CLOSE. The fact that no words were written on it implied that there might be a probability that it was already written there but we just couldn't see it. Then it dawned on me that the album title was there all along- I've indicated it on the pic above. 

Then again, maybe I got it wrong...

Dealing with stupidity

I've been eying the Stupid Box for a while. So it became a really stupid attraction when TY Music put it up for clearance. The SB has a unique voicing- it has more drive than the average box but doesn't extend into metal territory. It's also one of the best drive unit to be paired up with an amp, so in short, it's my kinda pedal- one which pushes the amp to stun. Thumbs up to this.

Eric Johnson: Up Close

After listening to Eric Johnson, we'd worship him for his tone mastery. It's not about how much drive he could conjure from his veiled effects line up but it's all about his unrivaled cleans. To me, it conjures serenity. It makes me appreciate the instrument for what it is, free from any need for effects. 

I was looking forward to Up Close in search of another Manhattan but there was none. The spirit of Up Close drew its parallel to Ah Via Musicom with some very bluesy moments. I prefer Mr. Johnson's instrumentals more than his singing. However, in Up Close, some of the vocal-laden numbers, not sung by Mr. Johnson, wasn't free from his shackles. Take Brilliant Room for instance- the pitching, twists & turns were in the mould of Eric Johnson despite him not doing the vocals. Maybe that's the most disturbing aspect of this release to me.