Here's the 10th episode of the Spartan Project video series. Watch Mikaël working on the neck of my next guitar.

Playlist of the episodes of the Spartan Project
As a reminder, the goal of the Spartan Project is to document the building of a guitar for me by luthier Mikaël Springer.

Here's the 9th episode of the Spartan Project video series. Watch Mikaël gluing the fretboard and starting the work on the frets.

 
Playlist of the episodes of the Spartan Project
As a reminder, the goal of the Spartan Project is to document the building of a guitar for me by luthier Mikaël Springer.

Demo of a Nik Huber Blue Whale guitar by Etienne Prieuret

Video recorded on May 17th 2015 at Guitars Addicts in Paris, France when Nik Huber delivered the Blue Whale #6 to the owner, Didier. Etienne Prieuret, pro guitar player, improvised this demo on this superb guitar on the Rhythm channel of an Imperial amp from Tone King (above) and on the Leach channel (below).

Gear used

Guitar: Blue Whale #6
Luthier: Nik Huber
Amp: Tone King Imperial
Video and sound: Lumix GH2

The Blue Whale guitar is a 25 limited edition run. It is based on the Dolphin model from the Nik Huber catalog.

In this 8th video of the Spartan Project the luthier, Mikaël Springer, continues the work on the neck of the guitar.

 
Previous episodes of the Spartan Project
As a reminder, the goal of the Spartan Project is to document the building of a guitar for me by luthier Mikaël Springer.

Tony Macalpine interview: builder of Concrete Gardens

Here's a Tony Macalpine interview for the release of Concrete Gardens. We did a Skype call to talk about this new release. The album is excellent, the technic is stratospheric as usual but thank God the music is not forgotten! It's always a good thing to see a musician like Tony releasing new material.

José Ramos interview luthier at Guitares au Beffroi 2015

Here's a José Ramos interview. José is a luthier I met during the Salon de la Belle Guitare in Montrouge near Paris in March 2015 during the Guitars au Beffroi festival.

Dan Macpherson interview luthier at Guitares au Beffroi 2015

Here's a Dan Macpherson interview. Dan is a luthier I met during the Salon de la Belle Guitare in Montrouge near Paris in March 2015 during the Guitars au Beffroi festival.

In this 7th video of the Spartan Project the luthier, Mikaël Springer, continues the work on the neck of the guitar.

 
Previous episodes of the Spartan Project
As a reminder, the goal of the Spartan Project is to document the building of a guitar for me by luthier Mikaël Springer.

I heard about Kathryn Marie Dudley book, Guitar Makers - The Endurance of Artisanal Values in North America, from Austrian luthier Michael Spalt. I contacted the editor and received a copy of the book soon after. Kathryn exposes a fascinating story of the North American guitar builders.

In this 6th video of the Spartan Project the luthier, Mikaël Springer, continues the work on the neck of the guitar.
Previous episodes of the Spartan Project
As a reminder, the goal of the Spartan Project is to document the building of a guitar for me by luthier Mikaël Springer.

Here's a double Michael Spalt interview I did during the Salon de la Belle Guitare of the festival Guitares au Beffroi (www.guitaresaubeffroi.com) which took place in Montrouge near Paris in March 2015. Austrian luthier Michael Spalt was there as an exhibitor and as the president of the European Guitar Builders (EGB). One of the main activity of the EGB is the organization of the Holy Grail Guitar Show where I went for the first edition in Berlin last year.

So we did two interviews instead of one! The one above is the one about his life as a luthier.

Shaï Sebbag is a musician I had the pleasure to interview several times in French, for the release of En Equilibre his third album it was more than time to record and English interview so his non-French speaking fans can get to know him better and also for new people to discover his universe.

With this latest release I think Shaï reached a new peak as he is delivering some awesome compositions played with an impeccable technique without useless technical demonstration.

Extracts of "En Equilibre" played before the interview

Into The Wild
Bach To The Future
Valse des Carpates
Orgasme

Some

Line6 JTV-59: so many sounds in one guitar!
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Line6 JTV-59: so many sounds in one guitar!

Here's my video review of the Line6 JTV-59.

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In this 5th video of the Spartan Project the luthier, Mikaël Springer, starts the work on the neck of the guitar. Many people consider that you are truly an electric guitar luthier when you build the necks of your instruments yourself.

In this 4th video of the Spartan Project the luthier, Mikaël Springer, continues the work on the Spanish Cedar body.

Published videos of the Spartan Project

Stay tuned for the next update on the Spartan Project!

Pierre.

PS: for more info on this project you can read the full article here about its launch.

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Alex Skolnick interview – Planetary Coalition

I was not able to catch Alex Skolnick during the 2015 winter NAMM show so we scheduled a Skype call to do the interview. His career has not been the usual one for a Heavy Metal guitar player, he is not afraid to venture into Jazz and World music. Planetary Coalition, his latest album, is a fascinating collection of music with very different musicians.

Mattias IA Eklundh masterclass in Paris at Metal Guitar
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Mattias IA Eklundh masterclass in Paris

Right before the Freak Kitchen concert in Paris, Mattias Eklundh was at Metal Guitar for a showcase/masterclass. The full recording is available below in 3 videos.

In this 3rd video of the Spartan Project the luthier, Mikaël Springer, continues the work on the Spanish Cedar body.

Published videos of the Spartan Project

Stay tuned for the next update on the Spartan Project!

Pierre.

PS: for more info on this project you can read the full article here about its launch.

You enjoyed this video?
Get the Backstage Pass to watch all the exclusive videos and more!
Click here for more info on the Backstage Pass
 

It's always a pleasure to meet and interview Mattias Eklundh as he is such a nice guy and awesome musician. I dig the last album "Cooking with Pagan" he has just released with Freak Kitchen, it's shock full of cool songs with incredible guitar works.
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to view the full interview and much more
As it is the 3rd time I get to do an interview with Mattias, we got a little crazy during the interview.

It's always a pleasure to meet and interview Mattias Eklundh as he is such a nice guy and awesome musician. I dig the last album "Cooking with Pagan" he has just released with Freak Kitchen, it's shock full of cool songs with incredible guitar works.

As it is the 3rd time I get to do an interview with Mattias, we got a little crazy during the interview.

Leonardo Guitar Research Project - Interview at the 2014 Holy Grail Guitar Show

This interview with Brian will explain you everything you need to know about the Leonardo Guitar Research Project.

In this 2nd series of videos of the Spartan Project done with Mikaël Springer, the luthier continues with the work on the body.

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Interview with Doug Scarratt from Saxon

Back in 2012 I had the opportunity to meet Doug Scarratt while he was in Paris to promote a Saxon best-of album.

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More than ever there is a humongous choice of picks available nowadays. I recently received a set of Dragon's Heart Guitar Picks. I admit I was intrigued by the original shape of the model which present three different edges: a sharp one, a normal one and a round one. Original+Tweed Hardened+Tweed Pure+Tweed

What I like the most

  • 3 distinct sounds in one pick
  • Quality of the material
  • Very durable

What I like the least

  • Added complexity
  • Not for everyone

Conclusion

When I use a pick I tend to use thicker and thicker one. I don't know if it's because as I aged I get better at guitar playing and need more control or just a matter of my taste evolving. Anyway, I enjoyed the thickness of the Dragon's Heart picks. As for the sound, having such a variety of type of attacks on the strings is a pretty cool feature. If you are ready to deal with the fact that you need to pay attention to how you hold your pick to choose the right edge you want to use, the Dragon's Heart offer an excellent option to get different sounds right from your finger tips. Pierre.  

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Dragon’s Heart Guitar Picks (@DragonHrtPicks): a triple edge pick

This video is part of a series of videos documenting the Spartan Project done in collaboration with luthier Mikaël Springer.

Bill Krinard interview, Two Rock amps tone guru

During the 2015 NAMM show I had the pleasure to meet and interview tone guru Bill Krinard who his the mastermind behind the Two-Rock amps (www.two-rock.com).

Kiko Loureiro interview during the 2014 Hellfest
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Kiko Loureiro interview during the 2014 Hellfest

Here's the interview I did with Kiko Loureiro during the 2014 Hellfest before he went onstage with Angra, the brazilian metal band.
Kiko Loureiro interview during the 2014 Hellfest

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to view the full interview and much more

Enjoy,

Pierre.

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This is my personal selection of the best guitar albums for 2014. Four very different musical worlds but with the same intensity in the six string domain. When I write "guitar albums" I certainly do not mean "music for guitar players"! This is four musical pieces that will appeal to any music fans, and that's the most important thing.

Rock - "Uniparental Advisory" What About Your Mom

It's coming back from the Issoudun Guitar Festival in 2013 (yes, I have written 2013) that I discovered the first album from Brice Delage power trio. I was in the car with Ruddy Meicher and Brice made us listen to the latest mix of the album. It was great stuff despite the listening conditions not optimal (his car radio, highway, etc.). So I was looking forward to the official release of this CD. It did not disappoint me: it's awesome! This is rock'n'roll at its best with Brice in great shape supported by a brilliant Xavier Zolli on bass and Franck Amand on drums. waym-1a If you only buy one disc for 2014, buy this one! If you understand French, listen Brice Delage and Xavier Zolli in interview to find out more. Watch the super cool cover they did of Harder, Better, Faster, Stronger from Daft Punk:

Metal - "Enigma Black Opera" by Stéphan Forté

Stéphan Forté continues his journey with a very specific approach that gives an excellent result. Personally it always takes me time to adjust to enter the world of Stéphan because his music is very intense (that's a compliment!). But once this little effort, one is rewarded because we can then appreciate in full his compositions. This is Shred yes, but Shred with a real musical discourse. hd-cov-borderListen to audio interview Stephan talk about his album. Watch this Backstage Pass video with an interview where Stéphan explains guitar in hand how he composed Enigma and how he works every day. Here's an extract:

 Jazz - "One" Jonathan Kreisberg

On the advice of Bruno Pelletier-Bacquaert (Jazz French professional guitarist based in San Francisco) I discovered Jonathan Kreisberg who is one of the hottest jazz player of the moment. His album One is wonderful. It includes such gems like a very moving version of Alleluia. Jonathan and his guitar just happens to transcribe all the emotion of this powerful song. KreisbergOne During one of his visits to Paris with Dr. Lonnie Smith, I had the opportunity to meet with Jonathan to interview a guitar in his hand in the basement of a hotel. A very good memories of 2014 with a very talented musician who does not hesitate to play with the Jazz guitar codes playing with effects, overdrive, etc. Here's an extract of  the video interview I did with him. Get the Backstage Pass to view it in full:

World - "In Balance" Shaï Sebbag

With this 3rd album, Shaï Sebbag gives us very polished compositions that explore musical colors that are captivating, from unbridled jazz to a captivating Orientalism. We even forget very quickly that there is only one guitar on this album except for a beautiful song with Tania. You think the acoustic guitar has remained stuck  in the golden age of Marcel Dadi ? Jump on this album for an update. Shaï offers with a few other virtuosos of the six strings a bright future for fingerpicking. album_en_equilibre Here's a medley of Shaï live: [cta]

The best guitar albums of 2014
Doug Kauer interview, luthier for Kauer Guitars

Here's a Doug Kauer interview. Meeting with Doug in Berlin during the Holy Grail Guitar Show was one of the highlight for me as I am a big fan of the look of his guitars.

Jon Herington interview at the Olympia Hall in Paris, France

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I had the pleasure to do an audio interview with Jon Herington in 2011 for the release of his awesome solo album Shine, (Shine, Shine).