James Byrd - Byrd's Bolero No.46 Mvt.3 now on youtube

Dean Guitar issue Chris Impelliteri signature model

Not the look we'd expect but nonetheless nice to see a company finally giving Chris a signature model.

All the info at http://www.deanguitars.com/impellitteri_signature.php

James Byrd in Frank Marino tribute

Arguably the genre's finest player James Byrd has made available the track 'The World Anthem' which saw him cover the Mahogany Rush classic - first rate playing as ever from Byrd.

Mistheria returns with all star lineup

Six years on from his last studio album ‘Messenger Of The Gods’ keyboard virtuoso Mistheria is hard at work with the recording of his new 11 track neo-classical / progressive metal album entitled ‘Dragon Fire’ set for release in the second half of 2010 (tbc).

Mistheria, the keyboardist of choice for Bruce Dickinson on the ‘Tyranny Of Souls’ album, has pulled in a number of great names for 'Dragon's Fire' in vocalists John West (Artension/ex Royal Hunt), Mark Boals (ex Malmsteen), Rob Rock (Impellitteri), Lance King, and Titta Tani (Astra). Guitars come courtesy of George Bellas (Ring Of Fire, Mogg/Way), Roger Staffelbach (Artension/Angel Of Eden)),Neil Zaza and Emir Hot. The rhythm section comprises of drummer John Macaluso (ARK) and bassistDino Fiorenza.

Some working track titles for the album include ‘Fire & Flames’, ‘Killing The Pain’, ‘The Power Of One’ and‘Chopin Fantasy’ with the rough demos already showing this will be an essential release for fans of early Artension, classic Malmsteen and Symphony X.

Last week George Bellas recorded all his guitars and John Macaluso is currently in the process of tracking his drums and has just checked in with the following, "I just did half the tracks for Mistheria's album and it came out amazing! Over the top with heavy groove and orchestrated kicks everywhere. I've got a really fat drum sound, its like Bonham playing double bass in an orchestra. You will dig it I think!".

More updates on the progress of ‘Dragon Fire’ to follow soon.

Web Links

www.mistheria.com

www.myspace.com/mistheria

George Bellas - new album coming in July

GEORGE BELLAS NEW ALBUM IN JULY

In the beginning there was nothing... And then there was light! The Dawn Of Time Fifteen billion years later George Bellas presents to you an epic collection of instrumental songs inspired by the universe, how it was created, and from where and what it came from. The material on this album is a stylistically diverse collection of shorter 3-5 minute songs with a total running time of 80 minutes. Some of the songs are in a complex progressive style, and others are in a more traditional neoclassical style. An extreme amount of attention went towards obtaining the highest quality sound for each instrument. The guitar, bass, drums and keyboards all sound clear, open, dynamic and very organic. And once again, Marco Minnemann recorded some absolutely phenomenal drum performances. "The Dawn Of Time" will be released July 16, 2010 on Lion Music.

Yngwie dumps DiMarzio and joins Seymour Duncan

After literally years of association with DiMarzio, Yngwie quit towards the tale end of 2009. Only now after weeks of speculation has his new pickup partner been introduced - enter Seymour Duncan. Anyone wanna bet this is about the $$$?

SEYMOUR DUNCAN PRESS RELEASE



When Yngwie J. Malmsteen set out on a quest to bring his tone to a higher level, he turned to Seymour Duncan. The result of hundreds of hours of intense tone pursuit is the YJM Fury: only available from Seymour Duncan.

Application
Hum-canceling single-coil-sized pickup based on our original Stack® pickup design. Recommended for rock, neo-classical, shred, hard rock, power metal, and heavy metal.

Description
The bridge pickup is aggressive and handles Yngwie's hard-hitting chordal onslaught. The neck pickup balances Yngwie's fluid left hand technique with his broad mix of right hand pick attack for a tone that's sweet and fluid, but with great articulation and responsiveness to dynamics.

Complete setup
The YJM series includes a dedicated bridge pickup and a separate neck/middle pickup. Pickups can be purchased individually, in a three-pickup set, or in a pre-wired pickguard ready to drop into your Strat guitar with an 11-screw hole "USA" pattern. The loaded pickguard includes a "no lube" volume potentiometer that meets Yngwie's demands for a very fast and responsive pot.

Guitars
The YJM Fury will directly retrofit most single-coil equipped guitars. Though originally designed for a Fender® Strat with a scalloped maple fingerboard, the YJM Fury will work well with any bolt-on guitar that utilizes traditional single-coil-size Strat pickups. The YJM Fury is the same pickup that Fender installs in their YJM Strat guitars.

Available Mods
Available in off-white, white or black.

Iron Mask - Shadow Of The Red Baron out next week

A huge release for 2010, the third album from Iron Mask and killer from start to finish by all accounts goung from a great review at http://www.virtuosityone.com/ironmask_redbaron.htm

Keyboardist Updates

Vitalij Kuprij joins Trans Siberian Orchestra
Artension / Ring Of Fire pianist and keyboard player Vitalij Kuprij joined the Trans Siberian Orchestra, visit the official site http://www.trans-siberian.com/ to read recent news and to see the concerts date so you can see Vitalij on stage in your city.

Vitalij will be in tour for the next months and he is very excited to be part of this great musical experience... he will wait for you to see during concerts!

For more info and concerts dates please check out: www.trans-siberian.com

A new VK solo album is expected sometime in 2010 on Lion Music.

Mistheria working on new solo album
Italian keyboard virtuoso Mistheria (Bruce Dickinson, Angel Of Eden) is working on material for a new solo album with guest spots rumored to include Roger Staffelbach, Emir Hot and George Bellas plus vocals from John West (Artension, ex Royal Hunt), Titta Tanni (Astra). More news on this coming soon.

GEORGE BELLAS GEARS UP TO RELEASE 'THE DAWN OF TIME'

Promising a return to more neo-classical waters (along with the usual progressive offerings) George Bellas is set to release his new solo album "The Dawn Of Time" within the next few months on Lion Music (release date tbc).



Press Release:
Combining elements of Romanticism and Futurism with mind boggling drum performances by Marco Minnemann, and guitar, bass and keys performed by George Bellas, "The Dawn Of Time" is an album brimming with exceptional musicianship and ultra unique writing.