Time.com very recently ran an article on the music industry with a particular focus on Radiohead's upcoming release, "In Rainbows".  While different artists have experimented with selling their own music on the Internet, Radiohead is taking it one step further by giving listeners the option to pay as much or as little as they want for their new album.  The implications could be far-reaching.  For years, CD prices have fallen within a certain price range, typically selling anywhere from $9.99 for new releases to $15.99 after a cooling off period.  Whether an album is worth these prices largely depends on a person's musical taste and temperament.  Opinions ...

In 1997, Travis Meeks, the leader and frontman of Days of the New, seemingly had it all - a platimun selling album, three hits "Touch, Peel and Stand", "Shelf in the Room", and "Downtown" and an opening slot on Metallica's Reload Tour.  Before his show at the Shoreline Ampitheater, Travis visited the studios of KSJO (San Jose, CA) to play a stirring rendition of "The Down Town".  The performance was riveting. 

A year later, Travis fired his band and told Guitar World that the firings would have no impact on the band's sound since he wrote all the music.  The band's sound, however, did ...

My first exposure to Al Di Meola was through various advertisements in Guitar World magazine circa '92.  At the time, REH Video had a line of instructional videos from different guitar virtuosos.  One of them was of Al Di Meola, but unlike the others, there was no subtitle or reference to what he would be teaching.   It was just Al Di Meola.  At the time, I thought, if it's based just on him, he must be good.  He also had a look that distinguished him from others - he wore glasses and had slicked back hair.  I was always intrigued.  Below his video, the description talked ...

Imagine you've been given a once in a lifetime opportunity to play the Montreaux Jazz Festival.  You are slated for a 12:00 am performance only to be pushed ahead to 4:00 am.  Your plane is scheduled to leave in four hours and you only have one hour to play.  This is your shot. 

Out strolls the Satchman, decked out in Bohemian garb and white hightops.  He dawns the guitar, takes a few strums, and quietly introduces the opener, "Ice 9".  The energy from Stu Hamm and Jonathan Mover is high as they lay down the rhythmic foundation.  With such skilled musicians by his side, Joe is free to do ...

If you have ever watched Metallica's VH1 Behind the Music and enjoyed the story of its earliest days and rise to fame, you will thoroughly enjoy Born in a Basement.  The DVD tells the story of metal pioneer, Overkill, from its earliest inception to its rise to prominence in the east coast underground metal scene. 

The man behind the story is Rat Skates, original drummer and co-founder of Overkill.  Skates is candid and passionate about the role he played in the early thrash movment.  What emerges is not just a musician, but an entrepreneur with keen business instincts determined to ...

In a day and age where music can be obtained at the click of a button at nearly the same sound quality of a CD with superior prices, what incentive is there to venture out of the cyberworld and into the physical world to buy music?  The convenience of downloading MP3s can be addictive.  On a whim or impulse, you can buy whatever music you wish without waiting in line or getting into your car to drive to the music store.  It is a technology that feeds our culture's evolving need for "instant gratification".  With the growing prevalence of the Internet in our daily ...

I've gone to many Dream Theater shows throughout the years, but this one was different.  The band was different.  From the first notes of the opener, "Constant Motion", I knew it was going to be a special performance.  The whole stage lit up as Mike Portnoy hit the cymbals at dizzying speed.  The guitar came in and the entire place erupted.  James Labrie was fired up, moving around the stage, and participating with the crowd.  It was an incredible way to open.  John Myung's bass lines took us into the next song, Octavarium's "Panic Attack" followed by the atmospheric "Blind ...