Monday, August 31, 2015

Reverend Johnson Of Whiskeydick Has A Feature Interview Over On Epiphone.com Discussing His Guitar Playing Style And Acoustic Metal




Purchase Whiskeydick's latest album
Read the full interview below or on Epiphone.com with Reverend Johnson
"Imagine the look on country superstar Alan Jackson’s face when he went to the iTunes Alternative Country chart this summer to check out the progress of his latest and saw that his album had slipped to #2 three week in a row. His rival? The acoustic duo Whiskeydick—two of the shrewdest shredders in the land--and their latest, Bastard Sons of Texas, which held onto the #1 album position long enough to get the attention of a lot of people in the industry who had not been paying attention. Well, they are now. In fact, during the interview Reverend Johnson heard the band will play the legendar Speedfest Festival. Epiphone spoke with the Reverend about his new Masterbilt, the origins of the duo’s musical partnership, his searing chops, and life on the road in the fast-spinning music world. Listen and be amazed. 
Thanks for speaking with us Reverend. You’re about to head back on the road, right?
Yeah! We’ve been on tour for the last month on the Heavy Metal Honky Tonk tour –it’s a four and a half month tour. We’re about to do two months in Europe—20 countries. We’re flying to the Netherlands and then Belgium, France, and then we’re in Spain for two weeks. It’s our third time over there. And we just got booked to play Speedfest. 
 
How did you sound come together? 
Our first show was in 2005 but we were writing for fun together around 2003. I had never liked the clean sound of an electric. I always preferred an acoustic. And when I hit the distortion box playing on an acoustic for the first time, I was like that’s the sound I’ve been looking for. I had never thought about putting an acoustic through a Metal Pedal and that was pretty cool. At first I didn’t now how I was going to do leads. But I pretty much dug in and went for it. People think it’s a trick but I use 12 gauge strings and that’s what’s defined our sound for 10 years now. On electric, I used 11s and I already played hard as it is. With the acoustic, I found the tone I’ve always wanted and I’ve been using it ever since. And the Masterbilts are my favorite.

The new one I got the Epiphone Masterbilt EF-500RCCE has a C neck on it, which I’ve never played before. I play a bit unorthodox and because of that neck I’m playing smoother and tighter now. Epiphone is amazing. We have been told countless times: “Reverend Johnson, man you just blew my mind and changed everything I thought about the acoustic guitar. How do you shred on an acoustic guitar?” They have never seen anything like that and the tone of my distortion, they’re looking for a Les Paul up there on the stage and then see that I am playing an Epiphone Masterbilt.
 
They get even more shocked when they learn that I play on 12 gauge D'addario acoustic strings in standard tuning. I truly enjoy playing any Epiphone that has the e-Sonic2 pre-amp and Shadow Nanoflex under saddle pickup. I can rock them right out of the box. I would like to say that I am very excited to be a part of The Epiphone guitar family! I have always been a huge fan so it is a true honor for me.
 
We’re so glad to have you with us!  How has the audience been on the tour?
Oh, amazing. Totally amazing. Every time we play to new people, they’re just blown away. Most people’s mindset when they see an acoustic guitar is that it’s going to be laid back and soft. They just can’t believe the amount of energy we put into our live set and into our songs.
 
Are you able to write on the road?
We like staying busy so when touring we always have ideas rolling. I don’t know where it comes from but we keep writing songs. We bring a little recorder with us so when we get ideas, we record it so we can remember it. And then over the years of touring we’ve invested in building a studio at our house in Texas. So now we’re able to record all our records. We’ve been pretty much done everything DIY with this band from recording our first record, learning how to mix and master our stuff. And with this last one, it was completely done ourselves.
 
How did the album come about? 
We recorded the new album in our studio that we built at our home in Texas called YeeHaw Sound. This is our decade year and we wanted to take things to the next level. While we were on a 6-month U.S.A. and European Tour with no breaks, we were shopping this record around to labels. We connected with the Rusty Knuckles label. They believed in us and our hard work. So in joining forces, we knew that we would be a great alliance and help each other.
 
The Bastards Sons of Texas was released on Rusty Knuckles August 1.  The album got a new and noteworthy feature on the front page of iTunes Country New Releases right next to Alan Jackson. We have never been on the front page of anything, so this was a huge step for us. The Bastard Sons of Texas has been on the front page and has been the #1 iTunes Alternative Country Album Chart for 3 weeks running. For us to be breaking down some barriers, we feel there is hope for our music to be heard, and help get more DIY bands noticed and possibly even bring a whole new era of music to the world.
 
Has it been hard sometimes to find the right venue? A lot of club owners are tough characters—the margins are thin, and they don’t like to take chances. I can imagine they see a photo of you guys with acoustic guitars and might be skeptical. 
 
Yeah, there’s that. When we did our first five shows, we didn’t have a band name (laughs). But we’ve not had a whole lot of trouble--but yeah, quite a bit trouble with people not talking you seriously or not putting your name on the marque. But we just keep pushing it and doing it. Our whole success has always been word of mouth. We figure if the music is good enough, people will share it and it will get around on its own.

The Epiphone Interview: Reverend Johnson
Epiphone Masterbilt EF-500RCCE
Promotion these days is pretty cut-throat. 
Big time. What our fans love about us is that we’re regular guys. We hate backstages. When bands play, we’re right up front watching them play. We’re so grateful that people want to hear our music and a lot of that support inspires us, too.
 
What have you been listening to on tour? 
We’re really diggin’ that underground scene. Most really good bands are people no one knows who they are. They’re playing those small dive bars for people who know and love music. One of the best guitar players out there now is Dylan Rose of Archer who is with Epiphone. Dylan is a hell of a guitar player—he’s got it.  He just wants to play music.
 
Do you find any difference in the audience reaction in—say—Europe as opposed to the U.S.?
We had been trying to get over there to Europe for awhile because our merchandise has been selling. It’s a little bit scarier in Europe because if you break down, you’re not just short drive away like you are in the States for someone to come help you (laughs). So we’ve been trying to find the right people to work with. But we got really lucky. We found a management company that was really gung ho to make an investment to see what would happen with us. We book all the U.S.A. dates ourselves and have a great management company Red Rumour in Europe that books all of our overseas shows. They really believe in us and feel that we are paving the way for the acoustic music scene, changing folks’ mindset of relaxed and mellow, showing the world that the acoustic sound can be heartfelt and beautiful. And then we stomp the Metal Pedal and blow the roof off! 
 
When was your first trip overseas?
We went over there to put out foot in the door last year. At first, he was having trouble booking the tour because people were thinking “it’s just acoustic.” We played the first show and the owner of the club, who had kind of lost faith in music, he did a complete article on us in the local paper about how were bringing back good music. That first show we played in the Netherlands, we heard that people drove 6 hours from Germany to see us play. So the reaction has been amazing. Our last tour we were there for two months last spring. We did 44 shows and got 44 encores. Our management was in tears on our last show. 
 
Tours can be long and punishing—even for just two people.  
It’s what we do, we love it. When we started building this thing, it took off on it’s own. Our first live performance was in 2005. The first 5 years, we played 250 shows annually around the Fort Worth, Texas area and the surrounding states as well. We wanted to tour for a long time but trying to figure out how to successfully book a tour in the U.S.A. was intimidating. In 2010, we had reached the point to where the only way to get further in our career and get our name out there was to book a tour and just go! In being a completely DIY band, our 1st tour was two months long and in that time period we sure learned a lot. It was a rough tour. You realize quickly when nobody knows who you are 1,000 miles away from home and if you love the touring life or if you don’t. Well we loved it!
 
There are not many nights with hotels for DIY bands, if you’re lucky a fan will offer you a place to stay the night and let you sleep on their floor and shower in the morning before you roll to the next town. For the last 5 years, we have toured 8 months out of the year. Our friends and peers tell us that we’re the hardest working band and they call us “Road Dogs.” We call it the relentless pursuit. The style of our songs and the way we play has been called “Metal Neck,” “Acoustic Hillbilly Country Metal,” and some say “Outlaw,” but we like to call it “Heavy Metal Honky Tonk!” Myself and Fritz have always felt that we’re searching for something and hopefully we’ll find it."

Friday, August 28, 2015

Whiskeydick Debuts Brand New Video For The Title Track, Bastard Sons Of Texas, From Their New Album

Whiskeydick Debuts Brand New Video For The Title Track, Bastard Sons Of Texas, From Their New Album
Buy Whiskeydick's new album

At the lonesome crossroads where country and metal intersect, stand two swaggering badasses holding acoustic guitars. They're not interested in your soul they have plenty of soul already. Cult favorites WhiskeyDick blow minds with a double barrel blast of dreadnaught shredding and hillbilly bellowing that makes you want to knock back a shot, stand up tall, and holler "Oh-hell-yeehaw!"

The Fort Worth duo carry on the Texas traditions of super-powered guitar slinging and clever songwriting that make lone star music a worldwide curiosity, except Reverend Johnson will remind you more of Dimebag Darrell than Billy Gibbons and Fritz remains more lyrically akin to David Allen Coe than Robert Earl Keen.


WhiskeyDick's live show is a true spectacle: two giant, tattooed, mean-looking dudes saunter on stage and sit down in wooden folding chairs, then pick up acoustic guitars and proceed to amaze everyone by generating more power than a full band by means of Fritz's deep, rich vocals, Johnson's unapproachable acoustic guitar heroics, and their triumphant songwriting.


"We're just a train robbin', gun totin', dope smokin', guitar pickin' muthafuckin' good time band. Taking hillbilly music and spreading it across the land."


Thursday, August 27, 2015

Whiskeydick Scores A Feature Review In Belgium For Their Latest Album, The Bastard Sons Of Texas

Whiskeydick Scores A Feature Review In Belgium For Their Latest Album, The Bastard Sons Of Texas
Order your copy of the album now

Link to original post on SnoozeControl

"While Fritz 'n Johnson after a stopover in Iceland continued their flight continued to the Netherlands to be there on August 28 European release of their latest album' To The Bastard Sons of Texas' quarters Baroeg in Amsterdam, we high time to find our focus as shifting to Whiskey Dick, their new album and accompanying tour on the old continent.

At least 18 days peaked 'The Bastard Sons of Texas at number one on the iTunes Alternative Country Charts. Rightly so, because it 6'de studio album of this Texan bastard sons proposes at no time disappointed. Who ever saw the band live knows that the guys from Whiskey Dick quite a few have in the fingers and with their semi-acoustic guitars get the whole club moving. Typically, however, because as they say themselves, 'by the time we play our last issue is either the merch sold or the club empty. At humor lacking Fritz not to the country and hillbilly tracks to talk to each other during a live show, what the atmosphere extra benefits. Whiskey Dick is close to the people and warned chat with the fans do not. In short, Reverend Johnson and Fritz have become welcome guests in European clubs. However, the band did over there eight years before they played their first show in Europe. That this tour two years ago now, has been well received, we are absolutely not angry about. After every show we are already looking forward to the next, because the degree of addiction Whiskey Dick is very high. You have been warned.

'The Bastard Sons of Texas' lists 13 tracks on the cover, but it contains 14 which, as we are used from Whiskey Dick, compromise between drunken talk and sentiment. We immediately notice that the balance is restored between the two extremes, after the previous album 'From The Devil's Boots' still had a somewhat more melancholic undertone. On the new album is so uninhibited partying again, and we try to no longer count how many times words like "drunk, stoned, fuck, whiskey, devil, truck and Texas are reviewed. In terms of themes on this record will obviously nothing new, but why should that too. The formula has been working for ten years and they will not get bored, on the contrary. Always revolves around the circle: from liefdesverdiet to drink and drugs on Fuck The World, to then return to land with your feet on the ground and draw the lessons of life.

The opening track 'Whoops I Was Drunk "is a very playful song with an equally playful animation attached to it, both representative of the carpe diem content of Whiskey Dick. A lot of pranks, as in the title track 'The Bastard Sons of Texas', 'Fast Life' or 'Goddamn I Need Some Whiskey', with this last number with matching whiskey voice is played. In between the moral of the story Restless, Heart Broke And Stoned 'broken heart' Memories Of You 'and the amorous soul in' One More Day '. Leaves us with a few tall stories about 'Edna and Earl' and 'Crazy Uncle Blue' to naturally conclude that the gentlemen 'Truck Drivin' Blood '. The property is easily listenable tunes and your willy nilly cheerful. 'The Bastard Sons Of Texas "is actually the ideal location for anyone who stepped on the wrong side of the bed and then finds that the coffee is on. Whiskey Dick saves.

The European tour starts as I said on 28 September in Amsterdam and ends on October 24 in the cosiest pub in Deinze. In between there are numerous shows in smaller and larger clubs, at home and in neighboring countries. Options enough as the tour calendar shows, and so no one has a valid excuse for Whiskey Dick miss this time. Put that checkered shirt already finished and get those cowboy boots out of the closet. See you there!"

Whiskeydick Begins Their Fall 2015 European Tour


Whiskeydick Begins Their Fall 2015 European Tour

AUG. 28 - Baroeg - Rotterdam, Netherlands
AUG. 29 - Last Minute Festival - Den Helder, Netherlands
AUG. 30 - TBA - Germany, Luxembourg
AUG. 31 - Ebrietas - Zürich, Switzerland

SEPT. 1 - Ebrietas - Bern, Switzerland
SEPT. 2 - Chat Noir - Roujan, France
SEPT. 3 - Parc Central - Andorra La Vieja, Andorra
SEPT. 4 - Old Skull - Barcelona, Spain
SEPT. 5 - TBA - TBA, Spain
SEPT. 6 - Satelite T - Bilbao, Spain
SEPT. 7 - Don Floro - Aviles, Spain
SEPT. 8 - Honky Tonk Bar - Acebal, Spain
SEPT. 8 - Rocket Bar - Oviedo, Spain
SEPT. 9 - Café Cultural - Ourense, Spain
SEPT. 10 - Babylon - León, Spain
SEPT. 11 - Crazy Factory - Burgos, Spain
SEPT. 12 - Stonehead - Vitoria Gasteiz, Basque Country Spain

SEPT. 14 - TBA - TBA, Portugal
SEPT. 15 - TBA - TBA, Spain
SEPT. 16 - Wurlitzer Ballroom - Madrid, Spain
SEPT. 17 - Le Bukowski - Donostia, Basque Country - Spain
SEPT. 18 - Les Runes - Bordeaux, France
SEPT. 19 - Rodeo, Cowboy Up - Waardamme, Belgium
SEPT. 20 - Free Riders MC - Knokke, Belgium

OCT. 13 - Scruffys - Stuttgart, Germany
OCT. 14 - Bacchus - Geel, Belgium
OCT. 15 - Craufurd Arms - Milton Keynes, UK
OCT. 16 - The Anvil - Bournemouth, UK
OCT. 17 - The Masons - Swansea, UK
OCT. 18 - The Caledonia - Liverpool, UK
OCT. 19 - The Library - Oxford, UK
OCT. 20 - Quakerhouse - Darlington, UK
OCT. 21 - Bannermans - Edinburgh. UK
OCT. 22 - Bad Apples - Leeds. UK
OCT. 23 - Big Red - London, UK
OCT. 24 - Elpee - Deinze, Belgium


Tuesday, August 25, 2015

GWAR And Regional Identity In Richmond, VA | Dr. Michael Bishop | TEDxRVA

GWAR And Regional Identity In Richmond, VA | Dr. Michael Bishop | TEDxRVA
This talk was given at a local TEDx event, produced independently of the TED Conferences. It was filmed and edited by Tijo Media at the Carpenter Theatre at Richmond CenterStage in Richmond, VA. Select images credited to http://www.sofakingcoolonline.com/.

Michael Bishop is a Richmond musician best known for his work with GWAR. In the late 1980s, Bishop started as the bassist for the shock rock band while in high school, creating the character Beefkake the Mighty. Bishop left the band to concentrate on Kepone, a post-punk group who released three records between 1992 and 2000. In 2012, he earned a Ph.D. in music from the University of Virginia, specializing in popular music ethnography and performance studies. Following the death of GWAR singer Dave Brockie in 2014, Michael became the band’s vocalist, the Berserker Blöthar. Today, he stays busy as a writer and learning strategist, a member of Kepone and a country and soul group called the Misery Brothers, and the bassist for Sarah White. He also works with composer J. William Adkins on music, stage, and animation projects.

Monday, August 24, 2015

Legendary Shack Shakers Launch Video "Mud" For New Album On Alternative Tentacles

Legendary Shack Shakers Launch Video "Mud" For New Album On Alternative Tentacles

The Legendary Shack Shakers bring you the official video for "Mud" - the first single from their new album 'The Southern Surreal' - out September 11, 2015 on Alternative Tentacles.


Pre-Order the new album directly from the Legendary Shack Shakers

Thursday, August 20, 2015

Shane Martin Knows A Thing Or Two About Bending Metal

Shane Martin Knows A Thing Or Two About Bending Metal
One the greatest aspects of web searches or my new favorite, searching on instagram, is finding raw talent. There are a myriad of things in which we can find distractions in and one of the things I enjoy most is to see new artistic fabrication ideas in steel. What we think of as one secular object, being morphed into an entirely different object is just too damn cool. The patience to create these pieces along with the thought process speaks to the true imagination that might be lurking within any of us. Maybe it's time to take a page out of Shane Martin's playbook and work up some bolts into something cool. 

Epiphone - On The Road With Whiskeydick

Epiphone - On The Road With Whiskeydick

It is great to see that Whiskeydick is getting the attention they deserve. For a good while they have had an artist endorsement with Epiphone Guitars, but after they crashed the party on the Alternative Country Charts, debuting at number one, a few corporate gear sponsors are really starting to take notice and feature the band prominently. Huge thanks to Epiphone Guitars for the feature post.

Friday, August 14, 2015

Rusty Knuckles Custom Leather Guitar Straps

Rusty Knuckles Custom Leather Guitar Straps

Rusty Knuckles hand crafted customs offers up a line of unique musical instrument straps for guitars, banjos and mandolins. We take the utmost pride in our craftsmanship and know that our customers expect nothing less. We back up all of our work and offer full customization on every product sold by us. Let us create the exact strap to best match your instrument to help keep you on the stage for many an hour per night and for the years to come. 

Whiskeydick - God Damn I Need Some Whiskey, featured song

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View our full portfolio of custom leather gear

Thursday, August 13, 2015

Help Support "The Quiet" A New Horror Film Being Shot In Louisville, Kentucky



Check out the film on IndieGogo

"Hi! My name is Mike Thompson and I am the writer/director of The Quiet, my first feature-length horror film. For years, I've shot, concepted and edited videos for record labels such as Rusty Knuckles and corporations such as Crosley Radio, and I'm ready to make the jump to a feature film. 
The plan is to make an amazing haunted house thriller that serves as an homage to the classics such as The Changeling, Poltergeist, The Innocents, The Shining (Book & Movie), Legend of Hell House, etc.  
With an already amazingly supportive cast & crew, as well as a great script and amazing location, this film is ready to shoot, but we just need a little push.
The Film
A young couple, Maggie and Josh Kelly, move back to their hometown to recover from the loss of their son, Thomas. Maggie's consistent nightmares cause her to seek out help from a psychic to see if her dreams mean anything. After strange disturbances begin in the house, Maggie begins to connect the dots between her dreams, the house and the evil that lies within.

Monday, August 10, 2015

Master Penman, Jake Weidmann Proves That Craftsmanship Is Still Alive And Well In The Design Community

Master Penman, Jake Weidmann Proves That Craftsmanship Is Still Alive And Well In The Design Community

It is way to easy to open up a computer application today and just start to mock up a font choice or to manipulate an image. But to create imagery from a calligraphic pen and ink is the modern day equivalent of magic. Seeing an artist such as Jake Weidmann talk about his craft is a true inspiration and a valuable lesson in keeping your skills honed and on point.

Brand New Custom Belt Buckles From Rusty Knuckles

Custom belt buckle for the Koffin Kats
Creating brand new art for belt buckles is something that we enjoy to the utmost. When it comes to etching belt buckles, the bolder the art the better the etch. Creating a really fine etch can be tricky and much harder to produce in a large quantity. Have a look through some of our newest projects.

Rusty Knuckles Custom Leather Straps Are Made One At A Time And Built To Last

Muddy Roots custom guitar strap
Our custom straps are made from eight to ten ounce leather and built to last a lifetime with the proper care. Each strap is made by hand and absolutely unique from one to the next due to the varying types of leather and with the level of customization we offer. Feel free to get in touch with us about your custom project or to even match your guitar with the perfect strap.

Thursday, August 6, 2015

Jack Daniel's Birthday And One Cool Illustration To Celebrate It

Jack Daniel's Birthday And One Cool Illustration To Celebrate It

Advertising can pay great money for certain projects and then there are the jobs that you get to let loose on and they reflect on pop culture. While perusing Behance and looking at portfolio's I ran across this great project mixing illustration and some cool type. It's just got a great vibe and a fun feel, exactly what liquor is supposed to make happen. Great job Jack Daniels.

West Virginia Motorcycle Run With The Southern Brothers

Quick stop in to Cum Park Plaza
Sometimes in life you get lucky to meet a group of folks that will turn into friends that you know you will have for the rest of your life. Only bad part about this though, is that most of us live quite a ways apart and only get to see one another on a few bike runs per year. On these runs, conversations start up and then get added to, lengthened and then christened with new elements every four to five months, when we all get the chance to meet up again. 

I can vouch for every single person on the run or that rides within our group from a personality level, riding skill and as a standup individual. If you can't make the cut on any of the these three elements, well then we sure as hell won't ask ya to join us on a run. These gatherings are meant to disappear into the wild for a couple of days and to be able to go drink from the well and come out whole again on the other side. These runs have helped us to achieve an absolute brotherhood and cannot wait for the next gathering in September. Damn proud to be one of the crew.

Creating Manual Camera Functions Overtly Done From A Steampunk Point Of View

Not just your average camera created within a steampunk state of mind

Found this steampunk style camera on a Russian language site and here is the translation:

"As planned in the flash unit is operated by means of two valves located on it. Chemicals are served in a glass flask in any reaction occurs and the photographer gets a bright light. The light can be extinguished by closing both valves. In fact it is a source of constant light with relatively small resources.

The machine has a removable holder for filters or lenses for macro photography. On top of the viewfinder are two: the main-center and an additional through which you can view on the subject matter through the filter. If you turn the filter holder on the axis, he stands just opposite the additional view finder.

Wednesday, August 5, 2015

Crosley Radio Slimline Jukebox Ad, Featuring The Music Of The Go Devils

Crosley Radio Slimline Jukebox Ad, Featuring The Music Of The Go Devils
We are always stoked when getting a song sync licensed for commercial placement in an advertisement. There isn't a better way to reach new potential new fans than through larger media outlets. Thank you Crosley Radio for the opportunity and for featuring the Go Devils within your new ad for the Slimline Jukebox.

Seeking True Character Depth? Look No Further Than Mark Mahnoey of Shamrock Tattoo

Deep thinker, tattoo artist and an overall man of action ready to play the next gangster kingpin in a film

Understanding depth of character and meeting a truly unique individual can be a relatively daunting task. The more real, honest and genuine that character may be, the more they almost recede into the background as our media is full of those seeking any miniscule amount of quick fame or fortune. Then there are those individuals that live in a fantasy land and never quite achieve what they set out to do.

I am a huge fan of dark and troubled characters as they seem to take on the flaws of humanity as a whole. These individuals tread through troubled waters as if they don't know of any other area or locale to call home, yet live resolutely within that space. After listening to Mark Mahoney of Shamrock Tattoo in Los Angeles talk briefly about his shop and thoughts on life, it immediately turns into a quick study about a true character that has survived through the tattoo underbelly of a society that yearns for characters with real depth.

Pro Skater Brian Lotti Talks About His Series Of Paintings On Echo Park In Los Angeles

Pro Skater Brian Lotti Talks About His Series Of Paintings About Echo Park In Los Angeles
Capturing a unique approach is always tough to realize and especially when you are living through the moment that you are trying to capture. This could be said for any unique discipline where you are working within your craft and living exactly in the moment. It could be that rhythmic bar chord that is creating a bombastic tone or in the case of Brian Lotti, lining up one trick after the next in a great skate session that ultimately culminates in looking at every landscape around you in a unique way.

Monday, August 3, 2015

Whiskeydick, The Bastard Sons Of Texas, Dominates Itunes Alt County Charts For Singles and Albums

Whiskeydick, The Bastard Sons Of Texas, Dominates Itunes Alt County Charts For Singles and Albums


It is a great feeling to see that Whiskeydick is dominating the charts for Itunes Alt Country albums. Fritz and Reverend Johnson are some of the hardest working and touring folks we know and the proof is in the puddin'! 

Order your copy of album from our store

Or download from Itunes