Author: planetsixstring

311 has added a second leg to its “Spring Tour” 2022. The trek will kick off with leg one consisting of 20 shows scheduled between March 6 and April 6. Leg two will run from May 12 to June 5 and include 17 shows.

“Spring Tour” marks the exciting return of one of rock’s most entertaining and dynamic live bands. 311 erupts on stage, mixing rock, rap, reggae, and funk into its own unique hybrid sound.

The 311 “Spring Tour” includes the 12th biennial “311 Day”, featuring two nights of extended performances in Las Vegas on Friday, March 11 and Saturday, March 12 (plus livestream), as well as appearances at the Tampa Innings Festival (alongside GREEN DAY and INCUBUS) and the Beachlife Festival (alongside WEEZER).

“311 Day” 2022 will be celebrated at the Dolby Live Theater at Park MGM. On both days, 311 will play multiple extended sets. This “Ultimate 311 Concert Experience” will feature a different setlist each night and stunning, state-of-the-art production.

Select “Spring Tour” performances, including “311 Day” 2022, will be available online through 311 Streamsystem (www.311streamsystem.com), 311’s own streaming platform. 311 launched Streamsystem in October 2020 to reach fans, new and old, during the pandemic. Streamsystem 2022 continues to offer virtual “front-row seats” from the comfort of home.

311 is one of the longest-running original lineups in rock. The band formed in 1990 in Omaha, Nebraska. 311’s celebrated live show and dedicated touring schedule have earned them a massive, grassroots following. Over their 32-year history, 311 played more than 2,000 performances across 27 countries, released thirteen studio albums, achieved 10 Billboard Top 10s on Billboard’s Top 200 Sales chart, and sold over nine million albums in the U.S. alone.

Their list of Top 10 radio hits includes: “Down”, “All Mixed Up””Amber”, “Love Song”, “Come Original”, “Beautiful Disaster”, “Don’t Tread On Me”, “You Wouldn’t Believe”, “Hey You” and “Sunset In July”.

311’s lineup features: Nick Hexum (vocals/guitar), Tim Mahoney (guitar), SA Martinez (singer, DJ), Chad Sexton (drums), and P-Nut (bass).

Leg one:

Mar. 06 – Beaver Creek, CO – Vilar Performing Arts Center
Mar. 07 – Aspen, CO – Belly Up
Mar. 11 – Las Vegas, NV – Dolby Live theater at Park MGM
Mar. 12 – Las Vegas, NV – Dolby Live theater at Park MGM
Mar. 15 – Fayetteville, AR – JJ’s Live
Mar. 18 – Key West, FL – Coffee Butler Amphitheater
Mar. 19 – Tampa, FL – Innings Festival at Raymond James Stadium
Mar. 20 – Orlando, FL – House of Blues
Mar. 22 – Charlotte, NC – The Fillmore
Mar. 23 – Raleigh, NC – The Ritz
Mar. 25 – Norfolk, VA – The Norva
Mar. 26 – N. Myrtle Beach, SC – House of Blues
Mar. 28 – Nashville, TN – Ryman Auditorium
Mar. 29 – Huntsville, AL- Von Braun Center’s Mars Music Hall
Mar. 30 – New Orleans, LA – The Fillmore at Harrah’s
Apr. 01 – San Antonio, TX – Majestic Theatre
Apr. 02 – Corpus Christi, TX – Concrete Street Amphitheater
Apr. 03 – Austin, TX – Stubb’s Waller Creek Amphitheater
Apr. 05 – Tulsa, OK – Tulsa Theater
Apr. 06 – Wichita, KS – The Cotillion

Leg two:

May 12 – Ventura, CA – Majestic Ventura Theatre
May 13 – Redondo Beach, CA – Beachlife Festival
May 14 – Flagstaff, AZ – Pepsi Amphitheater
May 17 – Riverside, CA – Riverside Municipal Auditorium
May 18 – Monterey, CA – Golden State Theatre
May 20 – Reno, NV – Silver Legacy Resort Casino
May 21 – Garden City, ID – Revolution Concert House
May 22 – Spokane, WA – Knitting Factory Concert House
May 24 – Missoula, MT – KettleHouse Amphitheater
May 25 – Bozeman, MT – The Elm
May 27 – Fargo, ND – Fargo Brewing Company – outdoors
May 28 – Superior, WI – Earth Rider Brewery
May 29 – Green Bay, WI – Epic Events Center
Jun. 01 – Casper, WY – The Gaslight Social
Jun. 02 – Sandy, UT – Sandy City Amphitheater
Jun. 03 – Englewood, CO – [to be announced]
Jun. 05 – Grand Junction, CO – Las Colonias Park Amphitheater

The 1980s were a decade of big hair, big amps, and big guitar tones. But while those stacks of cabinets certainly made things louder, behind-the-scenes rackmount chorus and in particular, the tri-stereo chorus units available under various names such as Dyno-My-Piano, Dynotronics, and Songbird, did a lot to make ’80s guitar sound bigger still. Once these rackmount units reached the rigs of guitarists such as Michael Landau and Steve Lukather, pop radio didn’t stand a chance.After a period of relentless ubiquity, heavily chorused guitar tones went the way of Aqua Net. But chorus made a comeback, and even rare rackmount versions of the effect have been distilled into pedal form. Eventide does a swell job cramming complicated effects into compact stomps. This time around, they’ve fit the giant tones and deep functionality of rackmount tri-stereo chorus into the pedalboard-friendly TriceraChorus.Eventide TriceraChorus Review by premierguitarRecorded using a G&L Legacy through a Fender 5A3 Deluxe (left) and silver-panel Fender Deluxe Reverb (right), each miked with a Shure SM57 through an SSL 2+ interface.
Neck pickup, chorus mode, rate at 10 o’clock, detune at 10 o’clock, chorus levels at noonSame settings in swirl modeNeck pickup, swirl on, vibrato mode, rate at 3 o’clock/rate envelope cranked, detune at 3 o/clock, pitch at 11 o’clockRhythm on bridge/middle, chorale mode, rate noon, detune noon, all three levels at 2 o’clock. Lead with same setting but with Klon KTRSame settings on bridge/middle, delay knob cranked (clean)Same settings but with Klon KTRIs Three Better Than One?Anyone who’s ever used a stereo chorus effect knows the depth and dimension it can add to a guitar tone. A tri-stereo chorus takes that idea and runs with it—creating three separate chorus signals and placing them across the stereo field—left, center, and right. The result is just as vast as you’d hope, evoking big-stadium vibes even with a pair of small combos.Like the other pedals in Eventide’s dot9 series, the TriceraChorus’ dual-function knobs offer a wide range of control. On the TriceraChorus, users can use them to choose between three effect modes (chorus, vibrato, and chorale), tweak rate/rate envelope, detune amount and pitch, left/center/right levels, delay time, and filter settings. The complex nature of the pedal’s capabilities means specific settings are easy to forget, and first-time users face a bit of a learning curve. But the five factory presets are good jumping-off points for exploring possible extremes. And with the option to create 127 presets of your own you can create and recall many simple or radical formulas to suit your musical moment.By cranking up the rate and detune past noon and playing around with a little micro-pitch shifting to taste, it was easy to evoke the Mike Stern-playing-with-Miles tones of my dreams.Tracing The History of ChorusIn some ways, the TriceraChorus enables users to be tone archeologists and trace the history of the chorus effect to its early days. At its simplest settings, the TriceraChorus offers bucket brigade-inspired tones that evoke the sound of those ’70s stomps. And in chorus mode, with the rate at slow-to-moderate settings and the detune below noonish, the pedal offers warm gooey delights. Kick on the swirl switch and you unlock even warmer phase- and flange-style modulation. If it’s subtle sounds you seek, dialing back one or two of the three chorus level settings offers more vintage-variety sounds. On the other side of the coin, keeping the swirl engaged and switching into vibrato mode at high rate and detune settings creates worlds of weirdness.When it’s time to lean into ’80s vibes, you’ll want all three chorus levels to be audible. I found the most hi-fi tones in chorale mode with the swirl function off. Here, tight, single-note riffs and leads sing, especially with a touch of overdrive in front of the pedal. By cranking up the rate and detune past noon and adding a little micro-pitch shifting to taste, it was easy to evoke the Mike Stern-playing-with-Miles tones of my dreams. Cranking the delay knob can deliver the pedal’s most arena-ready tones and I had a blast faking my way through everything from Alex Lifeson-style suspensions to “Purple Rain.” Whatever the settings, with all three chorus voices activated, the TriceraChorus adds a lush sparkle to clean tones and buffs out the rough edges of distorted tones to create ’80s radio-ready majesty.The VerdictThough tri-stereo chorus was immensely popular in its heyday, its potential is still underutilized. And while I’ve never played through a vintage Dynotronics unit to know how close Eventide got to the original vibes, I’ve played through enough chorus pedals to know that the TriceraChorus does something very different. If you want quintessentially ’80s sounds, this pedal will get you there instantly. If that’s not your bag, you might not need all the extra fuss. But this Eventide has plenty of sonic rewards to offer anyone who’s even a little curious about chorus exploration and wants to embiggen their tones.

RISE AGAINST has announced a summer 2022 U.S. headline tour, including shows at The Forum in Los Angeles (July 19) and The Rooftop at Pier 17 in New York City (August 9), with support from THE USED and SENSES FAIL. Tickets will go on sale this Friday, March 4.

RISE AGAINST tour dates:

Apr. 01 – Ville De Québec, Canada – Videotron Centre
Apr. 03 – Laval, Canada – Place Bell
Apr. 04 – Ottawa, Canada – TD Place
Apr. 06 – Toronto, Canada – Scotiabank Arena
Apr. 07 – London, Canada – Budweiser Gardens
Apr. 09 – Worcester, MA – The Palladium *
Apr. 10 – Cincinnati, OH – The Icon Music Center *
Apr. 12, Milwaukee, WI – Eagles Ballroom *
Apr. 13 – Minneapolis, MN – Skyway Theatre *
Apr. 14 – Winnipeg, MT – Canada Life Centre *
Apr. 16 – Calgary, AB – Big Four Roadhouse *
Apr. 17 – Edmonton, AB – Edmonton Convention Centre *
Apr. 19 – Seattle, WA – WAMU Theater *
Apr. 21 – Redding, CA – Redding Civic Auditorium *
Apr. 22 – Bakersfield, CA – Mechanics Bank Theater *
Jun. 08 – Kralovske Vinohrady, Czechia – Prague Summer Festival
Jun. 09 – Nickelsdorf, Austria – Nova Rock
Jun. 14 – Budapest, Hungary – Budapest Park Open Air
Jun. 15 – Warsaw, Poland – Torwar
Jun. 09 – Jun. 11 – Interlaken, Switzerland – Greenfield Festival
Jun. 10 – Derby, U.K. – Download Festival
Jun. 23 – Clisson, France – Hellfest
Jun. 24 – Antwerpen, Belgium – OLT Rivierenhof (sold out)
Jun. 25 – Ysselsteyn, Netherlands – Jera On Air Festival
Jun. 27 – Milano, Italy – Circolo Magnolia
Jun. 29 – Viveiro, Spain – Resurrection Fest
Jul. 15 – Las Vegas, NV – Zappos Theater #
Jul. 16 – Santa Barbara, CA – Santa Barbara Bowl %
Jul. 17 – San Diego, CA – Petco Park %
Jul. 19 – Inglewood, CA – The Forum %
Jul. 20 – Reno, NV – Grand Theatre @ Grand Sierra Resort %
Jul. 22 – Spokane, WA – Knitting Factory #
Jul. 23 – Vancouver, BC – PNE Forum %
Jul. 24 – Bend, OR – Hayden Homes Amphitheater %
Jul. 26 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Complex Outdoor %
Jul. 27 – Denver, CO – Levitt Pavilion %
Jul. 29 – Albuquerque, NM – Villa Hispana Pavilion at Expo NM %
Jul. 30 – Oklahoma, OK – The Criterion %
Aug. 01 – Dallas, TX – The Bomb Factory %
Aug. 02 – San Antonio, TX – Tech Port Center + Arena %
Aug. 04 – Atlanta, GA – Tabernacle %
Aug. 05 – Myrtle Beach, SC – House of Blues Myrtle Beach #
Aug. 06 – Raleigh, NC – Red Hat Amphitheater %
Aug. 08 – Norfolk, VA – The NorVa #
Aug. 09 – New York, NY – Rooftop @ Pier 17 %
Aug. 12 – Boston, MA – Roadrunner %
Aug. 14 – Asbury Park, NJ – Stone Pony Summer Stage %
Aug. 17 – Cleveland, OH – Jacob’s Pavilion @ Nautica %
Aug. 18 – Detroit, MI – Michigan Lottery Amphitheatre @ Freedom Hill %

* w/ PENNYWISE and ROTTING OUT
% w/ THE USED and SENSES FAIL
# w/ SENSES FAIL

RISE AGAINST’s latest album, “Nowhere Generation”, saw its title track, No. 1 Rock-charting hit earn various spots on Billboard’s Year-End Charts for radio airplay, including No. 4 at Mainstream Rock Songs and No. 5 at Rock Airplay Songs, as well as iHeartRadio’s No. 10 most played Alternative song in 2021. The band was also Billboard’s No. 9 most-played artist on rock radio in 2021, alongside Billie Eilish, FOO FIGHTERS and more.

On “Nowhere Generation”, the multi-gold and platinum band draws a line in the sand with its blazing and aggressive punk rock and lyrics that shine a spotlight on the social and economical deck that has been stacked against our younger generations’ pursuit of The American Dream. The album debuted at the top of multiple Billboard charts with its first week sales (No. 1 on Rock, No. 3 on Top Current Albums, No. 3 on Vinyl, and the Top 40 of the Top 200), and earned great press from outlets, including Revolver, Consequence, Loudwire, Brooklyn Vegan, Grammy.com, American Songwriter, The Line Of Best Fit, Clash and Kerrang!, among others. The album’s June 4, 2021, release date was also declared “Rise Against Day” in Chicago, the band’s original hometown.

Last November, RISE AGAINST shared the “Nowhere Sessions” EP, a six-track live expansion of the album that captures and celebrates the anthemic intensity of the band’s renowned performances. Singles from the EP included “Talking To Ourselves (Nowhere Sessions)” and a cover of CREEDENCE CLEARWATER REVIVAL’s “Fortunate Son”.

Photo credit: Jason Siegel

Alex Lifeson has told Guitar World in a new interview that he hasn’t ruled out making new music with his RUSH bandmate Geddy Lee. “We’re not putting any pressure on it or anything,” he said. “We had a lot of good years together and we still love each other very much. I talk to Geddy every other day — we’re best friends. There’s more to our life together than just writing music. So if it happens, it happens. And it’ll happen when it happens.”

Lifeson previously addressed discussed the possibility of playing with Lee again in some capacity during a June 2021 appearance on SiriuxXM’s “Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk”. The two haven’t performed together since the completion of RUSH’s final tour, “R40”, which commemorated the 40th anniversary of drummer Neil Peart joining the band. Peart died in January 2020 after a three-year battle with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer. He was 67 years old.

“Geddy and I started writing together when we were — I don’t know — 14 years old, I guess,” the guitarist said. “And we are best friends; I love the guy so much, [and] he means so much to me. And we’ve had this amazing experience of working together as well as being buddies.

“I talk to Ged every couple of days or so,” he continued. “We try to get together for dinner. That’s been a more challenging thing lately. But we did get out once recently. It’s great, ’cause mostly we’re pals.

“If there’s something that comes up in the future — an opportunity for us to do something — we’ll decide over a cup of coffee what that’ll be. But there’s no urgency or there’s no pre-planned thing now. He’s doing whatever he’s doing, I’m doing whatever I’m doing, and we keep each other informed and stuff like that, but, God, we had such a great history and did so much great stuff together, it’s not really a big deal if, for the rest of our lives, we’re just best friends.

“I know RUSH fans are a unique bunch, and I love them,” Lifeson added. “And certainly everything that we’ve done, we’ve always done to satisfy ourselves before anybody else, and I think RUSH fans understood that and were always very supportive — very critical at times too, but always supportive. And that was the nature of our relationship with our fans — it was a really good two-way relationship. But I think, really, RUSH ended in 2015. There’s no way RUSH will ever exist again because Neil’s not here to be a part of it. And that’s not to say that we can’t do other things and we can’t do things that benefit our communities and all of that. I have lots of plans for that sort of thing that don’t necessarily include Geddy.

“I get asked this all the time — are we gonna do this, or are we gonna do that? Who knows? All I know is we still love each other and we’re still very, very good friends, and we always will be.”

Lifeson also reflected on RUSH’s final tour, which concluded on August 1, 2015 at the Forum in Los Angeles. Peart indicated at the time that he wanted to retire while he was still able to play well, along with a desire to spend more time at home with his young daughter.

“We were in our early 60s when that tour ended,” Alex said. “After the number of dates that we did do, which was about half of what we would normally do, we were all starting to feel the fatigue, as you normally would. And had it been a normal tour, we have gone out for probably another month and then taken a month off, or maybe a couple of months off, and then picked it up for another three or four months.

“I think personally, and I think the same for Ged, we were really excited about the show, the presentation of the show, the whole concept of going back through our history,” he continued. “I thought we were all playing really, really well, and I probably could have continued to do another 30 shows, and I think Geddy felt the same way. But it was becoming really difficult for Neil to play at that level, and unless he could play a hundred percent at that level, he really didn’t wanna do any more shows, and he didn’t wanna be that person that should have taken it. And it was hard for him — a three-hour show playing the way he played. It’s a miracle that he was even able to play. And he had some issues through that tour — he had an infection on his feet and he could barely walk, never mind playing the bass drum the way he did. And he never complained or anything like that. So, it was time. And in retrospect, it couldn’t have been better, because we were playing great, and we finished on such a high note. The fans were so happy — I mean, with the performance. All things were right. That was the great way to ensure our legacy and be remembered for those guys, for being that band that played that way. I honestly would hate to be working now, for example, and not being able to play a song because my fingers are just killing me and not playing as well and making all these mistakes. I made enough mistakes — way too many. So, all in all, it really turned out to be the opportune time for us to end a long career. Not a lot of bands lasted 40 years of that regular touring and many, many, many albums and all of that stuff.”

RUSH waited three days to announce Peart’s passing, setting off shockwaves and an outpouring of grief from fans and musicians all over the world.

Peart joined RUSH in 1974. He was considered one of the best rock drummers of all time, alongside John Bonham of LED ZEPPELIN; Keith Moon of THE WHO; and Ginger Baker of CREAM. Peart was also RUSH’s primary lyricist, drawing inspiration from everything from sci-fi to Ayn Rand.

Steve Vai has announced that the “Inviolate” world tour will now begin with a European leg of appearances beginning in Glasgow on June 4. He’ll be on the road in to mid-July, staging performances in the U.K., Ireland, France, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, The Netherlands, Belgium, and Spain. A detailed itinerary follows below.

For tickets and a variety of EVO Experience VIP bundles available visit www.vai.com. Vai will be joined by his long-tenured ensemble members Dave Weiner (guitar, keys), Philip Bynoe (bass) and Jeremy Colson (drums).

Vai shares: “It’s amazing to realize that after three years of not performing our show on a stage, that it’s now on the horizon, and will start to unfold in Europe this summer. I can feel the road now and the enthusiastic audiences that we will be will be connecting with.”

Favored Nations / Mascot Label Group released Vai’s new studio album, titled “Inviolate”, on January 28.

Confirmed appearances include:

June 04 – Glasgow, UK – o2 Academy
June 05 – Manchester, UK – The Ritz
June 07 – London, UK – Palladium
June 09 – Bristol, UK – o2 Academy
June 10 – Dublin, Ireland – Academy
June 11 – Belfast, UK – The Limelight
June 13 – Paris, France – Le Trianon
June 14 – Strasbourg, France – La Laiterie
June 16 – Oslo, Norway – Rockefeller
June 17 – Bergen, Norway – USF Verftet
June 18 – Gothenburg, Sweden – Pustervik
June 19 – Stockholm, Sweden – Fållan
June 20 – Copenhagen, Denmark – Amager Bio
June 22 – Lille, France – Splendid
June 23 – Clisson, France – Hellfest
June 24 – Bordeaux-Cenon, France – Rocher de Palmer
June 25 – Nimes, France – Paloma
June 26 – Lyon, France – Transbordeur
June 28 – Nuremberg, Germany – Hirsch
June 29 – Linz, Austria – Posthof
July 01 – Udine, Italy – Castello
July 02 – Macerata, Italy – Sferisterio
July 03 – Bari, Italy – Teatro Petruzzelli
July 04 – Firenze, Italy – Ultravox Arena
July 05 – Gardone Riviera, Italy – Anfiteatro del Vittoriale
July 06 – Zurich, Switzerland – Komplex
July 08 – Berlin, Germany – Columbia Theatre
July 09 – Weert, Netherlands – Bospop Festival
July 10 – Antwerp, Belgium – OLT Rivierenhof
July 12 – Toulouse, France – Le Bikini
July 14 – Sancti Petri, Spain – Concert Music Festival
July 16 – Valencia, Spain – Jardin de Viveros
July 17 – Vigo, Spain – Auditorio Mar do Vigo
July 19 – Barcelona, Spain – Teatro Tivoli

Steve recently postponed his planned tour of North America until the fall. The first U.S. leg of dates will now begin on Wednesday, September 28 in El Cajon, California and wrap the first week of December. The itinerary will now feature performances in 52 markets as opposed to the initial plan of staging 54 shows. All ticket and VIP purchases will be honored for the rescheduled date. Vai’s performance in Atlanta, Georgia will now take place at the Variety Playhouse instead of The Eastern and due to scheduling conflicts, the Milwaukee, Wisconsin and Billings, Montana shows will no longer be a part of the tour.

Approximately one year ago, Vai underwent shoulder surgery to repair an injury. That procedure was successful, enabling him to record the upcoming studio album release of “Inviolate” (Favored Nations / Mascot Label Group). In preparing for the tour, it became clear that a new injury emerged that requires another surgery, prohibiting the tour to be staged as previously announced.

Last February, Vai revealed that he had undergone shoulder and trigger finger surgeries, explaining that his shoulder had been “screwed up.”

During an appearance on Tyler Larson’s “Guitar Villains” podcast, Vai said that he sustained the finger injury by holding a tough chord for too long.

“I was doing this fun thing, and I had to put my thumb in this really weird position,” he said. “And I had to kind of hold this chord really for a long time — I was meditating on it. And I knew it was a hard position, and I just kept sitting there and playing it and playing and playing, and 20 minutes later, I’d kind of come out, and I [felt pain in my hand]. So I kind of sprained this, and then, all of a sudden, I developed trigger finger. My wife said, ‘Don’t show anybody,’ ’cause they did that operation and they cut in there, and the guy’s fooling around with everything in there, and it’s really bizarre. But it’s all fine — it’s something very simple that they can fix. But I won’t be able to play for a while.”