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Bertha started out as a 1980 Ibanez Musician with the 5-piece neck-through series. After figuring out what I wanted, I went to my friend and luthier, Tim Huenke of Superior Guitars (Washington, Pennsylvania), and we put her together. He did the work; I did the scavenger hunt for the parts.We stripped out the body and most of the parts, then shaved down the body area (including the neck-through part) by 1/8″. Being in the Philly area at the time, I was literally able to “pull into Nazareth” and get a book-matched Indian rosewood back set from the 1833 Shop to overlay the top.The original fretboard was replaced with a triple-bound ebony board with 24 medium-jumbo, stainless-steel frets and, of course, banjo-style inlays. There was enough rosewood left to also redo the headstock overlay. The top was then given a “bathtub” route for the pickups and the rear switch cover was re-routed for a 9V battery box.All the mechanical parts are either lacquered brass or gold-plated. Starting with Dunlop strap locks and an Electrosocket jack, I found a top-load Aria tailpiece with locking studs feeding a harmonica Tune-o-matic bridge sitting on the original stainless-steel sustain block, also with locking studs. A brass pickup surround was mounted along with a brass “flatworm” switch cover. The knobs are Tele-style, and the nut is an original bone/brass nut. The tuners are top-lock Grover 18:1 Rotomatics with imperial buttons.The electronics start with a stereo jack (to turn on the preamp when plugged in) with three DiMarzio Super 2 pickups, three knob push-pull pots (for coil cuts), and a 5-way selector switch. The fourth knob control (pull-push) turns on the variable 0-20 db preamp. The three remaining switches are for phase reverse, series/parallel switching (when the middle pickup is on), and a switch that overrides the main selector to give a choice of bridge/neck, all three pickups, or the standard 5-way selector.This has been my main axe for the last 15 years, and obviously you know who my favorite guitarist was.Send your guitar story to submissions@premierguitar.com.

In a new interview with Billboard, AC/DC singer Brian Johnson referred to the band as “still a working entity of sorts” but didn’t reveal any future touring or recording plans.
“I would love to do music again,” Johnson said, “whether it’ll be guesting with somebody, whether it be actually playing li…

Fan-filmed video of IRON MAIDEN’s October 23 concert at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. can be seen below.
As has been the case on all the shows of the 2022 leg of MAIDEN’s “Legacy Of The Beast” world tour so far, the band opened the set with “Senjutsu”, the title track of its latest studi…

Florida death metallers Hibernus Mortis savage tongues and smash brains on new streaming track “Enshrined In Spiritual Atrophy.”
The post Track Premiere: Hibernus Mortis “Enshrined In Spiritual Atrophy” appeared first on Decibel Magazine.

In a new interview with Kyle Meredith, Serj Tankian was asked if there are any plans for SYSTEM OF A DOWN activity in the coming months. He responded: “As of now, we haven’t talked about anything. We will be making an announcement about something next year that I can’t really tell you about. So ther…

Norwegian black metal band IMMORTAL will release a new album, “War Against All”, in 2023 will be released via Nuclear Blast Records. The group’s tenth studio LP will feature eight new songs in classic IMMORTAL style.
The band’s founder Harald “Demonaz” Nævdal states: “IMMORTAL continues the style th…

German/American heavy metal legends ACCEPT played the last two concerts of their fall 2022 North American tour with the band’s longtime frontman Mark Tornillo sharing lead vocals with Jason McMaster (DANGEROUS TOYS, WATCHTOWER).
The October 21 show at Stereo Garden in Patchogue, New York and the Oct…

In a new interview with Australia’s Serpent Tongue, HALESTORM drummer Arejay Hale spoke about the physical preparation that goes into the touring and performing aspect of being in a high-energy rock band. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “As a drummer, I try to think like an athlete. I…