March Of Carvins - X-Mann & The King Slayers

A buddy of mine has completed a music video project that simply ROCKS!  He asked a bunch of Carvin Guitar owners to create and send him their recordings of solos, riffs, and rhythms that fit a specific concept. That concept was the guiding light for each of the contributing musicians. As he explains it, "I took my LOVE of Carvin Guitars & the HBO series "Game of Thrones" & put them together for this new song & video..."

Participants also sent him photos of the Carvin guitars used to make the recordings. He then put everything together, including his own recordings and the result is a video he named the "March of Carvins." It's really a lot of fun, so check it out, and share with all of your music loving friends :)

Hopefully this video will inspire you to put your guitars to work, and to use them for their intended purpose-- to make music!  

After completing the project, he shared with us some useful insight, "My #1 tip to getting better on guitar at ALL levels is to record yourself & write your own songs... It will line everything up & you will be creating music & not just practicing anymore..." ~X-Man

~Stay tuned & in-tune~

California Trippin' Part 2; Carvin Guitars

Guitar production is one of the three themes this blog revolves around. Luckily I live in a part of the US where several guitar builders have set up shop. California, Oregon, and Washington host a long list of builders, from small independents to large corporations. My wife and I recently embarked on a road trip to visit three of California’s larger builders—Carvin, Taylor, and Fender. 

Arrived at the Carvin headquarters in San Diego, CA

The first of our visits was Carvin Guitars, located in San Diego. There are very few family owned & operated companies in America today, and Carvin is proud to be one of them. They are a relatively small company compared to the likes of Fender, or Gibson, yet Carvin operates a state of the art 80,000 square foot facility, and produce roughly 5000 guitars and basses each year. 




Carvin was founded by Lowell Kiesel in 1946. Lowell passed away on 28 Dec 2009, but the company continues to be a family venture:

- Eldest son, Carson Kiesel is President of Carvin, and in charge of electronics design & production.

- Mark Kiesel is Vice-President, and in charge of guitar and bass design & production.
- Jon Kiesel is also Vice-President, and responsible for speaker cabinet design & production.

- Grandson Jeff Kiesel is Director of National Sales.
- Grandson Joel Kiesel is Director of International Sales.

- Granddaughter Kristen Kiesel Lieurance is a production engineer with Carvin.

(L to R) Carvin V220, Ultra V, DC127
Steve Vai's Legacy III wall of tone

I really appreciate Carvin's connection with their family, their employees, and the community-- not to mention their unique business model. What makes it unique is they sell directly to the customer. Direct sales enables them to offer their guitars, amps, and pro audio gear at a price roughly half that of their competition. 

Another thing that setting Carvin apart from the big companies is all their gear is American made. In a time when all the large companies offer cheap, imported versions of their US models from Asia, Carvin focuses on offering only the best, American made instruments. There was a time however, when Carvin experimented with offering imported acoustic guitars (the Cobalt series), but discontinued the line for several reasons. Carvin has a long-standing reputation for the way their guitars are setup; the string height (i.e. action) is very low, resulting in a very comfortable playing guitar. Each of the imported acoustics received a QC, and setup at the US facility, which required a considerable amount of staff time. As time went on, the orders were taking longer and longer to receive from the sub-contracted builder. After giving the imports a fair try, Carvin decided to discontinue the series, and focus their attention on their US production, and reducing their Custom Shop build times. 

Carvin's latest amps
& extended scale guitars

Builders like Fender and Gibson mass-produce guitars, send them through the distributors to a network of dealers where the guitars sit and wait for customers to come along and buy them. They also have smaller divisions they call “custom shops” where a person could call and request specific features such as non-standard colors, etc. to suit their tastes. The cost of these custom shop guitars usually begins at double the price of their standard versions. Carvin bucks this trend by being only a custom shop. For instance, Carvin begins by establishing a baseline version of a particular model, then the customer decides on the additional options such as color, finish type, wood combinations, hardware—you name it. The guitar is not built until a customer places the order. Operating in this manner eliminates waste in many different ways, such as eliminating unsold stock at years end, and minimizing the demand on the forests for the woods required. The customer receives a guitar built to their specifications, to meet their needs rather than having to modify a guitar bought off the rack. Additionally, the customer saves a considerable amount of money by dealing directly with Carvin.

Kat's new CS4 Sparkle

Carvin does not offer tours of the facility, but they do have an on-site showroom/store. During our visit, product specialist Mike Jones, and assistant manager Jorge Camberos took the time to visit with us, and talk about some of the new things happening at Carvin. They also let us have a sneak peek at some special guitars out from the back- fresh from QC, and awaiting delivery to the customers. The guitar that stood out from all the others was a special order Sky Blue Metallic single-cut that had a finish, which used three different sizes of hexagonal glitter. The guitar had a deep, 3-D look too it; like you could drop a coin on it, and never see it land— very cool! It was ordered by a young lady who has a steady gig playing guitar in a band at Disneyland. I was told (not asked) to NOT take any photos of it… they wanted to present it to her in person rather than her seeing it for the first time on the web. After she received it, photos went up on Facebook for all to enjoy.

Steve Vai's Legacy III amp trimmed in classic sea-foam green 

We also got to see first hand some of the new amplifiers, tuning keys, and Carvin’s new headless guitars built for legendary guitarist Allan Holdsworth. The headless guitars were beautiful and fun see, but my favorite piece of new gear is the new three-channel amplifier built for Steve Vai called the Legacy III. Guitar amps aren’t usually very interesting to look at—not so with the Legacy II, as it sports a very surf like sea-foam green painted speaker grill & head. Inside the vented head is a series of LEDs that illuminates the amplifier from within. An angry Kung-Fu Master wouldn’t have been able to knock the smile from my face that day—I was in seventh-heaven.

Even though we didn’t have a chance to tour the factory, we had a wonderful time. Our hosts were the best. Mike was even kind enough to spend much time digging through old parts bins to find the correct replacement part for an older Carvin I acquired through E-bay several years ago. He also reminded me of the YouTube video series they have been filming that follows the building of a guitar from start to finish. It is an excellent series that dispels any Internet-rumors that Carvin guitars are all machine built. In addition to taking advantage of modern technology, there is a tremendous amount of traditional hands-on craftsmanship that goes into building a Carvin guitar as can be seen in the videos. 

LEDs illuminating the Legacy III amp

If the only builder we visited were Carvin Guitars, the 4,000-mile road trip would have been well worth the journey. Luckily however, we also got to visit and tour both Taylor & Fender factories— results of which I will post here over the next few days~

Stay tuned & in-tune~

California Trippin' Part 1; Prequel to Guitars

In-N-Out Burgers; a CA tradition

One of the more exciting aspects of creating this blog has been touring the facilities of different guitar builders. My wife & I recently loaded up our car and drove to Southern California to visit Carvin, and Taylor guitars in San Diego, and Fender in Corona.  On our way we drove through some of the world’s most beautiful forested land. 

Willits CA in Redwood country

It was a great opportunity to put things into the proper context— guitars are made from trees—and not just any trees; many are built from those found in old-growth forests, 350 – 400-years old. Getting to stand beneath, smell, touch & breath in the majestic NW spruce, and the incredible California Redwoods for example, is something every guitar player should seek to do at least once. Doing so enhances my appreciation for the guitars I have, and forces me to view guitars through a completely different perspective; my favorite guitar was built from trees like these, so I better darn well treat it well, and use it for its intended purpose— to make music! Anything less would be squandering something that has survived storms, fires, droughts, wars, and humans… for hundreds of years. Now it has been used to create an instrument capable of healing people, crossing political and cultural barriers, and creating social change; it has become a guitar. 

Redwood highway 199, and excellent milkshakes!

Consider this; that Sitka Spruce top on your favorite acoustic guitar, or the mahogany neck and back on your new electric is from a tree roughly 400 years old. What significant events have those trees lived through during that time? To put this into context, subtract 400 years from 2013 and our Sitka Spruce timeline begins in the year 1613:

1613
- Galileo observes Neptune but fails to recognize what he sees
- Russian Empire elects Mikhail Romanov Tsar of Russia, and establishes the Romanov Dynasty, ending the Time of Troubles
1623- 11 Dutch Ships depart for the conquest of Peru
1633- Astronomer Galileo arrived in Rome for trial before Inquisition for professing belief that Earth revolves around the Sun
- Charter for Maryland is given to Lord Cecil Baltimore
1643- First recorded tornado in US (Essex County, Mass)
- Massachusetts Bay, Plymouth, Connecticut & New Harbor form United Colonies of New England
1653- New Amsterdam becomes a city (later renamed New York City)
- German Parliament selects Ferdinand II king of Austria

1663- Great earthquake in New England
- King Charles II of England grants a charter to Rhode Island
1673- Regular mail delivery begins between NY & Boston
- Dutch battle fleet of 23 ships demands surrender of NYC
1683- First settlers from Germany to US, leave aboard Concord/ 13 Mennonite families found Germantown PA.
- Austro-Ottoman War: Battle of Vienna— the Ottoman Empire defeated
1693- Dom Perignon invents Champagne
- NYC authorizes 1^st police uniforms in American colonies
1703- St Petersburg (Leningrad) founded by Peter the Great
- Great storm hits Southern England, 1000s killed, Royal Navy losses 13 ships & 1500 seamen
- Tokyo Earthquake; about 37,000 die

1713
- French residents of Acadia are given one year to declare allegiance to Britain or leave Nova Scotia, Canada
- King Frederik Willem declares war on Brandenburg-Prussia
1723- After a lasting siege and bombardment by cannons, Baku surrenders to the Russians
1733- Georgia founded by James Oglethorpe, at site of Savannah
- Joseph Priestly invents carbonated water (seltzer)
- France declares war on emperor Charles VI
1743- Comet C/1743 C1 approaches within 0.0390 AUs of Earth
- Coordinated scientific observations of the transit of Mercury were organized by Joseph Nicolas Delisle 
1753- 1^st official St Patrick’s Day
- English parliament grants Jewish English citizenship
- George Washington becomes a master mason
- 1^st steam engine arrives in US colonies

1763- Treaty of Paris ends French-Indian War, surrendering Canada to England
- Charles Mason & Jeremiah Dixon begin surveying Mason-Dixon Line between Pennsylvania & Maryland
1773- Big tea party in Boston harbor (Boston Tea Party) 
- Scottish settlers arrive at Pictou, Nova Scotia (Canada)
1776 - US congress proclaims the Declaration of Independence and independence from Britain 
1783
- Hostilities cease in Revolutionary War/Treaty of Paris signed ending the war
- Earthquake in Calabria, Italy kills 50,000
- W.A. Mozart’s Symphony No.36 is premiered in Linz, Austria
1793- 1^st US fugitive slave law passed; requires return of escaped slaves
- Volcano Unsen on Japan erupts killing about 53,000

1803- Ohio becomes 17^th state / US Senate ratifies Louisiana Purchase
- 1^st performance of Beethoven’s 2^nd Symphony in D
1813 – 1^st pineapples planted in Hawaii
- Battle of Thames in Canada; Americans defeat British
- Battle of Dresden-Napoleon defeats Austrians
1823– R.J. Tylers patents roller skates
- “Home Sweet Home” 1^st sung 
1833– Re-establishment of British rule on the Falklands
- Boston Academy of Music, 1^st US music school established
1843– Mt Rainier in Washington State erupts
- “A Christmas Carol” by Charles Dickens published; 6,000 copies sold

1853– Transcontinental railroad survey is authorized by Congress
- Olympia forms as capital of Washington Territory
1863- US Civil War continues 
- Emancipation Proclamation (ending slavery) issued by Lincoln
- 1^st military draft by US (exemptions cost $100)
1873- 1^st US postal card issued
- Indian Wars: Col Custer clashes for the first time with the Sioux. Only one man per side is killed.
- San Francisco Cable Car service begins on Clay Street 
1883- Buffalo Bill Cody’s 1^st Wild West show premieres in Omaha
- Brooklyn Bridge opened by Pres Arthur & gob Cleveland
- US Supreme Court decides Native Americans can’t be Americans
1893- Gandhi’s first act of civil disobedience
- 3^rd worst hurricane in US history kills 1,800 (Mississippi)
- Great stock crash on NY stock exchange
- Tchaikovsky conducted 1^st performance of “Symphony Number Six in B minor

1903- Pres T Roosevelt shuts down post office in Indianola Miss, for refusing to accept its appointed postmistress because she was black
- Two New Yorkers buy Baltimore baseball franchise for $18,000 and moved it to New York
- New bicycle race “Tour de France” announced
1913- British House of Commons accepts Home-Rule for Ireland
- Brooklyn Dodger’s Ebbets Field opens
- The US introduces an income tax
1918 - World War 1 ends/ Armistice Day (11am on the Western Front)
1923– Union of Socialist Soviet Republics established
- 1^st “Reichs Party” the National Socialist German Workers Party (NSDAP) forms in Munich 
1933– Work on Golden Gate Bridge begins
- “Lone Ranger begins a 21-year run on ABC radio
- Adolph Hitler named German Chancellor

1943- Canadian Army troops arrive in North Africa
- Hitler declares “Total War”
- 1^st transport of Jews from Amsterdam to concentration camp Vught
- 1^st US air attack on Germany (Wilhelmshaven) 
1953- 9 “Jewish” physicians arrested for “terrorist activities” in Moscow
- Flooding in Netherlands, kills 1,835
- Joseph Stalin suffers a stroke and collapses. He dies four days later
- North Korea & UN sign armistice
1963- CIA Domestic Operations Division created (pretty scary!)
- USSR launches Luna 4; missed Moon by 8,500 km
- Beatles meet Rolling Stones for 1^st time
1973

- George Steinbrenner III buys Yankees from CBS for $12M

- President Nixon signs Endangered Species Act into law
- OPEC oil embargo begins
1983- Wayne Gretzky sets NHL all star record of 4 goals in 1 period
- Final episode of M*A*S*H airs; record 125 million watch

1993- Sears announces it is closing its catalog sales dept after 97-years
- Gun battle erupts at Waco Texas between FBI & Branch Dravidians
2003- Space Shuttle Columbia takes off for mission STS-107 which would be its final one. Columbia disintegrated 16 days later on Re-entry
- The US Department of Homeland Security officially begins operations
2013- Canadian power-trio Rush finally inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame

- Sealaska sends their harvested old-growth Sitka Spruce to a PNW lumber mill that supplies the builder. The tree then becomes a guitar and starts a new life, with a new purpose.

Trees of Mystery
Klamath, 35 miles south of the OR boarder on the 199

So you can see that the trees used to make quality guitars such as those from American builders, Taylor, Gibson, Carvin, PRS, etc. have a long and rich history before they are harvested. If you have one of these guitars, play it! Use it for its intended purpose-- to make music. Anything less would be squandering precious resources.

We visited the California guitar builders within days of spending time among the giant trees, and our fresh perspectives gave the tours unique meaning. Over the next several days I will post our experience touring the builders facilities and all the things learned along the way. 

Stay tuned & in tune!

Experience Music Project

“Imagination is the key to my lyrics. The rest is painted with a little science fiction.” 
― Jimi Hendrix

"If VI Was IX"

I was feeling pretty worn out working on the project/blog, arranging interviews and such, when my wife surprised me by suggesting we take a break from the work and spend a day at the Experience Music Project (EMP) museum. It was just what I needed to get the creative juices flowing again.

Hendrix bought this Strat in '68
~ The rest is history

The EMP is a nonprofit museum, which also includes a science fiction museum. The music side of the museum contains far more than the Hendrix memorabilia it is known for. It has the "sound lab" where people are encouraged to pick up instruments and rock! Visitors can even use the soundproof rooms and turn it up as loud as you like. There is also a feature called "on stage" that allows you to get up under the lights-- if you don't know how to play, the instruments can be programmed so a non-musician can experience what it is like to be onstage. What better way to encourage people to learn an instrument?! 

Eddie Van Halen's guitar rig

One room features the history of the guitar, with examples of milestone instruments on display. Visitors can see the actual guitars that changed music; a 1952 Telecaster, 1954 Stratocaster, Jazzmasters, Rickenbackers, Gibsons—they are all here. There are also several celebrity guitars from the likes of Van Halen, Eric Clapton, Muddy Waters, and Kurt Cobain to name a few. All of which are arranged chronological so someone without any knowledge of music history, or guitars would leave the museum with a solid understanding, and appreciation of both. 

Hendrix; a true inspiration 

Perhaps one of the most recognizable features of the EMP is the sculpture called "If VI Was IX.”  The sculptures name is inspired by a song of the same title, from the 1967 Hendrix album, Axis; Bold As Love. It is constructed from more than 500 working musical instruments that are “played” by 30 computers. It is also equipped with headphones allowing visitors to hear what their eyes are seeing.

"Hendrix Hits London"

Like most museums, the EMP host special, limited engagement exhibits. One such exhibit during our visit called, "Hear My Train a Comin': Hendrix Hits London" had just opened. It was a collection of clothing, show bills, and instruments; not just of Hendrix, but also his band mates, Mitch Mitchell (drums) and Noel Redding (bass). The collection focused on the band's 1967 London experience. Though smaller than I expected, the content was excellent-- well worth the visit.

A visual representation expressing how I felt after visiting the EMP

After spending the day surrounded by so much music history, and countless priceless guitars I was completely reenergized. I could not wait to return home, pick up my guitar and start writing. As Hendrix himself once said, “In order to change the world, you have to get your head together first.” 

Seattle Guitars

"I’ve been obsessed with the guitar since I was twelve. In many ways, my life has been one long conversation about the guitar, interrupted only buy the countless hours of deep pleasure I have playing the darn things, as well as some less pleasant time spent doing what needs to be done so that I can get back to playing & chatting about them"
~Perry Beekman; jazz guitarist

I found the Perry Beekman quote when reading Guitar Zero, by Gary Marcus. It sums up my feelings about the guitar so concisely, that I had to share it here. It also applies to many guitarists in Seattle. Last week, my wife and I took a few days off, found a little B&B to stay at while visiting the city. 

Electrics on display at Dusty Strings Acoustic Music Shop

The goal was to visit a bunch of local guitar shops to get a feel for the music scene, and to promote the blog. Each of the shops we visited was awesome. I focused on the local shops, because these are the folks who really care about the customer, and music in general. On-line retailers have their place, and the big box stores… well lets just say they are less receptive than they should be. I’ll save my thoughts about places like Guitar Center for another time. Here are some highlights~ 

The famous marquee outside The Trading Musician

The Trading Musician. They are all about used guitars/amps, and have got a great marquee in front of the store. I talked with one of their employees for a little while, but he had to assist a paying customer, so I talked with a few of the guys who had wandered in, and with permission posted a handful of fliers to their board before heading to the next stop. One thing that my wife and I both enjoyed seeing was a lightly used Fender Stratocaster called The Splatter-caster. It was a guitar straight out of the 1960s, with a factory splattered paint job—something Jimi Hendrix would probably have approve of. Had I the means, it was the guitar I would have taken home.

The Guitar Store 

The Guitar Store (not to be confused with the guitar center). This was our first stop, and it set the vibe for the trip in general. It’s a really eclectic little shop that has new and used gear. We had a nice visit with one of the employees, talked about the blog & tacked a handful of fliers to their bulletin board. These guys have everything from a basic $100 beginner's guitar, to insanely beautiful Paul Reed Smith guitars that will set you back several thousand simoleons, and everything in-between.

Dusty Strings Acoustic Music Shop in Fremont 

Dusty Strings Acoustic Music Shop. Located in Fremont, this was my favorite stop of the visit. Again, I was talking with a few of the employees, but one in particular; Carter made my day, and gave me some much-needed encouragement about the project/blog. It turns out he knows a lot about the subject, and believes my project is on the right track. He has even succeeded in bring electric guitars to the Acoustic Music Shop. There was even work underway for a “quite room” for electric players to give the equipment a test drive. Guitars, harps, banjos, ukuleles, dulcimers, mandolins… they’ve got you covered.

Emerald City Guitars in Pioneer Square

Emerald City Guitars. Again the theme of really great employees continues here. They’ve also got a ton of vintage guitars. One room in particular was filled with guitars with price tags over $30K. One sweet, well-used 1968 Gibson Les Paul Custom called out to me, but the price for adoption was too great. I did have another pleasant visit with employees, bought a t-shirt and posted another handful of fliers on their board.

Thunder Road Guitars 

Thunder Road Guitars. These guys are a small shop in West Seattle that focuses on used and vintage guitars & amps. They prove that you don’t have to be a big shop to have some really great gear, and still keeping the prices on most of the guitars/amps within reach of regular people. Of course they also handle the really costly vintage equipment as well. While we were visiting, one of the staff was helping a young lady who beginning her guitar journey, was looking for a Gibson Les Paul. She appeared to really bond with an old 1970’s model Deluxe. All the while the folks there tried to help her find the right guitar, rather than attempting to sell her the most expensive. We left the store in search of coffee, so I don’t know if she adopted the guitar, but the look on her face when playing it told me she should have.

Thunder Road Guitars. A pair of vintage gems from the 1960's 

We found a coffee house just a block or two away that served up the best brew I’ve ever had. The Hotwire Coffeehouse serves mocha called the rose, which was completely out of this world. They also have a strong community connection, and love dogs—photos of their favorites pooches cover a bulletin board near the counter. As far as I know they don’t have any guitar connections, other than keeping the local musicians caffeinated, and are therefore worthy of inclusion here. 

Vintage goodness at Emerald City Guitars

Our Seattle visit was a great success. Getting out and meeting people, talking about guitars, my blog, music- Just knowing that my ideas which seem pretty abstract at times are shared by others, then seeing how they materialize in the digital pages of the blog, and again getting more feedback from people—in person—has been a huge morale boost for me. Seeing local shops survive the recent economic turmoil’s, competition from on-line retailers, and big-box stores is encouraging. 

What kind of local shops are in your town? If you haven’t done so already, take some time and find out. You might just meet some wonderful people, have excellent conversations, and simply enjoy playing & chatting about guitars.