In this blog post I will (try to) update daily (scroll down to view newer posts) during my clinic/performance tour in Asia this month.
I'm doing Shanghai, Beijing and Tokyo, so without further ado let's go!
(click on all pics to get a larger pop-up)
Here's two clips, first one some jams from Beijing with MOEN. Second one from the Leqtique clinic in Tokyo
I'm doing Shanghai, Beijing and Tokyo, so without further ado let's go!
(click on all pics to get a larger pop-up)
Here's two clips, first one some jams from Beijing with MOEN. Second one from the Leqtique clinic in Tokyo
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Tuesday, October 10 - Wednesday Oct 11
Departure day for me. Started out in a cold and cloudy Umeå, but expecting Asia to be on par with Swedish summer (only much more humid). Took the better part of a day packing and arranging everything that needed to come with me. No small feat making the it on board, nearly over-weight and with both the PRS and Kemper as carry-on =)
Made it through the check-in, and uploaded a fancy-pancy pic of my self with my most "let's go to Asia-look". Of course sporting both a UFC hoodie and my (very) worn leather jacket.
Once airborne I couldn't sleep (as I seldom can on planes, or buses for that matter. I'd make a lousy touring musician, that's for sure!).
But the view was excellent! I really should look into getting some noise canceling headphones for these trips.
I managed to delete the pic I took over Ulan Bator, but there the snow lay deep on the mountain ranges, and here I though it was getting nippy in Sweden :)
The inflight entertainment left much to be desired, so I took the opportunity to catch up on some MMA shows I had missed lately
Had to transfer between Shanghai and Beijing, and nearly missed the flight because SAS Umeå had informed me that I would need to re-check my luggage in Beijing. After waiting half an hour and then asking around, turned out so was not the case. I was lucky enough to get a helping hand by the accommodating staff to secure and check-in my tax-free gifts (some bottles of premium Skåne Akvavit ;)
Then an hour long taxi ride to the hotel took me past everything from skyscrapers to what seemed like hundred year old buildings.
Then an hour long taxi ride to the hotel took me past everything from skyscrapers to what seemed like hundred year old buildings.
This view from a staircase at the hotel gives you an idea on what a hot-pot of old and rundown vs. modern high-tech Shanghai really is!
My Chinese endorser Steve Chen is setting up shop at the Music Messe, so I'm kicking back at the hotel until dinner. Not a single english speaking channel to be found, but at least found some live rock (or something I think supposed to be rock) concert =) Time for dinner later, and after that on to the show area to do a late night sound check, I'll be back with more updates later this evening.
Steve came by, and we packed all the my gear up for the show, then headed of to do a late night soundcheck.
Shanghai is a completely different city at night, the whole city is like a fireworks display with all the scyscrapers lit up like x-mas trees.
The expo place is probably twice as big as Frankfurt Messe or NAMM, which is saying something, during the day they have shuttle buses connecting the different expo halls.
MOEN's booth was still under construction, but the main decor was finished, with yours truly pasted across one wall. I'll some demos in this booth as well, but the main performances will be outside, on the bigger stages. First performance at 10:15 tomorrow, so time to get some shut-eye!
Thursday October 11
First opening day of the Expo started out with great weather. I however, overslept and missed breakfast. To top that off it seems darn near impossible to get a regular black coffee in Shanghai :O
Here we are outside the Expo area with One Control's owner Tomokaz
And me and Steve as well
The lobby was filling up nicely, the whole area is probably twice as big as Frankfurt Messe, in other words, it's HUGE!
The MOEN booth was busy, with Steve's staff setting things up
Here's a picture of a new pedal board Steve is developing, from this angle it looks pretty ordinary
But here you can see that the sides is made from some super hard acrylic, and also you bolt on the sides to the actual "planks" of the board. This means you can can decide the width of the pedal board yourself, by changing the length of the boards. Smart idea, and to be able to easily change the size of your pedalboards with some backup "planks" is superb.
One of the MOEN guys, unfortunately Steve's the only one that speaks a word of English, so communication was not so easy, good thing music is a universal language huh? :)
And here is mine and Denander's signature MOEN pedals, mine the green dual channel OD, and his the dual channel Soul Compressor. My is the final production version seen here, whilst his is still not 100% decided as far as the cover art is concerned, sounds great though!
The idea is also to actually ship them in these sweet wooden boxes too, kinda cool idea I think =)
The idea is also to actually ship them in these sweet wooden boxes too, kinda cool idea I think =)
And here I am with a smirk on my face holding the first two jewels of the MOEN custom shop line. And, posing in front of a life-size of oneself is kinda weird :D
Another MOEN guy, seen here test driving the piezo system of the P22
Here's a still frame from the first performance of the day (videos will come when I get better bandwidth).
I'm using the pedals straight into the Kemper amp, using a profile I made of a Bassman from -64, sounded sweet, and a perfect way to get control of the levels going out into FOH
I'm using the pedals straight into the Kemper amp, using a profile I made of a Bassman from -64, sounded sweet, and a perfect way to get control of the levels going out into FOH
After my performances of the day, I took a walk around some parts of the Expo (was too big to muster an entire walkthrough right off the bat, but at least its something). Here just some random pic
Here's some guy doing some acoustic playing (will also be featured in the video)
Here's some pretty cool Ibanez and LP copies I though, check that body carve out!
Here's a guy demoing for Orange, pretty cool idea with him playing along to a video behind him of himself playing the same song
A group playing traditional Chinese instruments together with a piano, notice all the girls also wearing traditional Chinese dresses. Video of this will also be available
The Artec booth also had some acoustic demos going on, I remember their stuff as being pretty good too, but never heard their acoustic amps before
Not many non-asian brands had their own booths at the Expo, but was rather represented by their retailers. Tom Anderson was an exception though
Farida guitars is Chinas largest guitar brand, and is here demoed by an extremely popular French guitar player nick-named Inophis, "über-shred" is probably the best way to describe his playing, and he is also a real showman on stage (as you will see in the videos)
Then outside, on one of the stages I perform at was a Chinese guitarist ripping it up
Then we had lunch. What I thought were regular McDonalds chicken nuggets, were actually some spicy chicken from hell to say the least, super hot!
Then I arrived for another performance at Stage S1. Some guy was doing a drum demo, really energetic to say the least, but rather un-tight
And here's me from the second performance at the Peavey stage. Larger stage, but the monitoring sound was pretty awful, so loud I had to wear earplugs ;)
Up after me was a Brasilian guitarist (living in L.A), called Conrado Pesinato, really nice guy, and really ballsy rock player!
Also, it turns out the lead singer and good friend in his former band in Brazil, is now the singer in Hate Ammo in my hometown in Sweden, small world!
Also, don't be surprised to see a jam with us two coming up, Steve was eager to see it happen =)
Also, it turns out the lead singer and good friend in his former band in Brazil, is now the singer in Hate Ammo in my hometown in Sweden, small world!
Also, don't be surprised to see a jam with us two coming up, Steve was eager to see it happen =)
Conrado doing his thing with a sweet rendition of Foxy Lady
Took another stroll through the halls after his performance, here some cable company
Do you have a cramped pedal board? How about these Mooer pedals? You could probably fit 30 of these babies on a normal sized pedal train :D Some really cool design in the line also
An over-the-shoulder peek at a guy demoing some of them
Now this was a pretty different booth, people (mostly girls it seemed) could sit on that "throne" chair and get their picture taken with some of the most outrageously pimped guitars :)
When I got back to the booth, and old acquaintance from NAMM was playing my PRS and enjoying the tones of the Parallax and the Jimi Vibe
Then it was time to head out, outside the sun was setting rapidly
Pretty crazy house, like something from Barcelona, but without the colors. Kinda looks like something Edward Munch would have designed in this light :O
Apparently it's an art gallery of some sort
Apparently it's an art gallery of some sort
Then we went out for dinner. I'd heard a lot of mixed opinions about Chinese food.
Most Swedes really like Chinese food, and there's at least one Chinese restaurant in almost every city in Sweden I would guess. However, I bet THIS is not on any of their menus =)
Most Swedes really like Chinese food, and there's at least one Chinese restaurant in almost every city in Sweden I would guess. However, I bet THIS is not on any of their menus =)
Deep-fried crab? That's a new sight for me at least.
And yeah, there was plenty of deep fried food in the menu
And yeah, there was plenty of deep fried food in the menu
We ended up with a wide variety of dishes to sample from.
All of them tasted great, but not a single one had ANY resemblance to what we call Chinese food in Sweden. I'm guessing it's like Swedish pizza, has absolutely nothing in common with Italian pizza expect the shape of it =)
All of them tasted great, but not a single one had ANY resemblance to what we call Chinese food in Sweden. I'm guessing it's like Swedish pizza, has absolutely nothing in common with Italian pizza expect the shape of it =)
Final pic of the day is with Steve and wife, a co-worker of his, and Tomokaz of On-Control. My addition to the sampling was a bottle of Skåne Akvavit. Went down really well!
Over and out for the first day of Music China!
Over and out for the first day of Music China!
Friday October 12
Came in from a different direction to the expo today, and ended up passing a hall with tons of traditional Chinese instruments
How's this for a scalloped neck??
The classic old Tokai brand is still alive and kicking!
First off for today was some in-doors performances at the MOEN booth, here doing some whammy bar acrobatics. And boy am I ever unused to these flat necks nowadays :D
Another tune, another guitar, another angle
One thing is true about Chinese, they love to take photos!
I must have taken a dozen or so pics with various onlookers every day, and no, this is not the face I pull most of the time ;)
I must have taken a dozen or so pics with various onlookers every day, and no, this is not the face I pull most of the time ;)
Here's a pic from one of the outdoor performances, apparently I'm caught up in one of my regular tapping-frenzies
Back in the booth, there was always a constant stream of visitors, several of whom wanted to jam out. This here guy, was from the Czech republic, living in Shanghai, and playing in a Japanese punk band. He was also a bad-ass at gypsy jazz!
And here's some guy from Guitar Center in the US
After a long day at the expo, we went out for dinner (one of our two tables visible here)
We were toasting in a gift from WJ guitars of China, some sort of spirit made from wheat, tasted similar to grappa, but much stronger.
Apparently very popular in southern China (which was also evident from the way it went down with the Chinese attendants)
Apparently very popular in southern China (which was also evident from the way it went down with the Chinese attendants)
One thing I have learned here is that they like to eat in larger groups, with many dishes placed out that everyone take what they want from, not unlike our Swedish "buffé". Once again, many dishes, not a single one tasting even remotely like the Chinese food served in Sweden,
This was also interesting, think cold tea in can, sweetened with about a ton of sugar
Later, back at the hotel, I was presented with one of the drawbacks of bringing a guitar everyone wants to play with me. Humid climate, and some peoples acid hands equals some really dead strings. The PRS was in serious need of new strings and some cleaning of the fretboard. Time to get to work, check back again tomorrow. Who knows, there might be some more playing even?
ps. still no bandwidth, nor time to edit the huuuge amount of video material shot and both my shows and others.ds
ps. still no bandwidth, nor time to edit the huuuge amount of video material shot and both my shows and others.ds
Saturday October 13
Today started out pretty much like any other, breakfast, then a shuttle to the expo.
The area is so huge, so there's at least 30 min walking every single day, regardless from which direction we enter.
The area is so huge, so there's at least 30 min walking every single day, regardless from which direction we enter.
Once there we were revisited by our friend from yesterdays dinner, the Chinese guitarist. His own music is a strange brew of traditional Chinese music and modern funk and fusion, very different and interesting.
We also had a short jam together over some tracks, was caught on video of course!
Always tons of performances going on all over the expo, here som guys doing one of Al Di Meola's tunes, from the Guitar Trio years. Can't remember the name of the tune at the moment though.
At the T.C Electronics booth opposite us, bass player Dan Zylinski and his girlfriend did some great demos for TC's products. Very, very musical bass player to my ears!
here's a pic of a pedal board bag has as a prototype for his upcoming pedal board. Very sturdy, and great looks too!
Tried to take a panorama picture of the booth. It's kinda glitchy in places, but you get the idea. As always, click the pic to enlarge it.
After dinner we took a cab down to the Shanghai center to the view point, and what a view it was! Unbelievable!!
Me and Steve Chen. Look out Beijing, we're coming for you next week!!
There were tons of neon lighted boats cruising up and down the river, this one was particularly big! Looks like some old Portugees fregatt!
And this boat looked like something out of the Tron movie =)
And let's just say we weren't exactly alone!
That's all or today folks, tomorrow is the last day of the expo,
time for a final live performance, must get some rest before then =)
That's all or today folks, tomorrow is the last day of the expo,
time for a final live performance, must get some rest before then =)
Sunday October 14
Last day of the show! I did several performances this day, not only on the larger outside stages, but also some inside.
At one of the outside venues there was a Chinese entertainment TV-company there shooting, and asked Steve if I would be interested in being invited to China to perform on TV. Pretty cool, but he will investigate further to see what kind of show they're doing =)
In this pic we see on of Steve's employees assembling his new Pedal Bridge board, just had new red sides delivered from powder coating. Looks really nice!
At one of the outside venues there was a Chinese entertainment TV-company there shooting, and asked Steve if I would be interested in being invited to China to perform on TV. Pretty cool, but he will investigate further to see what kind of show they're doing =)
In this pic we see on of Steve's employees assembling his new Pedal Bridge board, just had new red sides delivered from powder coating. Looks really nice!
And here Steve is holding the assembled board. Light weight, very sturdy, and the option to custom make your own size is killer
Steve also does OEM work for overseas companies. Here are a few examples of pedals he has manufactured for an American company.
here you also see that the top bar of the pedal bridge is replaced with some modules. In this you have power, a built in speaker and line-check module, as well as global in/outs.
here you also see that the top bar of the pedal bridge is replaced with some modules. In this you have power, a built in speaker and line-check module, as well as global in/outs.
Here's another version of the standard parallax. Slightly different red, and different knobs. The white trim is made of rubber, for extra grip.
Our friend Honza visited the booth again today, doing some killer "italian movie music" with as T.C pedal. This guy can play a huge range of styles.
Me and Honza took a walk around the expo as well, here at the Mooer booth, checking out a Acoustic pedal of some sort. I'm intrigued to hear this with my PRS P22 piezo, would be a good small option for the acoustic signal live maybe.
We also visited the Electro Harmonix booth, since Honza wanted to show me a sick pedal. This guy was doing demos for them
And here's the pedal Honza wanted to show me, the Micro POG.
I've tried many octave pedals, since I'm really interested in finding a good one for using with a looper to lay down simple bass lines for soloing over at clinics and workshops. This was by FAR the best I have ever heard! Tracks perfectly, no aliasing what so ever, and it even does chords all over the range of the fret board PERFECTLY!
Contacted Shun right away, we need to find one of these to use at the Tokyo clinic for sure. And, a bass playing friend of mine in Sweden would kill for this one, he's still struggling with the old Boss Octaver, which is all over the place :/
I've tried many octave pedals, since I'm really interested in finding a good one for using with a looper to lay down simple bass lines for soloing over at clinics and workshops. This was by FAR the best I have ever heard! Tracks perfectly, no aliasing what so ever, and it even does chords all over the range of the fret board PERFECTLY!
Contacted Shun right away, we need to find one of these to use at the Tokyo clinic for sure. And, a bass playing friend of mine in Sweden would kill for this one, he's still struggling with the old Boss Octaver, which is all over the place :/
Then Honza demoed the pedal for me, and started doing a seriously sick rendition of the Coltrane classic "countdown" with bass and harmonies at the same time. Sounded crazy with this pedal
This new "talk box" rocker pedal from EH was also insane!
I do a lot of cover gigs in Sweden, and every time I play a Bon Jovi song I wish I had a real talk box. This is by far the best Talk Box I have ever head in a pedal (no hose) format! This is also going on my X-mas list :D
I do a lot of cover gigs in Sweden, and every time I play a Bon Jovi song I wish I had a real talk box. This is by far the best Talk Box I have ever head in a pedal (no hose) format! This is also going on my X-mas list :D
Some ( I assume) famous Chinese rock guitarist drew quite the crowd at another booth
I also found a café at the expo that served espresso, nice!
The crema wasn't all that good, and it was a little watery (I think they didn't temper it enough), but it was still the best coffee I had so far =)
The crema wasn't all that good, and it was a little watery (I think they didn't temper it enough), but it was still the best coffee I had so far =)
After the show was packed up, we went out for a farewell dinner with Kaz in down town Shanghai. All the building there are really lit up to say the least!
I thought this restaurant name was pretty funny =)
Me posing with some sculpture
We finally decided on a Japanese sushi restaurant. I love sushi, especially Maguro (breast filét of Tuna). I had my fill, and we also finished the last of the spirit I brought for Steve. Very nice dinner!
That was the end of the Shanghai Music expo 2013.
Tomorrow we leave for Beijing, see you there!
That was the end of the Shanghai Music expo 2013.
Tomorrow we leave for Beijing, see you there!
Monday October 15
Today was yet another travel day, this time we fly from Shanghai to Beijing.
One reflection I made whilst here in China is that the "copy" market doesn't just extend to things such as guitars and iPhones, but is (at least I think) more geared towards the domestic market, and we just happen to see this stuff as well.
Like this car for instance, why buy a BMW, when you can get a BYD that looks about the same for a fraction of the cost =)
One reflection I made whilst here in China is that the "copy" market doesn't just extend to things such as guitars and iPhones, but is (at least I think) more geared towards the domestic market, and we just happen to see this stuff as well.
Like this car for instance, why buy a BMW, when you can get a BYD that looks about the same for a fraction of the cost =)
Once in Beijing, we took the airport express in to the subway center. This place was even more crazy than Tokyo at rush hour, you had to actually wait in line for a long time just to get in to the subway station (and out of it). The trains themselves were packed to the max!
The hotel was a Home Inn, very near to where I will do my clinic show on Wednesday.
The hotel corridor gave me some serious "shining" vibes though, can anyone say "REDRUM" ? ;)
The hotel corridor gave me some serious "shining" vibes though, can anyone say "REDRUM" ? ;)
Then we went out to find some dinner.
Next to the dinner place we chose was this small place that sold cakes and bread.
This particular picture is solely for my beloved fiancée, who loves to bake :)
Next to the dinner place we chose was this small place that sold cakes and bread.
This particular picture is solely for my beloved fiancée, who loves to bake :)
We ended up eating some Chinese Hot Pot, delicious, but indeed extremely hot!!
And finally... BAZINGA!!
I finally got to try real Chinese dumplings, Sheldon Cooper's favorite.
I can see why, most tasty dish I have yet to try in China. Now if only I could find these (as tasty, not store-bought) back home in Umeå!!
Time for bed, tomorrow Steve will take me to see BOTH the Forbidden City and the Great Wall, I can't wait!!
I finally got to try real Chinese dumplings, Sheldon Cooper's favorite.
I can see why, most tasty dish I have yet to try in China. Now if only I could find these (as tasty, not store-bought) back home in Umeå!!
Time for bed, tomorrow Steve will take me to see BOTH the Forbidden City and the Great Wall, I can't wait!!
Tuesday October 16
Me and Steve spent almost 2 hours trying to get a cab, but finally giving up and getting on the subway. We finally got the bus that would take us to the Great Wall, and our first bit of luck this day, as we secured the last two seats on the packed bus!
The bus trip was very scenic and took about 1 hour. The mountain regions of China are just stunning, and no picture can do them justice (especially when taken whilst on a moving bus!)
We finally arrived at our destination!
Plenty of other coaches around, and tons of tourists (mostly Chinese).
You can see a small part of the wall in the background here.
Plenty of other coaches around, and tons of tourists (mostly Chinese).
You can see a small part of the wall in the background here.
Here's a map of the part of the wall at this location. The wall is seemingly endless, and this section is just a tiny part of it.
Time to start a very long climb up a very steep wall indeed!
This is a experience of a life-time guys, I've always been an extreme nut for ancient history, and it doesn't get much more ancient than China!
Part of the way up now, I can't imagine the soldiers running up and down this wall in heavy armor, just crazy!
Note: The picture taken "vertical" can't be super-sized I'm afraid :(
Note: The picture taken "vertical" can't be super-sized I'm afraid :(
I can see the top!
And by this time my legs were burning!
And by this time my legs were burning!
A stunning over the other side of the valley!
This is really THE perfect time to visit the Wall. The autumn colors really makes everything come alive!
This is really THE perfect time to visit the Wall. The autumn colors really makes everything come alive!
Here i am, finally at the top of the wall (at least this length of it)
I used the panorama function of the iPhone, to try and capture a little of the majestic scenery. Not possible of course, but maybe this will give you some idea
(click to enlarge)
(click to enlarge)
After making our way down again, we took abus in and headed directly to the Imperial Forbidden city. This place is a bout as huge as it cant get. I doubt there is a bigger palace in the world (at least I can't imagine it).
The palaces just continued and continued, we could easily have walked here for the better part of a day!
I tried using the panorama function here too. When objects move within the panorama however, they get distorted, but perhaps this gives you some idea of the size of just ONE of these palace squares
The palace is grand in it's majesty, but equally impressive in my mind is the complete attention to detail they took so many hundred years ago when building this. Just a small thing like the windows are elaborate in the minutest detail
This here stone carving is not only 3.7m wide and like 20m long, but the slab is also 1.7m thick and weighs 200ton, that is sick!
The emperor also had his own garden, with some pretty great trees and sculptures
This here is all man made stone made to resemble a koral reef, all for the emperor's eyes only
I took hundreds of pictures during this day, so this is a just a bare minimum of what I thought the blog could handle before boring you guys with my escapades ;)
I'll leave this part with a pic of the exit out of the Forbidden city, we weren't exactly alone :)
I'll leave this part with a pic of the exit out of the Forbidden city, we weren't exactly alone :)
Finally back to something music related =)
To conclude this day we visited the No.1 Jazz café in Beijing where tomorrow's clinic/show/jam will be held. Had one of the greatest red wines I have ever had there, from the Great Wall winery (how fitting!), custom made for the Jazz Café.
Tomorrow's event will be killer. Some of China's most guitarists and bass players will be there, and hopefully jam to! renowned
Tonight we discussed the plan for tomorrow's event. We want to make it a "laid back" environment, inviting players to join me for a jam onstage.
If the invited musicians just want to catch up with their fellow players they rarely get to meet, they are free to do so upstairs in the lounge, and if they want to get down
and dirty with me or each other on stage, it's free to do so too.
has the potential to be a REALLY cool night tomorrow!!
Ps. ANY place that has a picture and real autograph of Bruce Lee on the wall, AND serves a MEAN espresso
gets a A+ in my book! .ds ;)
To conclude this day we visited the No.1 Jazz café in Beijing where tomorrow's clinic/show/jam will be held. Had one of the greatest red wines I have ever had there, from the Great Wall winery (how fitting!), custom made for the Jazz Café.
Tomorrow's event will be killer. Some of China's most guitarists and bass players will be there, and hopefully jam to! renowned
Tonight we discussed the plan for tomorrow's event. We want to make it a "laid back" environment, inviting players to join me for a jam onstage.
If the invited musicians just want to catch up with their fellow players they rarely get to meet, they are free to do so upstairs in the lounge, and if they want to get down
and dirty with me or each other on stage, it's free to do so too.
has the potential to be a REALLY cool night tomorrow!!
Ps. ANY place that has a picture and real autograph of Bruce Lee on the wall, AND serves a MEAN espresso
gets a A+ in my book! .ds ;)
Wednesday October 17
This morning we were planning to go to see the Temple of heaven.
The weather was really nice, and so thought the neighborhood cat that was basking in the sun outside the hotell =)
The weather was really nice, and so thought the neighborhood cat that was basking in the sun outside the hotell =)
On the way there I got the chance to take a picture of one of these modern day moped-rickshas parked. usually you see them racing through the torrents of Beijing traffic seemingly unmindful of any danger. The traffic situation is just crazy in Beijing, I wouldn't dream of driving in that city, not to mention bike or go by scooter in the midst of hundreds and hundreds of racing cards with blaring horns =)
The whole area around the temple grounds seem to be a sort of huge recreational place especially for middle-aged and senior citizens. Here an old man writing kanji calligraphy with water, really an artform in and by itself.
Also, the whole area was filled with people playing some sort of kick-ball with a smal feathered ball that weren't allowed to touch ground. Some really skillful people amongst them!
This guy was doing some cool stuff with a ribbon that I think could have made an olympic gymnast envious =)
Here's a picture of the main temple of the area.
Apparently it was first built in a square shape in the 15th century, and the rebuilt in to this round shape after a fire ravaged it
Apparently it was first built in a square shape in the 15th century, and the rebuilt in to this round shape after a fire ravaged it
Tried another panorama picture of course =)
On the way out we saw some older women doing some sort of yoga.
Talk about agile for their age!
Talk about agile for their age!
Then we arrived at the No.1 Jazz café to set up for the clinic show
Setting up, using both the Kemper and an amp with two deeflexx, really fat sound!
Here's a show cabinet with pedals form the MOEN line.
My green Parallax is the center piece on the top shelf,
and is it ever eye-catching =)
My green Parallax is the center piece on the top shelf,
and is it ever eye-catching =)
Then we went upstairs where many Chinese musicians and guitarists had gathered. Also several TV channels were present to document the event.
We had a round of introductions, where I didn't understand a single word :) I did get to see myself in a round video loop on the TV on the wall, so I think some of it referred to the launch of my pedal
Then we went down stairs to start the performance
Me and the main men of MOEN doing a pre-performance interview with some Chinese TV-channels at attendence
Here I am in the middle of a tapping run during a jam with one of the Chinese players
Apart from my own solo performances, we also did a number of impromptu jams with assembled musicians, some really good jams!
The assembled players also signed a board and a loop switcher for a give away
We also had some more informal gatherings upstairs throughout the evening, discussing amongst one another, and also doing some more presentations
Here I am doing another jam with a young Chinese player.
At the end of the evening we went to a realyl nice restaurant and a huge farewell/celebration dinner for MOEN fx. Unfortunately though,
I don't have the pics from this as of yet, I'll update this post later on =)
At the end of the evening we went to a realyl nice restaurant and a huge farewell/celebration dinner for MOEN fx. Unfortunately though,
I don't have the pics from this as of yet, I'll update this post later on =)
Thursday October 18
I had some serious lack of time to update the blog last couple of days, but here is Thursday's post all be it a bit late.
Eaaarly Thursday morning I got up at the airport hotel to get to the airport for my flight to Tokyo. Good thing I did go there that early though, as the hotel shuttle dropped me off at the wrong terminal, and it took the better part of one hour to get to the correct one.
Eaaarly Thursday morning I got up at the airport hotel to get to the airport for my flight to Tokyo. Good thing I did go there that early though, as the hotel shuttle dropped me off at the wrong terminal, and it took the better part of one hour to get to the correct one.
At the airpot I was met by my old friend and endorsers Shun Nokina of Leqtique effects, Japan Sporting a new hair-cut for the day (he used to look more like a wild-haired Mongolian step-warrior back in the day =) ). Haircut courtesy of gf =)
The familiar sight of the Tokyo scy scrapers!
It was raining quite heavily off and on, which is a common thing for Tokyo this time of the year.
It was raining quite heavily off and on, which is a common thing for Tokyo this time of the year.
The street where Shun's fantastic house was located
(a wonder of modern technology, where even the shower speaks with you).
(a wonder of modern technology, where even the shower speaks with you).
Another cool feature (and space saving) is the retractable dinner table in the living room :D At the press of a button it disappears into the floor
Perfect timing, the new Boden 8-string by Ola Strandberg had arrived!
Fantastic instrument, but boy do I get lost amongst those additional strings :D
Fantastic instrument, but boy do I get lost amongst those additional strings :D
We also visited the Ikebe Ampstation store, talk about a packed place!
When we returned Shun's mother was visiting, and had prepared the most traditional Japanese dinner, outstanding!
For dessert and late snacks, Sapporo beer, soybeans and some local chocolate-dipped chips from Sapporo, nice!
Kohei with another co-worker of Shun's (total Gojira nut btw).
That's all for tonight, tomorrow will be a full day of Tokyo sightseeing with Kohei, looking forward to it and hope for good weather!
That's all for tonight, tomorrow will be a full day of Tokyo sightseeing with Kohei, looking forward to it and hope for good weather!
Friday October 19
This morning started out with a coffee at Starbucks, mine a cappucino, Kohei's is some sort of milkshake/ice cream thing that looked awesome :D
Then we went to Harajuku for some shopping frenzy =)
These crepes I've had before when in Tokyo, among the tastiest stuff you can imagine!
As you can imagine the previous pic is not of the actual crepes, and neither is this. The Japanese have taken working with plastic and paint to an artform, making perfect replicas of their dishes for the display windows.
Every other store in Harajuku is already displaying for Halloween, pretty early in my mind ;)
Then we headed to Shibuya, here in the ESP store where you can see that Japanese guitarists have some pretty outrageous signature models :D
Another freaky guitar model
I've seen snake skin boots, but real snake skin on a guitar?
On our way to Ikebe we passed the Disney Tokyo store, 8 floors of Disney magic!
Then we arrived in the department of Ikebe that deals with PRS, managed by Mr. Inazawa-san. This is one of the best PRS-selections on earth!
DOuble dragon PRS Private Stock, price tag around a new luxury car!
One of the beautiful PRS amp models in stock.
Non of these are available in Sweden (or Europe), so I will definitely take the chance to try some out on Monday before I leave.
Non of these are available in Sweden (or Europe), so I will definitely take the chance to try some out on Monday before I leave.
Thumbs up for this store!
A wall of Gibson, talk about packed!
Some Fender custom shop strats, also with quite a price tag!
On the way back, Kohei bought me and Mona this minitaure cats, looks a lot like our cat Viggo :D
Apparently this cat is called "GiGi" in Japan
Apparently this cat is called "GiGi" in Japan
We also stopped by a market with some beautiful Japanese hand crafted stuff!
Traditional Japanese slippers
The most beautiful hand painted soaps I've ever seen (and they smell good too!)
On our way back we stopped to listen to a Canadian guitarist playing classical guitar, he was stunning!
When I got back I made a radio interview over Skype with Swedish radio. Gerhard Stenlund did the interview.
It'll be aired on Monday in Sweden, P4 Västerbotten.
Check it out (it'll be in the archive as well).
It'll be aired on Monday in Sweden, P4 Västerbotten.
Check it out (it'll be in the archive as well).
Then we went out for sushi dinner with the Ikebe Ampstation store manager
And when I say we went for sushi, we REALLY went for sushi!
On the way back we took a wrong exit, and ended up stopping by Tokyo Towers =)
The time was probably 3AM before we were home!
The time was probably 3AM before we were home!
Saturday October 20
Clinic day! Time to pack the car!
Shun's house is really beautiful, but so big it's hr to make it any justice on camera, so you'll have to make do with this nice entrance :D
Shun's house is really beautiful, but so big it's hr to make it any justice on camera, so you'll have to make do with this nice entrance :D
Shun's gf Ayaka is a walking smile basically =)
Setting up for the clinic at Ikebe Ampstation, 3rd floor meeting room
Shun made these 30 beautiful Maestoso OD's especially for this event (custom color). number 31of them is coming home with me =)
Place was packed!
Me and Ike Uneo. This guy started his career at Roland back in -77, and was responsible for the V guitar system (for example all the pickup emulations are based on his personal guitars).
He is also an excellent translator, and has been my side-kick on every single clinic I've ever done in Japan
He is also an excellent translator, and has been my side-kick on every single clinic I've ever done in Japan
Another of Shun's friends and co-workers was a HUGE Gojira fan.
So, I decided to give him the RiptApparel Gojira shirt I had.
This site releases one print every day/all year, and its only available for 24 hours. So it's pretty safe to assume, that even in Tokyo, he'll be pretty alone with this one!
So, I decided to give him the RiptApparel Gojira shirt I had.
This site releases one print every day/all year, and its only available for 24 hours. So it's pretty safe to assume, that even in Tokyo, he'll be pretty alone with this one!
The event was a great success, and half of Shun's MAT's were taken right away. The Strandberg guitars also caught a lot of interest!
After the show we all went out for a great dinner at a Korean BBQ place in Shibuya
Didn't know it whilst eating, but this was apparently tongue. Super tasty though!
Some more of the guys at the dinner.
This was one VERY long dinner, we were back home after 6Am!!
So time to sleep!, Tomorrow I will have a private lesson with one of Shun's friends, we will try to use the Kemper to profile Kohei's excellent Two-Rock, and Shun's mother will take us out to Shabu Shabu at one of Tokyos finest restaurants! Can't wait!
This was one VERY long dinner, we were back home after 6Am!!
So time to sleep!, Tomorrow I will have a private lesson with one of Shun's friends, we will try to use the Kemper to profile Kohei's excellent Two-Rock, and Shun's mother will take us out to Shabu Shabu at one of Tokyos finest restaurants! Can't wait!
Sunday October 21
This day began with having a short lesson with one of Shun's friends, Yukinori Harada, then updating the blog and some videos which I have been a few days behind on.
Later we went out for dinner with Shun, his gf and mother.
We had superb shabu shabu at a very traditional and high-class Japanese restaurant
Very packed table =)
The waitresses wore very traditional kimonos, and this particular girl was tiny enough to have been a 10-year old =) Either that, or all this good food has made me grow to giant :D
Japanese understated decoration, only one in the room. I like it!
After dinner we paroosed a huge department store, like a mix between H&M and Best Buy, electronics and clothes in a great mix at every floor =)
On the way back, I got to try some new koffein-free Coke Zero, tasted very funny indeed
For the rest of the evening it's packing and movie on the schedule =)
For the rest of the evening it's packing and movie on the schedule =)
Monday October 22
Today started out by going back to Shibuya to say farewell to the Ikebe guys, and then off to the airport. Here we have Inazawa-san with the new Strandberg Boden.
Just can't get over how many guitars can fit into a room =)
It's literally a forest
Some great Gibsons here too, that Murphy guy sure knows a thing or two about relicing guitars!
One of the most gorgeous private stock PRSi I've seen.
Cocobolo fingerboard for the win!
Cocobolo fingerboard for the win!
Also got to try out the PRS Dallas amp. Super warm and punchy,
would probably take an overdrive really well! Unfortunately all mine were in the suitcase.
would probably take an overdrive really well! Unfortunately all mine were in the suitcase.
Then off we went for the one hour drive to the airport, sayonara Tokyo!
Lunch at the airport, saying farewell and see you soon!
This will be my last post for this (very long) blog. Tonight I arrive in China, and tomorrow is just travel day(s), so see you in a future blog post from somewhere else in the world =)
This will be my last post for this (very long) blog. Tonight I arrive in China, and tomorrow is just travel day(s), so see you in a future blog post from somewhere else in the world =)
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