World class drummer Asaf Sirkis continued writing music in 2007, and recently formed the Asaf Sirkis Trio with Greek guitarist Tassos Spiliotopoulos and Israeli bassist Yaron Stavi. This trio has recorded their first album "The Monk" for a September 2008 release. Following on from Tony Williams' Lifetime, the Asaf Sirkis Trio picks up the baton and finds new space for a drummer-led trio. Asaf, a self-effacing Israeli ex-pat living in North London cuts a refreshing dash through London's fertile jazz landscape. He reflects in a characteristically understated way, "For me, music begins where ideas finish." This group, a new electric power trio, plays original material by Asaf and ranges from delicate jazzy ballads to hard rock-ish improvisations.

Asaf Sirkis, the world class drum phenomenon reminiscent of Jack DeJohnette and Tony Williams at the height of their powers that's taken the British scene by storm over the last few years, is perhaps best known as the engine of the rhythm section of the equally phenomenal Gilad Atzmon & The Orient House Ensemble (and the Gilad Atzmon Quartet). The recently released album "The Song Within" (2007) features the UK's leading drummer with his own trio, Asaf Sirkis & The Inner Noise.

John Fordham in The Guardian Friday CD Review in June 2005, had this to say about "We Are Falling", "An attractive luxuriousness of texture, some sensational drumming and inventive soloing... Great playing from three contemporary performers." Nick Lea at the Jazz Views web site added, "All in all another fine album from Asaf Sirkis that places him firmly amongst the UK's hottest properties not just just as one of the musical drummers, but also a composer and bandleader of some. It is therefore with eager anticipation, that I look forward to continue following the career of this most enterprising and imaginative of musicians."

The Inner Noise is a trio featuring Asaf Sirkis on drums, Mike Outram on guitar and Steve Lodder on church organ. The work was originally commissioned by the department of the arts of the Tel Aviv City Council and was performed around Israel in 1997-98. Since Asaf's move to the UK, this new band has been formed featuring these other great British musicians. "Asaf Sirkis & The Inner Noise boldly go where fusion only hesitantly put out the odd foot before, and where prog rock could at best dream of going had it dared to. The music is vibrant, vital, exciting and fresh and even manages to surprise. One of these surprises is its wonderful accessibility and immediacy. "Inner Noise" has to be essential in any modern jazz and modern classical collection at the very least."

Long time Denver area rock guitarist releases instrumental CD! After many years playing the circuit in the Denver and regional area in various bands, guitarist Bradford goes solo and releases his first ever CD. 'The Ninth Ring" is packed full of artful and soulful sounds, with a heavy emphasis on true songwriting rather than over-the-top shredding. This makes the CD a "must have" for all instrumental rock fans.

Steve Hunter is home from his latest European tour of "Berlin" with Lou Reed. His new CD "Short Stories" is more reminiscent of the rock past with Alice Cooper, Peter Gabriel and Aerosmith that he is known for. His versatility and sense of melody ever present. While "Hymns For Guitar" highlights his sensitive touch and tone as used with Tracy Chapman on "Telling Stories" and Peter Gabriel's "Solsbury Hill".

"Short Stories" is a collection of rock instrumentals full of mood and color. Guitarist Steve Hunter talks about the music on the album, "I have always admired authors such as O. Henry and Edgar Allan Poe for their ability to tell an amazing tale in a very few words. I am also a big fan of the old Twilight Zone series for the same reason. With "Short Stories" I've tried to do something similar only with music. Most of the songs on the CD are three minutes or less in length but I wanted each one to tell its own little story. I also think of each piece as a "sound picture", projecting an aural image as well as telling a story."

Victor Gann has recently been named one of the artists of the month for June 2008 at the Ultimate-Guitar.com web site. Check out the write up here.

For the first time ever, Cosmosquad fans are finally treated to a live concert movie of one of the hottest instrumental bands performing today. Recorded on their home turf of Hollywood, California, the band (Jeff Kollman, guitar; Chritopher Maloney, bass; Shane Gaalaas, drums) plays a bone crushing set for the students of the world-renowned Musicians Institute. Filmed in High Definition, "Lights... Camera... SQUAD!" includes songs from Cosmosquad's thre studio CDs as well as Jeff Kollman's solo effort, "Shedding Skin". In addition to several bonus features available on this DVD, a secret online password found on the insert of this DVD package can be used at www.cosmosquad.com to watch a 20-minute interview with the band and 25 minutes of behind the scenes footage from the band's Japan Tour of March 2008.

To help find CDs which are great values, we've created our newest Price List variation, the Bargain CDs Price List, which will display all the discs on the site currently selling for under $10, which is an even better value when you consider that the price includes shipping to US destinations! You can always get to this list by clicking the "Bargains" link at the bottom of every page, or the "Bargain CDs" link found near the top of any Price List page.

Nick Layton is a professional guitarist, composer and teacher living in Washington State. He has worked in a variety of professional music settings including teaching private and group lessons, as well as having been the Music Coordinator at Chorus church in Southern California. Nick's debut CD, "Storming The Castle", was released in July 2008. It is a mix of ten highly melodic tracks ranging from epic metal to emotional ballads, featuring virtuoso guitar playing. Inspired by the great artists and virtuoso guitarists of the late 70's and 80's, including Yngwie Malmsteen, Vinnie Moore, George Lynch , Michael Schenker, John Sykes, Dio, Queensryche, Savatage, TNT, Dream Theater, and many others, Nick became obsessed with the guitar in 1987 and never looked back.

Bill Bentley writes in the Liner Notes about Denny Freeman, "The '90s led to some serious soul-searching for the Dallas-bred, Austin braised musician. Moving to Los Angeles probably seemed like a good idea at the time, but record labels have a way of overlooking players in their own backyard. Denny didn't take obscurity for an answer and decided to record his own album and let the music do the talking. It worked like a charm. "A Tone For My Sins" has all the guitar you'll ever need to hear. In fact, if it's not on the album, it's probably something you don't have to have anyway.:"

Reviewer Dimitris Starakis, of the Magic Starlite 'Zine writes about Giuseppe Silvestri's 2008 CD La Rosa Del Deserto", "This is the second CD from the 34-year-old guitarist, who recently signed a contract with Secret Port Records and he definitely carries the tradition of the great Italian scene! I really enjoy instrumental albums, especially when the composer strongly focuses on his inspirational melodies and riffs, without having the demonstration of various techniques as a top priority. The style of the album ranges from my favorite Neo-Classical songs ("Inferno", "Coral Castle", "Portrait of Isabel", "Les Fleur Du Mal"), to Eastern-influenced tracks ("Gates Of Passion"), mid-tempo pompous compositions ("Eternity") and quite sentimental moments (the title track, "Daisy") so there's plenty of variety for the listener to choose which songs fits their taste best. Giuseppe is totally enjoyable when he performs the songs: he uses catchy phrases which never produce a dull moment."

Steve Hung is the latest addition to the Washington D.C. music scene. A native Texan, Steve grew up in Houston, TX picking up the guitar at age 15. By age 18, Steve moved to Austin, TX, where he fine-tuned his compositional skills and guitar licks while playing open mic at The Cactus Cafe, a nationally acclaimed acoustic venue. Steve quickly gained a reputation as "a killer guitar player" and "a Cactus favorite." Like other Texas musicians such as Los Lonely Boys and Stevie Ray Vaughan, Steve loves to fuse blues riffs and licks into his guitar playing. However, Steve has a broad musical vocabulary including a diverse spectrum of styles. Steve's unique approach to acoustic guitar utilizes classical/folk fingerstyle techniques, while being heavily rooted in the blues, and sprinkled with some rock and jazz inflections. The result is a repertoire of compositions ranging from soulful and soothing to gritty, groovy, and rocking. Steve's debut album, "Geetar", showcases the Texas musical influences he grew up with.

The British site Guitar Idol had this to say about Khan Manuel and his work on "The Knight", "New Zealand born guitarist Khan Manuel continues to dazzle audiences with a guitar style that blends an advanced technical fluidity, with an astonishing versatility that defies his youthful years. His style and repertoire extends comfortably from slow blues-licks that will devastate your life, right through to both jazz and classical interpretations. The usual suspects of Joe Satriani, Stevie Vai, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Gary Moore and Larry Carlton to name but a few, fall effortlessly within the boundaries of this talented musician."

Greek guitarist Costas Politis has been in several bands (Flame, Instant Funk Ltd., Ahaivasa), and has accompanied a lot of big names in Greece, as well as toured the world twice. Today he continues to explore the musical ways and the secret paths of the guitar, enjoying this magic game of research through the universality of the music. With "Aisa", his first solo album, he delves into the various musical styles that have influenced him. By mixing jazz, rock and fusion elements and using rhythmic patterns like 19/8, 5/8, 6/8, he delivers a multidimensional and multi-layered musical opinion through which he tries to express and, if possible, to touch all those that feel the music in the same way. His list of collaborators on "Aisa" is extensive, and includes Nick Kapilidis, leader of Jazz Utopia who has also played with Mike Stern, Sami Amiris (Garibaldi), Bob Franceschini, Mitchel Forman and many more.

The Hellenic musical culture, the classical thought, the jazz mood, the rock explosion and a transcendent harmony are bound together in the tri-part structure of Greek guitarist Dimitris Zafirelis' "Concerto For Guitar And Virtual Orchestra", in which the acoustic guitar is standing out, with its dominant role during the rhythmic, as well as the improvisational parts.

Born in Sweden, guitarist John Huldt's somewhat schizophrenic taste in music is heavily represented on his first born CD, "Rules Do Not Apply". Huldt explains, "I've always liked music that surprised me and took unexpected turns and I think that shows with extreme prejudice in some of my tunes. My musical journey is very much alive and kicking and I'm constantly searching new territories to explore. I played in several bands in Sweden ranging from black and thrash metal to singer/songwriter but being distraught by the lack of success (and finding musicians with same level of commitment) I decided to move to Los Angeles in september 2006. I came to LA as a student at the LA Music Academy and I soon found that this was the place for me to be."

The Canadian group Martone is back on their second concert DVD, "Live In Your Face", this time rocking the Montreal Drum Festival in 2007, with group members Dave Martone (guitars), Daniel Adair (drums) and David Spidel (bass). Dynamic, Instrumental, progressive and aggressive are but only four words that describe the show, which features tracks from Dave Martone albums such as "Shut Up 'N Listen" and "Zone", as well as his latest Lion music releases "A Demon's Dream" and "When The Aliens Come". "Live In Your Face" captured the band as live as live gets. The audio is a 2 channel board mix with a 3 camera shoot. What you see is what you get for camera angles. Raw and unedited! Hope you enjoy an official bootleg of this concert.

The August-September edition is now online!

August's guest columnists bring tech talk, the music business, and practice tips to the table, and cover topics on guitar technique, marketing advice, and rut busting. We've got ten fresh articles altogether - eight by returning columnists along with two new contributors. Canadian guitarist David Martone is back with another in his series entitled "Zone Recording: Major Album Deal". Mike Philippov returns with another technique article, appropriately called "Taking Your Guitar Technique To The Next Level". Tom Hess returns with his self-help column "Practicing Guitar: Self Discipline or Fun?". Hungarian guitarist Jonas Tamas serves up another technique column, "Sliding With Both Hands While Tapping". Scott Allen continues his series with "Gearing Up: I've Got Woods". Guitarist Jamie Andreas is back with her column entitled "On Memorizing, Part Two". Kole returns to guide you with, "Getting Into The Flow: Opening Yourself To The Muse". Christopher Knab will test your knowledge with "What Do You Know About Getting Signed And Working With A Record Label?". New contributors include Jimmy Williams with "Chromaticism" and Nashville guitarist Dave Isaacs with a technique column, "Strum-a Strum-a Strum: A Rhythm Primer For Songwriters". Finally, indie marketing and promotions expert Tim Sweeney returns with great advice in "Consider The Source of Internet Information".

August updates include a new interview with guitarist Kiko Loureiro.

This edition we've selected four more of the most outstanding artists from the twelve years of the Undiscovered series profiles - it's called The Rediscovered. Think of it as the best of the best of The Undiscovered artists - another chance to check in with guitar oriented musicians and bands you may have missed the first time around.

Guitar Nine Records has added another 18 new instrumental guitar CDs to the site in the past two months. This brings the total number of instrumental guitar CDs available to 1929!

CDs are now online and shipping for Matthew Mills, Jartse Tuominen, Petr Henych, Esseness Project, John McLaughlin, Mckay Tebbs, Jennifer Batten, Greg Howe, John 5, Niko Tsonev, Rob Metz, Tonio Ruiz, Pete Laramee, Workshop, Hematovore, Carl Roa, Koji Tsumoto, and Soul To Strings.

[NOTE: DVD is in the European PAL format. In the U.S., you may be able to play in your computer's DVD/CD drive - check your system.] An instructional DVD in Spanish, with available English subtitles, "Ejercicios 1" features the incredible neo-classical and shred guitarist David Valdes highlighting his technique. Chapters include Warming Hands, Picking, Hammer On-Pull Off, Legaro, String Skipping, Diminish, Sweep Picking, and the special Valdex Licks

NOTE: DVD is in the European PAL format. In the U.S., you may be able to play in your computer's DVD/CD drive - check your system.] "Lost In The Dark Curse" is an all instrumental DVD, which is a live-in-the-studio presentation of the music of David Valdes, featuring the guitarist playing to his backing tracks. The DVD was recorded to mark the success of videos that have been recorded and posted on YouTube over the last 6 years. Valdes decided to record 15 of his songs and deliver them in a much higher quality format for the fans at home. The DVD is sure to appeal to fans of the original videos and fans of progressive instrumental guitar. The DVD reflects David's beliefs and was not released for profit, but for the love of the instrument which he wants to share with all the guitarists of the world. As a bonus, many split-screen presentations are shown when Valdes' songs feature harmony or contrapuntal lines.

Soul To Strings was quickly born on the idea that guitar playing could still be technical, intense, but yet melodic in structure. Guitarist Brad Moore, having nothing more than a drum machine and a multi-track recorder at hand, found his ideas continuing to flow. Recording his own bass lines with multiple guitar parts (sometimes over 20 guitars playing at once!) the Soul To Strings brand really took off. The self titled debut CD is full of melody and virtuoso guitar phrasing throughout. 11 songs of instrumental playing which is sure to keep your attention at full. Finding a musical niche with melodic instrumental guitar rock as the counterpoint was the key. Soul To Strings' musical melodies tend to take a listener on a life journey. Whether it is inspirational, dreamy, sadness, or happiness, the laid back grooves will take your mind to where you need to be.

"Silkroad/Kinu-Michi - A Day" is Japanese guitarist Koji Tsumoto's fourth all instrumental CD (continuing the musical trail laid out by "Silkroad/Kinu-Michi - 1st" and "Silkroad/Kinu-Michi - 2nd"), and this one impresses as the next in the series of "the ultimate modal instrumental progressive rock from Asia" - and a particular staff favorite here at Guitar Nine. Every self-respecting fan of rock instrumental music should have all four of Tsumot's solo releases - no excuses. This time, guitarists Jon Finn (his professor at the Berklee College of Music) and Alessandro Benvenuti contribute solos to "Lifetime Friends". Tsumoto continues to forge links between amazing soloing and aggressive (or clever) riffs, in a hard rock / progressive seting.

Scott Allen's new guitar instructional DVD for Chops From Hell is now available at chopsfromhell.com. In this wide ranging DVD, Scott covers tapping, developing speed, legato, sweep picking, diatonic sequences, key centers, unorthodox pentatonics, his gear and much more. Check it out!

On July 8th from 6 to 8 PM T D Clark will be throwing down the shred, playing tracks from his "Next Big Adventure" CD and demonstrating the licks that make up those songs. Sponsored by EMG, Jim Dunlop, Dean Markley, Nady systems, ESP Guitars, Mesa Boogie amps. It is free to the public and all ages.

Whether ripping through a hyper charged 16th note jazz tinted rock solo, or delicately weaving through a mind melding maze of Bach tainted chord progressions, Carl Roa's innate ability to balance musicality and technique has delighted many music fans worldwide. Receiving accolades from the likes of Guitar World, Progression, and Billboard magazines, Carl's unique and diverse playing style has put him in the forefront of today's progressive rock and fusion movement. Fusing elements of rock, jazz, classical, country and blues has allowed Carl to develop an interesting and radical hybrid style not often displayed by today's modern guitarists. Carl has proven to be a prolific writer with four original full length albums under his belt showcasing his diverse style and compositions. Carl has currently finished work on his first solo CD entitled "Eternity", which is sure to delight fans of high intensity progressive rock.

Tonio Ruiz, guitarist and composer behind the new album "The Light From Nowhere", writes, "Born and raised in Mexico City, I started playing guitar at age 15-16; all my teen years were in the '80s, so I grew up listening to all Anglo Rock, Heavy Metal and Hard Rock. I always wanted to achieve a perfect balance between technique and melody, all round up on pure heart and soul on each note. My intention has never been to impress anybody; I don't mind if I do or if I don't, I just want to heal myself with every note I get to play. I've been writing instrumental stuff since forever, but now that I am able to release my first CD, which is a compilation of tunes from the past 10 years, through which I've had two great rock bands in Mexico, CODA ('90s) and QBO, my current band. I've released over eight albums so far with those two projects; as off now, I'm writing new tracks for my second solo album. I just hope to earn a spot in this competitive world of rock guitar."

This July, guitar masters Steve Smyth (Esseness Project, Nevermore, Testament), Doug Doppler (Guitar Hero), and L.A. fretmaster Adrian Galysh are bringing Shredstock to venues across California. Six guitar filled nights featuring a 45 minute set from each artist are guaranteed to satisfy the guitar fanatic in you. And if you've got the goods, you could open up the show if you're a winner in the the Shredstock Viral Video Contest!

About Shredstock: Shredstock's roots lie in guitar legend Uli Jon Roth's Sky Academy Concert series, where Steve, Doug, and Adrian were invited to join the founding father of both the Scorpions and Neo-Classical Rock on stage. From there they joined forces and created Shredstock. According to Doppler, "The impact of Guitar Hero has been nothing short of amazing in terms of inspiring multiple generations of guitar players. There are so many players at home chomping at the bit to jump up on a real stage with a live audience. Steve, Adrian and I decided it was a great time to hit the road to promote our discs and to give guitar fans a different kind of guitar tour – one that they could actually be a part of."

About the Shredstock Viral Video Contest: Three winners for each city on the tour will have a chance to open the show with a solo or song of their choice. Contestants simply need to visit http://www.YouTube.com/Shredstock, upload a of video of themselves playing, send a link to friends and family, and he or she with the most plays wins!

Shredstock Tour Dates:
Monday 7.21.08: The Axe Shop, Los Angeles, CA (clinic show)
Tuesday 7.22.08: The Baked Potato, Los Angeles, CA
Wednesday 7.23.08: Fishlips, Bakersfield, CA
Thurdsay 7.24.08: The Last Day Saloon, Santa Rosa, CA
Friday 7.25.08: Ireland’s 32, San Francisco, CA
Saturday 7.26: Hertlein Guitars, Dublin CA (clinic/show)

Guitarist Kenny Serane and drummer Stephane Boutinaud are two French musicians who met in 2003 and quite naturally decided to collaborate. Running under the project name of Workshop, the duo offers a musical blend of progressive rock laced with metal, jazz and electronic music. The essence of the group being a duo, they perform live with M.A.O. to realize the group's signature sound. "Beyond The Unknown Territory" represents their new "concept album" for 2008. This expands on their earlier Workshop EP, with guitarist Serane showing amazing control, combining a solid technical base with a keen melodic touch. Again, the listener can expect good compositions, highly skilled technicians, and strong melodies.

Pete Laramee's 2008 disc, "Childhood Memories", is melodic, guitar oriented, instrumental, progressive heavy rock and is not unlike any of his or the Kurgan's Bane's (his progressive hard rock band) previous work, but will be a tad heavier since Pete now plays the 7-string guitar. Derek Sherinian (Dream Theater, Planet X, Alice Cooper, Billy Idol, and KISS) agreed to play a few solos on "Red Rocks", while Laramee is joined by his brother Jeff (also of Kurgan's Bane and Sonus Umbra) on drums, Luis Nasser (Kurgan's Bane, Sonus Sumbra) on bass, and Michael Passen from Concrete Prophet sit in on a few tunes as well, also on bass.