hyomin shin | Ferocious Pursuit

A few Thursdays ago, I was at the Guitar Center's King of Blues Final at the House of Blues on Sunset.  I immensely enjoyed all 5 finalists but the highlight of the event, and main reason why I went, was definitely Joe Bonamassa.  Most of you who know me personally know that I'm a metal head which is why it may shock you that I dig Joe.  At the moment I am digging Joe's playing more than any one and literally worship the man at the moment.  

The venue was awesome as it was full of liveliness and just the right size to enjoy the band on the stage.  Joe had many special guests on the stage with him throughout the night performing his songs as well as those that were made famous by his guests.  I especially enjoyed when Glenn Hughes joined Joe on the stage.  Glenn has a massive pipe and was hitting high notes that seemed impossible for any human being to hit.  

Looking at Joe's tour calendar, it doesn't look like he's coming to SoCal any time soon which made this event even more special to me.  I will make sure to check him out again when he returns!

Here are some more pictures and a video clip of him and other guests jamming.

Last week, I went to Sherman Oaks Guitar Center with my assistant, Michael.  Lo and behold they had a guitar that I have been eyeing to get for a while.  The PRS SE Custom 24 sports a thinner neck compared to Custom 22 which made it ideal for me.  Since I have so many black guitars, getting a flamed maple top guitar also was my goal.  On a side note, 2008 American Idol winner, David Cook, was there with a female companion looking like he was shopping for one himself.  Unfortunately, he left the store before I could ask him for an autograph...

What took me by storm was that the guitar was very comfortable to play the moment I had my hands on it.  I felt like "coming home" and it almost felt like a guitar that I have played for 20 years.  It just fits in your hands and very smooth to play.  If their SE versions are this great, I can only imagine how wonderful their regular models would play...

More pictures of this guitar found on my flickr page.

Well I had some free time and when I do, this type of atrocious attempt makes it onto YouTube.  Check it out!