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Koll Guitar Company: The Superior
Designed in 1995 as a departure from the Glide series, the Superior features a solid alder body with a striking double cutaway. Also included is a set maple neck with
Back in August, at Cory Wong’s Syncopated Summer Camp in Nashville, Wong hosted a late-night interview and hang session with Italian guitar hero Matteo Mancuso. If you weren’t there, you’re in luck: This week’s episode of Wong Notes features that exclusive rendezvous in its entirety, recorded live in front of an audience of camp attendees.Mancuso unearths his roots on the guitar, from starting on the electric guitar to learning Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, and Jimi Hendrix while using his father’s finger-picking style. “Later on, I discovered about the pick, but I was too lazy to start again,” says Mancuso, who shouts out other fingerstyle players like Wes Montgomery and Django Reinhardt.
Mancuso credits his unique playing vocabulary to his atypical approach to the instrument, which meant he had to “find some solutions to some technical problems” that he encountered while learning to play. What kind of warm-ups does he turn to when he wants to get his fingers and brain moving? Mancuso has a few thoughts, but it all has to be “goal-oriented.”
Mancuso and Wong, both veteran bandleaders at this point, swap advice and techniques on heading your own band, arranging, and writing, plus scores of other obscure tricks of the trade. Tune in and listen to get the goods.
D’Addario expands its XPND Pedalboard Series with two new products designed to simplify, strengthen, and elevate modern pedalboard setups: the XPND Core Pedalboards and the Backline Core Pedalboard Transport Bags.
XPND Core Pedalboards
Available in both compact 2-rail and larger 4-rail sizes, XPND Core Pedalboards include pre-applied hook-and-loop strips and an integrated cable management system for clean, secure setups. Players can easily upgrade with XPND Expansion Kits, transforming Core Pedalboards into a fully adjustable XPND Pedalboard that grows with their style and musical needs. XPND Core is the non-adjustable version of our revolutionary expanding pedalboard and designed for players who want a simple, ready-to-build layout with no setup time.
Highlights
Durable Construction: Aluminum frame built for stage and studio.
Organized Setup: Integrated cable management for clean signal chains.
Ready to Go: Pre-applied hook-and-loop for secure pedal placement.
Expandable: Compatible with XPND Expansion Kits.
Availability & Pricing
XPND Core Pedalboards are available now through daddario.com and authorized retailers.
Designed as the perfect companion to the Core Pedalboards, the new Backline Core Pedalboard Transport Bags offer players a tough, lightweight, gig-ready solution for transporting pedalboard systems. Each bag is tailored specifically to fit the Core 1 (single-row) and Core 2 (double-row) pedalboard sizes.
Featuring rugged exterior construction, reinforced handles, soft padded interior protection, and dedicated storage compartments for accessories and cables, Backline Core Bags deliver dependable protection and convenience for musicians on the move.
Highlights
Tailored Fit: Designed specifically for Core 1 and Core 2 pedalboards.
Durable Exterior: Heavy-duty fabric with reinforced straps.
Padded Interior: Soft liner safeguards pedals and gear.
Extra Storage: Interior/exterior compartments for cables and accessories.
Lightweight & Gig-Ready: Built for easy transport without added bulk.
Availability & Pricing Available now through daddario.com and authorized retailers.
GRAMMY® Award-nominated genre-defying songwriter, producer, podcast host, and guitarist extraordinaire Cory Wong has shared his new single, “Blame It On The Moon (Feat. Magic City Hippies).” The jazzy disco track in collaboration with the Miami-based indie-funk trio Magic City Hippies is the third song released from his upcoming album, Lost In The Wonder, set to arrive on February 3, 2026. “Blame It On The Moon (Feat. Magic City Hippies)” is streaming everywhere now.
“This is the first time that Magic City Hippies and I have worked together,” says Cory Wong. “I randomly met some of the guys in Japan during my last tour. They came out to one of my Tokyo shows and, at the end of the night, said, ‘We should do something sometime.’ That usually means something along the lines of, ‘I respect your artistry and think you’re cool, ’ but rarely means ever getting together to actually ‘do something sometime.’ I have made it a point in the last couple of years to really mean it when I say ‘let’s write together.’
“I got home from Japan and sent over a demo of a song I was working on. The guys in the band said, ‘Yep, we know what to do with this.’ They flipped the arrangement around and added new parts, and sent back what was the majority of what you hear in the final song. We did a few rounds of remote feedback on the writing, and I polished off the arrangement with some added horns and keyboards, and it was done! It’s always more fun to work in a room together on something creative like this, but it works really well to work on remote collaboration projects when both parties are really comfortable in their artistry and also the craft of recording/ collaborating. This, to me, felt like the pinnacle of remote collaboration.”
Lost In The Wonder was initially heralded with the release of the album’s hook-heavy and irresistibly catchy first single “Tongue Tied (Feat. Stephen Day).” The crisp yet dreamy mid-tempo title track, “Lost In The Wonder,” followed last week. A national headlining tour, featuring special guests Devon Gilfillian, Stephen Day, and Marc Scibilia, is set to begin in April, with confirmed performances in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Denver, Austin, and more. The full itinerary is below.
Lost In The Wonder spotlights Wong’s remarkable gifts as a producer, writer, arranger, band leader, and master of modern pop craftsmanship, while of course never losing sight of his trademark guitar virtuosity. The album further affirms Wong’s enduring love of musical collaboration, boasting a truly eclectic range of guest artists, including Taylor Hanson, Devon Gilfillian, Cody Fry, Yam Haus, Louis Cato, Ellis, Elysia Biro, Theo Katzman, and Magic City Hippies.
“There are lots of sides to me as an artist,” says Wong. “A lot of people know me as a guitar guy, or even more specifically, ‘rhythm guitar guy’. That’s an accurate description, but it doesn’t tell the whole story. I see the guitar as just one of the avenues for my music and creativity. It’s been an absolute joy to develop and form a signature sound as a guitarist, but a huge part of my artistry is in my production/writing/arranging/band-leading. I’ve worked on and honed those skills just as much as my guitar playing, so I wanted to make an album that really showcased that side of my creative expression. Does that mean there’s less guitar on this album than on others? No! It’s actually quite the opposite. I feel like some of my best guitar work is done on this album. There’s everything from my classic rhythm guitar sound to multiple layers of orchestrally arranged guitar to blistering solos when the music calls for it.
“I think anyone who’s a great producer/writer/arranger also really likes to collaborate with other people because it gives you different colors and textures to ‘paint’ with. My aim is to showcase different sides of my artistry by putting several collaborators in front of the music and having me build the world that it lives in.”
Wong – who just wrapped up a series of historic live performances in China and South Korea – will celebrate Lost In The Wonder with a non-stop global live schedule that includes headline shows, top-billed festival sets, and more. Highlights include performances in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Seattle, Denver, Austin, as well as a one-night-only concert event at Toronto, ON’s Koerner Hall at The Royal Conservatory of Music backed by the Royal Conservatory Orchestra (December 11); a headline performance at Tucson, AZ’s historic Fox Tucson Theatre as part of the annual Tucson Jazz Festival (January 24, 2026); Dave Koz and Friends at Sea 2026, an eight-night musical cruise adventure making stops in Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina (March 22-30, 2026); a co-headline festival appearance alongside Snarky Puppy at Charlotte, NC’s The Spring Mix (April 26, 2026); and a visit to San José del Cabo, Mexico for Goose’s three-day destination festival, Viva El Gonzo (May 7-9, 2026). Additional dates will be announced.
After a devastating theft in 2021, the metal band’s guitarist rebuilt his tone empire around some life-changing loans.
Chicago post-metal band Russian Circles had to battle their way back to gear heaven. In 2021, the bulk of the band’s gear was stolen while on tour, leading to a years-long rebuild. As a result, many of the items you might’ve seen in guitarist Mike Sullivan’s Rig Rundown back in 2017 are long gone.
PG’s Chris Kies recently met up with Sullivan at the band’s Chicago practice space, where they’ve resided for nearly 20 years. Check out some highlights from Sullivan’s new, resurrected rig below.
Sullivan has been favoring Dunable guitars of late, borrowing one from tourmate Chelsea Wolfe after his other guitar was nabbed. The green one is based on the Dunable Narwhal, with a more Gibson-like scale—comparable to Sullivan’s old Les Paul. This Narwhal has a mahogany body and neck, maple top, and a coil-tap function for the two humbuckers: a DiMarzio PAF 26th Anniversary and a DiMarzio Joe Duplantier Fortitude signature. Vibrating atop those pickups are D’Addario strings—a set of .011–.056, with the low E swapped for a .058. Sullivan uses a number of different down tunings, all with D-A-D-G-A-D as a starting point.
The white Dunable has a maple neck, a 25.5” scale, and is tuned lower, with a .062 for the low E string. It’s used for drop-A tunings, and has the same DiMarzio pickups.
Gettin’ Hi
Sullivan was turned onto Hiwatts after acquiring some on loan in the wake of the gear theft, and he hasn’t turned back since. The cabinets are loaded with Hiwatt Octapulse speakers.
Mike Sullivan’s Pedalboard
Sullivan runs two pedalboards. The first includes a Peterson tuner, Shure P9HW, Dunlop CBM95 Cry Baby Mini, DigiTech Drop and Whammy Ricochet, and MXR Phase 95.
The motherboard carries a Dunlop DVP3 volume pedal, a Friedman BE-OD Deluxe, Strymon Dig, TimeLine, and Flint, a T-Rex Image Looper, DigiTech JamMan Stereo, MXR CAE Boost/Line Driver, Foxrox Octron3, Electric Eye Cannibal Unicorn, Maxon Apex808, Fortin-Modded Ibanez Tube Screamer, and a Radial Shotgun Guitar Splitter and Buffer.
The “monkey grip” body hole on this Teisco TG-64 certainly sets it apart—even if its function isn’t clear.
I like to think I have some unique idiosyncrasies that sort of make me weird, and others that I probably share with lots of people. For instance, are you into coats? I have a ton of coats for some odd reason, and I really can’t explain why I enjoy interesting jackets, parkas, vests, and raincoats. In addition to a lot of coats and guitars, I also have a lot of sneakers. I totally dig sneakers and am always on the lookout for retro designs and fascinating colors. I have a pair of Vans for every holiday and occasion. But sadly, as I age, Vans are not friendly to my aching feet. (Seriously, my feet hurt!) I already had rather huge feet but now I think they’re getting wider with age, and I have to be careful when picking out shoes. Aging is for the birds!
So the behavior pattern that I was examining within myself came down to the appeal of variety. Whether it was shoes, coats, or guitars, I liked variety, as well as weird and retro and odd. The variety totally spans my interests, and with guitars I think it manifests in my appreciation of rare colors and palettes. Think about guitar finishes for a moment. What are the really popular colors? I think of bursts, reds, blacks, and blues. Now think about rarer colors. Here I think of greens, yellows, and oranges. Personally, I’ve always enjoyed greens. Whether sparkles or bursts, green finishes have always been my jam. I think my second-favorite old guitar finishes were the yellows and off-whites. The old Gibson TV yellow (to appear white on black and white television) and the Fender butterscotch finishes are cool. And the off-white, smoke-stained colors are just super.
And here is where I land this month. A wonderfully worn, yellowed example of a Teisco TG-64. I love this guitar and still own it today. Yellow was a rare color for any old Japanese electric and today’s exhibit looks like it’s been clawed by a rambunctious cat, exposing the darker undercoat. Maybe the original finish was whiter? Either way, this one features a very rare finish for the time and place.
“Many of these old guitars add a unique brush or color to your creative instincts.”
The TG-64 guitars were introduced (you guessed it) in 1964 and seemed to hang around into ’65, with slight variations such as emblems and pickguard materials. This model has the body cutout (often referred to as a “monkey grip”) and the square pole-piece pickups that were the successors to the older gold-foil pickups that Teisco was using. There is plenty of hype over gold-foil pickups, and rightly so, but these square jobbers are almost as good, and some might even say better. When I studied coil windings on Teisco pickups, I noticed that the amount of wire lessened over time, resulting in less aggressive tones. It was probably a way to save money but as a result, not all Teisco guitars sound alike, even among the exact same models.
I’ve owned two of these TG-64 guitars and both sounded different. They both needed extreme fretboard/neck work and refrets, but once you get these guitars dialed in, there are a multitude of sounds. Anywhere from grind to mellow, from thin to thick, these are not simple guitars. They borrow from Fender Jazzmaster/Jaguar electronics that offer some preset tones with the flick of a switch. The mini-switches are an acquired taste, but the tremolo units do work fine and overall, the guitar balances nicely. It makes me wonder if the body hole was there for balance or just to be different. I’d like to think the latter, but who knows?
What I really love about mine is how it handles fuzz and overdrive. When clean, my TG sounds a bit thin and lacking sustain. But with a clean boost or some dirt, it shines. In fact, a good clean boost can totally bring an old import guitar from below average to above average. I seem to mention this in one form or another every month: Many of these old guitars add a unique brush or color to your creative instincts. There’s a song in every guitar—and maybe in coats and sneakers, too!
![Rig Rundown: Russian Circles’ Mike Sullivan [2025]](https://www.premierguitar.com/media-library/youtube.jpg?id=62303631&width=1245&height=700&quality=70&coordinates=0%2C0%2C0%2C0)
