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Controlled Bleeding: “The Perks of Being a Perv” Video Premiere

Hear two tracks from founder Paul Lemos’ guitar-centric new album, Larva Lumps and Baby Bumps.

In 1978, the avant-rock no wave scene was making a clatter that mattered in downtown Manhattan, thanks to bands like Teenage Jesus and the Jerks, DNA, Theoretical Girls, and Mars. But a few hundred miles away, in Boston, an equally brave and edgy—if lesser known—klatch of creative noisemakers was burrowing into the consciousness of adventurous music fans. Among their leaders was Controlled Bleeding, a trio who burned bright by blending improvisation with grinding industrial noise.

More than 30 albums—including early cassette-only releases—later, founding member Paul Lemos soldiers on with a new guitar-centric Controlled Bleeding album, Larva Lumps and Baby Bumps, which mixes serenity and insanity. For a taste of the latter, check out Lemos’ home-studio rip through “The Perks of Being a Perv,” a frantic example of the kind of abuse he routinely administers to his Heritage LP-style guitar.

Lemos and Controlled Bleeding have gone through all sorts of sonic shifts over nearly four decades, embracing ambience, dance music, grindcore, dub, prog, and other styles, but as our second premiere—“Driving Through Darkness” from Larva Lumps—displays, Lemos has found his creative groove as an intense, disciplined guitar stylist with tight control over dynamics and an original voice on the instrument. The release of Larva Lumps and Baby Bumps coincides with Artoffact Records’ reissue of several vintage Controlled Bleeding titles including 1983’s Knees and Bones, which was a pioneering set of American electronic/industrial music. Lemos is currently rehearsing a new version of the band with an eye toward returning to the stage after a five-year absence.

Keith Urban’s first instrument was a ukulele at age 4. When he started learning guitar two years later, he complained that it made his fingers hurt. Eventually, he came around. As did the world.

Throughout his over-30-year career, Keith Urban has been known more as a songwriter than a guitarist. Here, he shares about his new release, High, and sheds light on all that went into the path that led him to becoming one of today’s most celebrated country artists.

There are superstars of country and rock, chart-toppers, and guitar heroes. Then there’s Keith Urban. His two dozen No. 1 singles and boatloads of awards may not eclipse George Strait or Garth Brooks, but he’s steadily transcending the notion of what it means to be a country star.

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Tailored for Yngwie Malmsteen's signature sound, the MXR Yngwie Malmsteen Overdrive is designd to offer simple controls for maximum impact.

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Voltage Cable Company's new Voltage Vintage Coil 30-foot guitar cable is now protected with ISO-COAT technology to provide unsurpassed reliability.

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Featuring dual-engine processing, dynamic room modeling, and classic mic/speaker pairings, this pedal delivers complete album-ready tones for rock and metal players.

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