Our Editors’ Picks from Musikmesse—Europe’s biggest guitar and bass gear show.
Gear shows can be funny things for a variety of reasons. At Winter NAMM in Anaheim each January, the planet’s biggest selection of new guitar and bass toys is ogled by an oft amusing-looking crowd largely composed of rockers aging with varying degrees of grace—middle-aged hair-metal fans in the same ripped trousers and high-top sneakers they wore in ’85, bearded, skinny-jean-wearing 30- and 20-somethings with drastic fade cuts and gauged earlobes, young shredders wearing the same makeup and leather Nikki Sixx wore in ’85, and everything in between. Summer NAMM in Nashville is more about blues dudes in guitar-print button-ups, and country cats in boots and hats. Meanwhile, Musikmesse—held April 15–18 in Frankfurt, Germany—has a lot of Europeans in dark suit coats, scarves, and pointy dress shoes.
Despite their fashion differences, all gear shows are similarly chock-full of guitar addicts wailing at raging volumes in efforts to impress each other. They’re also similar in that they tend to go through varying degrees of busyness, both in terms of visiting gear freaks, dealers, and distributors, and in terms of companies choosing to exhibit or sit this one out. Inevitably, lulls create concern—often leading to predictions of the demise of whichever show happens to be at the bottom of the rollercoaster hill at that moment.
For glass-half-empty attendees, this year’s Musikmesse was a bit of an occasion for doomsday prophesying—at least with regard to guitar and bass products. Nowhere to be seen were big companies like Fender, PRS, and Warwick/Framus—in years past, one of the most prominent Messe exhibitors. Further, many boutique European luthiers who typically stun us with their exquisite high-end designs opted to spend their time and money on the new annual Holy Grail Guitar Show in Berlin.
Nevertheless, the Premier Guitar crew found a lot to dig during our trip to Frankfurt—enough that we’re choosing to look at the lull merely as part of the circle of life (cue Elton John’ssoundtrack for The Lion King here). Sure, we’ve seen a bit more guitar and bass gear at Messes past, but this time we did see more boutique pedal outfits, which are often under-represented at this show. Plus, you never know how things are going to shake out for everything else going on in the gear universe—the knowns and the unknowns. Things and people adjust and evolve, new companies move in to fill voids, and the overall result is good for everyone as long as you’ve got your eyes peeled. And you can bet ours are. So, without further ado, let’s take a look at our favorite gear from Musikmesse 2015.
Bachmann Guitars & Tonewood
Italian luthier Rudolf Bachmann’s acoustics wowed us—and then some. They feature intricate inlay work and the same fine spruce and rosewood building materials that some of America’s most respected luthiers purchase from Bachmann, but what really got us was the gorgeous bending of the AC-6 Luxury’s richly figured back. Exquisite!
bachmann-guitars.com
JJoye Guitars
At Musikmesse we’re so accustomed to seeing sophisticated boutique guitars that blend Swiss Army knife utility with posh, Mercedes-Benz-like appointments that it was a treat to see French designer Jeremy Joye’s gloriously gaudy new Starlette. Decked out like a ’50s dinette, it’s equipped with custom pickups wound to evoke old-time rock ’n’ roll attitude, an alder body, a heelless maple neck, ebony fretboard, locking tuners, and either a Tune-o-matic and a stop-tail bridge or a Duesenberg vibrato.
jjoyeguitars.com
Lâg Guitars
Lâg brought perhaps its sexiest-ever solidbody to Frankfurt this year. Like a T-style crossed with a Porsche Boxster, the BuxSter blends elegant lines and daring colors with classic appointments that yield plenty of bite and twang.
lagguitars.com
Soultool
Swiss guitar outfit Soultool unveiled the Laguz the Junior at Messe. Available with a mahogany or korina body, it features GoodTone/Häussel P-90s, a Graph Tech nut, an ABM wraparound bridge, glow-in-the-dark side position markers, and a “Full Access” neck joint.
soultool.com
Vice Guitars
Munich’s Vice Guitars formed just in time to make its trade-show debut in Frankfurt (they don’t even have a website yet). It’s a good thing they did, though, because they had some of the most intriguingly adventurous designs we saw at Musikmesse—so cool we put one on the cover of our June 2015 issue. The 707 semi-hollowbody (left) features a 2-piece mahogany “sandwich” design with aged, engraved-steel top plates, a LeoSounds T-style bridge pickup, and a TV Jones Classic whose enclosure has been beautifully aged by founder/luthier Vice Brekalo. Meanwhile, the semi-hollow 717 (right) features an aluminum body, neck-through construction, and a Vintage Vibe Charlie Christian-style pickup.
Bigfoot Engineering
This year was Bigfoot Engineering’s first Musikmesse appearance, but the word’s been out for a while with players like Graham Coxon, J Mascis, and Rich Robinson that their line of octave fuzzes, fuzzes, and boosts are exceptionally dynamic and moldable.
bigfootengineering.com
EBS Red Label
Long a bass-centric outfit, EBS dipped its Swedish toes back in the guitar-pedal waters at Musikmesse with the release of the Red Label line. The MultiComp GE and DynaVerb GE are 6-string-optimized versions of the Black Label pedals so popular with world-renowned bassists, while the Red Twister GE is an improved take on the short-lived chorus EBS released for guitarists in 1999.
ebssweden.com
GTC Revpad
Israeli company GTC Sound Innovations’ Revpad is a four-footswitch effector that lets you wirelessly control multiple parameters in real time using a touchpad that you attach to your pickguard with Velcro. You can freeze effects, change presets, and patch other stompboxes into the signal chain, too.
gtcsound.com
Greenhouse
Also from Israel, Greenhouse Effects came to Musikmesse with the new Self-Titled—a modular effector that lets you swap out a variety of cartridges (lower right) to have four stomps in a single 9V-powered housing. Meanwhile, the Double Edged Distortion (lower middle) has rhythm and solo channels with a pretty impressive range of sounds, from gritty to liquid sustain, and the Sonic Orb (lower right) serves up at least as many tasty phaser sounds. gheffects.com
Orange
The incredibly loud and flexible new Bax Bangeetar preamp—Orange’s first pedal in decades—features a Baxandall EQ with parametric mid controls, internal adjusting of 9V power operation up to 18V (for more headroom), a super-transparent buffer, cab simulation, and boost functions. orangeamps.com
Joyo
Joyo debuted two small amp heads at this show, but the 12-watt Beale Street impressed us most. Priced at an impressive $499 street, it’s armed with 6V6 tubes, a 5Y3 rectifier, a tone knob, and volumes for the two inputs that can be jumpered together for grittier output.
joyoaudio.com
Randall
Fans of stoner metal should be intrigued by the latest from Randall. The EOD88—which got its moniker from Ozzy’s pronouncement that Black Sabbath was just blues with an “element of doom”—features a KT88 power section, a nasty built-in fuzz circuit, 3-band EQ, gnarly gain, and possibly the world’s largest volume knob. randallamplifiers.com
Vox
Probably the coolest amp deal we saw at Musikmesse was Vox’s new AC10C1. Equipped with an EL84 power section, a 12AX7-driven preamp, a 10" Celestion speaker, and a surprisingly authentic-sounding “spring” digital reverb, it’s shockingly loud and punchy—all for under $450 street. voxamps.com
Bassline
Some of the coolest basses at Musikmesse were from Bassline—a small team of German luthiers who haven’t exhibited at this show since 2004 or so. Their Buster Re:belle 4-string features aesthetics simultaneously reminiscent of a Rickenbacker and audiophile gear. The body is made from 15-year-old elm, and the 1-piece neck is made of European hornbeam. Controls include a series-parallel toggle, push-push volume for passive or active operation, and tone and balance knobs.
bassline-bass.de
EBS
EBS has long been one of the preeminent makers of bass pedals, with multiple models that have been used by pros the world over for years. The new Studio Edition versions of their Black Label bass pedals include low-noise mechanical-relay switching, larger LED indicators, 9V–12V operation, better voltage-spike protection, quieter circuitry, and new aesthetics.
ebssweden.com
Sandberg
The amazing-looking Forty-Eight 4-string features an alder body, maple neck, rosewood fretboard, custom Sandberg tuning machines, and versatile humbuckers that yield everything from Jaco-esque bridge tones to fat rawk tones via volume, blend, treble, and bass knobs that can run in passive or active modes.
sandberg-guitars.de
D'Addario's new Bridge Pin Puller and Tour-Grade Peg Winder are designed to make string changes a breeze.
The Bridge Pin Puller is designed to be the fastest, easiest, and safest way to remove bridge pins from an acoustic guitar. Small enough to fit in your pocket, the standalone bridge pin puller is a great way for acoustic players to avoid fumbling with bridge pins during string changes and maintenance. The ergonomic design comfortably fits in hand but won’t place extra pressure on the instrument or bridge during use. Best of all, the clamp design encloses the pin, keeping it secure inside the puller until it’s released.
The Tour-Grade Peg Winder offers next-level performance for luthiers, techs, or anyone who wants to change strings with maximum speed and ease. The multi-tool design brings together a ball bearing, non-damaging socket for smoother winding, molded grips, and a spring-loaded bridge pin puller, delivering an all-in-one option to handle most standard string changes.
From the straight-forward simplicity of the Bridge Pin Puller to the all-around convenienceof the Tour-Grade Peg Winder, D’Addario has your string changes covered.
For more information, please visit daddario.com.
Nashville session and stage MVPs craft an aural wonderland with their genre-defying instrumental album, In Stereo.
Working from a shared language of elegance and grit, Nashville guitar domos Tom Bukovac and Guthrie Trapp have crafted In Stereo, an album that celebrates the transcendent power of instrumental music—its ability to transport listeners and to convey complex emotions without words.
In Stereo also honors Trapp and Bukovac’s friendship, which ignited when Trapp and Bukovac met over a decade ago at Nashville’s 12 South Taproom eatery and club—an after-hours musician’s hangout at the time. They also sometimes played casually at Bukovac’s now-gone used instrument shop, but when they’re onstage today—say at Trapp’s Monday night residency at Nashville’s Underdog, or at a special event like Billy Gibbons’ BMI Troubadour Award ceremony last year—their chemistry is obvious and combustible.
“Guthrie is very unpredictable, but for some reason our two styles seem to mix well.”—Tom Bukovac
“It’s like dancing with somebody,” Bukovac says about their creative partnership. “It is very easy and complementary. Guthrie is very unpredictable, but for some reason our two styles seem to mix well, although we play very differently.”
As Pepé Le Pew probably said, “Vive la différence.” While they’re both important figures in Nashville’s guitar culture as badass, in-demand session and live players, Trapp also points out that the foundation of their respective careers is on opposite swings of that pendulum. Bukovac’s reputation was built on his studio work. Besides his touring history, he’s played on over 1,200 albums including recordings by the Black Keys, Glen Campbell, Keith Urban, Stevie Nicks, Bob Seger, and Hermanos Gutiérrez. And Trapp considers himself mostly a stage guitarist. He emerged as a member of the Don Kelly Band, which has been a Lower Broadway proving ground for a host of Nashville 6-string hotshots, including Brent Mason, Johnny Hiland, and Redd Volkaert. In recent years, you may have seen him on the road with John Oates. It’s also possible you’ve heard Trapp on recordings by Rodney Crowell, Emmylou Harris, and Roseanne Cash, among others.But back to In Stereo. “This record is truly for the love of music and not giving a shit what anybody else is going to think about it,” relates Trapp, as he, Bukovac, and I sit and talk, and they noodle unplugged on a Danocaster and an ES-355, respectively, in the warm, instrument-filled surroundings of the Cabin Studio in East Nashville. The album was recorded there and at another studio, simply called the Studio, with Brandon Bell engineering.
“When we started working on the album, it was very loose,” explains Bukovac. “I never wanted to bring in anything that was complete because the key is collaboration. So, I knew better than to come in with a complete song. And Guthrie didn’t do that either. We would just come in with a riff for an idea and then let the other guy finish it—and that’s the best way to do it.”
“It’s got enough humanity—real playing—mixed with the cinematic side of it.”—Tom BukovacAll of which helped make In Stereo’s 11 compositions seamless and diverse. The album opens with a minute-long ambient piece called “Where’s the Bluegrass Band,” which blends acoustic and electric guitars, feedback, and keyboards with generous delay and reverb—telegraphing that listeners should expect the unexpected. Of course, if you’ve been following their careers, including their estimable YouTube presence, you’re already expecting that, too. So, a soulful composition like “The Black Cloud,” which builds from a Beatles-esque melody to a muscular and emotive power ballad of sorts, comes as no surprise. “Desert Man” is more of a mindblower, with its dark-shaded tones and haunting melodies. “Cascade Park” is an unpredictable journey that begins with delay-drenched piano and leads to Trapp’s acoustic guitar, which evolves from contemplative melody to feral soloing. And “Bad Cat Serenade” and “Transition Logo Blues” balance the worlds of country and jazz fusion. Overall, the music is timeless, emotional, and exploratory, creating its own world, much as Ennio Morricone did with his classic film soundtracks.
Tom Bukovac's Gear for In Stereo
Tom Bukovac and his ’58 Les Paul sunburst—one of just a handful of guitars he used to record In Stereo.
Guitars
- 1958 Gibson Les Paul ’Burst
- 1962 Stratocaster
- Harmony acoustic rebuilt by James Burkette
- Jeff Senn Strat
Synth
- Roland XP-30
Amp
- Black-panel Fender Princeton
Effects
- Nobels ODR-1
- Strymon Brigadier dBucket Delay
Strings & Picks
- D’Addario NYXL’s (.010–.046)
- Fender Mediums
“It’s a lot to ask somebody to sit and listen to an instrumental record,” Bukovac offers, “so I was just trying to make sure—and I know Guthrie did the same—it doesn’t get boring. When I finally sat and listened to this thing in its entirety, which was many months after we actually recorded, I had forgotten what we’d even done. I was overwhelmed. I love that I never got bored. It moves along and has moments where it gets into sort of a trance, in a good way, but it never stays there too long. It’s got enough humanity—real playing—mixed with the cinematic side of it.”
Trapp picks up the thread: “If you’re in Nashville for a long time and you’re paying attention at all, you understand this is a song town. No matter how you slice it, it’s all about the vocal and the lyric and the song. So, it doesn’t matter if you’re making an avant-garde instrumental guitar record. That influence is pounded in your brain—how important it is to trim the fat and get down to the song. A song is a song. It doesn't matter if it’s instrumental or not. It’s a ‘Don’t get bogged down and get to the chorus’ kind of thing.”
“A song is a song. It doesn’t matter if it’s instrumental or not. It’s a ‘Don’t get bogged down and get to the chorus’ kind of thing.”—Guthrie Trapp
Which alludes to the sense of movement in all these compositions. “It’s very important that every section of a song delivers every transition,” Bukovac adds. “When you go into a new room, when you open that door, it’s got to be right. That’s what I think about records. And there’s a lot of shifting on this record. We go from one field to another, and were very concerned about making sure that each transition delivers.”
Guthrie Trapp's Gear for In Stereo
Guthrie Trapp recording with his Danocaster Single Cut, made by Nashville’s Dan Strain.
Guitar
- Dan Strain Danocaster Single Cut
Amps
- Kendrick The Rig 1x12 combo
- Black-panel Fender Princeton
Effects
- Strymon Brigadier dBucket Delay
- Strymon Lex
- Nobels ODR-1
- Xotic RC Booster
- T-Rex Tremster
- Boss TU Tuner
Strings & Picks
- D’Addario NYXL’s (.010–.046)
- Medium celluloid
That kind of thoughtful development—the set up and delivery of various compositional sections in songs—isn’t exactly a lost art, but it’s certainly rarer than in earlier decades. Listen to Elton John’s Goodbye Yellow Brick Road to hear how Davey Johnstone sets up verses, choruses, and bridges—or anything by David Gilmour—for reference. It’s also a goal best accomplished with a team of exceptional players, and, of course, Trapp and Bukovac enlisted some of Music City’s finest. The cast includes steel-guitar legend Paul Franklin, keyboardist Tim Lauer, bassists Steve Mackey and Jacob Lowery, and drummers Jordan Perlson and Lester Estelle.
“Don’t tell my mom, because of course we all want to make a living, but playing music that has integrity is at the top for me.”—Guthrie Trapp
“We recorded the basics—really, most of the tracks—live on the floor,” says Trapp.
“We kept a lot of the original throw-down/go-down solos,” Bukovac adds. “There were very few fixes and overdubs. One of the best moves we made was letting an outside person objectively sequence it, because you can get a little bit too inside your own thing. It’s like … if you’ve ever done a photo shoot, if you let somebody else choose the photo, it’s never going to be the one you’d choose, and it’s probably a better choice.” That task fell to Nick Govrik, another friend and engineer.
The terrain Bukovac and Trapp cover on their first album together is expansive and transporting—and packed with impressive melodies and guitar sounds.
The shipment of In Stereo’s vinyl arrived shortly before Trapp, Bukovac, and I talked, and while Bukovac released his first solo album, Plexi Soul, in 2021, and Trapp put out his releases Pick Peace and Life After Dark in 2012 and 2018, respectively, they seemed as excited to listen to it as teenagers in a garage band unveiling their debut single. That’s because, despite their standing and successes, playing guitar and making music is truly in their blood. What they play is a genuine expression of who they are, ripped from their DNA and presented to the world.
“Don’t tell my mom this, because of course we all want to make a living, but playing music that has integrity is at the top for me,” says Trapp. “These days, with AI and people worried or insecure about where the music business is going, and all these Instagram players who just are fixing everything with Pro Tools so they sound like they’re in a studio, I don’t worry because we’re not selling bullshit. We have 35 years of real experience between us, and when we do social media, we’re just reaching for a cell phone and posting it. It’s organic. That, to me, is a big difference. At the end of the day, I can sleep well knowing that I have earned the respect of the people that I respect the most. It’s just authentic music made for the very reason we got into this in the first place. We love it.”
YouTube It
Guthrie Trapp and Tom Bukovac practice their live chemistry together at Trapp’s standing Monday night gig at Nashville’s guitar-centric Underdog.
Orianthi is partnering with Orange Amplification to release a travel-friendly amp designed to be both functional and reliable.
The new Limited Edition Orianthi Crush 20RT has been played by the respected guitarist, singer-songwriter, in the studio and at live gigs.
The white Tolex-clad, solid-state signature Crush 20RT offers some of the most distinctive tones available in its price range. With the gain turned down, the amp delivers a versatile crystal clean tone. The “dirty channel” can be selected to unleash high levels of detailed creamy distortion to full saturation. The Crush 20RT offers a wide range of sonic possibilities courtesy of an 8”, custom-designed ‘Voice of the World” speaker. From modern sonic punch to vintage tones, this incredibly portable amplifier also includes a 3-band EQ, built-in “spring-inspired” reverb and chromatic tuner.
“I wanted a portable amp I could use anywhere. There’s a soaring tone you get from this amp despite its small, compact size”, comments Orianthi. She continues, “Plus this amp is really diverse - from the clean channel to the dirty channel - there’s warmth and there’s grit, it’s really quite incredible. I think everyone is really going to dig it!”
To experience the new Limited Edition Orianthi Crush 20RT visit your favourite authorised Orange retailer, or learn more online at orangeamps.com.
With built-in effects, headphone output, and AUX connectivity, these compact devices are designed to provide ultimate versatility for practice sessions at home or on stage.
Aguilar is introducing the amPlug3 Tone Hammer, a portable headphone amplifier inspired by the iconic Tone Hammer sound. Ideal for practicing anywhere, this compact device packs dual channel Clean and Drive modes for ultimate versatility. To help keep practice sessions inspiring, the unit includes reverb, chorus, and compression as built-in, onboard effects and a built-in rhythm feature to keep any players favorite basslines in time. Lastly, the amPlug3 features AUX connectivity to allow players to play along with tracks, or via a TRRS cable, record straight to a phone or laptop with ease. Whether at home, in the studio, or on the road, the amPlug3 Tone Hammer offers a convenient practice solution without compromising tone.
In addition to the amPlug 3 Tone Hammer, Aguilar has revamped their iconic Tone Hammer Preamp pedal. Built upon the original design that has become an essential tool for bass players seeking tone and flexibility. Incorporating customer feedback and refining key features, the new Tone Hammer Preamp offers enhanced drive functionality featuring an expanded gain range with a separate "drive" control for greater tonal precision, allowing users to refine their overdriven and clean tones independently. New Practice-friendly features include the addition of a headphone output and auxiliary input, allowing the pedal to double as the perfect practice companion at home or on the road. The updated, compact enclosure has a modern aesthetic, complementing the Tone Hammer series of amplifiers.
“We are thrilled to expand the Tone Hammer family with these new products,” said Jordan Cortese of Aguilar Amplification. “The reimagined Preamp/DI pedal and the all-new amPlug3 Tone Hammer provide bassists with even more options to achieve their perfect sound, whether they’re on stage or practicing on the move.”
Street Prices:
- Tone Hammer Preamp Pedal $299.99
- amPlug3 Tone hammer $59.99