Photo by Zack Whitford
The co-founding member, principal songwriter, and co-producer of Aerosmith and Hollywood Vampires, as well as one of the most sought-after guitarists of all time, Joe Perry is also excited to share news of the May 26 release of his new album Sweetzerland Manifesto MKII via Roman Records. Listen to "Fortunate One"
The album will be made available via all DSPs as well as on vinyl which was not the case when he dropped Sweetzerland Manifesto in 2018. The new LP includes six new tracks and alternate vocal appearances and mixes from the earlier version. “We had so many songs and with everything going on with The Vampires, Aerosmith, COVID, not touring, and touring, this music kept riding along for me,” Joe notes. “It was like the engine of a train that wasn’t going to stop. I’d wanted to put these songs out, and the idea of adding them to a vinyl release or Deluxe Version turned into doing MKII. I tend to think in terms of albums. The first one had a vibe, and MKII is a little more rocked out. I almost prefer it. It’s one of those records I can play from front-to-back live.“
Sweetzerland Manifesto MKII serves as the companion and spiritual successor to the original Sweetzerland Manifesto. Joe wrote and recorded the bulk of the material for both versions at the Los Angeles home of fellow “Vampire” Johnny Depp back in 2017. During a few months at “Sweetzerland,” he experienced a groundswell of creativity and welcomed various collaborators into the fold, including vocals courtesy of David Johansen (New York Dolls, Buster Poindexter), Robin Zander (Cheap Trick), and Terry Reid. Johnny served as Executive Producer, while Aerosmith’s go-to producer Jack Douglas, Bruce Witkin, and Joe’s sons Tony and Roman also contributed to production.
Track List
SIDE A
- Fortunate One - Features Chris Robinson (The Black Crowes) and Robert DeLeo (Stone Temple Pilots)
- Quake - Features Gary Cherone (Extreme/Van Halen)
- I’ll Do Happiness - Features Terry Reid
- Aye Aye Aye - Featuring Robin Zander (Cheap Trick)
- Man with a Golden Arm - Instrumental
- Time Will Tell
SIDE B
- I I Wanna Roll - Featuring David Johanson (NY Dolls)
- Suck It Up - Featuring Robin Zander (Cheap Trick) and Robert DeLeo (Stone Temple Pilots)
- Goes His Own Way - Featuring Terry Reid
- Won’t Let Me Go - Featuring Terry Reid
The Joe Perry Project Tour Dates
4/15/23 - Foxwoods Resort Casino - Mashantucket, CT
4/16/23 - Citizens House of Blues - Boston, MA
4/18/23 - Webster Hall - New York, NY
4/20/23 - Des Plaines Theatre - Des Plaines, IL
4/21/23 - Arcada Theatre - St. Charles, IL
4/22/23 - Crofoot Ballroom - Pontiac, MI
- Gibson Announces the Joe Perry "Gold Rush" Les Paul Axcess ›
- Rig Rundown - Aerosmith's Joe Perry and Brad Whitford ›
- Gibson Releases Joe Perry 1959 Les Paul ›
Revv G3 Purple Channel Preamp/Overdrive/Distortion Pedal - Anniversary Edition
The Revv G3 revolutionized high gain pedals in 2018 with its tube-like response & tight, clear high gain tones. Suddenly the same boutique tones used by metal artists & producers worldwide were available to anyone in a compact pedal. Now the G3 returns with a new V2 circuit revision that raises the bar again.
If 3 Were 6
With six times the controls found on the 1 and 2 versions (if you discount the original’s on/off slider switch,) the LPB-3’s control complement offers pre-gain, boost, mid freq, bass, treble, and mid knobs, with a center detent on the latter three so you can find the midpoint easily. A mini-toggle labeled “max” selects between 20 dB and 33 dB of maximum gain, and another labeled “Q” flips the resonance of the mid EQ between high and low. Obviously, this represents a significant expansion of the LPB’s capabilities.
More than just a booster with a passive tone, the LPB-3 boasts a genuine active EQ stage plus parametric midrange section, comprising the two knobs with shaded legends, mid freq and mid level. The gain stages have also been reimagined to include a pre-gain stage before the EQ, which enables up to 20 dB of input gain. The boost stage that follows the EQ is essentially a level control with gain to allow for up to 33 dB of gain through the LPB-3 when the “max” mini toggle is set to 33dB
A slider switch accessible inside the pedal selects between buffered or true bypass for the hard-latch footswitch. An AC adapter is included, which supplies 200mA of DC at 9.6 volts to the center-negative power input, and EHX specifies that nothing supplying less than 120mA or more than 12 volts should be used. There’s no space for an internal battery.
Power-Boosted
The LPB-3 reveals boatloads of range that betters many linear boosts on the market. There’s lots of tone-shaping power here. Uncolored boost is available when you want it, and the preamp gain knob colors and fattens your signal as you crank it up—even before you tap into the massive flexibility in the EQ stage.
“The preamp gain knob colors and fattens your signal as you crank it up—even before you tap into the massive flexibility in the EQ stage.”
I found the two mid controls work best when used judiciously, and my guitars and amps preferred subtle changes pretty close to the midpoint on each. However, there are still tremendous variations in your mid boost (or scoop, for that matter) within just 15 or 20 percent range in either direction from the center detent. Pushing the boost and pre-gain too far, particularly with the 33 dB setting engaged, can lead to some harsh sounds, but they are easy to avoid and might even be desirable for some users that like to work at more creative extremes.
The Verdict
The new LPB-3 has much, much more range than its predecessors, providing flexible preamp, boost, and overdrive sounds that can be reshaped in significant ways via the powerful EQ. It gives precise tone-tuning flexibility to sticklers that like to match a guitar and amp to a song in a very precise way, but also opens up more radical paths for experimentalists. That it does all this at a $129 price is beyond reasonable.
Electro-Harmonix Lpb-3 Linear Power Booster & Eq Effect Pedal Silver And Blue
