
Pearl Jam will release their twelfth studio album 'Dark Matter' on April 19th, and launch a 35-date worldwide tour this May.
In 2023, the members of Pearl Jam—Eddie Vedder [vocals], Jeff Ament [bass], Stone Gossard [rhythm guitar], Mike McCready [lead guitar], and Matt Cameron [drums]—retreated to Shangri-La Studios in Malibu where they simply plugged in and played with producer Andrew Watt at the helm.
The musicians faced one another in the same space and communicated sonically at the highest level. Writing and recording in a burst of inspiration, Dark Matter was born in just three weeks.
As a result, Dark Matter channels the shared spirit of a group of lifelong creative confidants and brothers in one room playing as if their very lives depended on it. All of the blood, sweat, tears, and energy of a storied career felt renewed and poured into this one body of work.
The band members personally previewed the record with a listening party at the iconic Troubadour in West Hollywood during Grammy week:
Vedder said: “I’m getting chills, because I have good memories. We’re still looking for ways to communicate. We’re at this time in our lives when you could do it or you could not do it, but we still care about putting something out there that is meaningful and we hopefully think is our best work. No hyperbole, I think this is our best work.”
Ament added, “What Ed said about getting us in a room at this point, we felt like we were about to make a really important record. A lot of that had to do with the atmosphere Andrew set up. He has encyclopedic knowledge of our history, not only as a band and how we wrote songs, but as players. He could pinpoint things we did on old songs to the point where I was like, ‘What the fuck is he talking about?’ His excitement was contagious. He’s a force. I just want to say thanks for keeping us on track. I couldn’t be prouder of us as a band. I feel so grateful for the fans, but mostly for my brothers and these people I’ve made music with.”
The band is celebrating indie record stores with the release of a special edition of Dark Matter on April 20. Only at participating stores as part of Record Store Day.
Dark Matter album packaging features light painting art by Alexandr Gnezdilov. Light painting is an artistic form of photography where images are created by adjusting a camera's exposure for an extended period and using a light source, such as a flashlight, to "paint" in the dark. The album cover art was crafted using a large self-made kaleidoscope. Each letter visible on the cover was individually captured and handwritten midair with a specially designed flashlight to create the pearlescent effect.
Dark Matter Tracklist
Dark Matter Album Artwork: light painting art by Alexandr Gnezdilov
1. Scared of Fear
2. React, Respond
3. Wreckage
4. Dark Matter
5. Won’t Tell
6. Upper Hand
7. Waiting for Stevie
8. Running
9. Something Special
10. Got to Give
11. Setting Sun
In support of Dark Matter, Pearl Jam will head out on a world tour this year, marking the first time the band has announced a new album and tour simultaneously and first time the group has unveiled all worldwide tour dates at once. Their global tour, hitting nine countries and 25 cities, kicks off at Rogers Arena in Vancouver, British Columbia, and will cover much of North America including shows at Wrigley Field, Madison Square Garden, Fenway Park, and their first hometown performance in six years at Seattle’s Climate Pledge Arena, the world’s first net zero certified arena.
The tour continues with performances in the UK and Europe, including their first performance at London’s brand new and state-of-the-art Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, through September, followed by the group’s long-awaited ten-year return to New Zealand and Australia this November. Full routing below.
Special guests Deep Sea Diver (North America Leg 1), Glen Hansard (North America Leg 2), The Murder Capital (UK/EU), Richard Ashcroft (Dublin and London), and Pixies (Australia and New Zealand) will serve as support for these dates.
For more information, please visit pearljam.com.
Dark Matter World Tour Dates:
May 04 Vancouver, BC Rogers Arena
May 06 Vancouver, BC Rogers Arena
May 10 Portland, OR Moda Center
May 13 Sacramento, CA Golden 1 Center
May 16 Las Vegas, NV MGM Grand Garden Arena
May 18 Las Vegas, NV MGM Grand Garden Arena
May 21 Los Angeles, CA Kia Forum
May 22 Los Angeles, CA Kia Forum
May 25** Napa Valley, CA BottleRock Festival
May 28 Seattle, WA Climate Pledge Arena
May 30 Seattle, WA Climate Pledge Arena
Jun 22 Dublin, IE Marlay Park
Jun 25 Manchester, UK Manchester Co-Op Live
Jun 29 London, UK Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
Jul 02 Berlin, DE Waldbühne
Jul 03 Berlin, DE Waldbühne
Jul 06 Barcelona, ES Palau Sant Jordi
Jul 08 Barcelona, ES Palau Sant Jordi
Jul 11** Madrid, SE Mad Cool Festival
Jul 13** Lisbon, PT NOS Alive Festival
Aug 22 Missoula, MT Washington-Grizzly Stadium
Aug 26* Indianapolis, IN Ruoff Music Center
Aug 29 Chicago, IL Wrigley Field
Aug 31 Chicago, IL Wrigley Field
Sep 03 New York, NY Madison Square Garden
Sep 04 New York, NY Madison Square Garden
Sep 07 Philadelphia, PA Wells Fargo Center
Sep 09 Philadelphia, PA Wells Fargo Center
Sep 12 Baltimore, MD CFG Bank Arena
Sep 15 Boston, MA Fenway Park
Sep 17 Boston, MA Fenway Park
Nov 08 Auckland, NZ Go Media Stadium Mt Smart
Nov 13 Gold Coast, AU Heritage Bank Stadium
Nov 16 Melbourne, AU Marvel Stadium
Nov 21 Sydney, AU Giants Stadium
* Rescheduled date from 2022
** Festival dates are already on sale
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Kemper and Zilla announce the immediate availability of Zilla 2x12“ guitar cabs loaded with the acclaimed Kemper Kone speaker.
Zilla offers a variety of customization to the customers. On the dedicated Website, customers can choose material, color/tolex, size, and much more.
The sensation and joy of playing a guitar cabinet
Sometimes, when there’s no PA, there’s just a drumkit and a bass amp. When the creative juices flow and the riffs have to bounce back off the wall - that’s the moment when you long for a powerful guitar cabinet.
A guitar cabinet that provides „that“ well-known feel and gives you that kick-in-the-back experience. Because guitar cabinets can move some serious air. But these days cabinets also have to be comprehensive and modern in terms of being capable of delivering the dynamic and tonal nuances of the KEMPER PROFILER. So here it is: The ZILLA 2 x 12“ upright slant KONE cabinet.
These cabinets are designed in cooperation with the KEMPER sound designers and the great people from Zilla. Beauty is created out of decades of experience in building the finest guitar cabinets for the biggest guitar masters in the UK and the world over, combined with the digital guitar tone wizardry from the KEMPER labs. Loaded with the exquisit Kemper Kone speakers.
Now Kemper and Zilla bring this beautiful and powerful dream team for playing, rehearsing, and performing to the guitar players!
ABOUT THE KEMPER KONE SPEAKERS
The Kemper Kone is a 12“ full range speaker which is exclusively designed by Celestion for KEMPER. By simply activating the PROFILER’s well-known Monitor CabOff function the KEMPER Kone is switched from full-range mode to the Speaker Imprint Mode, which then exactly mimics one of 19 classic guitar speakers.
Since the intelligence of the speaker lies in the DSP of the PROFILER, you will be able to switch individual speaker imprints along with your favorite rigs, without needing to do extensive editing.
The Zilla KEMPER KONE loaded 2x12“ cabinets can be custom designed and ordered for an EU price of £675,- UK price of £775,- and US price of £800,- - all including shipping (excluding taxes outside of the UK).
For more information, please visit kemper-amps.com or zillacabs.com.
Featuring a preamp and Dynamic Expansion circuit for punch and attack, plus switchable amp simulations.
"Like a missile seeking its target, Heatseeker will give you the explosive sound of rock! Inspired directly from the gear setup used by Angus Young,it features the most important sonic elements to match the tone of the short-pants-rock-God.
It’s no secret that a major role to his sound, along with the Marshall-brick walls, played one of the first wireless systems for guitar that quickly became a classic among guitar greats, the Schaffer Vega Diversity System."
The preamp along with the Dynamic Expansion circuit found in the wireless transmitter/receiver gave it its distinct sound. Besides boosting the signal, the preamp tightens up lower frequencies and slightly accentuates mid frequencies while the Dynamic Expansion circuit enhances the dynamic response and harmonics of the signal giving punch and attack to ensure that it will cut through the mix. Instead of opting for a prefix setting for the Dynamic Expansion circuit as found in the original unit, we have re-imagined our version with the enhanced knob on the Heatseeker to have more control over the guitar tone’s dynamic response. Setting it around 10 o‘clock is a good starting point to add some extra sparkle. Max it out to bring back to life even the most dull and colorless sounds.
Utilizing an all-analog JFET circuit, running on 27 volts via an internal voltage boost (DO NOT plug higher than 9V DC power supply), we have captured the tone and feel of three British tube amplifiers, synonymous with the sound of rock and roll, with an excellent clean-to-mean dynamic response. With the flip of a toggle switch, you can capture the sound and feel of a JTM45, 1959 Super Lead, or JMP 2203. A smart switching circuit follows the signal path and respective gain stages tuned for each amp and combines them with an actual Marshall style EQ and power amp simula-tion circuit for thundering rock tones. Angus Young usually plugs into Channel 1 or High Treble input of his JTM45s and Super Leads so we opted for that sound when we started visualizing Heatseeker on the drawing board. We have also extended the range of the presence control beyond the original so that the user will be able to match the pedal to any amp or gear setup. The master volume offers plenty of output so that you can also use the pedal as a preamp and plug it into a clean power amp or straight to your DAW. Note that the pedal doesn’t feature any speaker simulation circuit so we recommend using a separate hardware or software guitar speaker simulation when going direct to DAW or a full-range speaker.
A new feature to our booster/drive + amp-in-a-box line of pedals, recreating legendary sounds, is the switchable WoS (Wall of Sound) circuit. We have carefully tuned this circuit at the output of the AMP section of the Heatseeker to open up the soundstage by increasing the output, adding thundering lows, and thickening high mid frequencies. Imagine standing in front of a wall loaded with Marshall amp heads and 4x12 speaker cabinets, grabbing your SG, and hitting a chord. You will be blown away by the sound projection! In combination with the tube power amp simulation and the enhanced circuit of the right section, we’ve made sure that the pick attack will be as dynamic as it gets, so¥er picking will produce clean and slightly crunchy sounds, and hard picking will give explosive distorted sounds! While primarily designed for Angus Young sounds, Heatseeker will definitely open the door to countless other guitar-great tones that use these Marshall amps and/or the Schaffer Vega Diversity System. Think of KISS, Peter Frampton, and Van Halen to name a few.
Like our other dual overdrive/amp-in-a-box designs, Heatseeker features a passive effects loop to give you the option to connect your beloved pedals between the preamp/enhancer and amp-in-a-box circuit or use the two sections as separate and independent effects when using an external bypass switcher/looper. SND is the output of the BOOST/ENHANCE section, RTN is the input of the AMP section. SND is connected to RTN when no instrument jacks are inserted in the effects loop. Note that all pedals inserted in the passive effects loop are still in the signal chain when any or both sections of the Heatseeker are in bypass mode.
Heatseeker features a power-up bypass/engage pre-set function for the footswitches. You can change the default function by holding down the footswitch(es) during power-up. That way you can select which state your pedal will go to when you plug the power supply. This function comes in especially handy to people who use remote pedal switchers/loopers as they only set the state of the pedal once and then operate from the controller.
Street/MAP Price: $279
For more information, please visit crazytubecircuits.com.
Creed extend their sold-out Summer of ’99 Tour with 23 additional dates.
Produced by Live Nation, the dates begin July 9 at Rupp Arena in Lexington, KY and wrap August 20 at the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary, AB with support from 3 Doors Down, Daughtry, Mammoth WVH and Big Wreck. *Check individual dates for lineup in each market.
When it kicked off in 2024, The Summer of ’99 Tour quickly became “one of the most anticipated tours of the summer” (USA Today) and “one of the hottest rock tickets of the year” (Billboard) for a return that “may be something this industry has never seen” (Pollstar). To date, CREED’s Scott Stapp, Mark Tremonti, Brian Marshall, and Scott Phillips have performed over 60 sold-out concerts throughout North America, selling over 800,000 tickets and breaking venue records in multiple markets.
“Thirty years in, it’s been a blessing to pick up right where we left off with longtime fans and to meet the next generation for the first time. It’s been an incredible ride, and we aren’t done, so here’s to a ‘Summer’ that never ends. We’ll see you on the road,” states Scott Stapp.
Creed will close out 2024 with shows in Las Vegas, NV (Dec. 30 & Dec. 31) and their newly announced dates in 2025 will follow their already sold-out Summer of ’99 and Beyond cruise sailing April 9– April 13 from Miami to Nassau with Sevendust, Hoobastank, Lit, Hinder, Fuel and more. Also in April, the band - whose audience has included fans of mainstream, rock, and country for over 25 years - will perform at Stagecoach.
For more information on all Creed tour dates as well as the opportunity to purchase entry into Mark Tremonti’s guitar clinic can be found at https://creed.com.
Tour Dates
CREED: SUMMER OF ‘99 TOUR 2025 DATES:
3DD – 3 Doors Down / D – Daughtry / BW – Big Wreck / MWVH – Mammoth WVH
Wed Jul 09 | Lexington, KY | Rupp Arena – 3DD/MWVH
Fri Jul 11 | Syracuse, NY | Empower Federal Credit Union Amphitheater at Lakeview – 3DD/MWVH
Sat Jul 12 | Camden, NJ | Freedom Mortgage Pavilion – 3DD
Tue Jul 15 | Wantagh, NY | Northwell at Jones Beach Theater – D/MWVH
Wed Jul 16 | Scranton, PA | The Pavilion at Montage Mountain – D/MWVH
Sun Jul 20 | Columbus, OH | Schottenstein Center – 3DD/MWVH
Tue Jul 22 | Hartford, CT | Xfinity Theatre – 3DD/MWVH
Thu Jul 24 | Charleston, SC | Credit One Stadium – 3DD/MWVH
Sat Jul 26 | New Orleans, LA | Smoothie King Center – 3DD/MWVH
Sun Jul 27 | Memphis, TN | FedExForum – 3DD/MWVH
Tue Jul 29 | Wichita, KS | INTRUST Bank Arena – D/MWVH
Fri Aug 01 | Lincoln, NE | Pinnacle Bank Arena – D/MWVH
Sat Aug 02 | Ridgedale, MO | Thunder Ridge Nature Arena – D/MWVH
Mon Aug 04 | Albuquerque, NM | Isleta Amphitheater – D/MWVH
Wed Aug 06 | Chula Vista, CA | North Island Credit Union Amphitheatre – D/MWVH
Thu Aug 07 | Palm Desert, CA | Acrisure Arena at Greater Palm Springs – 3DD/MWVH
Sat Aug 09 | Mountain View, CA | Shoreline Amphitheatre – 3DD/MWVH
Sun Aug 10 | Stateline, NV | Lake Tahoe Outdoor Arena at Harveys – 3DD/MWVH (Not a Live Nation date)
Wed Aug 13 | Ridgefield, WA | RV Inn Style Resorts Amphitheater – 3DD/MWVH
Thu Aug 14 | Auburn, WA | White River Amphitheatre – 3DD/MWVH
Sat Aug 16 | Vancouver, BC | Rogers Arena – BW/MWVH
Tue Aug 19 | Edmonton, AB | Rogers Place – BW/MWVH
Wed Aug 20 | Calgary, AB | Scotiabank Saddledome – BW/MWVH
Previously Announced CREED Dates:
Sat Dec 28 | Durant, OK | Choctaw Casino & Resort (Sold Out)
Mon Dec 30 | Las Vegas, NV | The Colosseum
Tue Dec 31 | Las Vegas, NV | The Colosseum
Apr 9 – Apr 13 | Miami – Nassau | Summer of ’99 and Beyond Cruise (Sold Out)
Sat Apr 26 | Indio, CA | Stagecoach
A thick, varied take on the silicon Fuzz Face that spans punky, sparkling, and full-spectrum heavy.
Dimensional, thick variations on the silicon Fuzz Face voice. Surprisingly responsive to dynamics at most tube amp’s natural clean/dirty divide. Bass control lends range.
Thins out considerably at lower amp volumes.
$185
McGregor Pedals Classic Fuzz
mcgregorpedals.com
Compared to the dynamic germanium Fuzz Face, silicon versions sometimes come off as brutish. And even though they can be sonorously vicious, if dirty-to-clean range and sensitivity to guitar volume attenuation are top priorities, germanium is probably the way to go. The McGregor Classic Fuzz, however, offers ample reminders about the many ways silicon Fuzz Faces can be beastly, sensitive, and sound supreme.
Even though the two BC107B top hat transistors will look familiar to many who have poked around other SFF-style circuits, the Classic Fuzz is not precisely a silicon Fuzz Face clone. It’s distinguished by a low-pass filter “bass” control that true SFFs lack, but which widens its vocabulary extensively. In an A/B test with a solid, archetypal-sounding BC108 Fuzz Face clone, the Classic Fuzz sounded roughly equivalent at the 60-percent mark of the bass control’s range. But the Classic Fuzz was more dimensional, and on either side of the bass control I heard many intriguing tone variations spanning garage-punk snot and corpulent, almost triangle-Big Muff thickness.
Like most SFFs, the Classic Fuzz sounds best with a generous spoonful of amp volume. I ran it with a Fender Vibrolux just on the clean side of breakup. At amp volumes much lower than that, the fuzz voice thinned, the nuanced responsiveness to guitar volume attenuation dropped off, and the range of clean tones became much narrower. In its happy places, though, the Classic Fuzz rips—lending sparkling overdrive colors and banshee-scream aggression to Stratocasters and sounding especially sweet and terrifyingly mammoth with humbuckers