Singer-songwriter Madison Cunningham joins us this week to talk about the making of her exceptional new album, Revealer. We talk about her songwriting process, her favorite pieces of gear (including her forthcoming signature pedal from JHS), her guitar technique, and some of the influences who have shaped her along the way.
http://www.madisoncunningham.com
Look for a video featuring Madison playing "All I've Ever Known," the opening track from Revealer, on fretboardjournal.com soon.
Burlington, Vermont's Zach Nugent has made a successful career out of emulating the guitar playing of Jerry Garcia and the music of the Grateful Dead. To accomplish this feat, he amassed an incredible collection of vintage gear ... allowing him to access whatever gear Jerry was playing during a particular era. Zach's attention to detail is only matched by his work ethic: He takes the music of the Dead very seriously and, contrary to what one would assume about a Jerry Garcia disciple, he's never touched drugs or even alcohol.
Guitarist and composer Bill Orcutt has always worked on the fringes of music: He's crafted noisy punk as a guitarist in Harry Pussy, served raw blues-inspired acoustic music as a solo artist, and has even composed computer music.
With his new album, 'Music for Four Guitars,' he creates something completely different: 14 compositions for a guitar quartet that, as of now, doesn't really exist. Between Bill's mesmerizing, looped playing (on what turns out to be a Telecaster with two strings removed) and his DIY recording technique (Logic with a "pawnshop" amp plug-in), it's like nothing else you've ever heard. It harkens to the classic sounds of early Minimalism, but with an entirely new twist.
On the podcast, Bill sheds light on this beguiling record, talks to us about his recording process, and explains why he used only the bridge pickup for these compositions. He also describes how he re-created Randy Newman's 'Sail Away' album cover photo and hints at when 'Music for Four Guitars' will actually be played by four guitarists (himself being one of them).
Buy this album on Bandcamp and you'll get an 84-page PDF score of these compositions. Who knows? You and three friends may be the first to play them in their entirety.
https://billorcutt.bandcamp.com/album/music-for-four-guitars
Recorded live at the 2022 Fretboard Summit in Chicago: Steve McCreary, GM of Collings Guitars & Mandolins joins Fretboard Journal publisher Jason Verlinde for a candid discussion about the revered guitar and mandolin company.