Race To The Stage 2013

• By Jordan Liffengren
• Published May 20, 2013

As part of Guitar Center Fan Day and the PRS Gear Heaven Party events, "Race to the Stage," will give two, young musicians the chance to shine. This contest provides one high school guitarist and one high school drummer with the opportunity to perform at a GRAND-AM Rolex Sports Car Series event in his/her city.

In Tune Monthly, the publication for music students and teachers in grades 7-12, and DW will be co-hosting auditions at select Guitar Center locations. Guitar audition winners will take home a PRS SE electric guitar, PRS SE amplifier and a PRS 18 ft. instrument cable. Drum-playing winners get a DW All-Maple Performance Series 4-piece Drumset in Pewter Sparkle FinishPly with 9000 Series Hardware and Pedals Performance 4 piece tom pack w/ snare, 16x20 bass, 9500TB, 9100M, 9000, 9300, (2) 9999, and 9700 heavy-duty hardware compliments of DW. Both winning teens will also get to perform with PRS artist and blues phenom, Davy Knowles.

So start practicing those audition performances, stat! For more contest info, click here.

?uestlove Opens Chelsea Food Stand

• By Jordan Liffengren
• Published May 13, 2013

The Roots drummer ?uestlove can add "restaurant owner" to his resume once he opens his Chelsea food stand next Saturday. The joint, named Hybrid, will serve good eats described as, "gourmet fast food for the eclectic palate." How could you say no to gourmet fast food?

If ?uestlove's grub is as good as his groove, we suspect this food stand will do just fine.

NY Assmebly Approves Levon Helm Memorial

• By Jordan Liffengren
• Published May 3, 2013

The New York Assembly has approved a three-mile length of Route 375 (from Hurley to Woodstock) to be designated Levon Helm Memorial Boulevard. The town boards in both cities have already endorsed the designation — all that's left is Senate approval and a signature from Governor Andrew Cuomo.

The late drummer, singer, and mandolin player reached fame in the '60s and '70s playing with The Band. He later introduced "Midgnight Ramble," a series of concerts he held in his barn/studio in Woodstock. All of this of course, was in between swooping up Grammys left and right.

Helm passed away last year at the age of 71, after losing a battle with throat cancer.

“Levon Helm was a true inspiration to not only millions of fans but our community,” Cahill said in a prepared statement on Monday. “His Rambles became a mainstay in the town of Woodstock, bringing back old soulful music worth listening to in a welcoming venue he created.”

Steven Adler Checks Into Rehab, Delays Tour

• By Jordan Liffengren
• Published May 3, 2013

Steven Adler's summer tour has been delayed — and for good reason. The former Guns N' Roses drummer checked into a rehabilitation center to continue working on his sobriety, in turn pushing the tour back a bit. Adler's frontman, Jacob Bunton, said the band was "truly sorry to all of the fans and promoters who were looking forward to seeing us on the road, but right now Steven's health is the most important thing. We hope to make it up to everyone when Steven recovers."

New tour dates are being rescheduled for sometime early this fall.

DRUMmagazine.com Debuts New Highness Song

• By Andy Doerschuk
• Published April 26, 2013

We’re excited to premiere the song “Stitched Together” by Highness with former Darkest Hour drummer Ryan Parrish pounding the kit. We wondered how Parrish would describe his drum part on the song. Here’s what he had to say:

“’Stitched Together’ has this really focused, aggressive energy that I particularly wanted to accentuate throughout the song. I found it incredibly open for creativity and it was fun to experiment in the studio and find what worked and what made the song flow. Overall, I’m extremely happy with how it came out and I feel everyone’s exceptional writing contributions make it a stand-out track that accents the darker side of our sound and songwriting.”

So here is the exclusive online debut of “Stiched Together,” for your listening pleasure.