Photo credit: Max Roper

Manchester Orchestra is tonight’s musical guest on ABC’s Jimmy Kimmel Live!  Check local listings for details.

The band recently added three more additional dates to their spring co-headlining tour with Thrice:

April 30-Spokane WA @ Knitting Factory
May 6-Ventura CA @ Majestic Venture Theatre
May 8-Tucson AZ @ Rialto Theatre

Click here for more tour dates and ticket info.

The unsigned Phoenix-based rock band You Hang Up is garnering national attention recently, thanks to the fame of its new drummer––former Malcolm in the Middle star Frankie Muniz.

In a recent interview with PopEater.com, Muniz talks about how lead singer/guitarist Aaron Brown (an everyday user of a black Fender JA-90 Jim Adkins Signature Telecaster® Thinline guitar; his brother/guitarist Chris plays one, too) recruited him to join the band and how quickly the group has since come along.

“We’ve progressed insanely,” Muniz tells PopEater. “We’ve been trying to keep everything completely under the radar as long as possible, playing small shows under different band names. Now we’re ready to go out and show everyone what we’re made of. We had rehearsal last night — the new stuff we’re coming out with is exciting. So far it’s been an amazingly fun experience, and that’s what’s important.”

The new Jimi Hendrix CD Valleys of Neptune will enjoy its official release today, and Fender is giving away a dozen of them!

The album features 12 fully realized studio recordings and more than 60 minutes of music never commercially available on a Hendrix album.

Here’s what the LA Times is saying about the album:

“Valleys of Neptune reinforces what fans know well about Hendrix: that he loved the blues; that he was a technical wizard who gained energy from extended jams but always came back to the killer riff; that the foundation he created informed the work of every godlike ax dude who followed, from his peers Jimmy Page and Eric Clapton to Prince, the Edge, Jack White and John Mayer.”- LA Times

Click here to enter for your chance to win one of the CDs! And don’t forget, you can also win tickets to the Experience Hendrix Tour!

Band of Skulls’ song “Patterns” was featured on last night’s episode of Castle. The track opened ABC’s murder-mystery television show and the discovery of a vic’s body in the park.

It was interesting timing since I had just published my article on the U.K. trio earlier in the afternoon.  If you haven’t yet read it, check it out. This band is quickly gaining a following and could just be the next big thing.

Read Band of Skulls: Fact or Fiction? Not much of a reader? Watch the video on them at Fender Vision.

Fender attended the Orange County Music Awards at the Grove in Anaheim on Saturday night for the 9^th annual OC Music Awards, a show highlighted by live performances from up-and-coming bands like Melanoid, BLOK, the Steelwells and the night’s big winner, Dusty Rhodes and the River Band. (This is a shot of Dusty, taken by photographer Ana Gibert. His mustache qualifies him for a role in a Super Trooper sequel, should they ever decide to make one.)

Dusty Rhodes and the River Band picked up three awards including best live band, a category that was accompanied by $2,500 worth of Fender gear and a four-day recording session at Red Bull Studio. Billy Kernkamp and his band also earned the same prize package for taking home best live acoustic band. Kernkamp plans to award his bassist with a new Fender bass and his recording studio with a new Bassman TV amp.

Dusty Rhodes and the River Band are still trying to figure out how they’ll divvy up the Fender merchandise. In the meantime, guitarist Edson Choi enjoyed his new American Special guitar, also a gift from Fender.

Photo by Ana Gibert

Melanoid guitarist Chris Sorem likewise enjoyed playing his new American Special guitar at the show.

Photo by Ana Gibert

The Steelwells guitarist Andrew Eapen had plenty of reasons to celebrate. We also gifted him with a new American Special guitar to play during his band’s performance of “El Capitan,” which won best song. The indie/folk rock band also won for best new artist.

Photo by Ana Gibert

Several of the evening’s performers earned compliments from Sugar Ray’s Mark McGrath.

“I’m just humbled and blown away by the talent I’ve seen onstage tonight,” said McGrath. “I think Dusty might be my new favorite person. BLOK (an electro hip-hop sibling trio) might be my favorite performance tonight. You guys rule. The Steelwells were unbelievable.”

Sugar Ray was in the house to pick up the OC Impact Award.

Photo by Ana Gibert

Although it was a sad occasion, we were happy to also see our Fender artists Lit back in action. The platinum-recording selling band performed an acoustic version of “Here’s To Us” in tribute to their drummer Allen Shellenberger, who passed away on Aug. 13, 2009. The band is back to songwriting and plans to return to the recording studio in the next few months.

Photo by Ana Gibert

Both before and after the show, Fender staff manned a lobby display of guitars and amps for the evening’s attendees. Steelwells bassist Robbie Goulage was one of many musicians who stopped by to test a few of the instruments off the rack.