Mike Mettler

Tommy Shaw's Summertime Playlist

The Styx singer and guitarist looks into his crystal ball and picks ten songs that get his summer motor running.

By Mike Mettler
Posted June 1, 2006

Like the Rolling Stones, Styx continues to gather no moss. Singer/guitarist Tommy Shaw has been a member of these perennially successful road warriors - perhaps best known for enduring rock hits like "Renegade," "Come Sail Away," and "Too Much Time on My Hands" - for 30 years and counting.

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Alan Parsons on 5.1 Music Mixing, Live and Studio

A post-mix post mortem from the renowned producer

By Mike Mettler
Posted June 1, 2006

In our previous installment, S&V traveled to Washington, DC, to sit in on the recording of Alan Parsons' groundbreaking installment of Artist Confidential in 5.1 for XM Satellite Radio back in March.

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30 Minutes with Ted Nugent

From the S&V archives: The once and future Motor City Madman spews about downloading and the joys of the live experience.

By Mike Mettler
Posted June 7, 2006

In honor of Ted Nugent's role as one of the outspoken members of VH1's volatile Supergroup , I dug around in the S&V archives and found this interview I conducted with the Motor City Madman exactly 5 years ago on June 14, 2001.

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Music: Iraq and a Hard Rock

Neil Young and Pearl Jam, on the front lines

By Mike Mettler
Posted July 6, 2006

"Four Dead in O-HI-O." "Look at Mother Nature on the run in the 1970s." "We got a kinder, gentler machine-gun hand." "Time is runnin' out, let's roll." "I'm living with war every day." Neil Young has never been one to pull punches either socially or politically.

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Shannon Larkin of Godsmack's Summertime Playlist

The hard-rocking drummer offers up 11 songs to jolt you awake in the morning.

By Mike Mettler
Posted July 5, 2006

Godsmack, Boston's multiplatinum metal growlers, took the nation by storm this past April by debuting at #1 with their heavy-hitting, aptly named fourth album, IV (Republic/Universal). And though the band's drummer Shannon Larkin loves his iPod ("every single song on it came from my own collection"), he still has a thing for CDs.

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First Take: Little Steven Van Zandt

The godfather of underground garage talks about the pull of satellite radio, the end of the CD, why analog trumps digital, and briefly being "The Boss."

By Mike Mettler
Posted July 7, 2006

How does it feel to have the two Sirius channels that you created - Underground Garage (Channel 25) and Outlaw Country (Channel 36) - broadcasting 24/7? I feel like we made history already, you know? It's not easy to create a new format in radio, and I created two.

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The Future of Recorded Music - Part 4

Artists' Forum

By Mike Mettler
Posted July 5, 2006

Musicians sound off about the merits and detriments of the CD and how they're dealing with a digital-delivery-oriented future

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30 Minutes with Ian Gillan

When Ian Gillan's manager suggested that he use his latest solo project to take a look back on his career, the singer decided to also look forward by re-recording his favorite tracks, mixing them in surround sound, and releasing them on a feature-packed D?

By Mike Mettler
Posted July 6, 2006

So I was just in the S&V sound room, listening to the surround mix of Gillan's Inn.

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Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull on the Future of Recorded Music

The lay of the land from the outspoken front man/flutist for the perennial British rock vanguards, currently out on the boards here and abroad supporting Aqualung Live (RandM) and Plays the Orchestral Jethro Tull (Benz Street).

By Mike Mettler
Posted July 6, 2006

What do you think of downloading? In the days when I grew up, you really had to work hard just to find music.

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30 Minutes With Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull

From the S&V archives: The mad minstrel shares his feelings on stereo, quad, and surround sound.

By Mike Mettler
Posted July 6, 2006

Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull is quite animated when discussing the current and future state of recorded music. Back in the early months of 2000, Anderson and I sat down in a hotel restaurant in New York City to discuss similar topics. It's interesting to see how things have progressed since then - or not...

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