Played
by Shilo'sMike
Stoner, the "TelXtra"
is a fast
playing, low action solid body
custom handmade
one-of-a-kind guitar. Mike tell's
guitars what he wants in a guitar: "First she has to play like
butter, smooth.... I don't care how good it sounds, if it ain't
comfortable in your hands, there is really no point to go any
further with her!" We are pleased Mike defined the TelXtra requirements!
Mike told
upon
receiving his TelXtra: "Oh
my gosh...... When i saw her I was in love, but man, when I played
and heard it........ Hands down the best sounding guitar I have
played... The work and craftsmanship is just second to none Guy....
The guys in the band were just floored by the sound... I can't wait to
get a show under my belt with her... Honestly I plugged directly
into a Fender Frontman 212 amp with no pedals and it was amazing !
Thank you so much for making such an amazing instrument!"
The "TelXtra" is a
custom golden flame maple color over a solid swamp ash wood body with a "breathable" gloss
finish. The body style is much like a "Fender telecaster" styled guitar". The
neck is a custom made 22 fret Maple with custom Burled Maple Fret-board with
standard Fender Tele style shaped
headstock. Hit those warm sizzling harmonically
correct notes on this wonderful neck.
All hardware is black satin finished. The tuners are high-end
Sperzel 16:1 locking.
The bridge is a very cool satin black high precision Wilkinson with adjustable
bent-steel saddles with an improved 6-hole through body mounting design
that provides better string energy transfer and sustain. The control knobs
are black satin with abalone top inlay.
The electronics are
DP186 Cruiser in the neck position with that special dual-resonance design
allows one coil to act as a woofer and the other as a tweeter. The DP186 extends
the range of the noise-canceling design and allows the best qualities of each
coil to be enhanced while fine tuning the output. A
DP184 Chopper to fatten the tone and increase power in the middle position and
we've got a hot
Air Norton DP193 in the bridge position. The DP184 has lots of power
concentrated in the mids and low end for a bigger sound with more crunch. It
shares side-by-side coils with a twin-blade construction. The middle pickup is
reverse wound single coil
for smooth sustain with slightly scooped
mids. The
Air Norton 7 in
the bridge position provides a sound that is
very solid and harmonically rich. In overdrive mode, it has a very distinctive
voice that has both vintage and modern qualities in a high
output pickup with split coils for variations in voicing combinations. This design
is Great for pop,
country, blues, classic rock and heavy shedder rock with warm and smooth highs, more
midrange, and a spongy bottom end. It plays well as a traditional vintage tone
with increased output. I use a high-end heavy duty 5 position slide switch to achieve
the multitude of voicings. In two of the slide switch positions you can achieve a strong
Fender sound, one the telecaster famous 50's cluck sound and one the Strocaster's famous Jimi Hendrix
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jimi_Hendrix/ Stevie Ray Vaughan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stevie_Ray_Vaughan solid sound. The other
positions provide a mix of PAF clear sound of Les Paul and the grunge crunch of
Jimmy Page or Robert Plant played on those overheated Gibson Les Paul humbuckers.
True versatility!
Cruiser
DP186
@
neck position
A modern no 60-cycle hum, string drop-outs or sustain-killing magnet
pull design. Harmonic overtones are right where you expect them to
be from a true single-coil, and the mid-range is open and
vocal-sounding. It's hotter than the traditional single-coil, and
the bass strings have a bit more chunk; this is an excellent pickup to
combine with medium-output humbuckers, and it maintains its tonal
identity with high-gain amps and multiple effects.
Played by Shilo's Lead
Guitarist Mike Stoner
Pictures can be enlarged by "clicking" your
mouse over
Chopper
DP184
@
middle position
The Chopper is louder, a bit more punchier with power concentrated in
the mids and low end for a bigger sound with more crunch. It
shares the same side-by-side coils and twin-blade construction as the
Cruiser.
Air Norton
DP193
@
bridge position
The Air Norton is a distinctive-sounding bridge pickup with high-gain
amps. The tone is deep and warm, but not muddy. It's hot,
but not distorted. It's even got cool harmonics, which are really
significant on this humbucker style. The patented Air Norton magnetic
structure reduces string-pull, so sustain is improved; and pick attack
and dynamics are tremendously controllable and expressive.
The only
original founding member of Shilo,
Mike has enjoyed 11 great years with the band. Mike serves as lead
guitar player, vocalist and band leader for
Shilo. "Music has always
been in my life. I saw Buck Owens in concert when I was 4 or 5 and
was hooked from then on." Mike took his first guitar lesson at
the age of 6 and by age 8 was playing with family friends at area
functions and parties. "While the other kids were out playing, I was
the kid with the adults that played guitar or fiddle, and we would
play all the old classic country songs till three or four in the
morning" says Mike.
By age 15
Mike was playing professionally in local bar bands every weekend.
Mike tells
"I
pretty much spent my high school career in the bars! My
musical hero's are many, but I really respect the work of greats
like Vince Gill and Ricky Skaggs. My heart lies with the roots of
Country Music, and where it came from. I love the Opry and all that
it stands for. I can't imagine what an honor it would be to
someday be invited to perform the sacred stage of the Grand Ole Opry.
That would be the high point of my career. Touring, charts, records
all would be great, but the Opry, that's the top!" Mike
resides in Northern Indiana with his lovely wife Amy and two
daughters.
When asked
who are Mike's major influences he replied: "Bret Mason, Jimmy Olander (Diamond Rio), Ricky Skaggs, Vince Gill, Albert Lee, Steve
Wariner". Playing guitar for 33 years, Mike describes
his player style: "I use a thin flat pick and my third finger to
pluck alot and a ton of bends... It's like my own messed up, made up
concoction of finger picking and steel bends...."
So where does
Shilo play? "Ahh... we
have played so many. We have worked with just about every
national country act out there. Some artist we have
performed with are Toby Keith, Gary Alan, Charlie Daniels,
Jack Ingram, Diamond Rio, Phil Vasar, Lee Greenwood, Lee Ann
Womack, Joe Nichols and many more. We have been flown to Cancun
Mexico for a private performance. I guess every gig is
'large' for me, because I'm so fortunate enough to have the
chance to do this" Mike told
.
Mike tells
that
the 24 month out expectation for Shilo is "touring the country in a bus
making great country music!" We congratulate
Shilo as a true to life
grass roots mid western high energy hard driving country
band who's history includes working with most every national
country artist.
ABOUT THE BAND
Established in 1997,
Shilo has performed
stages all over the Midwest and shared the stage with many
well known Country Music Artists. In 2004
Shilo was named
the best country band in Indiana after performing in the
Colgate Country Showdown at the state finals during the
Indiana State Fair. Shilo
thrills audiences with it’s style of High Energy, Hard
Driving Country Music at fairs, festivals and at some of the
Midwest’s largest country music venues. Priding
themselves on their live show,
Shilo keeps one of the busiest schedules of
any regional country act, playing as many as 100 shows a
year. Shilo
is a six piece group consisting of Guitar, Fiddle, Mandolin,
Steel Guitar, Bass and Drums. Come early, stay late and
prepare to be Shiloized. Members include: Bryan Brager: Lead
Vocals/Guitar, Mike Stoner: Lead Guitar/Vocals, Travis Gow:
Fiddle/Guitar/Mandolin/Vocals, Doug Chopson Jr.: Drums and
Randy Blankenship: Bass.
Shilo
is not a good band; they are a Great Band. All the guys have
a good repotrare which accounts for their longevity as
professional musicians. They recently debuted with their
first hit radio single; "DODGIN' A
FORD IN MY CHEVROLET". The song was recorded in
Hendersonville in the famed Project Room Studio and sent out
to country radio. It climbed to the number one spot on the
Independent Charts and received critical acclaim from a
number of sources. They received major airplay throughout
the nation and internationally. Their second single ("A
Pick Up In My Pickup") is out to radio and is
apparently climbing the charts faster than their first
release!
Shilo fills a
void in today's country music scene that has long been
empty. They have a unique niche and it is theirs alone. They
can be "country to the bone" when belting out a stone cold
ballad, and they can "smoke the rubber" with a dance floor
rocker! Nobody in today's country music scene does it like
Shilo.
Shilo has been nominated for the New
Country Group Award in the country music section of the awards show. Other
Country Acts nominated this year in other categories include Sugarland, Lady
Antebellum, Toby Keith, Brad Paisley, Reba and Carrie Underwood just to name a
few! Show and awards event November 22nd, 2008 @ Avalon Hollywood,
California.
Shilo
music video “Dodg’n a Ford (in my Chevrolet)” is in post production now. The video started Saturday morning
August 30th in the small town of Topeka, Indiana! This is deep in the
heart of Amish country. Note the
TelXtra in
Mike Stoner's hands.
Thank you Mike for playing a
!
AUGUST 2008
Country music fans
get ready for the ride of your life. Plans are underway for
the high energy country band, Shilo, to make an awesome
video based on their debut hit song,
DODGIN' A FORD IN MY CHEVROLET!
The service of one of the premier video makers has been
secured for what is gearing up to be one of the best rubber
burning, dust flying, sit on the edge of your seat, knock
out music videos that has ever aired on CMT and GAC! Stay
tuned for updates
Global
Peace Concert Rescheduled
Global Peace
Concert is now scheduled for June 2009 in Philidelphia, PA.
Shilo is scheduled to perform at the
event.
http://www.globalpeaceconcert.com/
Global Peace Concert Inc. believes music is the universal
language and through music peace and harmony can bring unity
and change. We believe that peace begins within and each
person can do their part to make a world of difference and
live the dream. What began as a concert to promote peace has
evolved into more than a concert, it's a mission to evoke
change and encourage hope that together we can inspire
peace, love and unity.
The Mission of the Global Peace Concert is
to produce, promote and support worldwide events, concerts
and festivals that champion and nourish basic human rights,
nonviolence, world peace, animal welfare and environmental
awareness. We hold as our creed: the fostering of mutual
respect and compassion for all races, religions, cultures,
creatures and peoples in our global community.
"A
Pick-Up In My Pickup" Making Noise !
After Just two weeks out to country radio, "A Pick-Up In My
Pickup" is the 4th most downloaded song on Airplay Access, a
web based download site for radio programmers to obtain
newly released music!
http://www.airplayaccess.com/country.html
Shilo Hits Myspace Charts
Shilo has entered the Country Myspace Charts at #10 this
week. The chart calculates an artists total plays of all
songs. Thanks to all of the
Shilo fans for going to Myspace and listening
!
http://www.myspace.com/shiloband
custom handmade
one-of-a-kind guitar. Mike tell's
DP186 Cruiser in the neck position with that special dual-resonance design
allows one coil to act as a woofer and the other as a tweeter. The DP186 extends
the range of the noise-canceling design and allows the best qualities of each
coil to be enhanced while fine tuning the output. A
