Played by Shilo's Mike 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!"

See more about Mike and Shilo below.

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!

Guitarist Mike Stoner

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. Visit Shilo website: http://www.ShiloBand.com LASTEST NEWS ON SHILO OCTOBER 2008 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.   http://www.newmusicawards.com   Congratulations Shilo from Guitars!   SEPTEMBER 2008 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 "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

Shilo: "Dodgin a Ford in My Chevrolet" ShiloatCadillacRanch 03:23 Shilo With Jake Owen 02:50 Buy the CD Click Cover above

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