Jimmy Jackson and Craig Owens kick off a string of Epiphone Clinics this month in California and New York. Hope to see you there!

A host of British artists took to the stage at London’s Roundhouse on Thursday, February 25th to raise funds following the recent Haiti earthquake disaster. Artists such as Paul Weller, KT Tunstall, Seasick Steve, The Magic Numbers, Mr. Hudson, I Blame Coco and Bombay Bicycle Club performed late into the night to a capacity audience.

The world’s largest short film festival, Movie Extra Tropfest, took place last weekend in Sydney and joining in the fun was Gibson Guitar Corp, the world’s premiere musical instrument manufacturer and leader in music technology, who presented the Gibson Artist Stage for the second year running.

From March 13 – 23, the Gibson tour bus will transport the judges of disBand — MuchMusic’s No. 1 ranked Canadian TV series — to various colleges and universities in Southern Ontario, where bands will audition for season two of the show.

Billed as a celebration of “all that is the wonder and amazement of Heavy Metal,” the second annual Revolver Golden Gods Awards, presented by Epiphone, will take place on Thursday, April 8, at Club Nokia in Los Angeles. The show will be hosted by musician, activist and entrepreneur Andrew W.K. and professional wrestler, actor, author and metal fan Chris Jericho. Featured live performers include Rob Zombie, Fear Factory, As I Lay Dying, The Devil Wears Prada, and 2009 host Brian Posehn’s all-star band featuring Scott Ian, Brendon Small, John Tempesta and Joey Vera, with a special performance by Gibson Signature Artist Zakk Wylde. More performers will be announced in the coming weeks.

Despite the crummy London weather outside, Joe Bonamassa delivered the kind of performance that every fan hopes to attend once in his lifetime — ultra-exclusive, electrifying and with plenty of free beer on hand. The 32-year-old blues rock guitar hero, who’s on the verge of releasing his tenth full-length solo album, held an audience of 150 spellbound on Tuesday night with an intimate concert at Gibson Guitar’s London studio. It was Bonamassa’s first public performance of 2010 and it proved him primed to take on the rigorous U.S. tour schedule he has mapped out this spring.

On Friday night (February 12, 2010), Flogging Molly delivered an impressive two-hour set of Celtic-punk to a nearly sold-out, Guinness-drenched audience at Minglewood Hall in Memphis, TN. The set-list included fist-pumping versions of old favorites “Salty Dog,” “Drunken Lullabies,” “The Likes of You,” “Seven Deadly Sins,” “What's Left of the Flag,” and “Selfish Man,” as well as the somber classic “Worst Day Since Yesterday.” But the evening's highlight was an Irished-up cover of Johnny Cash's “Folsom Prison Blues,” after which frontman Dave King (an Ireland ex-patriot) lifted his gaze toward the ceiling and humorously beckoned, “Forgive me, Johnny. Forgive me.”

Del Castillo, Austin’s favorite Latin pop/rock five-piece band, have been wowing audiences in America since they were formed by brothers Mark and Rick del Castillo in 2001. Recently, they have brought their eclectic blend of Flamenco, Rock, Latin, Blues, and World music to the UK, performing at Glasgow’s “Celtic Connections” festival and, more recently, at an exclusive industry showcase at the Gibson Guitar Studios in Central London. Lead singer Alex Ruiz wielded a Gibson 12-string acoustic (pictured above) for much of the set.

Cold War Kids playfully disobey their own advice with the release of their new EP, entitled Behave Yourself, which hit stores January 19. The tracks were recorded during the sessions for their 2008 sophomore album Loyalty to Loyalty, but according to frontman Nathan Willet, the songs themselves defiantly refused their own fate. "They didn't belong there [on the album],” says Willet. “But they kept hanging around, starting trouble; made friends and insisted that their story be heard."

Singer-songwriter Audra Mae recently performed to a capacity music industry audience at the exclusive Gibson Guitar Studio in London to showcase tracks from her new EP Haunt and forthcoming debut album. Audra took to the stage with a signature Gibson Emmylou Harris L-200 acoustic guitar and captivated the audience with her powerful and soulful voice.