A R T I S T   S P O T L I G H T

Rob Derhak of moe

moe. Bass! moe. Better! Especially when it's Rob Derhak anchoring the jams! Rob with his M-Pulse Venture Head and PowerHouse 1000 Cab - ''The new Powerhouse 1000 handles the deepest synth & sub tones, and basically whatever I throw at it.

Rob Derhak is the man holding down the low notes and lead vocals of one of the world's leading ‘jam' bands. But while there's plenty of open range for guitarists Al Schnier and Chuck Garvey to improvise and texturalize over rock, funk, jazz and latin styles, the band offers a healthy serving of tasteful songwriting structure topped by exceptional musicianship.

Rob Derhak knows both constraint and abandon and doles out tasteful improv while never losing touch with the groove. A true pocket player, Rob is a fan of big notes in the right places until the jam calls for flash and his new rig delivers the versatility he needs to nail the many different styles moe. blows through in a night.

Rob's new rig of choice is a Venture 600 head with the newly designed, Tri-Ported Powerhouse 1000 in Wine Lizard embossed leather. The perfect blend of vintage growl and modern cut & clarity, this rig grinds when its time to dig in for finger-style yet bounces on the bottom and spanks on the top for slap styles. Rob's also a devoted pedal user with loads of synth, octave, distortion and various sub bass discombobulators and in his words, ''the new Powerhouse 1000 handles the deepest synth & subs, and basically whatever I throw at it. The footswitch, with EQ, Compressor, Loop and Solo Level control are all welcome additions in my scheme of things, pedal wise."

If you haven't seen moe. live, do yourself a favor and catch em' the next time their in your town. Check out their website for tour dates and current releases - There's always a new moe. live recording to be traded amongst taping fans, but check out their latest digs like Wormwood (2003) or Warts and All - Volumes 1(2001) or Volume 2 (2002). All jam packed with great tunes, great tones and guaranteed to please. www .moe.org

More of this month's Artist Spotlights:

• Lamb of God
• John Petrucci of Dream Theater