The first Winter NAMM since 2020 made a full-force grand return, as brands and bands alike gathered in Anaheim, CA in January 2024, for the familiar course of networking, jamming, and musical merriment. Metal Magnitude was there to capture it all, enjoying the full musical atmosphere, but keeping a keen eye out for anything that stood out in the Rock and Metal spaces. Naturally, we were pleased to find plenty. 

Before NAMM officially began, the 7th Annual Metal Hall of Fame Gala set the tone for the busy week, celebrating the iconic musicians and members of the music industry who have secured their place in the history of Hard Rock and Heavy Metal. Metal Magnitude was on the red carpet to cover the event, and you can check out the coverage here: https://metalmagnitude.com/metal-hall-of-fame-2024-feature-and-red-carpet-interviews/. 

The first day of NAMM kicked off strong, with plenty of exploring to do – but first, it was time to meet up with some metal musicians. Metal Magnitude stopped by the ddrum room to interview Chris Kontos, who had plenty of great things to say about his connection with ddrum and his recent arrival to the Forbidden lineup:

Next door in the Dean Guitars room, Wayne Lozinak of Hatebreed shared details on his new signature guitar with the brand: 

Over in the Peavey room, Adrian Vandenberg showed off the revival of his classic signature guitar, made with some modern upgrades, and shared the latest in his world of Vandenberg:

NAMM would hardly be complete without the She Rocks Awards, a yearly tradition by this point in its 12-year run so far, and a fantastic night honoring women in music. This celebration is always so much fun, and 2024 was no different, this time with the ceremonies thoroughly integrated into NAMM itself by taking place within the Convention Center, and hosted by classic Pop Icon Susanna Hoffs, with Red Carpet interviews by Lyndsey Parker (She Rocks Awards 2022 Honoree – Metal Magnitude had the chance to interview her and many others during the 2022 gala, which you can watch for a quick throwback here! https://youtu.be/h9VrulbWeK8?si=njZHob84-rVTGvC7) 

Honorees for this evening were: Jamie Deering (Deering Banjo Company), Laura Karpman (Multimedia Composer), Melinda Newman (Billboard), Lindsay Love-Bivens (Taylor Guitars), Sylvia Massy (aka, “The Radiant Being”, Producer), Holly G (The Black Opry), Kelsy Karter (Kelsy Karter & The Heroines), Britt Lightning (Vixen, Rock ’n’ Roll Fantasy Camp), Bonnie McIntosh (I Prevail), Lindsey Stirling (Electric Violinist/Songwriter), Debbie Gibson (Pop Icon). 

Metal Magnitude captured some She Rocks 2024 Red Carpet moments – feel free to take a moment of your own to look through the gallery here: https://metalmagnitude.com/she-rocks-awards-2024-red-carpet-photo-coverage/.

Later that night was another celebration, this one purely metal, with the 10th Anniversary of Metal Allegiance. The Core 4 was joined by a rotating lineup of surprise guests, and you can check out Metal Magnitude’s coverage of the event here: https://metalmagnitude.com/metal-allegiance-at-house-of-blues-anaheim-2024/.

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Heading into the weekend, there was plenty of gear exploring to do, with both planned and surprise interviews along the way. Geezer Butler was a special guest to be found at the Ashdown booth, signing his book, Into The Void: From Birth To Black Sabbath – And Beyond. 

We spent some time at the Vega-Trem booth, where we found Søren Andersen (Glenn Hughes, Mike Tramp) giving a performance of tracks off his instrumental album, Guilty Pleasures:

After the interview, Søren was kind enough to do an interview about his music and connection with Vega-Trem: 

We also had a few moments with Cody Henderson of Dazzle Guitars, who spoke about his guitar building career and work with Joe Perry:

Fans of the J-Rock scene will easily recognize “Samurai Guitarist” MIYAVI, who stopped by the Donner Music booth with drummer Anthony Paul Lopez for a quick showcase: 

Next up was one of metal’s favorite YouTubers, known for his work in a variety of bands, including The Chug Project, Feared, and The Haunted, in addition to his solo instrumental music, and as a Producer, Personality, and the Founder of Solar Guitars. Ola Englund appeared at the XVIVE booth for a four-song performance, followed by an interview with Metal Magnitude:

We ran into Mixi and Merritt of Stitched Up Heart, who also stopped by the XVIVE booth to see Ola:

It was great to catch up with them since Metal Magnitude last interviewed Mixi for the release of To The Wolves (https://metalmagnitude.com/interview-mixi-of-stitched-up-heart/).

Ryan Roxie could be found all throughout the weekend at the Hughes & Kettner booth, and he explained his connection with the brand, as well as the latest in his world of Alice Cooper and podcasting:

Phil X closed out the XVIVE booth, which made for some tricky timing as the showroom was starting to close down and shut off the lights – luckily, we had a moment for a few brief Bon Jovi updates from Phil:

Naturally, gear is the focal point of all of NAMM, so we stopped by the TonePros booth to talk with Brian Devereaux, TonePros Sound Labs International rep and Owner/CEO of Marquis Distribution, specializing in wholesale guitar parts distribution, and Fred Kowalo, who is an established guitar and bass tech, working with the likes of Megadeth, Ozzy Osbourne, Black Label Society, Dream Theater, and more:

Rand Rognlien of MusicNomad also gave us some insight into the brand’s work with the Rock and Metal worlds and how their products can benefit players:

Roaming the showroom naturally leads to some cool finds, and here are a few booths that caught our eye. 

Minarik Guitars always has an eye-catching booth, with unique guitar shapes. 

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ESP displayed the Desert Eagle on loan from George Lynch, supplemented by a full room of ESP/LTD guitars and basses.

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Ernie Ball Music Man showcased their Custom Design Experience, alongside their known models.

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Ibanez is always reliably connected with the Rock/Metal world, including through their display of signature guitars from Steve Vai, Tim Henson and Scott LePage of Polyphia, Joe Satriani, and Paul Stanley, as well as the EHB series multiscale basses. 

Cream Guitars’ display certainly popped, as probably the most unique one on the floor. Cream is an up-and-coming brand known for their highly customized and aesthetically loud designs, which also come through with solid tone.

Aristides Guitars has become a staple booth at NAMM by this point, showing off their modern designs that are well-suited to the Shredders and Heavy players. 

It was great to have NAMM back in its familiar form, with another Winter NAMM already on the horizon for the second-to-last week of January 2025.

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