VIDEO: “Which Exit?” live studio improvisation. Chris Buono slots Wildcat ’67 guitar into tight crosstown traffic with snap and spank via noiseless custom single coil pickups designed by Steve Blucher (DiMarzio). Patented & patent pending Rick Toone™ tremolo. Watch his fingers. Then watch his feet on the pedalboard.
“Really, really good sound!” (Killick)
If you’ve ever lived in Jersey you’ll get it.
Turnpike Parkway Expressway 78 80 287 195 295
Bumpers locked tighter than NASCAR but turns in both directions. Don’t blink. Don’t brake.
Here’s a survival tip…
Draft a semi. Find a skilled pro and shadow him. He will run interference through traffic because he is higher than you, can see farther than you. And he stops much slower than you — so if things pile up you’ve got an offensive lineman.
How do you know he’s skilled?
Owner/operator with a clean truck. Consistently above the speed limit. When he passes he glues the driver side wheels to the left lane line and moves decisively, never lingering alongside another semi.
PHOTO: Killick shows how deep exit identity goes. After three decades in Athens, GA, he will always know the way home. (photo courtesy: Snorri)
VIDEO: “Meat Computer” live studio improvisation. Chris Buono, Killick Hinds, Rick Toone, Adam Wilson, enjoying a moment of friendship and documenting the special creative empathy when human minds collaborate. (7.10.2025)
“Brilliant. Like a guitar version of the German group Harmonia.” (DavidH via YouTube)
Earth’s entire existence, the only form of autonomous decision making has been carbon-based. Every life form, every sentient organism, has always been carbon-based.
The ladybug (Hippodamia convergens) exploring my laptop screen, the eastern gray squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis) gathering acorns near my porch, the oak tree blowing in the remnants of Hurricane Melissa, the turkey vultures (Cathartes aura) also enjoying the winds in the blue October sky above, my dog curled peacefully on her bed in the next room — carbon-based.
I am carbon-based. You are carbon-based.
Every extinct species was carbon-based.
Flora & fauna, together we carbon-based life forms create a complex system with all of us making decisions based on the simple will to survive. Because we seek to live, our patterns are predictable enough that each species finds a niche within this beautiful blue Darwinian organic recycling system slinging through space.
Will a silicon-based autonomous decision-maker value carbon-based life?
PHOTOS: Checked Olympic white nitro over Alder. Quartersawn maple with rosewood. Reverse headstock. Noiseless custom DiMarzio pickups designed by Steve Blucher. Precision machined components including the awesome trem (patented, patents pending).
“Outside in the cold distance a wildcat did growl two riders were approaching and the wind begin to howl.” (Dylan/Hendrix)
VIDEO: Chris Buono swims boldly through tremolo waters with Lawrence Haber on upright and Dave Moore thumping skins. ’67 guitar nicknamed “Pole Position” into dual Fender Deluxe amps. I really enjoyed recording these guys. Magic afternoon in the studio.PHOTO: Pedals.
VIDEO: “Pollinator” live studio improvisation. Adam Wilson (fretless guitar), Killick Hinds (bass), Chris Buono (trem guitar), Rick Toone (drums, recording, production). Somehow the bees and butterflies seem to sync perfectly with the music. Almost like a wink from the Universe.
“How goes it in your sphere? I enjoyed the stories you used to post on your website. I know you’re extremely busy as the one man NASA of electric guitars, but if you could find someone trustworthy (an intern) to follow you around filming and recording your thoughts and interactions, with maybe some of your fabrication work at the bench, I think you’d have a hit VLOG.” (Dave A.)
I know so many incredible string players. One of the best perks of my professional life is experiencing excellent playing up close and in the wild. But what does one do when drowning in a sea of guitarists?
In March of this year, I thought maybe it’s time to initiate a new chapter.
Sometimes, playing guitar feels too much like an extension of work…it’s very difficult to turn off the analytical part of my brain and just enjoy playing, without the intrusion of how the instrument could be improved. What would happen if I learned a different instrument?
I picked up a used Gretch kit from a Vietnam veteran in rural Pennsylvania and began to teach myself drums.
PHOTO: Killick Hinds with Orchid™ bass. I love his melodic lines on the “Pollinator” jam. Toward the end of the video notice the innovative pitch bends he does with the tuners. Really cool.
Two months or so later, Killick texted. He would be on tour in New Jersey in July and wanted to know if we could meet up. Yes!
Killick is my dear friend and we have amazing discussions about music, production, philosophy, life. What about multiplying that energy? Maybe we could convene our local Jersey crew and dive into something deeper…
How is it possible that four people — who have never played together — spontaneously improvise an entirely new and coherent composition? No charts. No discussion. Just begin.
Q: Where does music come from?
I listen to mostly jazz from the late 1950’s and early 1960’s so this question has been a topic of extensive thought for a while. Something about those players, their improvisational skills, is absolutely captivating. Possibly because we as listeners sense that the musicians do not know what is about to happen next.
Everyone — musician and listener — is fully engaged and devoting maximum attention to the exploration.
Just a hypothesis. But it seems fundamentally different from rehearsed music recorded to a click track and built in overdubbed layers. What do you notice?
“I just woke up to ‘Polinator Jam’ and wanted to share some hardcore irony. First, as it opened, my very first thought was how much I liked the swing of the ride cymbal. My next thought was: this is going to be some cool concept-fusion music to which I wasn’t disappointed. Lo and behold, it wasn’t until you faded the quartet in with name titles that I had my second chuckle as you were the one swinging the ride!
“The first chuckle was the title and your video of working bees…
“Beyond your troupe’s 23min opus which produced many morning electron(s) firing for my mellon, was the parallel to my bee residents. I literally just hired a woman named Emerald to gently relocate a tenant colony of bees from my BBQ. I had actually announced to the fam some time last year that I wanted a small bee colony in the far corner of the yard so that we could get better pollination for the fruit trees and seasonal veggies I plant.
“You can’t make this stuff up! Thanks for tracking like a Paisano, Rick. Great minds…” (Aloha, Dave A.)
PHOTO: One day band. Chris Buono, Killick Hinds, Adam Wilson, Rick Toone.
