If you haven’t ever visited Andy Baio’s site, Waxy, you’re in for a treat. Andy is one of the best bloggers on the planet, and his ability to curate the internet via his outstanding links blog is second to none.

I was incredibly excited to see that Andy did something I’ve wanted to do for a very long time — collect video clips of musicians playing their own songs in Guitar Hero or Rock Band. This has been on my backlog forever; I did post the one clip of Rush Playing Rush, but I hadn’t gotten around to locating more.

Because this is a dedicated fake plastic rock blog, I am compelled to copy Andy’s excellent work, so it can find an audience here as well. But with all respect, any credit for finding this material goes to Andy and the commenters on his blog in the original post. If you like this, subscribe to Waxy. You won’t be sorry.

Anthrax’s Scott Ian, “Madhouse” at Best Buy

Rush, “Tom Sawyer,” backstage at the Colbert Report

KISS’s Gene Simmons, Tommy Thayer and Eric Singer, “Detroit Rock City”

Dragonforce’s Sam Totman and Herman Li, “Through the Fire and the Flames”

My Chemical Romance’s Gerard Way, “Dead”

Metalocalypse’s Brendon Small, Tommy Blacha, “Thunderhorse”

Jonathan Coulton, “Still Alive”

Backyard Babies, “Minus Celsius”

Evile, “Thrasher”

Dave Mustaine of Megadeath, “Hangar 18″

Of all these clips, I must say I find the Evile – Thrasher clip the most impressive. Thrasher’s Evile track is one of the most difficult DLC songs available, and being able to complete it at all (it sure looks to me like they’re playing on Expert) is a feat. Doubly so if you’re the band that created the song in the first place!

Not much to say about this one — a side by side video of a gentleman playing the Tool song “Parabola” on the GH:WT drums, and a real world drumset.

Note that the real drumkit illustrates some of the limitations of the 2 cymbal / 3 pad layout of the GH:WT drums, as I’ve previously discussed. I count 5 cymbals in his drumkit!

Here’s a photo I found of a “typical” drumset layout. Note that the cymbals are on the left and right — not in the middle — and there are four drums.

Still, the similarity in movements is pretty convincing, another piece of evidence that fake plastic drumming is fairly close to real world drumming, particularly when you throw some fake plastic cymbals in the mix!

(I had almost forgotten: I have a similar post showing Run To The Hills on real drums and Rock Band Drums as well.)

I just learned that Logitech is entering the ultra premium fake plastic guitar market (read: $250 and up) with their Logitech Wireless Guitar Controller Premiere Edition. Right now it is PS2 / PS3 only, unfortunately.

I’ve been skeptical of previous entries in the ultra premium guitar category, but this one (minus Xbox 360 compatibility, which has been hinted at in the comments of their blog entry about this guitar) might actually be the first one I’d consider buying. Some features:

• Full size guitar replica
• Rosewood fingerboard
• Metal: frets, whammy, tuning pegs
• Quality buttons and strum mechanism (hopefully)
• Includes new Guitar Hero: World Tour touchpad
• Wireless (I’m looking at you, Mad Catz Precision Bass)

I trust Logitech to make high quality peripherals, so I have high hopes the strum and buttons will be on par with the truly excellent Guitar Hero: World Tour guitar. I’ve always felt that all the other ultra-premium guitars may have looked cooler than the official first party guitars, but in terms of actual feel and quality control, they were inferior. What’s the point of a fancy $80 to $300 controller if you can’t actually perform as well as the $60 default controller in the game?

Of course, as with any $249 peripheral, best to wait for some initial reviews when the Logitech Wireless Guitar Controller Premiere Edition is actually released in December. I am cautiously optimistic on this one.

While it’s not quite as high spec as Logitech’s entry, the $80 Gene Simmons Axe Guitar makes up for that in sheer badassery.

Sadly, it too is PS2/PS3 only. And given the no-name manufacturer, probably won’t be as good as the first party controllers. But just look at it! It’s the fabled axe guitar, as originally won when you finally managed to complete Guitar Hero 1 on Expert — man, I was stuck on Bark at the Moon on Expert for weeks. Whoever put that super hard solo right at the end is just cruel. I guess we can blame Randy Rhoads for that.

And for comparison purposes, here’s the actual Axe Bass that Gene Simmons plays.

I don’t normally post news on this blog because, well, everyone does news. But this particular news item is probably the single biggest announcement in rhythm game history, so I’m reposting it.

THE BEATLES INSPIRE NEW MUSIC VIDEO GAME; APPLE CORPS LTD., MTV AND HARMONIX COME TOGETHER FOR UNPRECEDENTED DEAL

Exclusive Agreement Set to Bring The Beatles Music to Fans for the First Time in Interactive Form Here, There and Everywhere in 2009

New York, NY – October 30, 2008 – The Beatles’ extraordinary music and phenomenal legacy is set to rock across the universe in the form of a video game through an exclusive partnership between Apple Corps Ltd., Harmonix and MTV Games, a part of Viacom’s MTV Networks (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B).

This partnership marks the first time that Apple Corps, along with EMI Music, Harrisongs Ltd, and Sony/ATV Music Publishing, has agreed to present The Beatles music in an interactive video game format. Published by MTV Games and developed by Harmonix, the world’s premier music video game company and creators of the best-selling Rock Band®, the game will be an unprecedented, experiential progression through and celebration of the music and artistry of The Beatles. The game was creatively conceived with input from Sir Paul McCartney and Ringo Starr, along with Yoko Ono Lennon and Olivia Harrison, and enjoys their full blessing. In addition, Giles Martin, co-producer of The Beatles innovative LOVE project, will provide his expertise and serve as Music Producer for this groundbreaking Beatles project.

“The project is a fun idea which broadens the appeal of The Beatles and their music. I like people having the opportunity to get to know the music from the inside out,” Sir Paul McCartney said.

“It gives me great pleasure to be part of The Beatles / Apple and Harmonix / Rock Band partnership,” said Ringo Starr. “The Beatles continue to evolve with the passing of time and how wonderful that The Beatles’ legacy will find its natural progression into the 21st century through the computerized world we live in. Let the games commence.”

“It’s cool. I love it and hope it will keep inspiring and encouraging the young generation for many decades,” said Yoko Ono Lennon.

“People are having so much fun playing Rock Band. Combined with The Beatles tracks, it is a great way to either listen or participate,” said Olivia Harrison. “If you like the music, it doesn’t take much persuasion to get you to play.”

“Introducing the genius of The Beatles to a whole new generation of music lovers through original and inspired ways is extremely exciting to us at Apple Corps,” stated Jeff Jones, CEO, Apple Corps. “We are truly pleased to be working with the innovative forces at MTV and Harmonix as they embody our mutual passions for music and creativity.”

“Many of us have been part of a generation that has long enjoyed an enduring love affair with The Beatles and now we’re looking to extend that love affair for future generations to enjoy,” said Van Toffler.” “Our inspiration for this project comes from a keen sense of history and a place of utmost reverence and respect for the band, their music and their heritage.”

"The impact of The Beatles is forever ingrained in the hearts, minds and souls of millions the world over," said Judy McGrath, Chairman and CEO of MTV Networks. "The Beatles are the reason many of us are WHERE we are, and some of us are WHO we are."

“We are honored to be part of this new way for people to discover the timeless music and art of The Beatles – the most creatively and commercially successful, critically acclaimed, and influential band in the history of popular music,” stated Paul DeGooyer, MTV’s Senior Vice President of Electronic Games & Music.

“By presenting their music and artistry through the creative filter of a groundbreaking video game, we are giving legions of fans and music lovers all over the world a profound, new way to experience The Beatles,” said Alex Rigopulos, CEO and Co-Founder, Harmonix. “This game will be a celebration of the Beatles undeniable legacy.”

As Alex mentions, this will be delivered as a standalone game experience, sort of like Guitar Hero: Aerosmith. I’m imagining a totally custom version of Rock Band with Beatles-centric equipment, characters, venues, and artwork. It is unknown whether the songs will come to Rock Band as DLC, but I doubt it — at least not initially. They probably want a period of exclusivity on the Beatles game.

Update: a few more details have emerged.

• Scheduled for a holiday 2009 release
• Around 45 tracks
• Specific to 1962 – 1969 EMI catalog. Apparently that is almost everything except Let It Be…

I just got an email from our local record chain, Amoeba Records, letting me know that they’re not only selling Guitar Hero World Tour, but in fact they’re also a venue in the game!

How cool is that?

These fake plastic rock games, at their heart, are all about new ways to enjoy music. With that in mind, it’s encouraging to see Amoeba Music — the “world’s largest independent music store”, getting their props in the game itself.

I think I’ll cancel my online pre-order and buy from my local store instead. They even throw in a free Amoeba t-shirt. If you live near Berkeley, Hollywood, or San Francisco, you can too!

Here’s a video of the real-world Amoeba stage in action to compare with the one in the game: