We recently endorsed Wulf Morris of the band Anger Within. Wulf provides the lead vocals/guitar. He has been using our Green Delrin picks for over a year now. Anger Within just released their “Fiction To Reality” 4 song EP.  This is the band’s 2nd release, for the New Zealand based label, SATANICA PRODUCTIONS/RECORDS!  The EP was exclusively recorded for the label, & will only be available for purchase, through the label’s online store, (via Pay-Pal!)  The EP was recorded earlier in the year, at Virtual Adrenaline Studios, (Lawrenceville, GA).

“ANGER WITHIN, fuses metal, hardcore, and militant, death-like vocals to create a brutal, non-compromising form of heavy thrash, guaranteed to excite open-minded audiences everywhere!

The live experience of ANGER WITHIN, has been compared to the energy of a SEPULTURA, NAPALM DEATH, or early-METALLICA show. The band has played at quite a few festivals & venues, in several states. Cities include, Pittsburgh PA, Uniontown PA, Charlottesville VA, Washington D.C., Martins Ferry OH, Fairmont WV, Grafton WV, Bridgeport WV, Clarksburg WV, Parkersburg WV, Huntington WV, Wheeling WV, and of course their hometown of Atlanta GA. The band has also performed with national touring acts such as, EXCRUCIATING PAIN, KARMA TO BURN, TWO MAN ADVANTAGE, BYZANTINE, THY WILL BE DONE, ORIGIN, SWORN ENEMY, DYING FETUS, KINGDOM OF SORROW, SOILENT GREEN, MADBALL, PRIMER 55, D.R.I., MALEVOLENT CREATION, & THE VAN’S WARPED TOUR, (ATLANTA,) just to name a few!

2008-2010, brings a new era, a new chapter for the band. With drummer Bob, (from the Mobile, AL based band, Dead Zone,) & bassist Andrew…the band plans to reinvent itself, into a better, heavier, uncompromising, steamrolling unit! With two killer 4 song E.P.’s finally recorded, (“26″ by Brian Neely @ Ultragod Studios, & “Fiction To Reality by Ronnie Winstead @ Virtual Adrenaline Studios,) both being released by New Zealand based company, Satanica Records…Anger Within’s fight for world domination, rages on!”

Bands biography from their website, you can go to their website for more and to listen their music by clicking here.

So pretty much everyone knows who Bret Michaels is.  If for some reason you don’t, he is the guy who is practically everwhere you look! He started his career as the lead singer of the metal band Poisen. He also starred in the hit shows, Rock of Love with Bret Michaels , its sequels, and was the winning contestant on NBC’s reality show Celebrity Apprentice 3.  He is also known for his signature bandanna.  Bret is an endorsed artist here at Clayton.  We have done a couple different picks for him, which are shown below.  Also below is a picture of him on stage using our picks. Currently Bret has a new show on VH1 called Bret Michaels: Life as I Know It., which is on Monday nights at 10/9 central, and repeats countless times a day on VH1. If you have not seen it yet please click this link to see a full episode of his amazing new reality show: http://www.vh1.com/shows/bret_michaels_life_as_i_know_it/series.jhtml Bret is also currently touring right now on his ROSES & THORNS TOUR. To check out if he is coming to a venue near you please check out his tour date schedule: http://www.bretmichaels.com/2010/schedule_files/schedule.htm

Are you wanting to design some custom picks, but don’t know what to put on them? If you have recorded an album of your music, simply putting your album art on your guitar pick can be a great option! Shown in the images below are examples of some picks that have album artwork on the front side of the pick. As you can see, they have turned out wonderfully. They all have a lot of color and detail, but it all shows up well on the pick. These can be a great give-away for fans too! All of these designs were put on our acetal pick material. Acetal is semi-transparent white, and is the best material for complex art like the album art show in this image, and is also great for photos. Acetal is known for being a high-grade, professional pick material that is resistant to slipping, so your cover art picks will also be great to play with! Design your custom guitar picks using album artwork today at www.claytocustom.com!

We recently just endorsed Susan Hyatt and Michael Birnholz of the band rock/new wave/alternative band Stimulator.

Stimulator is back with a vengeance playing biting alternative rock music enhanced with heavy electronic grooves and brutally honest lyrics.

Sporting fresh shiny new black locks and her naturally strong candid female presence, Singer Susan Hyatt teams up once again with original Stimulator guitarist/producer/co-songwriter and co-founding member Geoff Tyson.   The result is signature Stimulator with sweeping melodic guitar melodies and world class James Bond style production.

The third CD, appropriately entitled “Lovelier in Black,” showcases Stimulator simply doing what they do best, rocking out with no apologies. Susan plays every inch of the Gothic princess but admits to having more in common with vintage PJ Harvey than with the blockbuster epic dark popsters Evanessence.

“I grew up listening to and watching artists like David Bowie and Debbie Harry experiment and take artistic chances. ” It’s no surprise that Susan has played with so many different musical genreswith Stimulator. From wrapping herself up in duct tape embracing her punk rock and new wave roots crawling around onstage on the WARPED TOUR to playing artsy sophisticated ballads to huge crowds opening Arena Tours with Duran Duran and the GO-GO’s; Stimulator has been on the forefront of reviving new wave rock and roll and classic Disco.

“I think it’s really important to always try and reinvent yourself as an artist both musically and visually to stay relevant.” It is this artistic commitment that keeps fans so loyal to Stimulator. When Stimulator’s record label, The LAB, went defunct in 2006, fans donated their own money and paid for the production and release of the second album. It was that kind of faith that kept the band going even through the roughest times of the music industry.

Stimulator now consists of singer/songwriter Susan Hyatt (Pillbox/MP3TV UK TV Host), guitarist and music director Geoff Tyson (T-Ride, Snake River Conspiracy), drummer extraordinaire Chad Stewart (Faster Pussycat/Motochrist/Gilby Clarke/LA Guns) and the welcome addition of fresh new bassist Michael Birnholz.

Band’s bio from their website http://www.stimulatortheband.com/

This week is a nice full color imprint on our white pearl celluloid.  Pearl Celluloid is a great choice for your custom picks. Especially if you are looking for a great promotional pick that will get peoples attention!  Ian Lee has a solo project rather than a band and is located in Montreal Canada.  His genre is English and French Pop Rock. His  single ”La fin du monde” went to #1 of the ADISQ  Rock Billboard in 2009, which is amazing.  Also he has a new record that came out in stores and itunes on nov 9th. The new single ”Ta dependance” can be heard on radios throughout canada as well as satellite radio. His English album ”Crash” with the hit ”fallen” from 2007 is already on sale on iTunes. To find out more details on Ian Lee, make sure to check out his website at: http://www.ian-lee.com/

We wanted to share with you that our endorsed artists Kyle Gass and Kones have a YouTube channel which they teach you how to play guitar! In this video http://www.youtube.com/user/Guitarings#p/a/E5965FD68668A3FD/0/vBffFLxPyCA they teach you how to play to “Tribute”.  If you are looking for a very entertaining guitar lesson definitely check out their channel! They have had over 200,000 upload views to date, and over 1,800 subscribers.

We wanted to let you know that we are having our Clayton Custom Guitar Picks annual Thanksgiving Sale!! We sent out our e-mail blast today with the discount code, but in case you did not get it, the code is NOV10. This discount is for 15% off any order of custom guitar picks, and it is for three days only (November 15th-17th)! All you have to do is visit our site at www.claytoncustom.com to design your pick. You will be able to place your order directly online, and there will be a prompt for the discount code. Enter in NOV10 (all capital letters, no spaces) to receive your discount. Pricing for custom picks starts at only $24.99! This offer only applies to orders placed with us online. If you have trouble using the discount code, please contact us directly. Also, bear in mind that orders placed using the code can sometimes have a longer production time than what is listed on our site. Happy Thanksgiving from Clayton!

Wayne Smith just became endorsed with us! Wayne is the guitarist and vocalist for the band Hicktown that was formed in 1996. They have gained a rapid demand throughout their tri-state area. Hicktown has opened for many of Nashville’s Recording Artists such as The Warren Brothers, Andy Griggs, Jessica Andrews, Gary Allen, David Lee Murphy, Chris Cagel, and John Berry. They entertain for wedding receptions, corporate functions, private parties as well as performing for the local club circuit. They cover Classic Country, Classic Rock, Progressive Country, R & B classics and Pop favorites. You can check them out at their website by clicking here.

As many of you Clayton fans know, we have been conducting a Why Do You Love Clayton Youtube Contest!, and we have our finalists!  We need you to vote for your favorite one! You can check out their videos through the links listed below:

Video A

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=welZDoLE8q0

Video B

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6pc8RaHhgmk

How do you vote? You can visit our facebook page and go to the “Notes” section or our Wall and just let us know if you prefer video A or B. You can also comment on our Twitter, or e-mail me (Melissa) at melissa@steveclayton.com and tell me which one you like! This is a very important contest, since the winner will received 500 Free Custom Guitar Picks!! So choose wisely, and cast your vote today!!

We do tons and tons of picks with different flags from around the world on them.  This week we decided to feature a pick with a beautiful British flag on it, by the Hi-Fins.  We love how they incorporated their name in the pick with the a grunge looking graphic of the British Flag. This pick was printed on our Acetal material.