Sunday, March 3, 2013

Filling in on Bass with ANURYZM at DRF 2013

Hello everyone!

Crazy news! I'll be filling in on bass for my broskis in ANURYZM for their show at the Dubai Rock Festival which is headlined by one of my main influences of all time, YNGWIE MALMSTEEN. How f***ing nuts is that?

Also on the bill are Swedish icons DARK TRANQUILITY, MYRATH, NIGHTMARE, and more!

You guys have no idea how psyched I am about playing this show! It's a true honor to not only be sharing the stage with my idols, but to be performing with one of my favorite bands ANURYZM.

Check out the poster and drool!


Damn straight!
Hadi

Friday, February 15, 2013

Ignite Amps / Benevolent TYRANT SCREAMER plugin TEASER

Hello everyone!

So the awesome guys from Ignite Amps decided to post up a teaser of the plugin version (AU/VST) of our Signature Benevolent Custom Pedal TYRANT SCREAMER and we thought we should share it with you all!

Check out the photo below and be teased!



We are going to be releasing a demo video soon where we'll also announce the date of when the plugin version will be available for download!

This is one of those moments that makes me extremely proud as a musician. I am very fortunate to be working with such awesome people as Carlo Costabile and Federico Berti from Ignite Amps. Please check out their website and give them a like on Facebook to support them (you can also donate to them for their efforts in all the FREE audio production plugins they've been releasing for us guitarists and bassist across the globe).

Speak soon!
Hadi

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

"THE TYRANT" Official Guitar Playthrough

Hello everyone!

Check out the new pro shot Guitar Playthrough video of the song "THE TYRANT" off of DIVIDED EP.


You can download DIVIDED EP for FREE on THIS link.

Don't forget to LIKE us on Facebook, FOLLOW us on Twitter, and SUBSCRIBE to our channel on YouTube.

P.S: The video was shot with a Canon 600D.

ENJOY!
Hadi

Wednesday, January 16, 2013

[PRESS RELEASE] BENEVOLENT & IGNITE AMPS ANNOUNCE SIGNATURE CUSTOM PEDAL & ENDORSEMENT DEAL

January 15, 2013: UAE-based extreme experimental metal band BENEVOLENT and Italian amp makers IGNITE AMPS have announced their collaboration through a signature custom drive pedal geared towards the band's sound. The pedal, dubbed as the TYRANT SCREAMER (TSB-1) features a Tube Screamer-type circuitry with extra features that works towards Benevolent's guitar tone identity.



Carlo Costabile, Ignite Amps Co-Founder & Managing Partner, said "We're really proud of our Tyrant Screamer. It has all the characteristics of the classic overdrive, an extended gain excursion and our exclusive "sweep" control which gives the user total control on how the pedal interacts with his guitar and playing style. This feature is especially useful for bands using very low tuning, because it helps to cut through the mix in both live and studio situations."

"We're also psyched to work for a band from Dubai as we never did before, but we know their scene is killer! This is especially the case since the band in question is Benevolent, a bunch of fun-loving guys that also happen to know their business real well when they step on stage. We're looking forward to work with Benevolent again, the collaboration has been awesome and we're already discussing new ideas for upcoming gear."



Benevolent is now an officially endorsed artist by the Italian company and this partnership will feature more innovative products of this kind in the future. Hadi Sarieddine, founder/guitarist/co-vocalist of Benevolent, states "it's extremely exciting for us that we're doing this, I've used Ignite Amps' products digitally for a while now and it's just overwhelmingly awesome to be receiving a signature custom pedal from such a professional company. I feel that this partnership is going to yield in many great things.”

"The Ignite Amps team has been great, they have been a true pleasure to work with since the get-go and they've put in all the necessary to make this happen. We're all really psyched about this right now!"

The Italian company was brought to life in 2006 by Federico Berti and Carlo Costabile, two musicians who wanted to build the gear that they needed. The company's products caught the interest of professional musicians from around the globe. Ignite Amps provides both physical products and computer-based plugins. The company's primary goal is to provide musicians with instruments that perfectly fit their needs and is geared more towards custom products.



In discussing the experience behind the build process and working with Ignite Amps, Mohammed Gad (Benevolent's guitarist) stated "At first we communicated with Ignite Amps regarding what we were looking for, they then designed the pedal and built a computer plugin version of it for us to try. We used the plugin version for testing and adjustments. The actual physical pedal was built based upon that and the final product sounds EXACTLY the same as the plugin. The physical build quality is unbelievable, we cannot be happier! The pedal packs tons of gain and has a very wide range of dynamics that give us the exact set of tools to shape our guitar tones."

He added, "It means a lot to us to be working with a reputable and international company that makes products that we are out there searching for, especially when the team behind the company shares the passion that we have for the band and the music, this is amazing!"

Federico Berti, Ignite Amps’ Co-Founder & Managing Partner, stated "Working with open-minded musicians, like the Benevolent guys, is always a breeze. They know exactly what they want and they're used to digital home recording, which is very important for us. We followed our usual workflow: designing the analog circuit and then implementing a simulation of it in VST/AU format, capable of running in real time on any modern computer. We sent the software to them and then further revised the circuit according to their feedback and requests. We love to use this approach, as it reduces the prototyping costs and musicians can hear how their custom gear will sound before we even start the actual build. I guess I can safely say that we're the only amp brand in the world offering this kind of service."



The pedal will be available for purchase directly from Ignite Amps. The VST/AU plugin version of the pedal will be available for FREE DOWNLOAD from Ignite Amps official website (www.igniteamps.com) through the course of February. To stay up to date on the release of the plugin, give Ignite Amps a LIKE on Facebook on http://www.facebook.com/IgniteAmps

Benevolent is currently working on their much anticipated follow up to their debut release, the upcoming album features ANDOLS HERRICK (formerly of Chimaira) who has recorded drums on the entire record.

To stay in touch with Benevolent's news and updates, check out their Facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/benevolent.band and their YouTube channel on http//www.youtube.com/user/benevolentband

YOU CAN ALSO GRAB A FREE DOWNLOAD OF BENEVOLENT'S DEBUT ALBUM "DIVIDED EP" AT http://benevolent.bandcamp.com

- ENDS -

Monday, January 7, 2013

Benevolent Purgatory Polymetrics Video Guitar Lesson

Hello everyone!

First of all, I'd like to wish you a belated Happy New Year. And with this new year we come to you with a cool lesson video covering one of the complex riffs on the album DIVIDED EP, it comes from the song PURGATORY.

This is a riff in 5/8 running over a 4/4 beat, lots of fun playing the riff because it falls under a cool drum beat and the polymeters in there create a pretty interesting groove.

Check out the video on the link below and leave your thoughts in the comments section:


Don't forget to LIKE Benevolent on FACEBOOK, and SUBSCRIBE to our YouTube channel to keep up with the videos that we're posting.

Hope you enjoy the video.

Hadi

Thursday, December 13, 2012

In Memory of David Gold, Cover of WOODS OF YPRES - FINALITY

Hello everyone,

Last year in December the world lost one of it's best people and most talented musicians, David Gold (front man of Woods of Ypres).

In remembrance of his passing, and as a tribute to his art and him as the great person that he was, I've put together this little humble cover of one of my favorite songs of all time; "FINALITY" which is on the last release from the band Woods of Ypres.

Do check out the cover in the video below:


I met David in Kuwait when he made a work trip down there for a few months. David had previously been in touch with Sajid "Sarj" Masood over the internet (a few years before the whole "work in Kuwait" thing came up). Back then David was in Korea and while looking for metal bands to check out in Korea on Metal Archives, he saw "Kuwait" right next to it and wondered "Kuwait? There are metal bands in Kuwait?"

At that point he found out about Sarj's band "Nocturna" and basically got in touch with him and talked some metal.

A few years down the road, coincidence or not, David got a job opportunity in Kuwait and prior to arriving he got in touch with Sarj once again to meet up and what not while he's there. We met up with David about a week after his arrival in Kuwait, once he got settled into his new apartment and all that transitionary stuff.

We all hung out quite a bit, listened to a whole lot of Rammstein, Katatonia, Opeth, Meshuggah, and all that while driving around town. We even talked about doing a remote band that's along the lines of Rammstein (the working title of the project was "SANDSTEIN"). I actually still have the recorded demos that we did.

David had to cut his stay in Kuwait short once his band Woods of Ypres were signed to Earache Records and they were getting ready to tour in support of Woods 4: The Green Album, in addition to start with writing and recording the album Woods 5: Grey Skies and Electric Light.

After David left, we all kept in touch with each other a whole lot...we talked about a Benevolent and Woods of Ypres tour out here in the Middle East or Europe.

He was a great person, a very deep musician, and though he is no longer amongst us he truly lives in his music.

Carpe Diem.

Hadi Sarieddine

Tuesday, November 13, 2012

New BENEVOLENT VLOG

Hey guys!

How's everyone doing?

We got a new VLOG up! This one covers our experience from Gulf Bike Week and Mental Issues.

I'll be posting up a full post of our experience at the Mental Issues show this past weekend.

We are working on tons and TONS of things! Really can't wait to share it with you all!

In the mean time, I will leave you with the VLOG.


Speak soon all!
Hadi