Guitar Hero: World Tour has finally gotten a decent amount of DLC, which in today’s world of rhythm games, is essential to keep people coming back. This month’s tracks have been announced, and they are definitely worth looking into. The Smashing Pumpkins, The Eagles and Nirvana all get their own track packs, which include three awesome songs each. There’s also a bonus Reggae Rock pack thrown in at the end of the month.

December 4th

• Smashing Pumpkings “G.L.O.W.”
• Smashing Pumpkings “1979”
• Smashing Pumpkings “The Everlasting Gaze”

December 11th

• Nirvana “You Know You’re Right”
• Nirvana “Negative Creep”
• Nirvana “Sliver”

December 18th

• The Eagles “Long Road Out Of Eden”
• The Eagles “One of These Nights”
• The Eagles “Frail Grasp On the Big Picture”

December 23rd

• Slightly Stoopid “Jimi”
• Pepper “Your Face”
• Expendable “Sacrifice”

The first three packs will be available for $5.49 each, or the individual tracks can be purchased for $1.99. However, the last pack of Reggae Rock songs will be absolutely free, just in time for Christmas. Not really sure what those two things have in common, but I love free stuff.

Peak has crafted what I humbly believe is the best guitar controller available. Over the last week I have enjoyed playing with Peak’s Obsidian Starpex Guitar controller for the PS3/PS2. The awesome people at Peak have taken a wooden guitar body and inlaied the electronic components into the guitar. This, much like the Rock Band Ion Drum Kit will set you back a few bucks, but is a worthwhile investment if you’re really into RB/GH and you’re a PS3 owner like myself. Read on for the full review.

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I’m sure that you know by now that Guitar Hero: World Tour has a mode that allows you to create your own custom music. Perhaps you’ve even taken the time to compose your own tracks. Well Activision has taken notice to the fact that over 25,000 such songs have been created already. So what do they plan to do in celebration? One idea they are considering is selling subscriptions to the content.

Yes, they want you to make music, then sell you the rights to access said music. Just imagine, you could actually be given the opportunity to hand them money for something you get for free! It’s not like Blizzard Activision didn’t just report a huge profit for the quarter or anything. They’re probably hurting for cash, since they no doubt have had to hire more people to count all of their excess monies.

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I tend to take the rocking of plastic instruments a bit too seriously at times, but it’s something I enjoy. One of the issues I run into with my guitar controllers is of where to place them when they aren’t in use. I generally keep at least one of them leaned up against my entertainment center, however, that’s not the most ideal situation. I’ve had the opportunity to check out this ezStand from ezGear, which is exactly what I’ve been needing.

The ezStand is quite simply a smaller version of a regular guitar stand. I do actually own a real guitar, so I took a picture of the my real guitar stand next to the one from ezGear. In most respects, they are very similar. There really isn’t much to this product, though it’s worth noting that the neck is height adjustable, and the entire unit is constructed of a light but durable metal, similar to my larger stand.

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Remember yesterday when we told you that Activision was going to release a tool that allows you to tune your drums? While I’m still trying to get over just how amusing that sounds, Activision has indeed come though on their promise. They have released the tool, and as we hoped, it is a software fix, not hardware.

The software is simple enough, just install the software, (obtained here) plug in your drum kit, adjust the sensitivity on each individual pad, and you’re all set. There’s just one minor issue. The software is for Windows-based machines only. Hopefully they will release a Mac version of the software as well, but I wouldn’t hold my breath.

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Earlier this year, Activision took Guitar Hero on the road with Guitar Hero: On Tour. The DS-verision of their popular game sold like hotcakes, and thus, a sequel was needed. Thus, Guitar Hero On Tour: Decades was born. The game will be hitting stores on November 16th with 28 songs that span over 40 years. Just which songs are included? Hit the jump to find out.

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After rocking out with the same old plastic guitar, one of two things ends of up happening.  You either get so comfortable with it that you can’t handle playing any other plastic guitar or you get bored of it.  If you’re looking for something a little more interesting, this guitar will likely ease your plastic guitar restlessness.  It will also likely turn your friends green with envy, even if they aren’t KISS fans. It will work for either Guitar Hero or Rock Band.  It  is a little pricey though, you can pick it up for $80 on Amazon.   It will be released on Halloween, so just a little late to add it to your Gene Simmons costume.

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It seems that a large number of people are having issues with their new Guitar Hero: World Tour drum kits. The main issue is that the pads are either too sensitive, or not sensitive enough. This of course leads to notes registering when you didn’t hit the pad, or having to strike them really hard. Don’t worry though, we’ve got an official statement from Activision on the matter.

“We have learned that certain drum kit controllers manufactured for Guitar Hero World Tour have sensitivity issues. We believe that these controllers are limited to ones in the earlier manufacturing stages. While we believe that this was an isolated manufacturing issue, we are stepping our efforts to randomly test our drum kit controllers so customers can be assured they work properly. In the event any consumers do experience problems with their drum kit controllers associated with sensitivity issues, Activision will soon be offering a drum tuning kit that will enable players to fully optimize their drums.”

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When you work for an online news site, you deal with a lot of PR agencies and personnel. You rarely meet the people that you correspond with, as they are generally many miles away, and don’t always go to trade shows. Well if there’s one public relations worker that I wish I’d have met (while she was still working there), it’s Grace Kim, formerly of Activision.

The beautiful rocker in the video above spent a good bit of time as a PR agent for Activision, handling the Guitar Hero series. As luck would have it, she managed to land a gig with Playboy, and get herself a centerfold spread in the November issue. It seems that she also had some time to rock out with the new Starpex guitar from Peak Products. When you’re done enjoying the video above, you can read her review of the controller here.

I’m sure that you’ve all seen the Premium Drum Rocker from Ion, which is a $300 kit for Rock Band. While that is a hefty price to play for an instrument to be used in a video game, you can upgrade it and convert it to a real electronic kit. Unfortunately, the same does not hold true for Logitech’s new Premiere wireless guitar.

I have to say that I’m torn on this one. While there is a part of me that is drawn to the realism of the guitar, the metal frets, rosewood fingerboard and wood neck, it really is hard to justify. I suppose if you’ve already shelled out the cash for an Ion Drum Rocker, then your plastic Stratocaster just won’t measure up next to it. If you have $250 burning a hole in your pocket, then look for this to hit stores in December, but only for the PS2/PS3.

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