While most of you are still addicted to the original Rock Band, Harmonix is already looking toward the future at what else they can put in your home. That’s why they’re getting official with Rock Band 2 for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. The Xbox 360 will be launching in September and the PS3 version will follow later in the year. Of course, with a new Rock Band, you’ll be getting new instruments, like this Fender Stratocaster.

Don’t worry, you’ll still be able to use your current gear if you have it all decked out in stickers and such, or if you want to save a few bucks. Looks like you’ll also be able to carry over all your downloaded content as well as being able to download and play new tracks on Rock Band 1 once Rock Band 2 is available.

If you’ve ever wanted to play music without touching the instrument, the AirPiano lets you do just that. It’s never going to be a star like the air guitar, then again the air guitar makes no noise. The AirPiano is designed by Omer Yosha. It’s a musical interface that allows you to play and control software instruments just by moving your hands in the air. It is a virtual matrix of keys and faders, each assigned with MIDI messages and ready to be triggered.

It’s a lot like the ultra dorky BEAMZ music system, just a thousand times less dorky. It’s a shame that no one can be taken seriously with these things. Check out the video below. Kinda neat.

Okay, here’s marketing 101. Let’s say you have something crappy that won’t sell to the public. What do you do? Answer: Use the Star Wars angle. Let’s say you have a round ball of wood, a long black blob and a brown furry…something. Call them Darth Vader, Chewbacca and the Death Star. Now they’ll sell to geeks who have more income then they do common sense.

These designs by Benjamin Males are “The Singer, The Drummer and The Dreamer”. Huh? Who is who? The Singer has five keys and is “influenced by classical instruments such as the Violin…and is created from solid Cherry wood. It is made using 5 Axis CNCing, which enables a smooth spiral to be ‘carved’ into the cherry.” Whatever. The Drummer loops drum-beats, creating rhythm in the musical composition. Influenced by African drums such as the Djembe, the Drummer will also throw off a secondary percussive sound when you tap the flat section. Again whatever.

For those of you who have been doing their best to play bass on Guitar Hero or Rock Band, this is what you want. The other guitars aren’t bass guitars. We told you about Ant Commano’s Double Range Guitar in May.

Now they’ve released this wireless PS2/PS3 bass guitar as they actually care about the bass player. You still won’t be able to double-strum using two fingers like other versions, but it’s a nice looking bass that you can have for $69. With all the money you’ve invested in Guitar Hero and Rock Band, maybe it’s time to buy the real deal?

Most of you have heard the rumors about a touchpad on the new guitar, well now we get to see it for real. IGN previewed the new gear, and they say that the strip will be used for notes during sustains, tapping to play notes, and interfacing with the new music creator.

Interestingly, the guitar is larger than those that have come before it. Back to the drums. They’re pressure sensitive, with a plain jane mic, and the music creation software is apparently very awesome. Sadly, you can’t record vocals for songs though. The Wii version of the game will have all of the same features, which is good news for Wii owners.

The Ant Commandos Double Range Guitar sells for $59.99 and does double duty, since it can play both Guitar Hero and Rock Band in one guitar. The Double Range Guitar plays PS2 and PS3 versions of both Guitar Hero (I, II and III) and Rock Band.

It operates on 2.4GHz wireless technology with a belt clip that gives players unlimited freedom. All of the functionality is retained, like a second set of Rock Band solo buttons near the strum bar and distortion effects. This is a great option for those with limited space who want to play both games.

I’m not sure if Picasso ever painted a guitar, but if he made a real guitar, the result would be something like this. The aptly named Pikasso was created by Linda Manzer and it makes regular guitars look like boring slackers. It has two sound holes, four necks, and 42 strings, so one can imagine the range of chords that could be produced with this thing.

This wooden oddity looks heavy, but it’s actually pretty light, weighing in at under 15 lbs. It’s also easier to handle despite what it looks like, thanks to a tapered back and a divot on the bottom, allowing the instrument to rest on your knee. Some of us can’t even handle a standard guitar, nevermind this beast.

There have been many a Bigfoot sighting in the more secluded areas of the globe, and I aint talkin redneck truck shows that take place in loud stadiums. Who knew that Bigfoot rocked his own huge guitar? Which raises the question: Does Sasquatch play Guitar Hero? Probably, but it’s a lot like playing chess with a wookie. The loser in a Guitar hero rock-off with a Sasquatch is always the human. He WILL break you.

Guitar maker George Marlin created it and showed it off at the Miami Beach Guitar Festival Sunday, April 13, 2008, in Miami Beach. You know, if Leonard Nimoy had entered the Forest strumming this thing during an episode of In Search of… he would have lured the big guy out to autograph it and we would have had proof they exist.

This guitar requires at least four times the skill of your normal rocker. It would be great for the alien band that has a few more limbs then most. With this baby you can be a one man bluegrass band with guitar, bass, mandolin and banjo all in one. I’m guessing the weight will destroy your collar bone though.

One of these monstrosities sold on eBay earlier this month for $255, which is insanely cheap, even when you consider the $134.98 shipping fee. It’s probably just as well, it’s gotta be a pain in the ass to restring this thing. You are NOT a guitar hero until you master this baby.

This right here is the result of a piano and a guitar finding themselves drunk in each other’s arms and later doing the nasty. You play it by tapping the 24 strings on the 24 frets. It’s actually the brainchild of math professor Jorn Starret who invented the thing as the StarrBoard.

Now it’s being produced by Marcodi Musical Instruments in Maryland, for the steep price of $5,995 depending what kind of finish you want on it. At that price it’s not exactly going to take the world by storm. I mean, c’mon, if you take the strings off, it’s little more then a fancy ironing board. I have to give it some credit though, it does have an interesting and at times unique sound and it seems like you could do quite alot with it musically. Check out a video below.

Last week we told you about the Beamz Laser Music System, but we had no idea how um…retarded this thing is. I’m still not sure if I watched a comedy sketch or not and I’m not entirely clear on what era I’m living in.

Unless you are a middle-aged metrosexual who loves lounge music, you really aren’t going to want this thing for $600. It makes you look like a cat pawing a ball of yarn. Your money is better spent on video games. The big bald guy seems so desperate to fill the void in his soul with his playing. Probably because he looks like fat bald Vader from Return of the Jedi. The video is below.

Beamz is a laser-based invention that is connected to a computer via your USB port. It allows you to pretend you are a musical genius from the year 2355, because you can play hundreds of musical instruments in true Jean Michel Jarre style.(Whoever the hell he is) How does it work you ask? Basically you are creating music by breaking the laser beams with your hands. It automatically generates pre-authored pulses, streams, riffs or loops of musical notes or sounds from a variety of instruments.

The beamz system as a whole has a “W” shape, with six laser beams over two sections. Just connect it via USB to your PC or laptop, and hook up some speakers. You’ll be rocking your lasers in no time. The interface is said to be simple and intuitive, making it easy to choose any of 30 included songs in 19 musical genres, for laying down a complementary rhythm track. The beamz library includes jazz, bluegrass, classical, hip-hop, reggae, heavy metal and more. Available from The Sharper Image for $599.95.

Check out this steampunk clarinet mod, which foregoes music and adopts violence as it’s new tune. There isn’t alot of info about it, but I like to imagine that some band geek got picked on a bit too much and went all Travis Bickle while creating it. You talking to me? You must be talking to me…

Looks like it doesn’t actually fire, but is more of an art piece. I also envision a post-apocalyptic future where a trio of musicians wander the wasteland. When trouble comes, they make as if to play some music. But when they open their instrument cases…All hell breaks loose. We love the clarinet gun.

This piano looks like it came straight out of Minority report, or Star Trek and it seems like it could in no way stand still. In fact, I’m pretty sure this would get delivered to your home by wormhole. The Schimmel Pegasus grand piano is not just all about good looks though, it features over 200 strings under a total tension of 176,520 newtons, and a key assembly composed of 10,000 pieces. It also sports a curved ergonomic keyboard and the lid is hydraulic, allowing you to control the amount of projection desired.

Only 14 were ever made ten years ago for big-wigs like Eddie Murphy, Lenny Kravitz, and Prince. Now’s your chance to own one and play like a Sci-Fi God, as it goes on sale March 15th.

For those who have problems tuning their musical instruments, your troubles are a thing of the past. Now you can easily tune your instrument to the correct note with the eNote Digital Tuner from ELECA. just attach this little device to your guitar or other instrument and the display will show up green once the note is correct.

This little device will tune guitars, violins, banjos, dulcimers and other stringed instruments. You simply need to know what note corresponds to each string. Then no matter which key the instrument uses, the tuner will help you find the note for the string.