
Wu-Lu favors Fender guitars for their bolt-on necks, and runs them through a thick layer of fuzz before they’re channeled through various amps, including a Roland JC-120.
On Loggerhead, Miles Romans-Hopcraft chops and dices his own improv jam sessions—sampling his personal archives to create a new synthesis of hip-hop, jazz, grunge rock and more, all wrapped in a punk ethos.
South London artist Miles Romans-Hopcraft works under the moniker Wu-Lu. His pseudonym is a play on the Amharic word for water, wuha, but modified to avoid confusion with the Busta Rhymes track, “Woo-Hah!! Got You All in Check.” It’s a fitting handle, too, in that, like water, it’s indicative of Wu-Lu’s form-fitting, genre-fluid adaptability.
Romans-Hopcraft lives at the intersection of hip-hop, free improv, and grunge—imagine a Frankensteinian mashup of DJ Shadow and Slipknot, but looser—and crafts songs built from the lo-fi samples he rips from his extensive personal archive of tapes, mostly of open-ended jam sessions, that he then uploads to an Akai MPC sampler and drum machine.
South London—the triangle of Brixton, New Cross, and Lewisham, which sits south of the touristy city center along the River Thames—looms large in Romans-Hopcraft’s world. Owing, in part, its musical pedigree to the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance located a stone’s throw from the New Cross Gate tube station, the neighborhood is the epicenter of the city’s vibrant and bustling new music scene. It’s also Romans-Hopcraft’s home turf.
Wu-Lu - South (Official Video) ft. Lex Amor
“It just happened that everyone happened to be in Lewisham somehow,” he says, marveling at the near miracle of growing up in the right place at the right time. “I went to the studio, and I saw Nubya Garcia [critically acclaimed saxophonist and bandleader], Joe Armon-Jones [keyboardist for Ezra Collective, Nubya Garcia], and Oscar Jerome [solo artist] up there, and I was like, ‘What are you lot doing up here? My grandma lives here, and my auntie lives around the corner. That’s why I’m here.’ Lewisham is a far part of South London to be in, but people are here because it’s cheap to live. Before my generation came through, there was a whole instrumental scene in South London with bands like United Vibrations, Polar Bear, and Acoustic Ladyland. A lot of people outside of South London started taking notice of what was going on and a lot of it gets coined as the ‘South London Jazz Scene,’ but the way I see it, it’s just instrumental music: people using their talent to be able to improvise in a feeling that they have.”
Romans-Hopcraft’s rich musical background is more than a matter of just living in the right neighborhood. His father is trumpeter Robin Hopcraft (most recently a member of Soothsayers, but with an extensive history playing Afrobeat, reggae, and jazz), and he’s also got an identical twin brother, Ben, who’s an accomplished artist as well (formerly Childhood, and now Insecure Men, Warmduscher, and something in the works under Sean Lennon’s direction). Plus, he’s closely associated with a coterie of artists like songwriter and guitarist Lianne La Havas, saxophonist Garcia, Black Midi drummer Morgan Simpson, and many others.
“A lot of people outside of South London started taking notice of what was going on and a lot of it gets coined as the ‘South London Jazz Scene,’ but the way I see it, it’s just instrumental music: people using their talent to be able to improvise in a feeling that they have.”
LOGGERHEAD, Romans-Hopcraft’s full-length debut, is an amalgamation of his experiences and aesthetic. “South,” the album’s lead single, is a slow crescendo that layers an acoustic guitar, raw hip-hop groove, and dub-style vocals before finally exploding at the chorus with a bloodcurdling scream (and featuring an outro rap from Lex Amor). “Times,” featuring Simpson, could, at points—both texturally and, maybe, because the Big Muff features so prominent—be at home on a Dinosaur Jr. record, if not for the tight, groove-centric drumming. And the eerie and melodic “Broken Homes” is a nuanced showcase for Wu-Lu’s songcraft, although, again, buried under layers of feedback and noise.
The whole album is like that. Intense, overwhelming, and constructed from scratch through an arduous process of scrolling through files and tapes, finding bits—be those inspired jams or someone dropping a cymbal—and then, slowly, honing those into complete, evocative, emotional masterworks.
“It might not even be part of a song,” Romans-Hopcraft elaborates about his crate-digging approach to samples. “It might be a drum break, or it might be something that was recorded on the wrong mic. It might be that I was playing guitar, ran into the control room, fiddled around, and when I listened to it later, discovered that when I put down my guitar, I was touching the guitar mic—and that would then become a whole inspiration for a completely different song. I can probably still go back into all those jams and pick out different stuff and make different music from that.”
Wu-Lu’s debut album isintense, overwhelming, and constructed from scratch through an arduous process of scrolling through files and tapes, finding bits—be those inspired jams or someone dropping a cymbal—and then, slowly, honing those into complete, evocative, emotional masterworks.
For example, the aforementioned “Times” started out as a birthday jam session with Simpson. “We were playing some beats—I was playing along with him—and someone in another room was filming us on their phone and sent me the video,” he says. “I heard this little ‘weee-weee’ sound and I was like, ‘That would be a sick idea.’ Morgan was playing something similar to what that was. I listened to that video intently. I programmed a drum beat on my MPC that I thought would work, built up a whole track, and eventually decided to re-record it [with Morgan]. On that tune I played all the guitars, the bass, all the synthesizers, and everything apart from the drums. But I programmed that beat beforehand. I told Morgan, ‘This is what I want you to play, but obviously add your feel to it.’”
Sampling your personal archives has other benefits as well. “Like avoiding royalties,” Romans-Hopcraft says, maybe slightly tongue-in-cheek … but only slightly. “I once asked about using a sample for something on a mixtape and they quoted some crazy, crazy price. I was like, ‘No more of this,’ and I started sampling myself. Plus, I like being able to look through stuff. The track ‘Blame’ came from being in the studio, doing long late-night jam sessions, and then having a few hours of jams I needed to look through to see what I could pick out. I sampled things, pulled stuff out of it, and then started remixing and overdubbing.”
Wu-Lu’s Gear List
Wu-Lu often builds his compositions around an initial sample from his own jam sessions, but the feeling from that original jam session is key to the song’s final form—even live.
Effects
- Electro-Harmonix Big Muff Pi
- JOYO JF-01 Vintage Overdrive
- Electro-Harmonix Stereo Memory Man with Hazarai
- Electro-Harmonix The Worm (wah/phaser/vibrato/tremolo)
- Boss RV-6 Reverb
Strings & Picks
- Rotosound Strings (.011–.048)
- Dunlop Tortex Green Picks .88 mm
But that freeform, loose, experimental approach ends once the song is completed. When it comes to reinterpreting those tracks live, Romans-Hopcraft plays what’s on the record. “I stick pretty loyal to the recording,” he says. “The live band setup is drums, bass, two guitars, and vocals—everyone’s on vocals—and also another drummer, but his kit isn’t a traditional drum kit. It’s like an MPC with loads of samples taken from the songs. For example, if we’re playing ‘Blame,’ that’ll be a drum break from the original track that I sliced into pieces where he can play the samples like a drum kit. It’s the original sounds, but he can play it.”
Romans-Hopcraft’s production techniques may be sample-centric and high tech, but he creates his music with inexpensive instruments and tools. “All my stuff is basically from car boot sales,” he says. A car boot sale is an English yard sale (“car boot” is British slang for “trunk”), and he’s amassed a bevy of inexpensive amps, old-school synths, and multitrack tape machines.
“All my stuff is basically from car boot sales.”
He favors Fender-style guitars, and their bolt-on necks and distinctive jangle is central to Wu-Lu’s sound. He runs them through a thick layer of fuzz, and, at times, will divvy that up between multiple amps. “I got a headphone splitter and plugged my output into that and then split my signal into like three different amps,” he says. “But the main thing I use is the Big Muff and this mini green pedal—a JOYO Tube Screamer-like pedal—that I got on Amazon for £15, which is like a high-gain pedal.”
But, more than anything, Romans-Hopcraft’s music is about the vibe. A composition may be a studio creation built up from an initial sample, but, even many iterations later, the mood from that original jam session is key.
“It might be that I was playing guitar, ran into the control room, fiddled around, and when I listened to it later, discovered that when I put down my guitar, I was touching the guitar mic—and that would then become a whole inspiration for a completely different song,” Wu-Lu says.
Photo by Machine Operated
“‘Broken Homes,’ the last song on LOGGERHEAD, is a real special one,” he says, reflecting on the song’s mood and origins. “We made that in lockdown, and it was just me, my boy Jae [Jaega Francis McKenna-Gordon] on the drums, and my boy Tag [Tagara Mhiza] on bass. We went to jam in this pub that was empty—because it was Covid lockdown—and it was half six in the morning and we were about to go to bed. But my friend Jae was like, ‘Let’s just play one more time—one more time—let’s have a vibe one more time.’ That was the beginnings of ‘Broken Homes.’ We recorded the whole thing to tape. It was a 20-minute thing that I edited down and reworked. My twin brother, Ben, helped me finish it—there were moments in it where I thought, ‘These are really good moments, but something’s not hitting’—and my brother, being a songwriter, suggested adding little ideas in how to change the arrangement to make it feel full. I was like, ‘Alright,’ and it was finished.”
That commitment to a song’s emotional, somewhat mystical, origins, coupled with a hyper-focused work ethic, is definitive of how Romans-Hopcraft operates. And, like most of his story, he also attributes that to his South London neighborhood.“
A lot of what I got from a lot of the people that I’ve met along the way is the thing I think they got out of college, which is learning how to practice,” he says about the many local graduates of the Trinity Laban Conservatoire he knows. “It’s learning how to be productive with your practicing, and that’s what I’ve applied to my own stuff, too. I’m like, ‘I’m not the greatest guitar player or bass player—I can hold my own for my own thing—but I’m going to learn how to make the MPC groove or take bits and create that into something.’ I took that and applied it to my own craft. And I had the support of all the other people around me as well.”
Wu-Lu - live from The Room
Wu-Lu and his band perform live versions of “Ten” and “Broken Homes” from LOGGERHEAD at the Room Studios in South London.
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The series features three distinct models—The Bell,The Dread, and The Parlor—each built to deliver rich, resonant acoustic sound with effortless amplification.
Constructed with solid Sitka spruce tops and solid mahogany back & sides, the Festival Series offers warm, balanced tone with incredible sustain. A Fishman pickup system, paired with hidden volume and tone control knobs inside the sound hole, ensures seamless stage and studio performance.
Grover 16:1 ratio tuners provide superior tuning stability, while D’Addario strings enhance clarity and playability. Each guitar comes with a heavy-padded gig bag, making it a perfect choice for gigging musicians and traveling artists.
Key Features of the Festival Series Guitars:
- Solid Sitka Spruce Top – Provides bright, articulate tone with impressive projection
- Solid Mahogany Back & Sides – Adds warmth and depth for a well-balanced sound
- Fishman Pickup System – Delivers natural, high-fidelity amplified tone
- Hidden Volume & Tone Control Knobs – Discreetly placed inside the sound hole for clean aesthetics
- Grover Tuners (16:1 Ratio) – Ensures precise tuning stability
- D’Addario Strings – Premium strings for enhanced sustain and playability
- Heavy-Padded Gig Bag Included – Provides protection and convenience for musicians on the go
Mooer Prime Minimax M2 Intelligent Pedal boasts 194 effects models, 80 preset slots, MNRS and third-party sample file compatibility, an 80-minute looping module, internal drum machine, high-precision tuner, Bluetooth support, and a rechargeable lithium battery.
Over the last few years, Mooer has released several Prime multi-effects devices, including the Prime P1, P2, S1, and most recently in 2024, the Prime Minimax M1. Excitingly, the company is kicking off 2025 with a brand new addition to the Prime family–the Prime Minimax M2 Intelligent Pedal.
Within this small multi-effects device, a whole lot of functionality is packed in, including an impressive 194 effects models, including overdrive, preamp simulators, cabinet models, delays, reverbs, modulation effects, etc., and more. In typical Mooer style, though, the company took things a step further by offering limitless flexibility through the support of its in-house MNRS sample files, as well as third-party IR sample files. Essentially, this means that users can download additional tonal emulations and effects from the Mooer Cloud and third-party sources to the device, which they can then save across 80 preset slots.
As with some past models in the Prime series, the M2 sports a convenient touchscreen design, facilitating easy browsing through the devices banks of presets. However, guitarists are not limited to interfacing with the pedal in this way, as it also features two footswitches, both of which can be used to switch between presets in each bank. There is even a MIDI jack built into the device, enabling users to connect their MIDI controllers to extend the control functions, and the MOOER F4 wireless footswitch support is also supported. Essentially, these augmentation options facilitate additional footswitches to ensure switching preset tones is always as quick and seamless as possible within any workflow.
While the Prime M2 Intelligent Pedal is primarily designed for effects and tonal simulations, it also comes packed with an array of other useful features. For example, it contains a looping module with a hefty 80-minute capacity, in addition to 10 recording save slots to ensure that any looping creations can be kept for future use in performances. Similar to past looper modules in Mooer's products, users are also free to overdub their recordings and even undo or redo their overdubs, offering a lot of real-time flexibility for creating loop-based musical structures.
As if the addition of a looper wasn’t enough, this feature is also synchronizable with an internal drum machine and metronome, a combination that includes 56 drum grooves and 4 metronome varieties. Ultimately, it’s a reminder that Mooer clearly recognizes and wishes to solve the struggles that musicians have when attempting to produce precise loops while staying in time. Upon commencing recording, the drum machine can produce four initial beats to serve as a count-in cue, and of course, this can be combined with the device's tap-tempo control for dynamic use. Best of all, this feature can also be applied to modulation and delay effects, ensuring that they work perfectly in time with any performance.
Extra features are included to complete this all-in-one pedal, including a high-precision tunerwith fully customizable frequency ranges. Guitarists can even leverage the M2’s built-inBluetooth input support, allowing them to practice, jam, and even produce looped musicalstructures over their favorite backing tracks, band prototypes, and musical pieces.
Perhaps unsurprisingly for existing Mooer product users, the Prime M2 also boasts an impressive variety of audio routing systems. As was previously mentioned, that includes Bluetooth input, as well as industry standards such as dual-channel stereo output, perfect for stereo delay and modulation effects. It also supports headphone output for those who wish to practice in silence, and even OTG recording, which means that guitarists can record their creations directly to their smartphone whilst on the go.
Speaking of on-the-go, Mooer is continuing its recent portable-play focus with the Prime M2Intelligent Pedal, as it is fitted with a built-in rechargeable lithium battery with a battery life of up to 6 hours. Ultimately, this means that even a lack of local power sources won’t get in the way of rehearsals and live performances. Combined with the pedal’s lightweight and small build, it truly is an ideal addition to the pedalboard of any traveling musician.
Overall, the Prime M2 Intelligent Pedal is set to be an impressive new addition to the Prime series. It features augmented functionality when compared to past models, yet still in a minimalist and easy-to-use package, keeping the size small and light yet still packing in footswitches, a touch screen, and other flexible control systems.
Features:
- 194 built-in effect models and tonal emulations
- 80 preset slots for storing downloaded MNRS and third-party sample files
- Compatibility with the MOOER Cloud tone-sharing platform
- Built-in 80-minute looping module
- Record, overdub, pause, delete, and playback functions for looping
- Internal drum machine module, stocked with 56 drum grooves
- 4 unique metronomes
- Synchronization between drum machine and looper
- Convenient count-in cue function support from the metronome
- High-precision and customizable tuner module
- 2 multi-function footswitches
- 1.28-inch touchscreen interface
- LED digital display
- LED charge indicator
- Portable USB/OTG recording
- Direct compatibility with the MOOER prime mobile APP and MOOER Studio desktop software for preset management
- Bluetooth 5.0 audio playback
- 3000mAh integrated lithium battery with up to 6 hours of use time
- DC 5V/2A power supply and charging
- 3 hours charging time
- Low weight of 228g
- Compact, at 74mm (L), 125mm (W), and 49mm (H)
- Sample rate of 44.1kHz
- Bit depth of 24bit
- Compatible with MOOER F4 wireless footswitch
- 3.5mm MIDI port
- Mono TS ¼” input
- Stereo TS ¼” output
- 3.5mm headphone output
- Power switch button
The Prime Minimax M2 Intelligent Pedal will be available from the official distributors or retailersworldwide.
For more information, please visit mooeraudio.com.
Kirk Hammett has partnered with Gibson Publishing to release The Collection: Kirk Hammett, a premium hardcover coffee-table photo book where Kirk tells the stories behind his rare and collectible instruments.
“I am thrilled to announce the launch of The Collection: Kirk Hammett. I’ve worked diligently on this curated collection of vintage and modern guitars for the book. I feel the book captures the rich history and artistry behind each of these unique and rare instruments. Every picture tells a story and thanks to Ross Halfin and his exceptional photography, every picture in this book is worth a million words! This book could not be possible without the help of Gibson, so I’d like to thank them for making my passion for Greeny, and guitars a reality. I hope all of you enjoy this journey as much as I did.”
“It’s exciting the time has come to release The Collection: Kirk Hammett by Gibson,” adds Cesar Gueikian, President and CEO of Gibson. “We have been working on this project with Kirk for years now, and I had the opportunity to work closely with Kirk on the composition of the collection for the book. It was a thrill to put this together and it took a village to get it done! I hope everyone appreciates the work that went into this book and enjoys every story behind the guitars.”
The Collection: Kirk Hammett, Custom Edition is limited to just 300 numbered copies signed by KIRK HAMMETT and comes in a huge 19 x 14.5” (490 x 370mm) presentation box featuring custom artwork and an outstanding case candy package. In addition to the large-format 17 x 12” (432 x 310mm) hardcover version of the book with a stunning lenticular cover, the boxset includes a frameable 16 x 11.6” (407 x 295mm) art print of a Ross Halfin portrait of KIRK HAMMETT signed by both Halfin and the Metallica guitarist. Other case candy includes an Axe Heaven miniature replica of Hammett’s 1979 Gibson Flying V with case and stand, an exclusive pick tin complete with six Dunlop® Kirk Hammett signature Jazz III guitar picks, and a Gibson Publishing Certificate of Authenticity.
Explore The Collection: Kirk Hammett book HERE.
The collection includes Cobalt strings with a Paradigm Core, Tim Henson Signature Classical Strings, and the Tim Henson Signature FretWrap by Gruv Gear.
Engineered for maximum output, clarity, and durability, these strings feature:
- Cobalt with a Paradigm Core (not RPS) for added durability
- Nano-treated for maximum lifespan and corrosion resistance
- Gauges 9.5, 12, 16, 26, 36, 46 (Turbo Slinky set)
- Available individually or as part of the Tim Henson Signature Bundle
Tim Henson Signature Classical Strings
Crafted for dynamic, percussive tonality, these strings pair fluorocarbon trebles with silver-plated copper basses to deliver exceptional response and clarity.
- Gauges: 24, 27, 33, 30, 36, 42
- Available individually or as part of the Tim Henson Signature Bundle
Tim Henson Signature FretWrap by Gruv Gear
An essential string-dampening tool, the Tim Henson Signature FretWrap is designed for cleaner playing by eliminating unwanted overtones and sympathetic vibrations.
- Features Tim Henson’s custom ‘Cherub Logo’ design
- Size Small, fits 4-string basses, 6-string electric/acoustic guitars, and ukuleles
- Ideal for live performance and studio recording
- Ernie Ball collaboration with Gruv Gear
- Available individually or as part of the Tim Henson Signature Bundle
The Ernie Ball Tim Henson Accessory Bundle Kit
For players who want the complete Tim Henson experience, the Ernie Ball Tim HensonSignature Bundle Kit includes:
- Tim Henson Signature Electric Strings (9.5-46)
- Tim Henson Signature Classical Strings (Medium Tension)
- Tim Henson Signature FretWrap by Gruv Gear (Small)
- Tim Henson Signature Cable (Exclusive 10ft white dual-conductor cable, only available in the bundle)
The Tim Henson Signature String & Accessory Collection is available starting today, March 19, 2025, at authorized Ernie Ball dealers worldwide.
For more information, please visit ernieball.com.