Sonic shaman Jim James and guitar scientist Carl Broemel plunge into deep musical currents on The Waterfall.
Jim James tells us he was first summoned to music as a child while watching The Muppet Show. It must be a vivid memory, because when he wrote an article about his musical coming of age for his hometown magazine, Louisville, he also recounted how Kermit the Frog blew his mind. If you listen closely to the vocal delivery on āGideon,ā from My Morning Jacketās 2005 album, Z, you might even catch a trace of Kermitās spirit and inflection.
So why does heāand why do weālove Muppets? Theyāre funny. They possess an innocence and deep character that overshadows the mundane surface interactions of the modern world. Theyāre human, if you will, while somehow always remaining light. They have magic about them.
My Morning Jacket makes epic, sometimes psychedelic rock songs that live somewhere in that other world. Itās not easy to put a finger on the musical genre of the quintet (James, co-guitarist Carl Broemel, bassist Tom Blankenship, drummer Patrick Hallahan, and keyboardist Bo Koster). James draws parallels between MMJās sound and his Kentucky hometown: āIt just kind of exists in its own realm, and thatās what Iāve always wanted to be seen as: nothing other than someone who likes music and wants to play it without definitions or boundaries.ā
The groupās latest 10-song collection, The Waterfall, was inspired by the natural phenomenon, but it also seems to reference the downpour of conflicts that arise between people. But thatās another thing about Muppets: They have camaraderie, and they weather storms with a little help from their friends.
As a stream ebbs and flows, so do all aspects of life, including guitar playing. James, the groupās primary songwriter, had grown bored with the guitar before the sessions for MMJās seventh album and didnāt want to play. But thatās not how it worked outāJamesā yang in the band, Broemel, inspired him by bringing in a rare piece of gear to play with. (More on that later).
With a reputation for unforgettable live performances that take cinematic soundscapes to the sky and back, My Morning Jacket is the epitome of the band that makes its music come alive onstage. āA year ago we got to play with Bob Weir,ā Broemel recalls. āHe would stay stuff like, āIf we donāt play the songs, the songs arenāt alive.ā We were like, āYes! Thatās exactly it.ā Itās not so much about repetition as constantly exploring and playing.ā
Sounds like something the Muppets might say in a rallying moment.
Can you recall the āaha!ā moment when you realized you were supposed to play music?
Jim James: When I was a kid watching The Muppet Show, I was fascinated by the band, and the music always called to me. In 7th grade, a group of us bonded together over music. There were four or five of us who felt like outcasts, and we had music to keep us together.
Around that time, hair metal was super popular. We were all into hair metal, but also intimidated by it, like we were too dorky to wear leather pants and do the whole hair metal thing. Then grunge happened. I remember really loving R.E.M.ās Out of Time record, and being so moved by the fact that they just looked like normal guys. You didnāt have to be this crazy rockerāyou could just play your music. And of course, watching Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and all the great bands of that era let us know it was okay to do music if we wanted to.
Guitarist Carl Broemel hammers out chords on his 1960s Gibson SG Jr. during MMJ's opening song "Victory Dance" for their Day 2 headlining set at Lollapalooza 2011 in Chicago's Grant Park.
Photo by Chris Kies.
Carl Broemel: I donāt remember deciding to play musicāI was just kind of doing it. My dad is retired now, but he was a bassoon player in the Indianapolis Symphony. I was always taking violin or piano lessons and hanging out with him. But I do remember deciding around age 12 or 13 that I didnāt want to take violin lessons anymore, and that I wanted to try saxophone, flute, or guitar. Once I started playing guitar, I just felt that connection. Hearing a song on the radio, getting excited, and then being able to do it myself was like, āThis is awesome! I get this, and I think I want to keep doing it.ā My dad was like, āReally?!ā
Who were some of your heroes?
Broemel: When I was in middle school, I wouldāve given anything to be in Bryan Adamsā band. He was the guitar player [laughs]. I was into metal, Van Halen, and stuff like that. I remember seeing Europe play at the Indiana State Fairgrounds and thinking it was amazing. There was something about the way Eddie Van Halen played that reminded me of classical music. All along, my dad was trying to get me informed, saying, āIf you like Eddie Van Halen, you should listen to Segovia too.ā
What was your first guitar?
James: My bud Aaronās dad had gotten a white Harmony strat. We walked in and saw it lying on the table one day and were both filled with awe. Itās so funny to look back now at that $100 guitar, but weād never seen anything like it in the flesh, and we wanted to know it in every way we could. Aaron played that, I got a Fender Squier Stratocaster, and we just started going for it. From that moment on, I was possessed, just captivated. And it hasnāt let me go.
Broemel: I had some super-cheap, small, blue-and-white electric guitarāI donāt even know what brand it was. It looked like a Teisco, but even cheaper and crappier. We plugged it into car stereo speakers, which were fun because they distorted. I got a Yamaha heavy metal guitar after that.
Carl Broemel plays his GFI S-10 pedal steel during the closing set of the 2012 Newport Folk Festival. Broemel says his pedal-steel studies will be a ālifelong journey.ā Photo by Tim Bugbee / Tinnitus Photography.
How has being from Kentucky informed My Morning Jacketās sound?
James: Weāve always taken a lot of pride in being from Louisville. It gives us a different perspective on the world. I think people confuse Louisville if theyāre not from here. Northerners think itās a Southern place, and Southerners think itās a Northern place. Weāre not Nashville, Chicago, New York, or L.A. Weāre our own special thing that we really identify with. I think people who come here to play shows or to visit can feel that energy as well.
Broemel: Iām from Indiana, but we feel at home in Louisville. The trees are big. It just feels like a nice old, mid-South town thatās been there forever. It feels like they hold onto history thereāmore so than a place like Nashville, which seems like itās turning over. I like Kentucky because it feels like itās filled with ghosts.
James: Thereās a forest here, and there are so many trees. We always talk about how the trees hide the ghosts and that they live in the trees. If the trees werenāt here, the ghosts wouldnāt have anywhere to goātheyād float off into space or whatever. For some reason, thereās a heavy magnetic concentration of ghosts here, like in New Orleans. Every place has ghosts, but there are some really special ghosts here.
Environment seems to inspire MMJ. Tell us about the vibe of Stinson Beach, California, where you recorded The Waterfall.
James: Itās like being on Mars or something. Iāve described it as like being on the moon, but the moon is cold and dark, and itās definitely not cold and dark there. Everything is heightened. Everything is broadened. Being near the ocean is really powerful. It was the first time Iād made a record where I could look at the ocean the whole time we played. That was very profound. The redwood forest and Muir Woods are there, and the sunsets on top of Mount Tamalpais are so epic and beautiful. Everything was more dramatic, but in a very peaceful way. It felt like we were the only people there, existing on our own little planet.
Broemel: It was amazing! It was like the ultimate vacation. We lived in houses on the beach and could hike up to the studio in the morning and hike back at night. You could take a 45-minute walk on the beach and through the forest to the studio. Weād take nighttime walks on the road and look at the stars. It was a nice ceremony of going to work and going home.
Jim James' Gear
Guitars
1962 Gibson Barney Kessel
Custom 2008 Breedlove Revival 000
1950s Martin 000
Gibson J-185
Gretsch Super Axe
1999 Gibson Flying V
1975 Fender Strat
Two Gibson ES-335s
Amps
3 Monkeys Orangutan head and 2x12 cabinet
Mesa/Boogie Trem-O-Verb head
Effects
Boss BD-2 Blues Driver
Boss RV-3 Digital Reverb/Delay
Boss TU-2 Tuner
SIB Mr. Echo
ZVEX Box of Rock
ZVEX Woolly Mammoth
EarthQuaker Devices Monarch Overdrive
EarthQuaker Devices Ghost Echo
Malekko Spring Chicken Reverb
Strings and Picks
DāAddario EXL115 sets (electric)
DāAddario EJ17 sets (acoustic)
Dunlop Tortex .88 mm picks
Jim, do you have an obsession with waterfalls?
James: [Laughs.] For a little while I have. I wrote the song about the waterfall, and Iāve been collecting old pictures of waterfalls in antique stores and from eBayācool waterfall pictures people took on vacation, or whatever.
What is it about waterfalls?
James: I firmly believe thereās not always a rational explanation for everything. Some of the biggest things of life canāt be explained. Why did this person die in a car wreck yesterday? Why did this person live to be 95? There are all these things you canāt explain. I just feel called to some things, and for whatever reason, I felt called to the waterfall. When I see a waterfall, I feel this crazy sense of everything. Itās so violent, and you know it could smash and kill you, or you could fall off it and die. But itās also so peaceful, so hypnotic and natural. I always have this urge to pause it like a video, go back behind the waterfall, lie down in the cave, and just get some rest. I feel like life is a waterfall. Itās rushing at you so fast, and you canāt control it. You feel so overwhelmed by life that you need to pause and stop it, in a good way. I was thinking about that when we were mixing in Portland, Oregon. Thereās a drive where you can see some beautiful waterfalls. I drove there a couple times just to clear my head, and that cemented the feeling that the waterfall was the right image for the record.
Take us inside My Morning Jacketās songwriting process.
Broemel: It changes, depending on the song. It used to be more explicit: Jim would come in with fleshed-out ideas that were basically demoed at home. Now he spends less and less time finishing demoes, leaving it more open-ended. Heāll even just sing a melody into his phone, or send us a fast acoustic guitar demo. On the last record and this one, we didnāt do any preproduction. We didnāt rehearse. We just set everything up and started recording. We record the song in every manifestation until we finally think itās done. We kicked those songs around a lot! If the gods are with you, after a day or so, youāve got it [laughs].
Jim James will always love his Flying V, but lately his go-to guitar is a 1962 Gibson Barney Kessel, played here while wearing his new favorite jacket. Photo by Dave Vann.
Jim, do you write on a particular guitar?
James: Itās changed over the years. My parents gave me a Takamine acoustic guitar when I was a kid, and I wrote on that for years and years. But Iāve developed a new way of writing: I write in my head, and then just grab whatever guitar is around. I keep just a couple of guitars at home. Iāve got an old 1950s Martin parlor guitar and a Gibson ES-335. I wrote a lot of The Waterfall on a Gibson Barney Kessel I found that I really love. Last night I was playing another favorite: my momās guitar when she was a kid, just an old, no-name kidās guitar from the ā50s.
My Morning Jacket is a live-to-tape kind of band, but this time you tried a more digital approach.
James: When I did my solo album [Regions of Light and Sound of God] I worked a lot by chopping things up on the computer and putting them in strange places to see what that sounded like. I got to do some of that on this record because there were a couple of songs, like āSpringā and āIn Its Infancy,ā where I didnāt know what I wanted the end result to be, though I knew all the parts. So we would do the parts live to tape, and then I would go into the computer and move them around, trying to create happy accidents.
Broemel: Yeah, that sums up the record. We still set up, played together, and recorded to tape in our ānormalā way. But there were a few songs where we just recorded sections, and Jim made a collage out of them on his computer. Then we relearned it and replayed some of it on top of that. āSpring (Among the Living)ā was the song where we used a completely new method.
Being in the studio is the ultimate balancing act. Todayās technology is daunting, and there are so many ways to look at it as a guitar player: āDo I use all analog gear? Do I use Axe-Fx?ā I saw Les Paul play at the Iridium before he passed away, and the guy who invented multi-tracking had a Line 6 reverb pedal. He just used what was available and didnāt question whether he should because of some moral standard.
Carl Broemel's Gear
Guitars
Duesenberg Starplayer TV
1960s Gretsch Tennessean
1988 Gibson Les Paul Standard with Bigsby
GFI S-10 pedal-steel guitar
1960s Gibson SG Jr.
Gibson Les Paul Jr.
Gibson Les Paul goldtop
Duesenberg Caribou
Duesenberg Double Cat 12-string
Amps
Fender Princeton Reverb
Tweed Fender Deluxe
Fender Vibrosonic (for pedal steel)
3 Monkeys Orangutan
3 Monkeys Grease Monkey
Carr Slant 6V
ā67 Fender Vibrolux
Magnatone Twilighter
Maestro Reverb-Echo
Effects
Roland Space Echo
Eventide H9
Electro-Harmonix POG
Electro-Harmonix Freeze
Fulltone Full-Drive 2
Fulltone Tube Tape Echo
Durham Electronics Sex Drive
SIB Mr. Echo
Boss RV-5 Digital Reverb
Hudson Electronics Stroll On Fuzz
Spaceman Saturn V Harmonic Booster
Spaceman Sputnik
Xotic SP Compressor
Fulltone Supa-Trem
Pete Cornish buffers
Empress Tape Delay
Fulltone Wah
GigRig G2 pedal switcher
Vox Tone Bender
Hilton volume pedal (for pedal steel)
Moog Analog Delay (pedal steel)
EarthQuaker Devices Dispatch Master (pedal steel)
Eventide ModFactor (pedal steel)
Strings and Picks
DāAddario EXL 115s
Signature yellow Dunlop Tortex .73 mm picks
So the collage method worked out?
James: Oh, I love it. Thatās the amazing part about where we are now. I think we have to be in the middle, for recording especially. You have sounds from yesterdayātape and old microphonesāand you have the technology of today, which is what can make us different. Thatās why the retro mindsetāand I used to be like that myselfāis a limited and uneducated way of thinking. Digital technology has gotten to where it sounds really amazing. Itās not the ā90s anymore. If you ignore the world of the computer, youāre staying in the past. And itās a really fun world!
Whatās your favorite guitar of all time?
Broemel: Itās a tough call. The Duesenburg Starplayer TV is awesome, but if I lost my black Les Paul Iād be crushed. Iāve had it for so long that thereās a spot on the back of the neck that I made over years and years. Iāll have that one forever. You always get hot and bothered about your new guitars and gear, but itās nice to have something you can always go back to.
James: All guitars are like different spirits that feel good for some things but not right for others. Lately the Barney Kessel has felt right for all the new stuff, but then thereās older stuff where my Flying V feels right. My main acoustic touring guitar is a custom Breedlove. I love it because acoustic guitars normally sound like shit live, but this thing really sounds good.
Do you still play your Flying V a lot live?
James: Yeah, there are certain songs where only the V will do. Itās like a sword or somethingāeven if I havenāt played it in a while, itās like an old friend that comes right back to me as soon as I pick it up.
How do you split guitar duties? Broemel: We just kind of pass it around. I wait and see what [Jim] wants to do, let him establish what he wants to cover, and we let it fall into place and trade off things. Thereās no āI have no solos on this record!ā attitude.
James: Itās fun to work with Carl because weāre very different. Heās such an emotional player, but also so educated. He knows different chord combinations and he knows what notes heās playing, He can play pedal steel, and heās so interested in switching out pedals and the speakers on his ampsāheās constantly doing research. Iām the exact opposite: Iām like a three-year-old child, happy to bang on the guitar as long as nothing breaks. I sometimes find a new guitar or pedal or whatever, but they usually find me. I donāt usually want to do all the technical stuff that Carlās so great at.
A lot of times Carl reinvigorates my desire to play. I love playing guitar, but sometimes I get tired of it as a vehicle and want to use something else. I donāt have an undying love for the guitar above all elseāI also love keyboards and bass. Before this record, I thought, āIāll just singāI donāt even want to play.ā But then Carl comes in with, like, some new weird reverb tank. Heās really good at bringing my guitar playing back to life.
Carl Broemelās favorite guitar is a 1988 Gibson Les Paul Standard with a Bigsby. āIāve had this guitar for long enough that thereās a spot on the back of the neck that I made over years and years,ā he says. Photo by Atlas Icons / Igor Vidyashev.
You recorded enough music for two albums.
Broemel: Yeah, thereās definitely more music, and we have to wrap our heads around what we want to do with it. Weāre going to try to tidy that up when we get off the road. Weāre saying weāre going to put out records back to back, faster than weāve ever done. There will be some similarities, but some of the songs on the next record are very different from whatās on The Waterfall.
Carl, when Premier Guitar last spoke with you, youād only been studying pedal steel for a few years. How has your pedal-steel playing progressed? Do you still approach it as āan ambient thing?ā
Broemel: My ambient playing is decent, but Iām still studying and learning. Thereās just so many ways to look at that guitarāitās mind-bending. Itās a lifelong journey. Sometimes you get numb to the fact that thereās so much to discover about the guitar. Itās like the biggest library in the world.
āCarl Broemel
I love guitar with evil low end, so I think āThin Lineā is very interesting. How did you approach the guitars on that one?
Broemel: Yeah, that main riff has a really long guitar bend, and then Bo added keyboards, and then we added the strings, so itās a super-long swooping bend. Itās an eyes-rolling-back-in-your-head sound. We finished that one in a few hours, as opposed to āSpring,ā which took weeks. Jim walked down the stairs, plugged into the mixing board, and played a quick solo. It was like, āAlright!ā Itās fun to watch Jim play because it seems to come out of nowhere. He just plugs in and goes branggg, and itās done.
What are some of your best memories from the Waterfall sessions?
Broemel: Jim and I had a fun gear revelation. I went to the Marin County Guitar Show just to take a break, and I brought back this reverb/echo amp made by Maestro. It has two banana clips that you clip onto your main amp, and somehow it sucks the signal in. Itās basically just 100 percent wet reverb. It was fun. Jim was having a blast. He was like, āI love playing guitar again!ā
James: Iāll always remember sitting in the control room with the back door open. You could walk outside and still hear what was being played. It was just so beautiful, walking out to look at the stars, feel the breeze, and hear the music come out. I still feel that every time I hear this music. There are so many memories trapped inside this record for all of us, but thatās probably my favorite.
YouTube It
My Morning Jacketās Carl Broemel creates swirling riffs with his GFI S-10 pedal steel while Jim James rocks his trusty ES-335 on āBig Decisionsā the first single from The Waterfall.
What makes for exciting guitar playing? What still turns you on about it?
Broemel: I never question why I still love it. But I saw Bill Frisell at Belcourt Theatre here in Nashville. He did a soundtrack to a black-and-white film about the 1927 flood of the Mississippi. It was unbelievable. Heās a good example of what I love about great guitar playing. Heās got the global vision of what guitar can be. There was one section in particular where they were showing stills of Sonny Boy Williamson and a bunch of Delta blues musicians, and he played this beautiful chorale solo guitar piece. I was like, āThatās the best thing Iāve heard in so long.ā You could just tell he loved those guys and their music by the way he played the piece.
James: For me itās a vehicle of transcendence: I love it when Iām no longer there. If Iām really into a show, the āthinking Jimā no longer exists. Thatās the energy of playing guitar, the energy of God, the energy of love, and I love seeing that in other people. When I see Carl shredding a solo, I see that all the troubles and worries that Carl has on a day-to-day level are gone, and heās somewhere else. Everybodyās probably listened to Neil Young, and heās the primary living example of that. When you see Neil Young crushing a guitar, itās like the world is going to end, and nothing else exists. Nothing else matters. When I watch people play, thatās what I look for, no matter what theyāre playing.
With authentic stage-class Katana amp sounds, wireless music streaming, and advanced spatial technology, the KATANA:GO is designed to offer a premium sound experience without the need for amps or pedals.
BOSS announces the return of KATANA:GO, an ultra-compact headphone amplifier for daily jams with a guitar or bass. KATANA:GO puts authentic sounds from the stage-class BOSS Katana amp series at the instrumentās output jack, paired with wireless music streaming, sound editing, and learning tools on the userās smartphone. Advanced spatial technology provides a rich 3D audio experience, while BOSS Tone Exchange offers an infinite sound library to explore any musical style.
Offering all the features of the previous generation in a refreshed external design, KATANA:GO delivers premium sound for everyday playing without the hassle of amps, pedals, and computer interfaces. Users can simply plug it into their instrument, connect earbuds or headphones, call up a memory, and go. Onboard controls provide access to volume, memory selection, and other essential functions, while the built-in screen displays the tuner and current memory. The rechargeable battery offers up to five hours of continuous playing time, and the integrated 1/4-inch plug folds down to create a pocket-size package thatās ready to travel anywhere.
KATANA:GO drives sessions with genuine sounds from the best-selling Katana stage amp series. Guitar mode features 10 unique amp characters, including clean, crunch, the high-gain BOSS Brown type, two acoustic/electric guitar characters, and more. Thereās also a dedicated bass mode with Vintage, Modern, and Flat types directly ported from the Katana Bass amplifiers. Each mode includes a massive library of BOSS effects to explore, with deep sound customization available in the companion BOSS Tone Studio app for iOS and Android.
The innovative Stage Feel feature in KATANA:GO provides an immersive audio experience with advanced BOSS spatial technology. Presets allow the user to position the amp sound and backing music in different places in the sound field, giving the impression of playing with a backline on stage or jamming in a room with friends.
The guitar and bass modes in KATANA:GO each feature 30 memories loaded with ready-to-play sounds. BOSS Tone Studio allows the player to tweak preset memories, create sounds from scratch, or import Tone Setting memories created with stage-class Katana guitar and bass amplifiers. The app also provides integrated access to BOSS Tone Exchange, where users can download professionally curated Livesets and share sounds with the global BOSS community.
Pairing KATANA:GO with a smartphone offers a complete mobile solution to supercharge daily practice. Players can jam along with songs from their music library and tap into BOSS Tone Studioās Session feature to hone skills with YouTube learning content. Itās possible to build song lists, loop sections for focused study, and set timestamps to have KATANA:GO switch memories automatically while playing with YouTube backing tracks.
The versatile KATANA:GO functions as a USB audio interface for music production and online content creation on a computer or mobile device. External control of wah, volume, memory selection, and more are also supported via the optional EV-1-WL Wireless MIDI Expression Pedal and FS-1-WL Wireless Footswitch.
For more information, please visit boss.info.
We know Horsegirl as a band of musicians, but their friendships will always come before the music. From left to right: Nora Cheng, drummer Gigi Reece, and Penelope Lowenstein.
The Chicago-via-New York trio of best friends reinterpret the best bits of college-rock and ā90s indie on their new record, Phonetics On and On.
Horsegirl guitarists Nora Cheng and Penelope Lowenstein are back in their hometown of Chicago during winter break from New York University, where they share an apartment with drummer Gigi Reece. Theyāre both in the middle of writing papers. Cheng is working on one about Buckminster Fuller for a city planning class, and Lowenstein is untangling Austrian writer Ingeborg Bachmannās short story, āThree Paths to the Lake.ā
āIt was kind of life-changing, honestly. It changed how I thought about womanhood,ā Lowenstein says over the call, laughing a bit at the gravitas of the statement.
But the moment of levity illuminates the fact that big things are happening in their lives. When they released their debut album, 2022ās Versions of Modern Performance, the three members of Horsegirl were still teenagers in high school. Their new, sophomore record, Phonetics On and On, arrives right in the middle of numerous first experiencesātheir first time living away from home, first loves, first years of their 20s, in university. Horsegirl is going through changes. Lowenstein notes how, through moving to a new city, their friendship has grown, too, into something more familial. They rely on each other more.
āIf the friendship was ever taking a toll because of the band, the friendship would come before the band, without any doubt.āāPenelope Lowenstein
āEveryone's cooking together, you take each other to the doctor,ā Lowenstein says. āYou rely on each other for weird things. I think transitioning from being teenage friends to suddenly working together, touring together, writing together in this really intimate creative relationship, going through sort of an unusual experience together at a young age, and then also starting school togetherāI just feel like it brings this insane intimacy that we work really hard to maintain. And if the friendship was ever taking a toll because of the band, the friendship would come before the band without any doubt.ā
Horsegirl recorded their sophomore LP, Phonetics On and On, at Wilcoās The Loft studio in their hometown, Chicago.
These changes also include subtle and not-so-subtle shifts in their sophisticated and artful guitar-pop. Versions of Modern Performance created a notion of the band as ā90s college-rock torchbearers, with reverb-and-distortion-drenched numbers that recalled Yo La Tengo and the Breeders. Phonetics On and On doesnāt extinguish the flame, but itās markedly more contemporary, sacrificing none of the catchiness but opting for more space, hypnotic guitar lines, and meditative, repeated phrases. Cheng and Lowenstein credit Welsh art-pop wiz Cate Le Bonās presence as producer in the studio as essential to the sonic direction.
āOn the record, I think we were really interested in Young Marble Giantsāsuper minimal, the percussiveness of the guitar, and how you can do so much with so little.āāNora Cheng
āWe had never really let a fourth person into our writing process,ā Cheng says. āI feel like Cate really changed the way we think about how you can compose a song, and built off ideas we were already thinking about, and just created this very comfortable space for experimentation and pushed us. There are so many weird instruments and things that aren't even instruments at [Wilcoās Chicago studio] The Loft. I feel like, definitely on our first record, we were super hesitant to go into territory that wasn't just distorted guitar, bass, and drums.ā
Nora Cheng's Gear
Nora Cheng says that letting a fourth personāWelsh artist Cate Le Bonāinto the trioās songwriting changed how they thought about composition.
Photo by Braden Long
Effects
- EarthQuaker Devices Plumes
- Ibanez Tube Screamer
- TC Electronic Polytune
Picks
- Dunlop Tortex .73 mm
Phonetics On and On introduces warm synths (āJulieā), raw-sounding violin (āIn Twosā), and gamelan tilesācommon in traditional Indonesian musicāto Horsegirlās repertoire, and expands on their already deep quiver of guitar sounds as Cheng and Lowenstein branch into frenetic squonks, warped jangles, and jagged, bare-bones riffs. The result is a collection of songs simultaneously densely textured and spacious.
āI listen to these songs and I feel like it captures the raw, creative energy of being in the studio and being like, āFuck! We just exploded the song. What is about to happen?āā Lowenstein says. āThat feeling is something we didnāt have on the first record because we knew exactly what we wanted to capture and it was the songs we had written in my parentsā basement.ā
Cheng was first introduced to classical guitar as a kid by her dad, who tried to teach her, and then she was subsequently drawn back to rock by bands like Cage The Elephant and Arcade Fire. Lowenstein started playing at age 6, which covers most of her life memories and comprises a large part of her identity. āIt made me feel really powerful as a young girl to know that I was a very proficient guitarist,ā she says. The shreddy playing of Television, Pink Floydās spacey guitar solos, and Yo La Tengoās Ira Kaplan were all integral to her as Horsegirl began.
Penelope Lowenstein's Gear
Penelope Lowenstein likes looking back at the versions of herself that made older records.
Photo by Braden Long
Effects
- EarthQuaker Westwood
- EarthQuaker Bellows
- TC Electronic PolyTune
Picks
- Dunlop Tortex 1.0 mm
Recently, the two of them have found themselves influenced by guitarists both related and unrelated to the type of tunes theyāre trading in on their new album. Lowenstein got into Brazilian guitar during the pandemic and has recently been āin a Jim OāRourke, John Fahey zone.ā
āThereās something about listening to that music where you realize, about the guitar, that you can just compose an entire orchestra on one instrument,ā Lowenstein says. āAnd hearing what the bass in those guitar parts is doingāas in, the E stringāis kind of mind blowing.ā
āOn the record, I think we were really interested in Young Marble Giantsāsuper minimal, the percussiveness of the guitar, and how you can do so much with so little,ā Cheng adds. āAnd also Lizzy Mercier [Descloux], mostly on the Rosa Yemen records. That guitar playing I feel was very inspiring for the anti-solo, [a technique] which appears on [Phonetics On and On].āThis flurry of focused discovery gives the impression that Cheng and Lowensteinās sensibilities are shifting day-to-day, buoyed by the incredible expansion of creative possibilities that setting oneās life to revolve around music can afford. And, of course, the energy and exponential growth of youth. Horsegirl has already clocked major stylistic shifts in their brief lifespan, and itās exciting to have such a clear glimpse of evolution in artists who are, likely and hopefully, just beginning a long journey together.
āThereās something about listening to that music where you realize, about the guitar, that you can just compose an entire orchestra on one instrument.āāPenelope Lowenstein
āIn your 20s, life moves so fast,ā Lowenstein says. āSo much changes from the time of recording something to releasing something that even that process is so strange. You recognize yourself, and you also kind of sympathize with yourself. It's a really rewarding way of life, I think, for musicians, and it's cool that we have our teenage years captured like that, tooāon and on until we're old women.ā
YouTube It
Last summer, Horsegirl gathered at a Chicago studio space to record a sun-soaked set of new and old tunes.
Featuring torrefied solid Sitka Spruce tops, mahogany neck, back, and sides, and Fishman Presys VT EQ System, these guitars are designed to deliver quality tone and playability at an affordable price point.
Cort Guitars, acclaimed for creating instruments that exceed in value and quality, introduces the Essence Series. This stunning set of acoustic guitars is designed for musicians looking for the quintessential classic acoustic guitar with fabulous tone all at an exceptional price point. The Essence Series features two distinct body shapes: The Grand Auditorium and the OM Cutaway. Whatever the flavor, the Essence Series has the style to suit.
The Essence-GA-4 is the perfect Grand Auditorium acoustic. Wider than a dreadnought, the Essence-GA-4 features a deep body with a narrower waist and a width of 1 Ā¾ā (45mm) at the nut. The result is an instrument that is ideal for any number of playing styles: Pickingā¦ strummingā¦ the Essence GA-4 is completely up for the task.
The Essence-OM-4 features a shallower body creating a closer connection to the player allowing for ease of use on stage. With its 1 11/16āth (43mm) nut width, this Orchestra Model is great for fingerpickers or singer/guitarists looking for better body contact for an overall better playing experience.
Both acoustics are topped with a torrefied solid Sitka Spruce top using Cortās ATV process. The ATV process or āAged to Vintageā, āagesā the Spruce top to give it the big and open tone of older, highly-sought-after acoustics. To further enhance those vintage tones, the tops bracing is also made of torrefied spruce. The mahogany neck, back, and sides create a warm, robust midrange and bright highs. A rosewood fingerboard and bridge add for a more balanced sound and sustain. The result is amazing tone at first strum. 18:1 Vintage Open Gear Tuners on the mahogany headstock offer precise tuning with vintage styling. The herringbone rosette & purfling accentuates the aesthetics of these instruments adding to their appeal. Both acoustics come in two choices of finish. Natural Semi-Gloss allows the Sitka spruceās natural beauty to shine through and classic Black Top Semi-Gloss.
A FishmanĀ® Presys VT EQ System is installed inside the body versus other systems that cut into the body to be installed. This means the instrument keeps its natural resonance and acoustic flair. The Presys VT EQ System keeps it simple with only Volume and Tone controls resulting in a true, crisp acoustic sound. Lastly, ElixirĀ® Nanoweb Phosphor Bronze Light .012-.053 Acoustic Strings round out these acoustics. This Number 1 acoustic guitar string delivers consistent performance and extended tone life with phosphor bronze sparkle and warmth. The Essence Series takes all these elements, combines them, and exceeds in playability, looks, and affordability.
Street Price: $449.00
For more information, please visit cortguitars.com.
Cort Essence-GA4 Demo - YouTube
Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.Moth Electric's C. regalis overdrive pedal offers massive boost, natural overdrive, and searing distortion for guitar and bass. With active treble and bass controls, clean blend, Smooth/Crunch modes, and true-bypass switching, this USA-made pedal is a versatile addition to any pedalboard.
Adding a new model to their line of overdrives, Moth Electric has released the C. regalis. Equally suited for guitar and bass, the meticulously designed C.regalis is capable of massive boost, natural, singing overdrive, and searing mid-gain distortion. Its six op-amps power a dynamic, crunchy overdrive circuit with a suite of features including:
- Active treble and bass controls that allow for +/- 15db boost and cut. Perfect for tailoring the C. regalis to your instrument and amp.
- A powerful clean blend for introducing either your ampās natural character or another effect into the equation. Allows the C. regalis to become a more transparent overdrive.
- Smooth/Crunch modes, provide a subtle change in feel with āSmoothā increasing sustain and āCrunchā introducing high-order harmonics for additional texture.
The C. regalis offers the following features:
- Bass, Treble, Blend, Volume, Drive controls
- Smooth/Crunch modesā More volume than youāll ever need
- True-bypass switching, top-mounted jacks for easy placement on crowded pedalboards
- 9-volt DC operation with external power supply ā no battery compartment
- Designed and hand-built in the USA using through-hole components
The C. regalis carries a $179.99 price and is available for purchase at mothelectric.com.
For more information, please visit mothelectric.com.