He’s joking, but only a little. Gallo says the early days of the pandemic removed the usual distractions from his day-to-day life, and he was left to engage with and reflect on the world around him, uninterrupted. It started to feel like he was stuck between two extremes.
“If you’re tuned into news and social media and paying attention to everything that’s happening everywhere, the world can seem absolutely chaotic,” says Gallo. “But then you can walk out your front door and you’re like, ‘Oh, it’s a nice day, the neighbors are nice, and I’m okay.’ It’s like living in two realities simultaneously.”
FOREGROUND MUSIC is in part an effort to make sense of how to navigate between those two states. There are moments of relief and calm, but the record is most often tense and sharp—a tightly coiled spring threatening to burst. Gallo’s lyrics are acidic and blunt. The spoken-word interlude on the title track sounds like someone yanked open the cranium of a chronic overthinker and funneled their brain’s stream-of-consciousness anxieties right onto a page: “By the way, how are there so many t-shirts on Earth? / I mean, let's say on average everyone has 15 / You times that by billions of people / How is there enough raw materials?”
Ron Gallo - "SAN BENEDETTO"
It’s not just anxiety for anxiety’s sake. Releasing the pressure from a vessel allows it to function at full potential. “When you’re overwhelmed by the dread of everything that’s happening, it can feel really intense,” says Gallo. “But it’s mobilizing at the same time.”
FOREGROUND MUSIC is the fifth studio LP in his discography (which started with his 2014 debut RONNY), and his first on legendary Oregon independent label Kill Rock Stars. It started coming together on a day off of touring in upstate New York in October 2021, when the band stayed at a friend’s studio and demoed new tracks. They then took them back to Philadelphia, where they re-recorded them at home and live off the floor at drummer Josh Friedman’s studio. It was the first time that Gallo, along with bassist Chiara D’Anzieri and guitarist Jerry Bernhardt, decided to invest in home recording gear and learn how to use it, including a Universal Audio Apollo interface. The guitars on the album were recorded either with an SM57 on a Fender Princeton into Gallo’s DAW, or straight-up direct input into the Apollo.
“I’ve always relied on other people for what I considered passable recording. I just never trusted myself to do it,” says Gallo. “It was kind of learning it ‘as we go.’” The experience was liberating. On 2021’s PEACEMEAL, Gallo’s former label, New West Records, insisted he work with a well-known producer in an expensive, well-appointed studio. This time, he went back to his DIY roots—and it paid off. “You don’t have to spend all this money and go to these big fancy studios to get good sounds,” says Gallo. “[Doing it yourself] feels like beating the system.”
The music on Gallo’s latest release has elements that range from stream-of-consciousness lyrics to garage-y fuzz to surreal ’80s strumming to rockabilly punch.
Gallo’s rig, too, is free of bells and whistles. While he got a Fender Mustang in late 2021 to bring on tour, an olive-green Jaguar that he bought off “a kid on Facebook Marketplace” in Philadelphia seven years ago has been his go-to. (Though he recently added a second Jag, in sharp orange to match the record’s aesthetic.) “As shallow as it is, I’m usually drawn to the look of things,” he says. “Even if they’re shitty, I usually play pretty primally anyway.” The aforementioned Princeton—paired with a Tube Screamer, a ZVEX Fat Fuzz Factory, and a Boss delay—has backed Gallo for just as long.
“I’m not a tone guru, where I’m really precious about my sound,” he says. “It’s like trying to arrive at tonal mecca. It could be endless. I just would rather not even start that path, really. As long as it works, it’s good for me.”
This might come as a surprise for fans of FOREGROUND MUSIC. The record is packed with thick, rich guitar tones, ranging from garage-y fuzz to swampy blues chording to abandoned-building reverb swells on lazy barre chords. There is the dirt-smeared, barking riff of opener “ENTITLED MAN”; the glitchy, blown-speaker solo on “SAN BENEDETTO,” which finds Gallo lamenting the inhumanity of American versus Italian lifestyles; the surreal, watery ’80s strumming of “YUCCA VALLEY MARSHALLS”; and the clean-and-clear rockabilly punch of “VANITY MARCH.”Ron Gallo's Gear
For FOREGROUND MUSIC, Gallo, drummer Jerry Bernhardt, and bassist Chiara D’Anzieri—pictured here—invested in home recording gear for the first time, to produce the album without the frills of a fancy studio.
Photo by Loelia Photography
Guitars
- Fender Jaguar
Amps
- Fender Princeton
Effects
- Ibanez TS9 Tube Screamer
- ZVEX Fat Fuzz Factory
- Boss DD-2 Digital Delay
Strings & Picks
- Ernie Ball Custom Flatwound Strings (.011s)
- Dunlop .73 mm grip picks
The versatility and breadth of voice with simple equipment is a product of Gallo’s musical upbringing. He came up playing chaotic shows in basements and DIY spaces without monitors, let alone sound engineers, so he learned quickly how to sound alright on a dime. “I’ve always been of the mindset to be able to pull it off in any scenario or as simply as possible,” says Gallo. “It was just kind of out of necessity, and that’s just always stuck with me.”
Even Gallo’s relationship with the guitar itself started as a means to an end rather than a primary passion. “It was more just a vehicle for making songs, really,” he says. “It seemed like the easiest way to make stuff. I’ve always viewed it that way.”
Gallo arrived at the phrase “foreground music” years ago when someone asked what kind of music he played. It feels at least like a clever retort to increasingly algorithmic playlist-ification, a process that has transformed music from a distinct artistic work to an abstract mood-enhancing service. “Foreground music” became Gallo’s default answer in response to the question of what genre he produced, because it suggested a simple idea: Gallo’s work is meant to be engaged with, not flicked on as ambience for another activity. “It’s something you face and deal with, and maybe derive some kind of frustration or anxiety or intensity from,” says Gallo. “It kind of fit the record, too.”
Much of FOREGROUND MUSIC’s ire is driven by the foreclosure of organic, human experiences in a mad dash for profits. Over the short, abrasive noise-spiral of “LIFE IS A PRIVILEGE? (INTERLUDE),” Gallo delivers a delayed response to a listener from a place (ostensibly his native Philadelphia, to which he returned from Nashville in 2019) “where it costs twice as much to live, but life is not getting any better.” His tirade climaxes near the end: “You get buried, and they’ll put condos on top of it / Ya, you get buried, and they’ll profit off of it / You get buried, life is a privilege.”
Part of Gallo’s artistic inspiration comes from his frustration with expensive housing developments that create “chaos and disruption” in long-established communities and neighborhoods.
Photo by Chiara D’Anzieri
Gallo and the band used the record to physically push back against these things. In May 2022—a little less than a year before its official release—the band appeared unannounced on a rooftop in Philadelphia’s Fishtown neighborhood to perform FOREGROUND MUSIC in its entirety while a camera crew captured the show. Curious onlookers stopped and watched. Some even sat down to take in the music. The film was released on YouTube, titled “BEFORE THE BUILDING GOES: FOREGROUND MUSIC LIVE & UNANNOUNCED.”
It all took place on the edge of a broad, empty swath of rubble and dirt right next to Gallo’s house. It’s slated to become a condo building, leaving Gallo’s street looking like “a warzone.”
“At the end of the day, there’s gonna be these big, clean, new, fresh buildings, but the process to get there is total destruction and chaos and disruption,” says Gallo. The condos will also steamroll a beloved neighborhood mural. “Of course some idiot is gonna build some dumb for-profit, $5000-a-month shoebox apartments in there, getting no permission [from current residents],” groans Gallo.
Gallo sighs that the people behind the development likely don’t live anywhere near the site, and therefore “don’t give a shit about who it’s impacting.” “That mindset seems to be driving all of the really backwards shit that is happening all over,” he says. The rooftop show last year was a manner in which Gallo could hit back in his own way. “It was a bit of a memorial to before and after,” he says.
When the band was faced with a sudden, literally last-minute cancellation of a festival gig in Spain back in April, Gallo says, “It put us all in a state of surrender. You just have to find a way to laugh at it.”
Photo by Chiara D’Anzieri
In late April, Gallo and his band flew to Portugal to catch a connecting flight to Spain, where they were slated to play Warm Up, an outdoor festival in Murcia. They had set up their gear and were 10 minutes out from their set time when a violent, windy rainstorm swamped the festival grounds. It felt ludicrous, unthinkable: After the better part of two years off the road during the pandemic and a transatlantic trip to play a coveted festival, with a vital new record to share, a chaotic weather event smashed their best-laid plans.
By the time the group were in the van on their way to a gig in Cologne, Germany a few days later, the stress of the tumult had started to fade into black, fatalist comedy. “It put us all in a state of surrender,” says Gallo. “You just have to find a way to laugh at it.”Even with the hitches, taking FOREGROUND MUSIC on the road has been cathartic. People who attend his shows have told Gallo how closely his struggles on the record resemble their own. It’s a double-edged comfort: It proves that these problems exist all over the place, but it also demonstrates that there are others—thousands of others—who want to change the way things are. That, for Gallo, is the whole point. “When I went to make FOREGROUND MUSIC, I kind of asked myself, ‘What even justifies making an album right now?’” he says. “The [point] was, well, to talk about what most people are experiencing.”
Ron Gallo - I LOVE SOMEONE BURIED DEEP INSIDE OF YOU (Live at Tournament Studios)
Channeling classic songwriting greats like Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen, Ron Gallo croons “I love someone buried deep inside of you” over meditative, fuzzified chords and a clean and simple rhythm section.
Epiphone "Blues Power" Les Paul Custom
The Jared James Nichols “Blues Power” Les Paul Custom is the third signature model from the blues-rock powerhouse and Gibson Brand Ambassador who hails from Les Paul’s hometown of Waukesha, Wisconsin. The Jared James Nichols “Blues Power” Les Paul Custom pairs with the brushed nickel hardware, including Grover Locking Rotomatic tuners and a wraparound Lightning Bar bridge for rock-solid tuning stability. A single Seymour Duncan Jared James Nichols Signature JJN P90 Silencer in the bridge position ensures righteous tone and hum-free performance, and the included EpiLite soft guitar case helps keep this standout guitar safe and secure.
Learn more here.
Seymour Duncan JJN P90 Silencer
Jared James Nichols burst onto the scene as a throwback to the P90 playing power trio titans of the 70s. To deliver his signature sound, he needed a P90 that was voiced with limitless range that could cover everything from sparkling cleans to barking dirty tones. In his own words, he needed something “delicate and strong, like a grizzly bear and a paper airplane landing.”
After years on the road playing different venues coast to coast and abroad, he’s encountered a variety of unique hum inducing sources. Having a pickup that could retain the quintessential tone and appearance of the classic P90 pickup without hum was a must. The JJN P90 Silencer was custom voiced specifically to Jared’s unique tone without the hum. The pickups are drop-in replacements for any standard P90 route.
“Simply put, the Seymour Duncan Jared James Nichols P90 Silencer is my dream pickup.”
Learn more here.
Aguilar Special Edition Amps and Cabinets
Step into the spotlight and make a statement with Aguilar's all-new Custom Color SL Cabinets and Tone Hammer / AG 700 amps. These special limited-edition masterpieces are meticulously crafted to offer both an unparalleled sonic experience and a visually striking aesthetic. Available in a palette of standout colors, including Racing Green, Blue Bronco, Tuxedo Black, or Winter White. With Aguilar's Custom Colors, customers can express their unique style and steal the show, whether on stage or in the studio.
Fralin 'Tron
It's finally here – our brand-new Fralin'Tron! Experience exceptional clarity and articulation in a Filter'Tron® format with Lindy's unique Fralin'Tron design. Featuring a focused single-coil vibe with a rich, warm midrange and crisp attack, you'll wonder where this pickup has been all your life.
When Lindy started designing the Fralin'Tron, he did so with a particular goal: to get as much clarity and articulation as possible out of this design.
We're thrilled with the result! Our Fralin'Tron features a scooped midrange and defined bass and highs. In addition, you can expect more nuance out of the wound strings, unlike the original design. Furthermore, the treble strings have a round, warm quality, making this pickup perfect for all styles of music – from clean to dirty.
The Fralin'Tron looks impressive, too: it's available in Gold, Chrome, and Polished Nickel. Give the Fralin'Tron a listen on our website today.
108 Rock Star Guitars - 10th Anniversary Limited Edition
108 Rock Star Guitars - 10th Anniversary Limited Edition
By Lisa S. Johnson, first published in 2013, was awarded Best Book by American Photo. We now celebrate the 10th Anniversary Limited Edition featuring some of the most famous guitars ever played. Lisa guides the reader with stories of her adventures capturing the guitars, their provenance, and insights from the artists. This special edition features a signed hardcover, limited edition silk scarf, 10-page booklet, guitar pick, metallic ink book bag, and one giclee guitar print signed by one of 7 artists: Dave Mason, Zakk Wylde, Steve Lukather, Peter Frampton, Brian Setzer and Randy Bachman. Limited to 252 reserve copies. Available at: LSJRockPhotos.com
George L's Cables Effects Kit
The effects kit comes with 10ft of .155 cable, 10 right angle plugs, and 10 stress relief jackets. Colors include black. vintage red, blue and purple.
Custom fit your pedalboard needs with exact precision.
Strymon Brig dBucket Delay
It used to be that if you wanted to play a delay like an instrument, Bucket Brigade chips ruled the roost. Brig offers emulations of three separate BBD circuits that are sonically indistinguishable from the real thing, giving you access to all of the historic warmth, grit and playability of classic BBD pedals without the headaches and limitations inherent to the vintage designs. With a Time knob that unlocks Radiohead-like chaos, artifact-free Tap Tempo, up to 2 seconds of delay, TRS MIDI and 300 presets, stereo inputs and outputs on single TRS jacks and USB-C for MIDI control and firmware updates, Brig is in a class by itself.
Taylor Guitars 222ce-K DLX
This stunning all-Hawaiian-koa Grand Concert from Taylor’s 200 Deluxe Series combines dazzling visual character with a bold, sparkling sound that’s sure to entice players of all styles. Back and sides of layered figured koa paired with a solid koa top yield a woody, focused voice, with a rich midrange, articulate treble notes and a low-end response that will grow warmer and more pronounced with time and play. Players will find the compact dimensions of cutaway Grand Concert body — newly added to this series — comfortable and inviting, and together with a slim-profile neck, the playability is a dream. It all adds up to a versatile musical tool for everything from fingerpicking to lively strumming, with the hardwood koa top leveling out the response across the tonal spectrum. The beautiful koa body is tastefully accented with a shaded edgeburst around the top, back and sides, black binding, black and white top purfling, a shimmering single-ring rosette, a black pickguard and a rich gloss finish. The neck features a solid ebony fretboard, Small Diamond fretboard inlays, gold Taylor tuning machines. It also includes Taylor’s onboard ES2 electronics and a deluxe brown hardshell case.
Strymon Power Supplies
Noisy pedalboard? Effects not sounding quite right? Strymon’s expandable power supply system shields your gear from noise TWICE, first with a dedicated 24V bus and again by using individual transformers and multistage filtering on each channel. Each discrete output can achieve 500mA of current, and if you add in variable output voltages and native worldwide power compatibility, you get the most technologically advanced power supply system on the market. By starting with a Zuma or low profile Zuma R300 and then adding expansion Ojai units as your needs grow, you’ll never worry about power again.
Taylor Guitars Builder’s Edition 814ce Blacktop
Taylor’s ultra-premium Builder’s Edition collection showcases the highest levels of Taylor design and craftsmanship, with the goal of creating the ultimate playing experience in both feel and sound. This blacktop variant of the Builder’s Edition 814ce reveals a luxurious, eye-catching aesthetic presentation. It starts with Taylor’s best-selling Grand Auditorium body (including a Venetian cutaway), crafted with solid Indian rosewood back and sides and paired with a four-piece Adirondack spruce top. Taylor’s patented V-Class bracing architecture supercharges the response with greater dynamic range, longer sustain and ear-pleasing pitch precision, complementing the natural power of the Adirondack top. This model is appointed with a striking black color treatment for the top, a beautiful rosewood pickguard, a Kona edgeburst around the back and sides, all enhanced with a gloss-finish body. Other aesthetic details include a single-ring green abalone rosette and rosewood-bound soundhole, maple and rosewood top purfling, maple fretboard and peghead purfling, precise Gotoh 510 tuners in antique gold, and Element inlays in mother-of-pearl.
Strymon Iridium
Come see why some stadium rockers have ditched their onstage amps! Iridium delivers the authentic tone, feel and girth of three iconic tube amplifiers in a single pedal-sized enclosure. The simple user interface lets you dial in the right sound in moments with zero menu-diving, and three speaker cabinets per amp mean you’re always ready with more sonic options. Iridium’s IR-based speaker cabinets and hybrid reverbs deliver unbeatable realism by using high-resolution 500ms impulses (usually reserved for DAW plugins), and adding in TRS MIDI control, 300 presets and stereo IO means you’re ready for anything the stage or studio can throw at you.
Warm Audio ODD Box v1
The Warm Audio ODD (Over Drive Disorder) is inspired by an iconic (now discontinued) pedalboard staple with a “cranked amp” tone. Perfect for boosting, adding breakup, or adding high gain to cleans, the ODD has all the tonal versatility of its inspiration. The hard-clipping, op-amp-based circuit delivers all of the sounds of a cranked, saturated tube amp and features classic-inspired controls, including a UK/US Switch, to flip the personality of ODD from “British” to “American” tube amp. True to its inspiration, the ODD delivers the sound of massive, live electric guitar that attracted players like Billy Gibbons, Mark Hoppus, Eric Johnson, J Mascis, Paul Gilbert, and many more to that open tube amp sound.
AxLabs Habanero by Grover Jackson Loaded Pickguard
The AxLabs Habanero-loaded pickguard system features boutique-quality components including USA-made Habanero Serrano Pickups from the legendary Grover Jackson, a Pure Tone multi-contact output Jack, custom AxLabs switches and potentiometers, Orange Drop capacitor, and Gavitt Cloth Jacketed Wire (Red+ / Black-).
The Habanero Serrano Single Coils are Grover Jackson's own Texas-style, high output take on the classic designs from the 50's and 60's. Using Alnico III magnets, the fuller and warmer tones offer the right amount of fatness for the modern player while still retaining the chimey high end of the classics. The neck has warmer bubbliness, the middle pup harnesses a fatter midrange, and the bridge cuts through the tastebuds with stinging clarity unlike any other.
Unlike any other potentiometers on the market, all AxLabs pots were specifically designed for electric guitars. Custom-taper volume and tone controls give you the smoothest (and most musical) turn of the knobs without any lag.
The patented Pure Tone jack contains dual tension grounds and dual positive tips for optimal signal and lowest possible noise. 100% greater surface area at all contact points!
Spürr Audio Time Traveler Delay
The Spurr Audio Time Traveler Delay is a remarkable pedal that transcends the boundaries of your typical delay pedal. This meticulously crafted stompbox seamlessly marries the vintage warmth of analog circuitry with the modern versatility that today's musicians crave.
At the heart of the Time Traveler Delay lies a sonic realm where guitarists can immerse themselves in the cozy embrace of analog warmth. With a delay time that extends up to a generous 500 milliseconds, it caters to a wide spectrum of musical needs, from subtle echoes that add depth to your sound to expansive repeats that transport you to a world of sonic wonders. Regardless of your playing style or genre, the Time Traveler Delay is your trusty companion in adding depth and dimension to your musical expressions.
What truly sets the Time Traveler Delay apart is its ability to satisfy the cravings of sonic adventurers. It empowers you to embark on mesmerizing journeys through oscillating delays that surge and evolve, pushing the limits of your creativity to unprecedented heights. Activating the infinite repeats function on this pedal is like opening a portal to a boundless sonic landscape. Here, you become the architect of expansive soundscapes and captivating textures, all of which will hold your audience spellbound.
However, the Time Traveler Delay doesn't stop at its aural prowess. It features an analog VU meter that not only adds a dash of vintage charm but also serves as a dynamic companion to your musical odyssey. This meter responds in real-time to your playing, effectively measuring the "plutonium" in your tone journey. It's not just a functional addition; it's a visual spectacle that adds an extra layer of dimension to your musical performance.
NoiseBoyz Guitar Pedal Subscription
NoiseBoyz is the most cost effective way to try every combination of tone you can possibly imagine. With plans starting at $9.99 per month, NoiseBoyz gives you access to over 150 pedals from the very best boutique pedal brands like Beetronics, MojoHandFX, Pigtronix, Supro, Fuzzrocious, and AnalogAlien, with new brands and pedals added every month. With no waitlists, no deposits collected for rental, no required return dates, and customer-exclusive discounts, it's a truly hassle-free way to find and save on the pedals that are just right for your play style. It's the perfect holiday gift for the guitarist in your life and we have no doubt that Clark Griswold wouldn't have kidnapped his boss if he'd just gotten a subscription to NoiseBoyz instead of the jelly-of-the-month club.
SmallStage Cable Cup Amp-Top Pick Tray & Cable Rest
The Cable Cup is a convenient pick tray and cable rest that uses microsuction technology to adhere securely to an amp or tabletop, allowing for simple removal without leaving any residue behind.
Providing ample room for your picks, slide, capo, and other small playing accessories, the Cable Cup ensures that the essentials stay organized and within easy reach. Notched cable rests guarantee hassle-free cable management, eliminating the need to fumble around for cable ends during practices, studio sessions, or performances. The Cable Cup Pick Shape also fits your favorite frosty beverage, complete with a “sweat” collector to prevent water rings from staining your amp! Composed of lightweight, flexible silicone, Cable Cup products are washable and reusable, ensuring a lifetime of usage.
The Cable Cup line features a variety of shapes and sizes, including officially licensed Fender® Stratocaster® and Telecaster® headstock shapes, Stratocaster® and Telecaster® body shapes, and a classic pick shape.
