Cory sits down with his bandmate-brother, multi-instrumentalist Theo Katzman, to discuss the virtues of musical self-acceptance, the infectious charisma of Trey Anastasio, and how Theo has made a career out of being a jack of all trades.
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When Theo Met Trey Anastasio | Wong Notes Podcast
What Theo Learned from Meeting Trey Anastasio
Theo: Once the jam thing started to catch on, and people got me into Phish, and you know I love Phish. I mean, we love ... I mean, Trey. We've actually gotten to have dinner with Trey.
Cory: Dude, that was one of the dopest dinners ever.
Theo: One of the best nights of my life.
Cory: Uncle Trey.
Theo: Trey. Dude, the stories out of that cat! Uncle Trey, man. People have no idea what a big influence- Trey ... What is it like, when Bonnaroo started, they rented Trey's PA? There's no modern festivals without Phish. You know what I mean? They blazed such a trail and what a genuine, generous, beaming light of a human Trey Anastasio is.
Cory: That was so much fun.
Theo: I love Trey. I would do anything for Trey, man. The thing I want to tell quickly about Trey, this is how genuine Trey is. We meet Trey, the Trey Anastasio Band and Vulfpeck are out to dinner. Our friend Merlin threw a dinner for us. He's an amazing chef.
Merlin gets an Airbnb for Vulfpeck and the Trey Anastasio Band to have dinner the night before we play Red Rocks. So we fly in early, we have this incredible meal. We're all getting to know each other, saying, "What's up?" Some of us are friends already. We sit down the table and it didn't occur to me that Trey was going to join. And then all of a sudden, Trey walks in and I'm like, "Oh my God, it's Trey." And I'm like, "Okay, play it cool." Because it's like childhood hero stuff. Yeah, this is, I'm cool, right? Am I cool? We cool?
And he says hey to everyone. He's like, "Hey man, what's your name?" "Theo" he's like, "Oh, I'm Trey." I'm like, "Good to meet you, man." And I think I was the last in line of the intros here or something. So he's like, "So what have you guys been doing, man? Are you on tour? Is this a one-off?" And I go like, "Ah, yeah, playing a couple shows" And I just gave him an out, like quick answer, no big deal. Like here's the exit, Trey, you can just take the exit. Go for it. And he's like, "Oh yeah, where? What's up? What's up with the tour? What's going on?" And I'm like, "West coast." Another out. He's like, "Where?" I'm like, "Portland." He's like, "Where?"
Cory: Crystal Ballroom!
Theo: I'm like, "Ah, Crystal Ballroom." He's like, "Oh man, is that the room of the bouncy floor?"
Cory: Yes, dude! I remember this!
Theo: I'm like, "Yes." He's like, "I love that room." And he starts talking about the room and he is asking questions and it was like, wow, this guy is... I can't get him out of this conversation. And I'm trying because I'm assuming he wants to leave because he's a celebrity. But no, he’s so interested. Do you know what I mean?
Cory: He wanted to know where we were in the journey. He wanted to know how we were getting through it.
Theo: Yes.
Cory: He was interested in the details of, what rooms are you at? Are they fun for you? Is it still like this? Because I remember it like this. Remember he was talking about putting all the gear in the back of Fishman's, like gremlin car or something like that? He was talking about how they went from cars to the van, to the bus, to the buses … Dude, you're absolutely right. He was so interested.
Theo: Yes, and I have to say, this is a little “woo woo” perhaps, but the thing that people feel flying off Phish is that. And I haven't met the other guys, but I know they share that thing. And I also know Trey is a beacon of that and when you get on that stage, and when you put out that album, and even when you post on social media, and when you draw a graphic, and when you come up with a t-shirt and when you come up with your signature guitar with an emergency fourth position push-pot, okay?
You have an opportunity to send that genuine enthusiasm into the world via everything you do and call me crazy, but I started to realize of course this is who Trey is. Well, how do we get Phish? How do you explain Phish? This is a phenomenon. What is this about? It's bigger than the music. And then you talk to the guy and it's like, oh, he's interested in the story. He's interested in the journey. He's interested in the love. He's interested in the energy, the connection. You know what I mean? It's like no wonder this is the biggest independent band in the history of the world. I mean, Phish is a massive thing.
Cory: Dude. They're huge.
Theo: So I want people to know this because I think on your way up in the journey, you're like, how do I get to position X? And then you look at people who you're like, "Oh, I got to get a... I got to go to Hollywood and get into some real darkness with the labels" and it's like, well, maybe not. I'm looking, talking to the most successful independent musician in the history of the human race. And it seems like actually being an incredibly interested, genuine human is actually big part of it.
Stompboxtober continues! Enter below for your chance to WIN today's featured pedal from LR Baggs: The Align Series Reverb! Come back each day during the month of October for more chances to win!
LR Baggs Align Reverb Acoustic Reverb Pedal
The Align Series Reverb was built from the ground up to complement the natural body dynamics and warmth of acoustic instruments that we love so much. The circuit seamlessly integrates the wet and dry signals with the effect in side chain so that it never overwhelms the original signal. We shaped the reverb with analog EQ to reflect the natural voice inherent in acoustic instruments. Additionally, the tone control adds versatility by sweeping from warm and muted to open and present. The result is an organic reverb that maintains the audiophile purity of the original signal with the controls set in any position.
This four-in-one effects box is a one-stop shop for Frusciante fans, but it’s also loaded with classic-rock swagger.
Great, lively preamp sounds. Combines two modulation flavors with big personalities. One-stop shop for classic-rock tones. Good value.
Big. Preamp can’t be disengaged. At some settings, flanger effect leaves a little to be desired.
$440
JFX Deluxe Modulation Ensemble
jfxpedals.com
When I think of guitarists with iconic, difficult-to-replicate guitar tones, I don’t think of John Frusciante. I always figured it was easy to get close enough to his clean tones with a Strat and any garden-variety tube amp, and in some ways, it is. (To me, anyway.) But to really nail his tone is a trickier thing.
That’s a task that Jordan Fresque—the namesake builder behind Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario’s JFX Pedals—has committed significant time and energy into tackling. His Empyrean is a five-in-one box dedicated to Frusciante’s drive and dirt tones, encompassing fuzz, boost, and preamp effects. And his four-in-one, all-analog Deluxe Modulation Ensemble reviewed here is another instant Frusciante machine.
The Frusciante Formula
Half of the pedal is based off of the Boss CE-1, the first chorus pedal created. The CE-1 is renowned as much for its modulation as for its preamp circuit, which Boss recently treated to its own pedal in the BP-1W. The other half—and the pedal’s obvious aesthetic inspiration—is the Electro-Harmonix Deluxe Electric Mistress, an analog flanger introduced in the late ’70s. Frusciante fans have clamored over the guitarist’s use of the CE-1 for decades. The Chili Peppers 6-stringer reportedly began using one in the early ’90s for his chorus and vibrato tones, and the preamp naturally warmed his Strat’s profile. Various forum heads claim John dug into the Electric Mistress on tracks like “This Is the Place” off of 2002’s By the Way. The Deluxe Modulation Ensemble aims to give you the keys to these sounds in one stomp.
JFX describes the DME as “compact,” which is a bit of a stretch. Compared to the sizes of the original pedals its based on? Sure, it’s smaller. But it’s wider and deeper than two standard-sized pedals on a board, even accounting for cabling. But quibbles around space aside, the DME is a nice-looking box that’s instantly recognizable as an Electric Mistress homage. (Though I wish it kept that pedal’s brushed-aluminum finish). The knobs for the Mistress-style as well as the authentic Boss and EHX graphics are great touches.
The flanger side features a footswitch, knobs for range, rate, and color, and a toggle to flip between normal function and EHX’s filter matrix mode, which freezes the flange effect in one spot along its sweep. The CE-1-inspired side sports two footswitches—one to engage the effect, and one to flip between chorus and vibrato—plus an intensity knob for the chorus, depth and rate knobs for the vibrato, and gain knob for the always-on preamp section. The DME can be set to high- or low-input mode by a small toggle switch, and high boosts the gain and volume significantly. A suite of three LED lights tell you what’s on and what’s not, and Fresque even added the CE-1’s red peak level LED to let you know when you’re getting into drive territory.
The effects are wired in series, but they’re independent circuits, and Fresque built an effects loop between them. The DME can run in stereo, too, if you really want to blast off.
I Like Dirt
The DME’s preamp is faithful to the original in that it requires a buffered unit before it in the chain to maintain its treble and clarity. With that need satisfied, the DME’s preamp boots into action without any engaging—it’s a literal always-on effect. To be honest, after I set it to low input and cranked it, I forgot all about Frusciante and went to town on classic-rock riffs. It souped up my Vox AC10 with groove and breadth, smoothing out tinny overtones and thickening lead lines, though higher-gain settings lost some low-end character and overall mojo.
The chorus nails the wonky Frusciante wobble on “Aquatic Moth Dance” and the watery outro on “Under the Bridge,” and the vibrato mode took me right through his chording on 2022’s “Black Summer.” On the flanger side, I had the most fun in the filter matrix mode, tweaking the color knob for slightly different metallic, clanging tones, each with lots of character.
The Verdict
If you’re a Frusciante freak, the Deluxe Modulation Ensemble will get you within spitting distance of many of his most revered tonal combinations. If you’re not, it’s still a wickedly versatile modulation multitool with a sweet preamp that’ll give your rig instant charisma. It ain’t cheap, and it ain’t small, but JFX has squeezed an impressive amount of value into this stomp
A classic-voiced, 3-knob fuzz with power and tweakability that surpass its seemingly simple construction.
A classic-voiced, well-built fuzz whose sounds, power, and tweakability distinguish it from many other 3-knob dirt boxes.
None, although it’s a tad pricey.
$249
SoloDallas Orbiter
solodallas.com
You’ve probably seen me complain about the overpopulation of 3-knob fuzz/OD pedals in these pages—and then promptly write a rave review of some new triple-knobber. Well, I’m doing it again. SoloDallas’ Orbiter, inspired by the classic circuit of the 1966 Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face, stings and sings like a germanium Muhammad Ali. Mine’s already moved to my pedalboard full-time, because it delivers over-the-top fuzz, and allows my core tones to emerge.
But it also generates smooth, light distortion that sustains beautifully when you use an easy touch, punches through a live mix with its impressive gain, and generates dirt voices from smooth to sputtering, via the bias dial. All of which means you can take gnarly fuzz forays without creating the aural mudslides less-well-engineered Fuzz Face spinoffs can produce.
“Fuzzy forays are gnarly as desired without sacrificing tonal character or creating the aural mudslides less wisely engineered Fuzz Face spinoffs can produce.”
The basics: The 4 3/4" x 2 1/2" x 1 1/2" blue-sparkle, steel enclosure is coolly retro, abetted by the image of a UFO abduction on the front—an allusion to the flying saucer shape of the original device. Inside, a mini-pot dials in ideal impedance response for your pickups. I played through single-coils, humbuckers, Firebird humbuckers, and gold-foils and found the factory setting excellent for all of them. There’s also a bias knob that increases voltage to the two germanium transistors when turned clockwise, yielding more clarity and smooth sustain as you go. Counterclockwise, the equally outstanding sputtering sounds come into play. For a 3-knob fuzz box it’s a tad costly, but for some players it might be the last stop in the search for holy grail Fuzz Face-style sounds.
MayFly’s Le Habanero Boost and Fuzz pedal, designed with input from Trevor May and Lucas Haneman, offers a wide range of tonal options from clean to scream. Responsive to player touch and guitar volume, stack the Boost and Fuzz for endless sustain and harmonics. Perfect for exploring your inner David Gilmour.
MayFly’s Trevor May and LH Express’ Lucas Haneman have been cooking upsomething real good. Le Habanero is a dual boost and fuzz pedal specifically designed to be very responsive tothe player’s picking hand and the guitar’s volume control. With Lucas’ input, the pedal was specifically tweakedto give a ton of tonal options, from clean to scream, by just using your fingers. It heats up your tone with a tastyboost, scorching lead tones with the fuzz, tantalizing tastes of extreme heat when boost and fuzz are combined.
The boost side is designed to ride the edge between clean and grit. Keep the drive below 12 o’clock for cleanboost but with active treble and bass controls, or push the gain for clear/clean sustain with great note definition.
The fuzz side is tuned to match the tonality of the boost side and offers a load of sustain and harmonics. The fuzz features a unique two-pole filter circuit and deep switch to help match it with single coils or humbuckers.
Stacking the Boost and Fuzz gives you even more. Want to explore your inner David Gilmour? Switch both onand turn up the volume! Want to switch to Little Wing? Turn the volume back down.
- Combination Boost and Fuzz pedal, designed to work well together.
- Very responsive to guitar volume and player’s touch.
- Use Boost and Fuzz independently, or stack them.
- Boost features Treble, Bass, Volume, and Drive controls.
- Fuzz features a two pole Tone filter, Deep switch, Fuzz and Volume controls.
- Stack them to create endless sustain and plenty of harmonics.
- Wide form factor for better footswitch control live.
- Full bypass using relays, with Mayfly’s Failsafe circuitry.
- Suggested Pairing: add a dash of Le Habanaro to spice up a MayFly Sunrise guitar amp simulator!
MAP price: $185
For more information, please visit mayflyaudio.com.