Pedals can help you improvise throughout the whole creative process. Just plug in, turn on, and don't make a plan.
I'm bad at planning music.
I don't mean I'm too reckless—the opposite. I plan too much. I plan when I don't really want to get down to work, or I want to pretend that I'm working. It satisfies the imagination. It all unfolds before me in real-time. All the pieces fit and it's a triumph. Good job, me.
Good job doing nothing.
Beyond the sloth of it all, I've realized that my plans just never work out. Orchestrating instrumentation, conceptualizing songs, setting up my studio…. I'm always wrong. Sometimes this means I waste money. Always it means I waste time.
I think everyone has their own planning peak. It's like The Price Is Right. If you don't get close enough to that peak, things are a mess and you don't go home with a new microwave. But if you shoot past that peak, you end up dulling your instincts, and then you definitely don't go home with a new microwave. You end up serving your plans, instead of the other way around.
Plans live in the land of pure logic. They don't have a sound.
I've realized that I need to leave most things up to chance. In another metaphor where I'm now a gardener, I'm at my best when I don't know what I'm planting. Put seeds in dirt, wait. Maybe I'll get some beans this year. That's my formula for success, and, oh boy, has it taken me a long time to realize that. It doesn't make sense. It definitely makes things harder than they need to be, and that's the point. Plans live in the land of pure logic. They don't have a sound. You can't plan for an inspiring texture to bound out of a pedal and change the whole direction of the song. Another way of thinking about it is: improvising throughout the whole musical process, instead of just the performance.
To me, it feels a lot like hiking (yeah, we're doing metaphors today). You plan your route, you wear long pants because ticks are scary, you should probably bring some water. Okay. But from there you just start walking. You don't decide what will happen every step of the way, what kind of mushrooms you'll see. Things just start happening around you. It's a gentle and receptive practice, and all you need to do is just keep taking steps.
This really is what I tell myself when I sit down these days. It's impossible to know where the song is going, or what it is, even, and that's daunting and uncomfortable. So I just start doing things, and it can't help but take shape.
Maybe this time it's beans.
- Builder Profile: JHS Pedals - Premier Guitar | The best guitar and ... ›
- DIY: How to Repair a Wet Pedal - Premier Guitar | The best guitar ... ›
- Monster Mutilators: Vintage Guitar Synth Pedals | Premier Guitar ›
- Tone Tips: A Crash Course on Buffers - Premier Guitar | The best ... ›
- State of the Stomp: More Sounds from Fewer Pedals - Premier Guitar ›
- GALLERY: 40 Creepy Pedals for Halloween - Premier Guitar | The ... ›
- Killer Pedals Under $100 - Premier Guitar | The best guitar and bass ... ›
- Using Pedals And Maintaining Good Tone - Premier Guitar | The ... ›
- When Exactly Did "Boutique Pedals" Become a Thing? - Premier ... ›
- Universal Audio Announces UAFX Effects Pedals - Premier Guitar ... ›
- When Exactly Did "Boutique Pedals" Become a Thing? - Premier Guitar ›
- Killer Pedals Under $100 - Premier Guitar ›
- Killer Pedals Under $100 - Premier Guitar ›
- Tone Tips: A Crash Course on Buffers - Premier Guitar ›
It’s almost over, but there’s still time to win! Enter Stompboxtober Day 30 for your shot at today’s pedal from SoloDallas!
The Schaffer Replica: Storm
The Schaffer Replica Storm is an all-analog combination of Optical Limiter+Harmonic Clipping Circuit+EQ Expansion+Boost+Line Buffer derived from a 70s wireless unit AC/DC and others used as an effect. Over 50 pros use this unique device to achieve percussive attack, copious harmonics and singing sustain.
Developed specifically for Tyler Bryant, the Black Magick Reverb TB is the high-power version of Supro's flagship 1x12 combo amplifier.
At the heart of this all-tube amp is a matched pair of military-grade Sovtek 5881 power tubes configured to deliver 35-Watts of pure Class A power. In addition to the upgraded power section, the Black Magick Reverb TB also features a “bright cap” modification on Channel 1, providing extra sparkle and added versatility when blended with the original Black Magick preamp on Channel 2.
The two complementary channels are summed in parallel and fed into a 2-band EQ followed by tube-driven spring reverb and tremolo effects plus a master volume to tame the output as needed. This unique, signature variant of the Black Magick Reverb is dressed in elegant Black Scandia tolex and comes loaded with a custom-built Supro BD12 speaker made by Celestion.
Price: $1,699.
Kevin Shields of My Bloody Valentine is one of the loudest guitarists around. And he puts his volume to work creating mythical tones that have captured so many of our imaginations, including our special shoegaze correspondent, guitarist and pedal-maestro Andy Pitcher, who is our guest today.
My Bloody Valentine has a short discography made up of just a few albums and EPs that span decades. Meticulous as he seems to be, Shields creates texture out of his layers of tracks and loops and fuzz throughout, creating a music that needs to be felt as much as it needs to be heard.
We go to the ultimate source as Billy Corgan leaves us a message about how it felt to hear those sounds in the pre-internet days, when rather than pull up a YouTube clip, your imagination would have to guide you toward a tone.
But not everyone is an MBV fan, so this conversation is part superfan hype and part debate. We can all agree Kevin Shields is a guitarists you should know, but we can’t all agree what to do with that information.
This episode is sponsored by Fender.
Learn more: https://www.fender.com./
Introducing the Martin M-6 and M-7 Johnny Marr signature guitars, featuring a unique seven-string configuration to honor Marr's sound.
The standout feature of the Martin M-7 is its unique seven-string configuration, adding an octave G string to the mix. This design delivers Marr’s unmistakable jangle, making it perfect for replicating the lush, intricate sounds of his most iconic tracks. Also available as a standard six-string model, the M-6, and designed in close collaboration with Marr, these guitars feature a genuine mahogany neck with a full-thickness profile and slightly thinner width at the nut for a unique feel, allowing for fluid transitions and complex chord structures.
Wide like a Jumbo with the thickness of a 000, its Grand Auditorium (0000/M) body size ensures plenty of comfort and projection while offering a precise distinction between the treble and bass. Equipped with LR Baggs Anthem electronics, these guitars ensure your sound is perfectly captured on stage or in the studio with volume, mix, mic level, and phase controls.
“I've now got my own signature guitar that makes me sound like in the studio when I've put this really great old compressor on it with a great mic and a little hint of the high string in there,” says Marr. “All of these things that I do on record using a few guitars, I've all got it in the one guitar that I can carry around with me, and if I go play with a pal or go and guest with someone, I sound like me.”
Marr’s history with Martin guitars is storied – his beloved 1971 D-28 has been the backbone of several classic Smiths songs, including “There Is a Light That Never Goes Out” and “Cemetry Gates.” The M-6 and M-7 pay homage to that legacy while ushering in a new era of sonic possibilities. A hardshell case and exclusive Souldier™ strap are included.
For more information, please visit martinguitar.com.