Guitarist Grace Bowers is a 17-year old California transplant tearing it up in Nashville. Currently working on her first album with producer John Osborne of the Brothers Osborne, Bowers invited John Bohlinger and the PG team to walk through her studio and live rig.
Brought to you by
Molly Tuttle Knows: https://ddar.io/tuttle-rr
XPND Pedalboard: https://ddar.io/xpnd_rr
D’Addario: https://ddar.io/wykyk-rr
Mostly Stock Special
Bowers’ number-one is her mostly stock 1961 Gibson SG Special. The P90s and the skinny neck are a perfect fit for her style. The tuners were changed at some point, and the whammy is no longer attached, but the rest of the axe is original. This guitar and all others are strung with D’Addario .010s.
Osbourne's ES
For PAF humbucker tone on the album, Grace plays John Osborne’s all-stock 1960 Gibson ES-335.
With a Little Help From Her Friends
The one acoustic on the album is this 1968 Gibson 12-string acoustic, on loan from a friend.
Deluxe Simplicity
Bowers keeps it simple with a stock, new-ish Fender Deluxe Reverb amp.
It's Not a Phase, Mom!
Bowers’ pedal setup includes a Dunlop Crybaby Wah, Grindstone Audio Solutions Night Shade Drive, EarthQuaker Devices Tone Job, MXR Phase 90, MXR Phase 95, and Boss DD-2. Bowers powers them with a Voodoo Labs Pedal Power ISO-5.
Shop Grace Bowers' Rig
Gibson SG Special - Vintage Cherry
Gibson ES-335 Semi-Hollowbody Electric Guitar
Gibson Acoustic J-45 12-string Acoustic-Electric Guitar
Fender '68 Custom Deluxe Reverb 1x12" Combo Amp
Dunlop CBJ95 Cry Baby Junior Wah Pedal
MXR Phase 90
Boss DD-3T
EarthQuaker Devices Tone Job V2
Voodoo Lab Pedal Power ISO-5
D'Addario NYXL1046 NYXL Nickel Wound Electric Guitar Strings - .010-.046 Regular Light
Wayne Kramer in the ’90s.
Kramer was just 19 when his career began with the founding of the Motor City 5 in Detroit, alongside fellow guitarist Fred Smith, singer Rob Tyner, bassist Michael Davis, and drummer Dennis Thompson in 1963. The group were as tough and complicated as their hometown—musical firebrands, playing with an energy and intensity rarely seen in the then still-evolving rock genre—and Kramer performed like Chuck Berry and Sun Ra in one body. Which made sense, for while rock was their voice, they embraced the cultural explosion of the times in all its glory, including free jazz, and in particular figures like John Coltrane and Sun Ra, whose music reflected the Black freedom struggle in its themes as well as the purity of self-expression.
As a result, before Hendrix began recording, the MC5 were blazing a trail in rock improvisation. “We attacked that concept like a dog on a steak,” Kramer told me at our first meeting in the ’90s, which was arranged by our mutual friend, the band’s original manager and counterculture icon John Sinclair. “The people we idolized were Coltrane, Sun Ra, Albert Ayler, Cecil Taylor … and the Yardbirds and the Who. We saw a connection between those kinds of music. I was pushing Chuck Berry-inspired solos into the territory Coltrane was in. We cultivated music in the moment, coming up with it on the spot. Taking risks is what makes something unique, no matter what it is.”
“It’s those moments when everyone in the room is on the same wavelength, and the barriers between us explode.” —Wayne Kramer
And so, for their raw, unbridled, and at times practically unhinged sonic attack, the MC5 are an important element in the bedrock of punk rock. “The context of punk,” Kramer explained, “is to try to move away from the status quo and do things of principle that are of value. Most people today understand it as something that’s been commodified to mean Green Day or the Offspring, which are mainstream music business success stories, not my understanding of what punk really meant.”
The MC5 almost immediately became a cultural force, in both music and American politics. “Kick out the jams, mother****ers,” the shout that singer Rob Tyner used to lead the charge of their every performance, became not only a call to rock, but a call of the rising tide of youth culture in America. On their own turf, the band used its record-deal advance, the largest scored by a rock group at the time, and concert proceeds to fund a food kitchen and for their local community’s medical needs.
After raising the ire of the American political establishment with a conflagrant performance in Lincoln Park, Chicago, during the 1968 Democratic Convention, they landed in the crosshairs of the authorities and their slow erosion began, complicated also by drug use and other internal conflicts, and the arrest and imprisonment in 1969 of their colorful manager Sinclair, who had founded the White Panther Party in support of the Black Panthers, and later co-founded the Ann Arbor Blues & Jazz Festival.
The MC5’s battle cry of a live album, from 1969.
Nonetheless, by then the MC5 had laid enough groundwork to be widely acknowledged as progenitors of punk rock (by virtually everyone but the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, in which they surely deserved a place while Kramer was alive). Drummer Dennis Thompson remains the only surviving member of the original recording band, which broke up in 1972.
That spirit of activism and DIY creativity stayed with Kramer throughout his career—although it was sidelined by a four-year prison sentence in the mid 1970s for selling drugs to an undercover agent. While in prison in Lexington, Kentucky, he met Red Rodney, who was also incarcerated there on a drug charge. The jazz trumpet genius took Kramer under his wing and continued Kramer’s musical education in prison.
After serving his time, Kramer moved to New York City and teamed up for a short-lived band with Johnny Thunders, and produced and played in a series of other groups. He also worked as a carpenter during a brief stint in Nashville. But in 1991, he ignited his solo career with a series of albums, including the beautiful gut punch of 1995’s The Hard Stuff, which features his acolytes from the Melvins and the Vandals. These albums blended Kramer’s songs and his poetry set to music, and his list of collaborators grew to include Dee Dee Ramone, Chris Spedding, Bad Religion, David Was, Nels Cline, and, perhaps most importantly, kindred spirit Tom Morello, for whom the MC5 and Kramer were profoundly influential. Kramer eventually launched his own record label and a U.S. branch of Jail Guitar Doors—the latter an offshoot of the U.K. organization started by Billy Bragg, dedicated to reforming inmates through music.
The classic MC5 lineup.
Kramer never lost his vitality onstage and, after 2011, always played the Stratocaster signature model that Fender created for him that year, with an American-flag finish and a humbucker in the middle position. Starting in 2018, Kramer put together a band he named the MC50, to tour in celebration of the 50th anniversary of the MC5’s 1969 live album Kick Out the Jams, the most furious document of their aesthetic. The band performed the MC5’s music with brass-knuckled perfection, and included Soundgarden’s Kim Thayil, Fugazi’s drummer Brendan Canty, and Zen Guerilla frontman Marcus Durant. And Kramer, then 71, led the fray with the snarl and pounce of his 19-year-old self, always heading the charge with solos that were brash, raw, and expressive, displaying his love of free jazz with unpredictable melodic lines, flurries of notes not unlike triple tonguing, and jagged riffs, and laying down self-assured and powerful chording that could drive a spike through a wall. And he did it all with a warm, midrange-ripe tiger’s growl snarling from his amps—then Fender DeVilles, rather than the 100-watt Marshalls stacks he played through with the MC5.
During that tour, in 2019, Wayne was profiled in Premier Guitar by Bill Murphy, when his fascinating autobiography, The Hard Stuff: Crime, Dope, the MC5, and My Life of Impossibilities, was published. Astonishingly, Kramer’s final recording project is an album under the MC5 name, featuring the band’s original drummer on two tracks, Don Was, Morello, Vernon Reid, and Slash—and produced by Bob Ezrin. The release of the album, Heavy Lifting, is scheduled for this spring.
Morello issued this statement following Kramer’s death: “His band the MC5 basically invented punk rock music. Wayne came through personal trials of fire with drugs and jail time and emerged a transformed soul who went on to save countless lives through his tireless acts of service.”
When I last spoke with Wayne, when the MC50 played at Nashville’s Exit/In, he still extolled his belief in the magic of the moment. “To be right there, in a club, and to hear somebody play something they’ve never played before—to take a chance, to allow risks.… It’s those moments when everyone in the room is on the same wavelength, and the barriers between us explode.”
YouTube It
Listen to the MC50 and Wayne Kramer kick out the jams, mother****ers! One more time....
Taylor 314ce LTD
Martin Inception Maple
Blackstar ID:Core
Vox V846 Wah
Silvertone Baritone
Silvertone’s Rick Taylor showed us the company’s late spring entry in the nuevo-retro 6-string sweepstakes—a super comfortable lightweight (naturally) baritone with a 28" scale and the company’s classic lipstick pickups, built to be tuned B to B. Price tag: an attractive $399.
Radial Nuance Select
Radial, whose products for studio and stage include the famed Tonebone preamp, has just released the Nuance Select studio monitor controller—in time for NAMM 2024. The aptly named Nuance allows you to silently switch between two sets of monitors and a subwoofer, has dual stereo inputs with an aux out, two independent headphone amps, and ultra-low distortion of transparency. The tag? $699.
Spector Basses
Revv Generator 120
Celestion Pulse XI
Celestion’s got the big bottom covered with their new line of bass speakers, the Pulse Xl series in 15", 12", 10" and horn. Punchy, responsive, with rich full frequency sound and articulation, they boast long voice coils for a deeper bass sound and greater clarity, wound with round copper for the right taste of treble, formed on heat retardant polyimide. Hit celestion.com for more.
Aguilar AG Preamp
Darkglass Combo 500
Huss & Dalton Electric Guitars
Seymour Duncan Powerstage 100 Stereo
Seymour Duncan’s Powerstage 100 Stereo takes their portable—and lightweight!—line of power amps to the next level with more power, more EQ, and, of course, stereo capabilities! Priced at $599, they’re available now.
Positive Grid's Spark Live
NUX B-8
The NUX B-8 brings advanced wireless capabilities straight to your board with 160 foot range. Features include tuning and boost capabilities and loads of screen options. Available now for $319 street.
Cherub Products
Mooer GE1000
Mooer’s new GE1000 multi-effects unit delivers a multitude of stomp box functionality in a touchscreen-equipped unit with mappable expression pedal and Bluetooth capability. Priced at $528/$599 (battery powered), they’re available now.
Eko Marco Polo MM
Eastman Henry James Signature Juliet
Lag Sauvage DCE
Red Panda Radius
Red Panda’s new Radius pedal has loads of deep tones to discover. Ostensibly a ring mod/frequency shifter, its unique controls will allow you to head to the outer limits with phase-shifting, tremolo sounds, and much, much more! Priced at $349, they’re available now.
Balaguer Select Custom Guitars
Balaguer Guitars just announced their Select Custom line of highly customized models based on their existing body shapes. Customers can choose scale length, wood, binding, finish, and electronics. All at fairly reasonable prices. You can head over to their website now to play with their online guitar designer.
Santa Cruz Vault Series
Santa Cruz’s Vault Series is built upon the idea of using very old reclaimed wood that master luthier Richard Hoover has been saving for decades. This D-style model uses Brazilian Rosewood from the Bryn Athena Cathedral for the back and sides and master grade Fort Ross Chapel redwood for the top. Nearly every part of this build is immaculate and the craftsmanship pushes the limits of modern lutherie. The price? $70,000.
Third Man Hardware and Donner Triple Threat
Donner and Third Man Hardware just released a new collaboration aimed at guitarists who need a simple and portable multi-effects solution. For $99 you get echo, phaser, and distortion.
Victory Amps MK Clean
Collings Guitars
Collings is offering NAMM visitors a glimpse into some models to come, from sleek solidbodies to an all-new dreadnought. These prototypes aren’t available yet, but they’re here for everyone to get a peek at their vision for the future.
Two Notes Genome
Two notes’ Genome offers deep functionality with loads of amp and pedal models on hand. It’s interface makes it easy to find exactly what you’re looking for and dial it in. Priced at $79.95, it’s free for any existing Two notes hardware or DynIR cab customers.
Reverend Billy Corgan Drop Z and the Chris Freeman Signature
That’s Reverend’s Ken Haas with the two new signature models the company debuted at NAMM 2024: the Billy Corgan Drop Z (right, in Billy’s favored satin pearl white finish) and the Chris Freeman model. The Drop Z is designed for drop tuning, with a 24-fret, 26.22" scale neck, an alder body and Railhammer Billy Corgan Z-One pickups. The Chris Freeman has a bridge Railhammer Nuevo 90 and a neck P-90, with rear-mounted volume, tone, and bass contour controls, a 3-way pickup switch, and double kill switches—a toggle and a kill button, It’s available in the turquoise sparkle finish on the 6-string Ken’s holding, or powder yellow. The Drop Z streets for $1,499 and the Freeman at $1,199.
L.R. Baggs HiFi Duet
The L.R. Baggs HiFi Duet is a brand new update to the company’s popular HiFi, now with a studio quality bridge-plate microphone that is blendable with the contact sensors. Pricing and availability coming soon.
Eventide Riptide
Mackie Showbox
Chibson Protoypes
Iris/Circle Strings Guitars
Gamechanger Audio Mod Series
Gamechanger Audio released an entire new line of pedals at NAMM. The Mod series combines their penchant for inventive, time-based effects with their love for modular synth-style controls. There are literally thousands of ways to control these effects including via pitch and dynamics. For example, you can set a target note and everything either above or below it can be affected by any parameter. Production will start in March and they will be $299 each.
Peterson StroboClip HDC Tuner
The Peterson StroboClip HDC brings the company’s popular sweetener offerings right to your headstock. This new rechargeable model works for 6 hours of continuous use on a single charge and the quick charge circuit delivers 90 more minutes of use on a two minute charge. Available now for $79.
Danelectro Fifty-Niner
Lichtlaerm Audio Amps
Newcomers Lichtlaerm Audio gave us a tour of their custom-build Prometheus head and Fane-loaded 4x12 cab. Loaded with features, your own will be available within a month or two of order, plus shipping time from Germany, at a starting price of $2,700.
Godin Lerxst Limelight
One of the higher profile releases of the show was Godin's collaboration with Rush guitarist Alex Lifeson. The Lerxst Limelight is based on Lifeson's '80s-era model and is outfitted with either a Floyd Rose setup or the Vega-Trem VT1 shown here. The pickups were made by MojoTone and overall, the guitar feels and sounds incredible. Streets for $4,000.
Divided by 13 FTR 37
Divided by 13 relaunched after their acquisition by Two-Rock at the show with this FTR 37. It's a muscular 6V6 circuit with two discreet channels, reverb, push/pull gain boost, and a half-power switch. If you're a fan of Fullerton-style sounds, than this might be just the setup for you. It has a full-bodied clean tone and a rich breakup sound that's dynamic with plenty of sparkle.
Aeroband Guitars
The Aeroband guitar looks like a wild glimpse into the future—and also back into the ‘80s—but with its app capability, the company is touting the education possibilities it has to offer. Also, it’s fun. Priced at $500, it’s available now.
Supro Delegate Custom
Supro enters the boutique amp market with the mighty 1x12 Delegate Custom, inspired by the Aristocrat amp Muddy Waters used for the Live at Newport album … but supercharged. With a custom-colored wraparound cabinet, it’s all hand-built in Ohio with Mercury Magnetics transformers, period-correct Mallory caps, a custom 12” Celestion Greenback, 3-band EQ, and master volume. It’s got a 12AT7 driving the spring reverb, two 6V6 power tubes, and three 12AX7s. The tag: $3,299, and there’s a 2x12 big sibling, too. It’s Supro mastermind David Koltai’s (in photo) latest pride and joy.
KMA Machine Endgame
KMA Machine's Endgame Duality Calibrator might be one of the most feature-packed stomps at the show. It has an exhaustive amount of I/O options but the centerpieces are the automatic double tracker and the switchable IR loader. Other highlights include dual headphone outputs, XLR outputs, Bluetooth capability, stereo effects loop, ambience control, and loads more.
Strandberg Boden Essential
Strandberg's Boden Essential is the company's first sub-$1k guitar. It retains the same look and feel of the other models, but uses locally sourced Indonesian wood to help keep the price down. Ola told us that the pickups are the same as in the standard model, but the hardware is reengineered for durability and sustainability.
Godin Arena Pro
Godin is debuting a pair of all-black nylon-string guitars. The Arena Pro is a LTD Onyx Black is a single cut with a solid cedar top and Canadian wild cherry black and sides, plus top-mounted volume and tone controls. They’ve paired it with a new addition to their Multiac Mundial line in matching onyx black accoutrements. These guitars are available now and priced at $1,099 and $1,299 respectively.
Godin Fifth Ave
Godin Session T-Pro Hangover
Friedman Amplification Plexi Vintage Series
Not surprisingly, Dave Friedman created a vintage plexi-style amp that absolutely rips. It's based on an EL34 design, a familiar control setup, and plenty of juice.
Circle Strings Languedoc
Adam Buchwald's burgeoning Vermont guitar empire will take on a new collaboration in 2024. Famed luthier Paul Languedoc has agreed to have Buchwald steward the production of the G2 and G4 models made famous by Phish's Trey Anastasio. Paul will still be making the G2 models while the G4 line will be created in Buchwald's shop (although some elements of the G4 will continue to be handmade by Paul). The G2s will be extremely limited and run north of $60k, but the G4s, when available, will be $16,000.
T-Rex Binson Echorec
The Binson Echorec by T-Rex isn’t new this year, but it sure is cool. It sounds exactly like you think it should, and does all the tricks of the classic units.