For years now, I’ve had Siri address me as Lizard King. Not in homage to Jim Morrison, but in tribute to the true king of the saurians, Godzilla. So, naturally, I was intrigued by the Lizard Queen octave/distortion, a collaboration between Electro-Harmonix and JHS Pedals. Besides, I’m always on the prowl for something that growls. And this silicon-transistor-based octave-up fuzz possesses a voice that’s monstrous yet controllable and reactive in ways that make it easier to dial in classic, articulate fuzz tones than many other octave/fuzz devices at or above its very reasonable price.
The Lizard’s Tale
This box of hair was a labor of love, created by JHS Pedals founder Josh Scott and artist Daniel Danger in an effort to conjure a mythical “lost” EHX fuzz pedal from the 1970s. They built a half-dozen in 2022, and presented one to EHX major-domo Mike Matthews. Scott and Danger even made a video about building the Lizard Queen, which created a groundswell of demand from pedal freaks, resulting in this EHX/JHS co-branded unit.
The Lizard Queen is a simple and potent device with three dials: volume, octave, and balance. The octave control ranges from zero (to the left) to a full high-octave setting (to the right). For fans of articulate-but-gnarly fuzz, the pedal sings quite nicely with this dial set between noon and 4 o’clock. The balance control is a filter that shifts between “shadow” (to the left) and “sun” (to the right) settings. Naturally, shadow rolls off highs to create a darker tone, and sun adds treble in a way that sizzles without compromising the organic voice of your guitar. A sweet spot lies right up the middle.
Finally, the very potent volume knob controls the master output. Along with judicious positioning of the octave and dial controls, it assures your fuzz-laden licks will not get lost in a mix. Ever. The volume dial does not, however, affect pedal gain. That’s fixed at a nicely clipped, low level that, to my ears, zeroes in on a template late-’60s/early-’70s fuzz sound—reminiscent of the Electric Prunes or the Guess Who.
Battle of the Boxes
To test the Lizard Queen, I played it against a few octave fuzz pedals I have on hand—mostly notably the Way Huge Purple Platypus, which has a three-dial setup with similar functions. The amp was my Carr Vincent, and I plugged in a variety of single-coil- and humbucker-equipped guitars. The most interesting discovery was how the guitar’s volume dial interacts with the balance control. Keeping the dial to the shadow side or up the middle, with the guitar’s volume on 7 or so, allowed for restrained-but-gnarly chords. Then, rolling the 6-string volume up toward 10 for solos radically increased sizzle-and-bite for both single-coil and humbucking pickups, but without compromising note articulation. Quite impressive. By the way, the Lizard Queen runs on a 9V DC barrel-type power supply, or, in a suitable salute to the past, a battery, and draws 5 mA.
It was easy to find great, classic-fuzz voices within the Lizard Queen. And compared to the other pedals I tried, the Queen reigned with its balance of fuzz and articulation. It’s perfect for solos that conjure the Nuggets era. The circuit is punchy and lucid, with crisp, articulate sounds that lapse into diffusion only when one ventures too far down the shadow zone’s slope. My favorite setting for rave-ups put the volume at 10 o’clock, the octave at 3 o’clock, and the balance at noon—and with a slide, it made for dirty, sustained perfection. But temperance is key. Too much octave or balance makes for a diminished tone or a mushier fuzz, but anywhere in the 9 o’clock to 3 or 4 o’clock range on those dials is sonic manna.
The Verdict
At $99 street, the Lizard Queen octave/distortion is a bargain and a magic-carpet ride back to the golden era of fuzztone. Its three controls makes it easy to dial in classic sounds that can also be highly reactive to guitar volume. And while many fuzz boxes can get lost in the blast of a full band onstage, the Lizard Queen—with its impressive output—will have no trouble slithering to the front of the mix. PG
Electro-Harmonix x JHS Lizard Queen Octave Fuzz Pedal
![Rig Rundown: Rival Sons' Scott Holiday [2023]](https://www.premierguitar.com/media-library/rig-rundown-rival-sons-scott-holiday-2023.jpg?id=33810150&width=1245&height=700&quality=85&coordinates=0%2C0%2C0%2C0)
It’s all about the yin and yang … and the heavy guitar tones when Scott Holiday of Rival Sons plugs in and rocks out onstage. This year, the band has got something special cooking: a pair of albums, the just-released Darkfighter and the upcoming Lightbringer, speaking of yin and yang.
On the current Darkfighter tour, Rival Sons recently stopped at Nashville’s Marathon Music Works and invited PG onboard their stage for a tour of Scott’s gear. He’s made some changes since his 2017 Rig Rundown. He’s still a Firebird devotee, and that epic moustache is untouchable. But there are plenty of 6-string additions and some big changes in the amp department. Check it out!
Brought to you by D’Addario AutoLock.
Original Recipe
This 1999 Gibson Custom Firebird VII, aka “Bluebird,” is Scott Holiday’s first avian. He uses a custom set of Dunlop strings—typically .011–.050.
This custom-built Yamaha is tuned to C#-F#-C# F#-A#-C#—essentially, a variation on open C sharp.
Double the Fun...
He also has a few specially made doublenecks, including a Banker Custom that gives Holiday a baritone tuned A to A and a second standard-tuned neck.
And Double to Love!
Plus this semi-hollow Kauer Super Chief doubleneck that gives him a 12-string/6-string combination. Surprise! Both necks are tuned to DADGAD.
King of Birds
Holiday calls this ’Bird-inspired Kauer his “Excalibur,” for its comfort, dependability, and big, dominating tone.
More Hot Wings, Please
This Banker Custom Flying V features a Bigsby, at the risk of writing the obvious, and it stays in standard tuning. Thank you, Lonnie Mack!
Ice Bird
This custom-built Gretsch Penguin lives in D-standard tuning and has Gretsch’s own flair on the classic whammy formula.
Peacocking
This custom Gretsch Falcon lives in Standard tuning. (Notice the unusual bird adorning the pickguard per Holiday's request in keeping with Gretsch's fowl flags on their instruments.)
Offset Flier
This 1962 Fender Jazzmaster is tuned C#-F#-C#-F#-A#-C# and was Holiday's first major vintage-guitar purchase.
Spiral Flier
Holiday crunches like a tube amp player, but what you are hearing is a Line 6 Helix into a Seymour Duncan PowerStage pedal amplifier, which drives an Orange 4x12 and a Supro 2x12. But it also has a lot of effects going into it. Read on!
Scott Holiday's Amps and Effects
Here’s the break-down of Scott Holiday’s multiple-board system. At right, there’s a Custom Audio Electronics Wah, ZVEX Fuzz Probe, a Way Huge Attack Vector, and a Custom Audio Electronics Line Driver, plus a juiced-up kitty cat delivering the power. The middle board holds the Line 6 Helix, with four Dunlop expression pedals. And the final board is a Custom Audio Electronics RS-T MIDI Foot Controller that is used to patch in effects from offstage boards that contain an Electro-Harmonix Micro Synth, a Way Huge Atreides Analog Weirding Module, a Deep Trip Hellbender, a kossekFX Kraken multi-octave fuzz, a Victory Kraken Preamp, a Keeley Synth 1, an Isle of Tone fuzz, two Vox Time Machines, an Electro-Harmonix POG, a Way Huge Ring Worm, a Sweet Sound Mojo Vibe, a Strymon Mobius, a Line 6 DL4, and a Caroline Guitar Company Météore Lo-Fi Reverb.
