On the road with the history-making engineer, producer, and artist, this guitarist keeps it simple.
Jeff Kollman is a lifelong gigging guitarist whose resume stretches from Deep Purpleās Glenn Hughes to Chad Smithās Bombastic Meatbats. Since 2017, heās been performing with famed engineer, producer, and songwriter Alan Parsons, who worked on Abbey Road, Dark Side of the Moon, and a host of other records that youāve probably owned for decades. It should come as no surprise, then, that as a member of the Alan Parsons Project, Kollmanās gig is to sound great. And he does so with a quick-and-easy rig.
After getting into Nashvilleās Ryman Auditorium from a sweaty gig from the night before in Georgia, the band got set up and PGās John Bohlinger rolled in to catch up with Kollman about his simple road setup.
Brought to you by DāAddario.
Inspiring and Practical
Kollman has a pair of No. 1ās he takes on the road. The first is this all-stock SG Faded Special he picked up used for $560, which he points out is āreally resonantā and āreally woody,ā with great sustain. āIt inspires me,ā he says, āand itās inspiring, I think, to kids to know they donāt have to spend five grand on a guitar.ā
The SG stays in Kollmanās drop tuning with the low E dropped to C and the A dropped to G. He keeps all his guitars strung with Ernie Ball Super Slinkys (.009ā.046).
Surfy Strat
Kollmanās other No. 1 is a ā59 reissue Strat from Wildwood Guitars in Colorado. It features a Brazilian rosewood fretboard and John Cruz custom-wound pickups in the neck and middle. The guitarist isnāt entirely sure what humbucker is in the bridge position, but itās low output, coil tapped, and he loves it. This Strat stays in standard tuning.
A Lucky Les Paul
Kollman received a tip from pal Greg Koch that this Les Paul, from a limited edition run of featherweight LPs built for Wildwood Guitars, is a ātone beast,ā so he jumped on it. At 7.98 pounds, it came as advertised. Kollman loaded it up with an original vintage set of PAFs.
Easy Amp Recipe
Since the Parsons Project does lots of fly dates, Kollman needs a tone recipe for an amp he can find anywhere. He requests a Marshall JCM2000, uses both the clean and dirty channels, and says, āI can flop and go in 5 minutes and have my sound,ā while showing off the EVH-style dirt and āethereal cleansā he can dial-up.
Functional and Fun
Kollman rolls with a pair of pedalboards built by Japanās Free the Tone. The first is his practical board that is loaded up with an Xotic EP Booster, SP Compressor, and a pair of RC Boosters; some signature gear he co-designed with Tim Jauernig that includes his F-Bomb 3, Kollmanation distortion, and a Zhingh-Whundh (which he says is on the down-low currently);
an Ibanez Tube Screamer TS-808, and a Vemuram Jan Ray dirt box. Theyāre complemented with a Free the Tone Flight Time Digital Delay and Ambi Space Digital Reverb, and itās all kept in tune with a TC Electronic PolyTune. Kollman only steps on his Free the Tone Direct Volume and his Free the Tone ARC-3 Audio Routing Controller.
His second board is ājust toysā and includes a DigiTech Digidelay, a signature Tim Jauernig Bombastortion, another TS808, a Free the Tone Tri Avatar Multi-Dimensional Chorus, Boss OC-2 Octave, an Octavia clone prototype built by Tim Jauernig, a DigiTech EX-7 Expression Factory, and an MXR Custom Audio Electronics buffer.
Shop Jeff Kollman's Rig
- Rig Rundown: Todd Rundgren āŗ
- Studio Legends: Alan Parsons on "Dark Side of the Moon" āŗ
- Forgotten Heroes: Clarence White āŗ
The iconic alt-rock duo leans on floor modelers to execute their carefully choreographed live shows.
Along with contemporaries like MGMT and Passion Pit, Greenwich, New York, duo Phantogramās experiments crosspollinating hip-hop, indie, and punk rock helped cement and elevate a new era of electronic-influenced alt-rock and indie music. At the start of the 2010s, youād be hard-pressed to find a college radio station or dorm-room playlist that didnāt include a Phantogram hit.
Sixteen years after the release of their debut record, band leaders Josh Carter and Sarah Barthel, who started Phantogram in a town of just a few thousand people, are touring behind their latest full-length, 2024ās Memory of a Day. The tour included a sold-out stop at Nashvilleās Ryman Auditoriumāa different sort of barn than the kind they used to perform in back in Greenwichāwhere PGās John Bohlinger caught up with Carter and Barthel. Courtesy of some help from their tech, the duo showed us how theyāre pulling off their theatrical live experience.
Brought to you by DāAddario
XPND - Pedal Power Battery Kit: https://ddar.io/power-rr
XPND - Adjustable Daisy Chain: https://ddar.io/daisychain-rr
XPND - Isolator: https://ddar.io/isolator-rr
Music Mantogram
Carter is endorsed by Ernie Ball Music Man guitars, so all three of his road axes are variations on his current favorite Cutlass model. This one, first among the trio, is finished in black with a gold pickguard, and like its stablemates, it bears the Phantogram logo inlaid on the first fret. Carter removes the vibrato bar and uses his hand to pull the bridge up to nail the warbles. Aside from that, this one is all stock, and strung with Ernie Ball Paradigm .010s. While he sometimes grabs a pick, Carter plays most of the set with an acrylic nail on his index finger.
Brown Sound
This first backup Cutlass is finished in brown with the woodgrain peeking through and a burgundy tortoiseshell pickguard. It has a Seymour Duncan single-coil-sized humbucker in the bridge position for a hotter output than its black counterpart.
Step It Up
This natural finish Cutlass has had the same pickup mod as the brown one, but this one stays tuned a half-step up for special deployment.
Clean Business
Carter uses a wireless system to run to this Neural DSP Quad Cortex at his feet. His tech has set it up to emulate many of the pedals Carter uses in the studio. Carter appreciates the tactile and flexible nature of the system; it can take MIDI programming so Carter can focus on performing, or it can be rigged up to function like a traditional pedalboard. He uses a mix of amp emulations, including AC30-, 5150-, Fender tweed-, and Jazz Chorus-style patches.
A Boss volume and expression pedal alongside the Quad Cortex give Carter some extra control over the setup.
Josh Carter's Pedalboard Playground
While Carter carried a compact stomp station for tour, heās addicted to stompboxes and uses them for inspiration when writing and sound building during studio sessions. Hereās what a small selection shared from his collection:
āThe most prominent pedals I used for years onstage before switching to the Quad Cortex were the Line 6 DL4, Electro-Harmonix Holy Grail, Boss
DD-6 Digital Delay, Boss OC-3 Super Octave OC-3, Fulltone OCD, Wampler Ego Compressor, and Route 66 American Overdrive.
My go-to studio pedals are the MXR Joshua Ambient Echo, Line 6 DL4, Death By Audio Reverberation Machine, Electro-Harmonix Holy Grail, Chase Bliss Generation Loss MkII, Chase Bliss Mood MkII, Boss DD-500 Digital Delay, Chase Bliss Audio Automatone CXM 1978, Old Blood Noise Mondegreen Delay and Reflector Chorus.
And some honorable mentions for pedals Iāve been really digging as of late would be the Neon Egg Planetarium, Roland Space Echo, and various vintage & new spring reverbs.
Silver Stunner
Sarah Barthel initially played keys in Phantogram, but she learned bass and mimicked her synth parts on the instrument so she could move about freely and interact more with Carter. This custom-made sparkle-finish Fender Mustang is the perfect size for her, and she just recently started playing it with a pick. She runs into a Quad Cortex, too, but the Fender Bassman stack lurking behind the bass serves as an onstage monitor.
Jazzmaster
Barthel isnāt confined to the bass, either. At some points in the set she jumps onto this prized Jazzmaster, which sheās had for 15 years.
An overdrive and mangled fuzz thatās a wolf in a maniacal, rabid wolfās clothing.
Invites new compositional approaches to riffs and solos. Gray Channel distortion is versatile and satisfying. Unpredictable.
Unpredictable. Footswitches for distortion and fuzz are quite close.
$199
Fuzz can be savored in so many ways. It can be smooth. It can be an agent of chaos. But it can also be a trap. In service of mayhem, it can be a mere noise crutch. Smooth, classy, ātastyā fuzz, meanwhile, can lead to dull solos crafted as Olympian demonstrations of sustain. To touch the soulful, rowdy essence of fuzz, itās good to find one that never lets you get quite comfortable. The EarthQuaker Devices Gary, a two-headed distortion/overdrive and rabid, envelope-controlled square-wave fuzz designed with IDLESā Lee Kiernan, is a gain device in this vein.
Gary is not exclusively a destruction machine. Its distortion/overdrive section is a very streamlined take on EarthQuakerās Gray Channel, a versatile DOD 250-derived double distortion. Like any good circuit of the 250 ilk, Garyās hard clipping OD/distortion section bites viciously in the high- and high-mid frequencies, supported by a tight, punchy low-mid output. You can play anything from balanced M.O.R. studio crunch to unhinged feedback leads with this side of Gary. But itās the envelope-triggered pulse-width fuzzāwhich most of us will hear as a gated fuzz, in many instancesāthat gives the Gary its werewolf duality. Though practice yields performance patterns that change depending on the instrument and effects you use around the Gary, its fuzz ultimately sputters and collapses into nothingnessāespecially when you throw a few pitch bends its way. The cut to silence can be jarring, but also compels a player to explore more rhythmic leads and choppy riffs that would sound like sludge with a Big Muff. The Garyās unpredictable side means it wonāt be for everybody, but its ability to span delicioso distortion and riotous splatter fuzz in a single unit is impressive.
EarthQuaker Devices Gary Automatic Pulse Width Modulation Fuzz/Overdrive Pedal
Automatic Pulse Width Modulation Fuzz PedalBlackberry Smoke will embark on a co-headline tour with Mike Campbell & the Dirty Knobs. Lead singer Charlie Starr shares, āWhat could be better than summertime rock and roll shows with Blackberry Smoke and the one and only Mike Campbell & The Dirty Knobs?ā
Blackberry Smokeās fan club will have early access to tickets with pre-sale beginning tomorrow, March 11 at 10:00am local time, with the public on-sale following this Friday, March 14 at 10:00am local time. Full details and ticket information can be found at blackberrysmoke.com.
In addition to the new dates, Blackberry Smoke is currently on the road with upcoming headline shows at New Orleansā The Fillmore, Houstonās 713 Music Hall, Austinās ACL Live at the Moody Theater, Dallasā Majestic Theatre and Maryvilleās The Shed (three nights) among others. They will also join Lynyrd Skynyrd and The Avett Brothers for select dates later this year. See below for complete tour itinerary.
Tour Dates
March 14āDouglas, GAāThe Martin Theatre*
March 15āDouglas, GAāThe Martin Theatre*
March 27āNew Orleans, LAāThe Fillmoreā
March 28āHouston, TXā713 Music Hallā
March 29āHelotes, TXāJohn T. Flooreās Country Storeā”
April 24āMontgomery, ALāMontgomery Performing Arts Centre§
April 25āPensacola, FLāPensacola Saenger Theatre§
April 26āTampa, FLāBusch Gardens Tampa - Gwazi Field
May 8āAustin, TXāACL Live at the Moody Theater#
May 9āDallas, TXāMajestic Theatre#
May 10āPalestine, TXāWiggly Thump Festival
May 15āMaryville, TNāThe Shed~
May 16āMaryville, TNāThe Shed%
May 17āMaryville, TNāThe Shed§
May 31āVirginia Beach, VAāVeterans Band Aid Music Festival
June 1āLexington, KYāRailbird Festival
July 10āPistoia, ItalyāPistoia Blues
July 11āMilan, ItalyāComfort Festival
July 13āWeert, LimburgāBospop
July 15āManchester, U.K.āAO Arena**
July 16āBirmingham, U.K.ābp pulse LIVE**
July 18āBrighton, EnglandāThe Brighton Centre**
July 19āLondon, UKāOVO Arena Wembley**
July 25āNashville, TNāRyman Auditoriumā ā
July 26āNashville, TNāRyman Auditoriumā ā
July 31āLewiston, NYāArtpark Amphitheaterā ā
August 1āPittsburgh, PAāStage AEā ā
August 2āColumbus, OHāKEMBA Live! Outdoorā ā
August 3āRoanoke, VAāBerglund Performing Arts Theatreā ā
August 5āNorth Charleston, SCāFirefly Distilleryā ā
August 7āRaleigh, NCāRed Hat Amphitheaterā ā
August 8āCharlotte, NCāSkyla Credit Union Amphitheatreā ā
August 9āAtlanta, GAāSynovus Bank Amphitheater at Chastain Parkā ā
August 10āAsheville, NCāAsheville Yards Amphitheaterā ā
August 21āBonner Springs, KSāAzura Amphitheaterā”ā”
August 22āRogers, ARāWalmart AMPā”ā”
August 23āEl Dorado, ARāMurphy Arts District Amphitheaterā”ā”
August 30āCharlestown, RIāRhythm and Roots Festival
*with special guest Parker Gispert
ā with special guest Zach Person
ā”with special guest Brent Cobb
§with special guest Bones Owens
#with special guest Jason Scott & The High Heat
~with special guest Rob Leines
%with special guest Taylor Hunnicutt
**supporting Lynard Skynyrd
ā ā co-headline with co-headline with Mike Campbell & The Dirty Knobs
ā”ā”supporting The Avett Brothers
For anyone serious about mixing their own recordings, itās a tool worth considering.
In the world of music production, the tools we choose profoundly influence the final sound of our recordings. I want to make the case for adding one tool that is rarely, if ever, in the āmust haveā or āsexy gearā spotlight but can deliver huge results to your mixes: the console summing mixer. Tighten up your beltsāthe Dojo is now open.
While digital audio workstations (DAWs) have revolutionized music production, offering unparalleled editing and flexibility, many producers, including me, still mix back into an analog console for the sonic character and three-dimensionality that it imparts. But buying a professional console isnāt cheap! This is where console summing boxes come into play, offering a unique way to enhance your mixes and elevate them to a professional level.
How Does It Work?
Very simply put, recording consoles have two basic sections: an input section (all the channels of mic pres, and EQ) and a center section (that sums all of the channels together and routes those signals to various configurable outputs such as inserts and aux buses). A console summing mixer is essentially the center section of a console and is designed to sum the individual audio channels, aux buses, stems, and submixes from your DAW in an analog domain.
In a DAW, digital summingāthe process of combining multiple tracks and buses into a stereo mixāis handled through complex binary algorithms that, while precise, can sometimes lead to a mix that feels lifeless and one-dimensional, lacking the warmth, depth, and cohesion that analog consoles impart.
One of the most significant advantages of using a summing box is the introduction of harmonic distortion, a natural byproduct of analog circuitry. This isnāt like amp or pedal distortion, but rather a subtle harmonic saturation that adds richness and character to the sound. Low-end frequencies gain girth and definition, while high frequencies have a smooth, silky quality. You can achieve natural compression through subtle variations in phase and amplitude, but that depends on how hard you push the summing mixer box.
But the best benefit, in my opinion, is its ability to produce an undeniably open stereo image. Digital summing, while accurate, often lacks dimension or a sense of space. Analog summing introduces subtle variations in phase and amplitude, creating a sense of width and depth that makes each instrument feel like it occupies its own space in a more 3-D stereo field, which results in a more engaging and polished mix. Iāve also found summing boxes encourage a more deliberate and thoughtful approach to mixing, as it requires submixing certain elements.
APIās ASM164 ($3,195 street) is wildly flexible, offering VU meters, multiple inserts, two separate stereo mix options, and more.
For those who work āin-the-boxā and arenāt in the market for a summing box, let alone a console, incorporating a summing box can also serve as a valuable learning tool. By running stems through a summing box and comparing the results to an entirely digital mix, you can train your ear to recognize the subtle qualities that make a mix feel warm, cohesive, spatial, and dynamic. This heightened awareness can then inform your in-the-box mixing decisions, even when youāre not using a summing box.
āWhether you want to add depth and dimension to your tracks, enhance your stereo image, or bring a touch of analog magic to your mixes, a summing box can be a gamechanger."
Itās important to choose the right summing box for your needs and budget, as different models offer varying sonic characteristics. Good summing mixers typically start around $2,000, such as Rupert Neve Designās 5057 Orbit Summing Mixer. While more expensive, APIās ASM164 ($3,195 street) is wildly flexible, offering VU meters, multiple inserts, two separate stereo mix options, and more. The key here is to understand your needs.
Pairing a summing box with high-quality outboard processors, such as compressors or EQs, will allow you to shape your mix in ways that are impossible within a purely digital setup.
Whether you want to add depth and dimension to your tracks, enhance your stereo image, or bring a touch of analog magic to your mixes, a summing box can be a gamechanger. For anyone serious about mixing, itās a tool worth consideringāone that can make the difference between a mix thatās good and one thatās truly exceptional. Until next month, namaste