The fast-rising Okies use solid-state amp heads, baritone guitars, and a bit of Peavey magic to bring their nightmare-rock to life.
Oklahoma City sludge rockers Chat Pile have had a busy few years. Their 2022 LP, God’s Country, broke them internationally, and their critically acclaimed 2024 follow-up, Cool World, solidified them as one of the most exciting heavy bands of the moment. We spoke with bassist Stin and guitarist Luther Manhole about the record for our November 2024 issue.
Now, we bring you the band’s first official Rig Rundown, filmed ahead of their show at The End in Nashville last fall. Tune in to see how Stin and Luther conjure the band’s brutal soundstorms on the road.
Brought to you by D’Addario.
Bari Blast
Manhole’s main machine is this baritone 6-string, an Ernie Ball Music Man BFR Axis Super Sport, finished in “starry night.” Luther took a tip from tourmate and Agriculture guitarist Richard Chowenhill and slapped some tape over his neck pickup near the first string to prevent it from catching on the edge of the humbucker. It’s tuned to drop A, with Ernie Ball Mammoth Slinky strings.
Quite the Quilter
Back at home, Luther and Stin lean on big vintage amps, but on the road, Luther brings out this Quilter Tone Block 202, which is plugged into an Ampeg VT-40 combo amp that’s been gutted to run just as a 4x10 cabinet. Luther digs the icier, cutting tone from the 10″ speakers.
Luther Manhole's Board
Manhole’s board is minimalist: All he needs is a TC Electronic PolyTune, a Suhr Riot for dirt, an Electro-Harmonix Memory Boy (which is set for a wobbly chorus effect), and a TC Electronic Hall of Fame for reverb—pedals he’s used for over a decade. An Acoustic PBIS08 supplies the quartet with power.
Peavey Power
Around 2007, Stin went on a hunt around Oklahoma music shops for a Peavey T-40. He finally found one—in a total “Wayne’s World moment”—that belonged to a country singer who had passed away. Since the band’s formation, this “hot and clangy” white T-40 has been Stin’s tool for crafting Chat Pile’s elephantine, bottom-heavy sound. He uses the 5-string Ernie Ball Slinky Cobalts (.060–.125), omitting the .040 string, and plucks with orange Ernie Ball Everlast .73 mm picks for strong, percussive attack.
Building Blocks
Stin’s signal runs to this Quilter Bass Block 802, which blasts through a Trace Elliot 4x10 redline cab with horns—the cab that’s been used on every Chat Pile recording to date.
Stin's Board
Stin probably thinks Manhole’s board is excessive. He packs just his Boss TU-3 and a Tronographic Rusty Box, each with their own individual power supply plugged into a power bar that’s fixed to the board.
- The Nine Strings of Hell: An Interview With High on Fire's Matt Pike ›
- “Theory Can Be a Limitation—I Like to Look at All of the Possibilities” ›
- Chat Pile’s Cool World: The Nightmare Soundtrack ›
Silvertone Guitars is thrilled to announce a groundbreaking collaboration with Rio Grande Pickups to introduce a new Silvertone Lipstick pickup. This partnership combines Silvertone’s iconic legacy with Rio Grande’s expert craftsmanship to create a pickup that delivers a bold, traditional single-coil tone while retaining the classic Lipstick look.
The original Lipstick pickup, invented by Nathan Daniels, is celebrated for its distinctive sound with a bright, trebly top end and scooped midrange, offering a unique sonic character that stands out both in recordings and live performances. While the classic Silvertone Lipstick pickups are known for capturing this vintage tone, the new Silvertone/Rio Grande Lipstick pickups provide an exciting twist for players seeking a higher-output, traditional single-coil sound.
Designed and handmade in Houston, Texas, the new Silvertone Lipstick pickup features an Alnico 5bar magnet, plain enamel 44AWG pure copper wire, and a shielded 2-wire connection for versatile wiring options. This pickup strikes a perfect balance between a '60s Strat®-style sound and the powerful punch of a P90, offering a beefy midrange and enhanced output for dynamic lead playing and driving effects pedals.
“We’re thrilled to be working with Rio Grande Pickups on this new Lipstick design,” says Rick Taylor, Guitar Product Manager at Silvertone Guitars. “This collaboration has allowed us to expand the tonal palette of our Lipstick pickups while preserving the visual appeal that players love. The new pickups deliver rich, powerful sound that will inspire musicians to explore new creative possibilities.”
These new pickups are the perfect way to supercharge your guitar, combining the distinctive look of the Lipstick design with the versatile, high-output tone that modern players demand.
Pricing is $279 for the calibrated set, and $159 for the neck or bridge alone.
Silvertone Guitars proudly introduces the 1373 Baritone, a contemporary reimagining of the iconic 1958 6-string bass.
In 1958, Silvertone made waves with the revolutionary 1373 model, a 6-string bass tuned low E to E, paving the way for the distinctive tic-tac technique in Nashville. This technique involved doubling acoustic bass lines with the six-string bass played with a pick. This unique tuning was also famously featured in Glen Campbell's iconic six-string bass solo on the hit single "Wichita Lineman."
With the 1373 Baritone, Silvertone pays homage to this rich history by transforming the instrument into a baritone tuning marvel. The 28” scale neck is meticulously designed for B to B tuning, echoing the popular baritone tuning that left an indelible mark on 1960s surf rock and spaghetti western soundtracks.
Crafted with a solid mahogany body, the 1373 Baritone delivers unparalleled punch and sustain. The string-through body bridge enhances resonance, and the 28” scale strikes the perfect balance, allowing the lower strings to resonate authentically without sacrificing the comfort of standard tuning guitars.
Equipped with the new Alnico 5 Silvertone Lipstick pickups, the 1373 Baritone retains the clean tones and bell-like top end of the original pickups, with a bit more output. This additional output provides the flexibility to comfortably drive pedals, tube amps, or digital modelers, making the 1373 Baritone a versatile instrument across various musical genres.
The 1373 Baritone carries a $449 street price and is available in three striking colors: Black SilverFlake, Pelham Blue, and Silver Metal Flake.
For more information, please visit silvertoneguitars.com.
It wasn’t long ago that LA LOM—guitarist Zac Sokolow, bassist Jake Faulkner, and percussionist Nicholas Baker—were cutting their teeth together as the house band at the Roosevelt Hotel in Hollywood, playing poolside for guests. Now, with eight EPs and a full-length record (2024’s The Los Angeles League of Musicians) since 2021, they’re a full-blown sensation, celebrating and interpreting instrumental tropical guitar traditions.
The trio played Nashville’s The Basement back in December, where PG’s John Bohlinger caught up with Sokolow and Faulkner to see what road rigs they use to bring their psychedelic cumbia and Peruvian chicha dreams to life.
Brought to you by D’Addario.Red Rider
This vintage National Val-Pro, circa 1960 to 1962, belongs to Faulkner, who received it as his very first electric. When he switched to bass, the Val-Pro took a backseat, so Sokolow had been more than happy to borrow it long-term. All the controls are disconnected except for the volume knob. Sokolow strings it with a .012–.052 gauge set of roundwounds, and he’s partial to D’Andrea Pro Plec 1.5 mm picks.
Leader of the Pack
Sokolow’s other sidekick is this Kay Style Leader from 1960. Each of the three pickups has a volume and tone control. The body’s been mostly routed out, so it lends the resonance and darkness of a semi-hollowbody.
Live and Loud
While he’ll often play through Fender Deluxe Reverbs at home, Sokolow trusts the Twin Reverb to get the job done in performance settings. The stage volume is loud enough that he and his bandmates often don’t need monitors: They can just listen to each other’s instruments onstage.
Zac Sokolow's Pedalboard
From his guitar, Sokolow’s signal runs through a spicy-red Voltage Cable Co. coil cable into his board. A TC Electronic Polytune 2 starts things off, followed by a Fulltone Full-Drive 3 for just a hint of dirt, then a Boss DM-3 delay, followed by a Catalinbread Topanga spring reverb. A TC Helicon VoiceTone handles some more echo work along with the DM-3.
Flight-Friendly Upright
Jake Faulkner’s traveling upright is thisJohnson bass, which has been modded by Tom at Fantastic Musical Instruments in Pasadena, California. Tom gave the upright a bolt-on neck that comes off easily, making it a perfect travel mate. For amplification, Faulkner uses pickups from Underwood, based in Palm Springs. On a tip from Tom, he glued a small piece of wood to the side of the pickups to reduce noise issues, and two sound posts have been installed inside the body to reduce feedback concerns.
Thumbin' Through
For electric needs, Faulkner uses this Fender Vintera II ’60s Precision Bass; he’ll switch between the two basses depending on what he feels best suits the song. He uses a thumb pick from time to time to accentuate certain rhythms.
Lightweight Low End
Faulkner’s been converted to this Ampeg Venture V12, a compact bass head weighing less than nine pounds—a godsend for sore-backed bassists. It’s set for a pretty neutral, SVT-style sound and runs into a Fender Bassman 410 Neo cabinet, which has four neodymium-loaded speakers.
Jake Faulkner's Pedalboard
Rather than at the start of his chain, his Korg Pitchblack Advance tuner goes at the end, with everything running out of it to the Venture V12. An Origin Effects Bassrig Super Vintage lends color and tone to the V12, then the Fire-Eye Development Red-Eye Twin acts as an A/B switch to maintain output and gain between the Johnson and the P-bass. An MXR Ten Band EQ helps balance out the upright’s tone.
