These blue-collar storytellers electrify their tales with lunch-pail Les Pauls and trusty Telecasters that hit some British tube beasts and are tastefully spiced with varied stompboxes.
The Menzingers’ albums are storied time capsules. Starting in 2007 with teen angst and rebellion, they’ve refined and reshaped their narratives into self-reflective numbers that continue to balance melody and might. Their most-recent installment—2023’s Some of It Was True—was their eighth chapter that stares down aging with acceptance rather than anger. But don’t get it twisted, these rockers will still charge.
“This record just feels different for us,” Barnett explains. “It’s a really important one in our catalog, and a pivotal moment in our history. We have the liberty of our fans growing with us now, and after writing these lyrical songs about where we are in life, we decided to take other peoples’ stories and make something bigger out of it.” “It brought us back to our energetic side as a band,” May concurs. “We got to let loose, which is what drew us to the energy of being in a band in the first place. This is a live band—why shouldn’t we record live songs? As a result, we’re back to why we started this band in the first place.”
In support of Some of It Was True, the Philly crew toured the States and touched down in Nashville mid-November for a romper at the Marathon Music Works. Before their headlining set in Music City, both singing-guitarists Greg Barnett and Tom May welcomed PG’s Perry Bean onstage to converse about their setups. Barnett explained the pros and cons of being a left-handed player, while May divulged the inspiration for his loved Les Pauls. Both detailed why they prefer a two-amp rig, and each demoed the various sounds set off from their respective pedalboards.
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'57 Knockoff
Cofrontman and guitarist Greg Barnett is a lefty, so his relationship with guitars has been a double-edged sword. On one hand, stores don’t often stock instruments to his picking orientation, however, finding a needle in a haystack has proven more fruitful than a righty’s quest since there’s more of a demand. But when he can’t find something in the secondary market, he’ll go straight to the source as he did when ordering this 2022 1957 Custom Shop Les Paul Goldtop reissue from HQ in Nashville, Tennessee. “This has pretty much become my number one touring guitar,” he says. “It’s all stock and I usually play half the set with it.”
All the guitars used by Barnett and May take Ernie Ball Nickel Wound Custom Gauge strings (.011–.052).
Just For Jawbreaker
Barnett bought this grizzled 1992 Gibson Les Paul Custom while on tour. “We had just played Riot Fest with Jawbreaker the night before and I saw Blake Schwarzenbach playing a White Les Paul Custom and thought, ‘Damn I need one!’ We had the next day off in St. Louis and I saw one for sale. I hit the guy up and we drove the tour bus right to his house. He was so stoked!” Greg dropped in a set of Seymour Duncan Antiquity humbuckers and upgraded its pots.
Take a Bow!
For a band that started in Scranton, Pennsylvania, it makes sense that one of their gear meccas is Russo Music in Philadelphia. And that’s where Barnett scooped this Gibson 1957 Custom Shop Les Paul Junior that’s all stock and was used exclusively during the band’s Nashville encore that included “Tellin’ Lies” and “Casey.”
The Waiting Is the Hardest Part
An Electric Spanish model from Gibson has been on Barnett’s bucket list. It took some time and online sleuthing, but he uncovered his dream ride—this 2015 Gibson Custom Shop 1964 ES-335—during a late-night surf of Reverb. It’s all stock. It can be heard specifically on “Come On Heartache” off of Some of It Was True.
Marshall Matters
Barnett is a two-amp sort of player. The left side is his 100-watt 1985 Marshall JCM800 that was his first “pro” amp. He acquired it off Craigslist over a decade ago and “it’s been the most reliable piece of gear I’ve ever owned.” The right side of the equation is a 2023 Marshall JTM45 that represents the cleaner side of the twin Marshall blend.
Greg Barnett's Pedalboard
A Korg Pitchblack tuner is where the guitar hits the pedalboard. Barnett loves how much the EarthQuaker Devices Hoof Reaper’s Reaper side, that’s based on a 3-knob Bender-style fuzz, cuts through in a mix. It gets introduced for songs “Thick as Thieves” and “Rodent.”
The EarthQuaker Plumes pedal is engaged for all Barnett’s leads and solos. “I really back EQD for creating such high-quality pedals at an introductory price point,” he attests. “And, no, they didn’t pay me to say that!”
The Klon KTR works as a boost with the gain all the way down, to boost choruses and some heavier intro parts. The Boss DD-3 is from 1988 and has a “long chip.” It sounds incredible and Greg employs it for “Try.” “When we recorded the song, I layered a lot of feedback over the outro. To mimic that, I have the pedal set with the feedback almost all the way up. I let the first note oscillate into infinity and then try to create a bunch of different artifacts over it.”
The remaining three pedals include a MXR Analog Chorus, a Strymon Flint, and a Strymon El Capistan.
Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Guitar (*But Were Afraid to Ask)
Ever since Tom May saw John Carvalho of A Wilhelm Scream, Sheena Ozzella of Lemuria, and Scott Brigham of the Flatliners rock a walnut Gibson The Paul, he wanted one to join their outsider squad. He scored his 1981 Paul “Woody” from Emerald City Guitars in Seattle.
Finger-Lickin' Good
May’s “Tasty” 1982 Gibson Les Paul Custom was purchased from one of his guitar heroes, the Bouncing Souls’ Pete Steinkopf. Tom said Pete used it on the Souls’ first two albums (The Good, the Bad, and the Argyle and Maniacal Laughter) and it has been featured on the Menzingers’ work starting with 2014’s Rented World. It was nicknamed “Tasty” by May’s friend Kate Hiltz. Ironically enough, Kate and another friend opened a vegan diner in Philadelphia and called it The Tasty.
Monotrapa Uniflora
May’s 2023 Fender American Vintage II 1975 Telecaster Deluxe is named “Ghost Pipe” as it features a sticker of the peculiarly white parasitic plant that grows off nutrients from tree roots. It’s his newest addition and has already proven to be a steady steed that’s “the real one.”
Transatlantic Tones
Tom has plugged into this Fender ’65 Deluxe Reverb (or a variation of it) on every record since After the Party and every single tour since 2017. British flavorings come from the handwired Vox AC30HWH that runs into an Orange 4x12. It’s loaded with a pair of stock Celestion Vintage 30s, and May replaced the other V30s with a couple of Celestion G12M Greenbacks.
Tom May's Pedalboard
The J. Rockett Archer was a helpful suggestion from Greg, and it hasn’t left May’s pedalboard since the purchase (and even has two spares). It’s always on and May loves how it can attenuate his signal and highlights his more expressive playing.
He works out the Strymon TimeLine by utilizing nearly 10 settings throughout a set that ranges from a quick 100 ms bit to thicken up leads to a full reverse delay-signal-only mix preset for pad-sounding ambient layers. Even though he’s fine-tuned it to Menzingers’ sets, he’s still discovering new sounds with it.
The Boss RC-5 Loop Station launches a little sample they use: “Incredibly powerful pedal I use for one-trick.”
The 1980s Maxon FL-301 Flanger is close to the one used in the verse guitar parts of “There’s No Place in This World for Me.” “I used one in the studio as a half joke after having a bit of a bout adding flanger to Some of It Was True, but sure enough it made it,” says May. He bought it from a small shop in Paris, Guitar Street on 24 Rue Victor Massé.
And while it made the video, the Fulltone OCD has since been retired from touring duties.
Finally, the 7-channel American Looper allows May to instantly switch between effects combinations with one toe kick.
Shop the Menzingers' Rig
2022 1957 Custom Shop Les Paul Goldtop Reissue
Ernie Ball Nickel Wound Custom Gauge Strings
Seymour Duncan Antiquity Humbuckers
2015 Gibson Custom Shop 1964 ES-335
1985 Marshall JCM800
2023 Marshall JTM45
Korg Pitchblack Tuner
EarthQuaker Devices Hoof Reaper
EarthQuaker Devices Plumes
MXR Analog Chorus
Strymon Flint
Strymon El Capistan
2023 Fender American Vintage II 1975 Telecaster Deluxe
Fender ’65 Deluxe Reverb
Orange 4x12
Celestion Vintage 30s
Celestion G12M Greenbacks
J Rockett Archer
Strymon TimeLine
Boss RC-5
Fulltone OCD
Naturally, every recording Eddie Van Halen ever played on has been pored over by legions of guitar players of all styles. It might seem funny, then, to consider EVH solos that might require more attention. But your 100 Guitarists hosts have their picks of solos that they feel merit a little discussion. Some of these are deep cuts—get ready for some instrumental bonus tracks and Van Halen III mentions—and some are among the biggest radio hits of their time. Just because their hits, though, doesn’t mean we don’t have more to add to the conversation.
We can’t cover everything EVH—Jason has already tried while producing the Runnin’ With the Dweezil podcast. But we cover as much as we can in our longest episode yet. And in the second installment of our current listening segment, we’re talking about new-ish music from Oz Noy and Bill Orcutt.
Tinkering with theSDE-3 Dual Digital Delay suggested a similar, possibly enduring appeal. As an evolution of the Roland SDE-3000rack unit from the 1980s, it’s a texture machine, bubbling with subtle-to-odd triangle LFO modulations and enhanced dual-delay patterns that make tone mazes from dopey-simple melodies. And with the capacity to use it with two amps in stereo or in panning capacity, it can be much more dimensional. But while the SDE-3 will become indispensable to some for its most complex echo textures, its basic voice possesses warmth that lends personality in pedestrian applications too.
Tapping Into the Source
Some interest in the original SDE-3000 is in its association with Eddie Van Halen, who ran two of them in a wet-dry-wet configuration, using different delay rates and modulation to thicken and lend dimension to solos. But while EVH’s de facto endorsement prompted reissues of the effect as far back as the ’90s, part of the appeal was down to the 3000’s intrinsic elegance and simplicity.
In fact, the original rack unit’s features don’t differ much from what you would find on modern, inexpensive stompbox echoes. But the SDE-3000’s simplicity and reliable predictability made it conducive to fast workflow in the studio. Critically, it also avoided the lo-fi and sterility shortcomings that plagued some lesser rivals—an attribute designer Yoshi Ikegami chalks up to analog components elsewhere in the circuit and a fortuitous clock imprecision that lends organic essence to the repeats.
Evolved Echo Animal
Though the SDE-3 traces a line back to the SDE-3000 in sound and function, it is a very evolved riff on a theme. I don’t have an original SDE-3000 on hand for comparison, but it’s easy to hear how the SDE-3 bridges a gap between analog haze and more clinical, surgical digital sounds in the way that made the original famous. Thanks to the hi-cut control, the SDE-3’s voice can be shaped to enhance the angular aspect of the echoes, or blunt sharp edges. There’s also a lot of leeway to toy with varied EQ settings without sacrificing the ample definition in the repeats. That also means you can take advantage of the polyrhythmic effects that are arguably its greatest asset.
“There’s a lot of leeway to toy with varied EQ settings without sacrificing the ample definition in the repeats.”
The SDE-3’s offset control, which generates these polyrhythmic echoes, is its heart. The most practical and familiar echos, like quarter, eighth, and dotted-eighth patterns, are easy to access in the second half of the offset knobs range. In the first half of the knob’s throw, however, the offset delays often clang about at less-regular intervals, producing complex polyrhythms that are also cool multipliers of the modulation and EQ effects. For example, when emphasizing top end in repeats, using aggressive effects mixes and pitch-wobble modulation generates eerie ghost notes that swim through and around patterns, adding rhythmic interest and texture without derailing the drive behind a groove. Even at modest settings, these are great alternatives to more staid, regular subdivision patterns. Many of the coolest sounds tend toward the foggy reverb spectrum. Removing high end, piling on feedback, and adding the woozy, drunken drift from modulation creates fascinating backdrops for slow, sparse chord melodies. Faster modulations throb and swirl like old BBC Radiophonic Workshop sci-fi sound designs.
By themselves, the modulations have their own broad appeal. Chorus tones are rarely the archetypal Roland Jazz Chorus or CE type—tending to be a bit darker and mistier. But they do a nice job suggesting that texture without lapsing into caricature. There are also really cool rotary-speaker-like textures and vibrato sounds that offer alternatives to go-to industry standards.
The Verdict
The SDE-3’s many available sounds and textures would be appealing at $219—even without the stereo and panning connectivity options, a useful hold function, and expression pedal control that opens up additional options. The panning capabilities, in particular, sparked all kinds of thoughts about studio applications. Mastering the SDE-3 takes just a little study—certain polyrhythms can be dramatically reshaped by the interactivity of other controls and you need to take care to achieve identical results twice. But this is a pedal that, by virtue of its relative simplicity and richness and breadth of sounds, exceeds the utility of some similarly priced rivals, all while opening up possibilities well outside the simple echo realm
Reader: T. Moody
Hometown: Myrtle Beach, South Carolina
Guitar: The Green Snake
Reader T. Moody turned this Yamaha Pacifica body into a reptilian rocker.
I have always loved the reverse headstock, simply because nothing says 1987 (the best year in the history of the world) like a reverse headstock. The pickups are both Seymour Duncan—an SH-1N in the neck position and TB-4 in the bridge, both in a very cool lime green color. Right when these pickups got listed, the Buy It Now button once again lit up like the Fourth of July. I am a loyal disciple of Sperzel locking tuners and think Bob Sperzel was a pure genius, so I knew those were going on this project even before I started on it. I also knew that I wanted a Vega-Trem; those units are absolutely amazing.
When the body arrived, I thought it would be cool to do some kind of burst around the yellow so I went with a neon green. It turned out better than I imagined. Next up was the shaping and cutting of the pickguard. I had this crocodile-type, faux-leather material that I glued on the pickguard and then shaped to my liking. I wanted just a single volume control and no tone knob, because, like King Edward (Van Halen) once said, “Your volume is your tone.”
T. Moody
I then shaped and glued the faux-leather material in the cavity. The tuning knobs, volume knob, pickguard, screws, and selector switch were also painted in the lemon-lime paint scheme. I put everything together, installed the pickups, strung it up, set it up, plugged it in, and I was blown away. I think this is the best-playing and -sounding guitar I have ever tried.
The only thing missing was the center piece and strap. The latter was easy because DiMarzio makes their ClipLock in neon green. The center piece was more difficult because originally, I was thinking that some kind of gator-style decoration would be cool. In the end, I went with a green snake, because crocodiles ain’t too flexible—and they’re way too big to fit in a pickup cavity!
The Green Snake’s back is just as striking as the front.
