Another day, another pedal! Enter Stompboxtober Day 21 to win a pedal from Eventide Audio!
Riptide Eventide Pedal
Ripping Distortion and Swirling Modulation
Ready to be swept away? Introducing Riptide, the result of extensive research into the iconic Uni-Vibe and legendary overdrives. Whether you're looking to ride the slow, vibey waves of lush modulation or dive headfirst into the pulsing depths of overdrive, Riptide invites you to play with power and attitude that's unapologetically bold.
Riptide features not one, but two distinct voices for each effect, all delivered in glorious stereo. Plus, you can effortlessly transition from Drive into Vibe or Vibe into Drive. Let ‘er rip.
Two Colors of Drive
Riptide features a balanced distortion with superb dynamics and touch sensitivity. Green is a dynamic, mid-range crunch. Red is a smooth and boosted overdrive.
Two Colors of Vibe
Authentic Shin-ei Uni-Vibe emulation captures the richness and modulation of the original, in stereo! Green is the traditional Uni-Vibe. Red is a deeper, phase-y Vibe.
Features:
- Four Effects: 2 Overdrives, 2 Uni-Vibes
- Drive ⇆ Vibe at the press of a button
- No Deep Dives: 3 Drive Knobs, 3 Vibe Knobs
- Five presets at your feet — more available with Eventide Device Manager (EDM) software
- Dual-action Active Footswitch is latching or momentary
- Rear panel Guitar/Line Level switch for matching impedances with guitar, synths, FX loop or DAW interface
- Map any combination of parameters to an Expression Pedal
- Use a single Aux switch for Tap Tempo or a triple Aux switch for easy preset changing
- MIDI capability over TRS (use with a MIDI to TRS cable Type A or converter box) or USB
- Multiple Bypass options: Buffered, Relay, DSP+FX or Kill dry
- Catch-up mode to dial in your sound when toggling between presets/parameters
- Eventide Device Manager PC or Mac application for software updates, system settings and creating/saving presets
It’s Day 20 of Stompboxtober! Enter now for your shot at winning today’s pedal from Electro-Harmonix!
Electro-Harmonix Big Muff Pi Hardware Plug-in Effects Pedal and 2-in/2-out USB Interface
The Big Muff Pi® Hardware Plugin® is a new type of product that transcends the limitations of traditional DAW plugins to bring the unique qualities of analog sound to digital recording.
Analog hardware has a magical warmth that is beloved for its sound and feel. That was the genesis behind this product. Take the world’s most beloved harmonic distortion / sustainer and transform it into a plugin.
It works like a standard DAW plugin, but recorded tracks go through the actual analog circuitry of EHX’s Big Muff Pi, injecting analog warmth into your session. Of course, it integrates seamlessly with all the most popular DAWs like Pro Tools®, Ableton Live®, Cubase®, GarageBand®, Logic Pro X®, Reaper® and more.
Simply connect the Big Muff to your DAW by USB, select a track, and open the plug-in window. Instead of software emulation, you have real clipping diodes, overdriving transistors, and nature itself coloring your sound. The analog circuit is pushed over the edge and loses control. The sound you hear is the natural warmth of electromagnetic chaos.
The new Big Muff Pi Hardware Plugin can even function as a 2-in/2-out USB audio recording interface, which enables the user to record with or without the Big Muff effect engaged.
The Big Muff Pi Hardware Plugin can be used as a stand-alone pedal and shares the circuit design of the legendary 1973 Violet Ram’s Head Big Muff. That coveted pedal has set the standard for musical distortion and has been heard on countless classic recordings. It’s renowned for its unmistakable articulation and exceptional sustain, and now it’s has been updated to be true stereo. It also features Tone Wicker, Tone Bypass and presets. With the ability to store up to ten footswitch-accessible presets on the pedal itself and as many as your computer can hold, it is truly a Big Muff Pi like no other!
A chance glance at a Stefan Grossman LP led our columnist to discover the acoustic connections between the U.S. and Japan.
When acoustic guitarists like myself hear an album that just sounds so good, we might fuss less about gear and home in more on performance and atmosphere. Indeed, those were the things that blew me away on country-blues guru Stefan Grossman’s album from the late ’70s, Acoustic Guitar. Dynamic playing with a healthy big-room sound, the production was a far cry from a lot of Grossman’s late-’60s output, some of which was recorded in closets on budget reel-to-reel decks.
The back cover of this particular LP offers some important clues, including one that turned out to be the jumping-off point for this column: Acoustic Guitar appeared on Japanese EMI subsidiary East World, and was recorded at the EMI studios in Toshiba, Japan, by an entirely Japanese crew. Stefan reveals some more details to help me understand why I found the sound of this record so striking:
“At EMI at the time, the big thing for audiophiles was direct-to-disc recording, which is funny, because that’s the way that all the old records from the 1920s were recorded. You would have to do a non-stop performance, while the masters were cut in real time. It was like a concert. Play a song, wait 3-5 seconds before playing the next song. You couldn’t stop. You would do two sets right through, one for each side. Then you would do it twice more, because the masters for direct-to-disc were then only good for a certain number of copies. If the label sold out of the first pressing, they couldn’t go back to the first master, they would go to the second, then the third. So, each set was ever so slightly different: the same music, but different changes and licks.”
I’ve discovered that in the world of fingerpicking acoustic guitar, there has been a long and fruitful exchange of ideas and experiences between players from the U.S. and Japan. I spoke to several amazing guitarists from these countries, and one name that came up often was Tokio Uchida.
As it happens, Uchida got turned on to fingerstyle guitar when he read about Grossman during one of Grossman’s earliest tours of Japan in the late ’70s. Uchida became a student of Grossman through correspondence and study, visiting the U.S. for the first time in 1987. Uchida’s playing impressed Grossman, and he appeared on stage with his hero at a concert in California. The two became fast friends. Uchida later appeared at a festival marking Robert Johnson’s 100th birthday in Greenwood, Mississippi, and recorded a duet album with Grossman. Back in Japan, Uchida has followed in the footsteps of his mentor, writing his own original music and also starting the TAB Guitar School, which offers instructional materials for acoustic styles. Uchida has also promoted concerts and tours for many fingerpicking heavyweights, including Duck Baker, Ernie Hawkins, Pat Donahue, and Woody Mann.
“Every single venue owner that I’ve worked with over there knows how to run sound. They’re listening rooms, and everything works!”
One of the players that Uchida brought to Japan for their first visit was Minneapolis ragtime guitar legend Dakota Dave Hull. Hull has since toured Japan multiple times, and just this year did a five-week, 33-date run that resulted in his new CD, Live in Japan. Hull offers some insights on differences between the American and Japanese acoustic scenes: “A lot of the venues are tiny. It’s pretty insular, not a lot of crossover between old time, bluegrass, blues, trad jazz. We end up playing in small rooms; some might be as small as a dozen people! But these rooms are built around the idea of live music; the stage and the sound system went in first. Every single venue owner that I’ve worked with over there knows how to run sound. They’re listening rooms, and everything works!”
During an early tour of Japan, Hull was paired on bills with a humble ragtime guitar wizard named Takasi Hamada, and the two hit it off in a big way, collaborating on all of Hull’s Japanese excursions ever since. Hamada is, in my opinion, one of the finest ever purveyors of ragtime on the acoustic guitar. His playing is very sophisticated, but never sounds dusty or academic. It has a joyous bounce, and he makes turning 88 piano keys into 6 strings seem almost easy!
Hamada’s signature sound is a combination of his amazing arranging and playing ability, but also a tuning that he devised himself. “I really wanted to arrange Tom Shea’s piano piece ‘Little Wabash Special’ for guitar, so I devised an irregular tuning based on C as C–Ab–C–F–C–Eb,” Hamada explains. “In 1995, I changed the 6th string to Eb so that I could play beautiful alternating bass: Eb–Ab–C–F–C–Eb. It seemed to suit me, and I later named it ‘Otarunay Tuning’ after the Ainu name of my hometown, Otaru.” Since to this day ragtime is predominantly played and taught on piano, its a testament to Hamada’s mastery of the form that he was one of the only guitar players invited to appear at the 2023 Scott Joplin International Ragtime Festival in Sedalia, Missouri.
Watch the livestream of "Concert for Carolina" featuring Luke Combs, Eric Church, Billy Strings, and James Taylor on October 26. Free access for Hurricane Helene-impacted areas, $24.99 for others. All proceeds go to hurricane relief efforts.
Due to overwhelming demand, Luke Combs, Eric Church, Billy Strings and James Taylor have partnered with Veeps to livestream “Concert for Carolina” on Saturday, October 26. The livestream was added to ensure that all fans would be able to see the show after tickets immediately sold-out this past Thursday. The stream will provide an additional opportunity to raise as much money as possible for Hurricane Helene relief efforts. Link to livestream HERE.
The livestream will be available worldwide with free access for those impacted by Hurricane Helene, as “Concert for Carolina” and Veeps have used geotargeting to ensure that those in the affected areas will not be charged. For those not directly impacted, the livestream will cost $24.99 with an option for additional donations available. All proceeds from the stream will go to the same organizations that Combs and Church selected for ticket sales to benefit: Samaritan’s Purse, Manna Food Bank, Second Harvest Food Bank of Northwest NC, Eblen Charities and the organizations supported by Chief Cares.
As noted above, North Carolina natives The Avett Brothers, Scotty McCreery, Chase Rice and Parmalee have all now joined the line-up.
Presented by Explore Asheville and the Buncombe County Tourism Development Authority, “Concert for Carolina” will take place at Charlotte’s Bank of America Stadium and also feature performances from Sheryl Crow, Keith Urban and Bailey Zimmerman. The event will be hosted by ESPN’s Marty Smith and Barstool Sports’ Caleb Pressley. Full details can be found at concertforcarolina.com.
“Concert for Carolina” is made possible due to the support and generosity of David and Nicole Tepper and Tepper Sports & Entertainment, Explore Asheville, Biltmore Estate, T-Mobile, Jack Daniel’s, Whataburger, Miller Lite, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina, Belk, Lowe’s, Atrium Health, Tractor Supply Company, Bank of America, American Airlines, Food Lion, Duke’s Mayo, GE Aerospace, Harris Teeter, Pinnacle Financial Partners, United Healthcare, Bud Light, Preferred Parking and Gildan.
Born outside of Charlotte and raised in Asheville, Combs is a proud North Carolinian. Growing up singing at school, it wasn’t until he attended Boone’s Appalachian State University that Combs first performed his own songs at a beloved local bar, leading him to his now historic country music career. Since moving to Nashville in 2014, Combs continually returns to North Carolina for landmark moments including his first-ever headline stadium show at Appalachian State’s Kidd Brewer Stadium in 2021 as well as sold-out, back-to-back nights at Charlotte’s Bank of America Stadium last summer.
Church, a native of Granite Falls, also began his musical journey in Western North Carolina, playing gigs locally throughout high school and into his time at Appalachian State University before chasing his dream to Nashville. He continues to split time between Tennessee and North Carolina with his family, even returning to the Appalachian Mountains to record his most recent project, the three-part Heart & Soul, in Banner Elk. In 2016, he was inducted into the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame and in 2022, he was awarded the North Carolina Award, the state’s highest civilian honor. Most recently, he released the song “Darkest Hour” in response to the recent devastation, with all publishing royalties being donated.
Although he is a Michigan native, Strings’ life and career has been deeply impacted by the state of North Carolina both personally and professionally, as it is home to some of his most passionate and supportive fans. Over the past few years, Strings has performed at major venues across the state including an upcoming six-night run at Asheville’s ExploreAsheville.com Arena this winter.
Singer-songwriter Taylor moved to Chapel Hill, North Carolina with his family when he was just three years old. Taylor’s father served as the Dean of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill Medical School from 1964 to 1971. Taylor’s childhood home was on Morgan Creek Road in Chapel Hill-Carrboro. In April 2003, a bridge over Morgan Creek was dedicated to the musician and renamed the James Taylor Bridge. Taylor’s childhood experiences in North Carolina influenced many of his most popular songs including “Copperline” as well as the beloved “Carolina in My Mind.” As a recording and touring artist, Taylor has touched people with his warm baritone voice and distinctive style of guitar-playing for more than 50 years. Over the course of his celebrated career, he has sold more than 100 million albums, has won multiple Grammy Awards and has been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, the Songwriters Hall of Fame, as well as the North Carolina Music Hall of Fame in 2009.
For more information, please visit concertforcarolina.com.
Over the past few years, singer-songwriter MJ Lenderman has had a taste of success with his band Wednesday and his latest solo albums. On his new solo release Manning Fireworks, his artistic depth is on full display in his carefully unwinding, twanging riffs and sage lyrics, informed in part by a sturdy sense of humor.
English actress Glenda Jackson is credited with what’s now become an old performance-art adage: “Comedy is much harder to do than drama.” During my time living in New York City for the last eight-and-a-half years, I spent countless hours in open-mic basement dungeons—where small rodents would occasionally die and pungently decay beneath the floorboards and cellar stairwells—studying amateur standups workshop ideas in two- to seven-minute allotments of stage time.
I observed how each would coalesce their creative germs over the course of months—sometimes years—into solid, reliable bits while whittling down and sharpening their inner clown. And, after eventually trying it myself, with much floundering, I can personally attest that it’s a lot harder than it looks.
Twenty-five-year-old, North Carolina-born songwriter MJ Lenderman tells me that his song ideas “usually start with one line; something that makes me laugh.” Well, on his new album Manning Fireworks, his major-label debut with Anti- Records and fourth studio full-length of his solo career—which has grown alongside his work with the band Wednesday—I can definitely hear the laughter.
On “Wristwatch,” he proclaims that he has “a beach home up in Buffalo,” and “a wristwatch that’s a pocket knife and a megaphone.” On “Rip Torn,” presumably named after the actor by the same name, he sings, “I guess I’ll call you Rip Torn / The way you got tore up / Passed out in your Lucky Charms / Lucky doesn’t mean much,” and, “You said there’s men and then there’s movies / And there’s men in Men in Black / Said there’s milkshakes and there’s smoothies / You always lose me when you talk like that.” (To jog your memory of the ’90s, Rip Torn plays “Zed” in Men in Black.)
Manning Fireworks, Lenderman’s fourth studio full-length, was written and recorded between tours. The title comes from the idea of someone recklessly setting-off the recreational explosives.
Most of the folk-y, country-rock tracks on Manning Fireworks clock in at around three to three-and-a-half minutes, and take that time to unwind without demanding any patience. Lenderman’s main guitar is a 2008 Fender Jazzmaster, which he recently had modded with a Mastery Bridge, and he unassumingly twangs out each straight-ahead riff in a woozy, barebones essence all his own. I first heard the album in its entirety at a listening party at NYC’s Mercury Lounge, where the label folks from Anti- requested that the audience not go on their phones and not talk while the album was playing. I was among a full crowd of people in the 250-capacity room who followed those rules, and Lenderman’s self-actualized storytelling made it easy. As a songwriter, he draws influence from Neil Young, Jason Molina, Patterson Hood and Mike Cooley (Drive-By Truckers), and David Berman and Will Oldham (Silver Jews).
The album’s title conjures some unique imagery, I tell him—just the verb “manning,” which I associate with sailors (“Man the ship”), military (“Man the barricades”), or machines (“Man the cash register”). He says the visual for him is “somebody standing too close [to fireworks] who could set off a huge explosion if they’re not careful. I guess that’s kind of the way I was using them. I like the phrase because, on its own, it sounds like the name of a store you would see in South Carolina or something.”
I wonder if he remembers the drastic uptick of unusually loud fireworks being set off in NYC during the pandemic, a phenomenon reported on by Rolling Stone, The New Yorker, and The Atlantic. (Many speculated that these fireworks were being given out to unwitting kids as a systemic attempt to disrupt the sleep of those organizing Black Lives Matter protests at the time.)
“That’s not what I was writing about,” he laughs, adding, “but I think it was the same summer where somebody set off a firework in my friend Alan’s car and it totaled the car.”
MJ Lenderman's Gear
From the process of making Manning Fireworks, Lenderman took away the lesson that asking for help from his peers (in terms of contributing to his music), can make his life a bit easier.
Photo by Karly Hartzman
Guitars
- 2008 Fender Jazzmaster
- 1979 Gibson Firebrand SG
Effects
- Death By Audio Interstellar Overdriver
- Dunlop Cry Baby Wah
- Boss DD-7 Digital Delay
- Tuner
Amp
- Fender Blues Deluxe with Warehouse speaker
Strings
- Ernie Ball Beefy Slinky (.011–.054)
But his idea of what it means to “man” fireworks reminds me of a Mel Brooks quote: “If I cut my finger, that’s tragedy. Comedy is if you walk into an open sewer and die.” And, I can say that I’ve never heard a songwriter say that their song ideas begin with an inspiring one-liner, let alone a country-rock musician. That’s something that sets Lenderman apart on the creative plane, and offers a lot of information behind why his lyrics are so distinctive.
“Do you like comedy?” I ask.
“Yeah,” he replies, suddenly looking like he’s more interested in speaking on the subject than about his music. “[There are] some newer specials that I’ve been liking. I really am just impressed at the courage it must take to do that, and to fail at it over and over and over again.”
Lenderman’s second guitar is his Gibson Firebrand SG, which he says “feels a little more fragile” than his Jazzmaster.
Photo by Yailene Leyva
Lenderman says that he first fell in love with guitar at the age of 8. He was entranced by Jimi Hendrix at the time, who was “all I listened to for a couple years. Then I got really into Derek Trucks, then slowly into more alternative stuff like J Mascis from Dinosaur Jr., Stephen Malkmus, and Thurston Moore and Lee Ranaldo from Sonic Youth. All that stuff’s been super informative to my guitar playing.”
Having seen Lenderman play at Mercury Lounge—he performed a few songs live after we listened to the Manning Fireworks album stream—I can say there’s an intriguing, deceptive reductiveness to his playing. He fingerpicks, but in a seemingly self-taught style; the riffs are simple; but his publicist boasts to me after the show that he can shred, too. He can, and you can hear that more on his heavier, rockier live album, And the Wind (Live and Loose!), released in November 2023.
He’s never been that into gear, and still has stock pickups on his Jazzmaster, but recently had the tech from the band Drop of Sun (members of which facilitated the recording of Manning Fireworks) modify his amps. Aside from that, his spare pedalboard contains a Death By Audio Interstellar Overdriver, a Cry Baby Wah, a Boss DD-7 Digital Delay, and a tuner.
Lenderman’s 13-year-old self was mostly into rap, and while that young teenager might be impressed by how far he’s come today with his music, he says he probably would be confused by the songs.
“How would you describe your music to someone who hasn’t heard it?” I ask.
“I usually just say rock,” he says, laughing, “or country rock.”
“But … if you had to write what makes you different, and the answer will either get you into Heaven or Hell, what would you say to avoid going to Hell?”
“Uhm, I guess.... I don’t know, I would tell whoever to listen to it and maybe go to Hell.”
YouTube It
Performing a song off his 2023 record, And the Wind (Live and Loose!), MJ Lenderman takes the stage at SXSW with his trademark, modest delivery and twanging black Jazzmaster.