Author Archive
Ambassadors' music is full and energetic, but they aren’t scared to slow things down and get sensitive from time to time. The sound of this Brooklyn based quartet emanates from drummer Adam Levin’s thunderous grooves and Noah Feldshuh’s powerful and catchy riffs; rounding it up, brothers Sam and Casey Harris fill out the band’s sound. Here is a bit on how they accomplish that while recording.... Click on the title for more
Philly based boutique stompbox manufacturer TSVG just announced the release of the Slow Ride Overdrive/Fuzz, a pedal "designed for endless sustain and gritty yet articulate over driven tones." The pedal will be showcased at the Stompbox exhibit we are organizing at Summer NAMM. The two unmarked knobs are for gain and volume - or so it seems - while the toggle switch acts as a high end filter. The down position will allow the full signal to pass, but the up position cuts most of the bass response. This true bypass effect features AC 128 germanium transistors and Mullard “Tropical Fish” caps throughout. The Slow Ride is built by hand and sells for $200.
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With the new album "Wheel", just fresh out of the oven, NYC songwriter Laura Stevenson decided to up the production value, steering away from the lo-fi approach of her previous two albums. She enlisted producer Kevin McMahon, someone whose work she respected immensely and who would, as she put it, “be the perfect set of ears for these songs.” She also brought in Rob Moose on violin and Kelly Pratt to play brass, adding their own layers of depth to the band’s full arrangements. Despite the move to sleeker production, the album retains its organic nature, relying primarily on the resonance of acoustic instruments and the electricity of simply over-driven amplifiers, with its most synthetic moment coming from a Roland organ, an unconscious decision explained as Laura Stevenson and the Cans’ way of “being real, relying on each other’s energy to keep time and just playing the songs like human beings, flaws and all.”
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T. Jauernig Electronics, or TCJ Effects, is a small Wisconsin based manufacturer of hand made pedals that's been around since 2004. They just finalized the New "Amalgam" Smooth Overdrive. The company states that this pedal is very touch sensitive and smooth, working in the mild to moderate gain range. If you leave it on all the time it will affect the the gain from clean to mild, to thick and creamy all from the volume knob on your guitar. The Gain and Tone controls offer fine tuning to each rig. There is also a gain range toggle that allows to choose between two distinct gain ranges. There's only going to be 100 of these made in assorted colors, and their price will be $100 including delivery.... Click on the title for more
Emerging Canadian pedal manufacturer Stomp Labs released their first pedal Fuzzi-Fier (pictured), which will be part of a hybrid analog/digital line called XPressWay. This line aims at making stompboxes that can be controlled more efficiently during the performance - rather than in between songs. More info about the pedal will be released soon. The company is also working on an iPhone app that emulates their guitar pedals.... Click on the title for more
Here are a few short news about new pedal releases:
British hand manufacturer Green Carrots have a new baby: The Pumpkin Pi offers a double dose of Muff love with the IC78 Muff joined with the much sought after Russian Muff, a match made in heaven.
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Pedal Monsters is about to release their new reverb Well 2.0 Reverb (boards and component were ordered!). The price on this pox will be $135 when it's released, but the custom effect company is already selling it to believers for $110 including shipping (email pedalmonsters [at} gmail.com if interested). More info on their website.
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We've been wondering if Pigtronix was ever going to release a pedal for bass... well they just released 3!!! Check out the new line here and this fresh Philosopher Bass Compressor Official Demo:
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