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Brad from Pissed Jeans talks rigs. Big rigs.

Brad plays guitar for Pissed Jeans from Allentown, Pennsylvania. His tone is killer - he's an awesome player and fully into gear. This is how you do it.

Sasquatch Nation: Firstly, what's your live setup these days? How's it working out for you, anything you'd like to change?

Brad from Pissed Jeans: Right now, I’m using a Peavey Renown into a 2x12” blackface bassman cab and a 1966 Fender Showman into a 70’s 4x12” bassman cab.  The 4x12” is one of those diamond shaped ones inside with all the speakers angled.  It’s a total monster of a cab and takes up so much room.  I used one the first time we were in Europe and fell in love with it.  Took me almost 2 years to find one local enough to pick up.  

Inside the 70s Fender 4x12.

I think I’ve used the renown since our second show.  I bought it in 95 or 96 from Mark Kale, who I worked with at a screen printing shop.  He used it in Weston and a few other bands, then I bought it, used it for a few years, sold it to our now bassist Randy, who then sold it to our friend Michael, who then sold it back to me in 2004 when the Jeans started playing more.  The loudest amp I’ve ever heard/played.  For the first few years it was just plug in and turn it up all the way.  Over the past 4 years when I’ve moved more to overdrives and other pedals, I’ve switched to the “clean” channel on it, which has more mid range.   One dude made me a pedal with a Super Hard On, Infinity Drive and Church of Tone clones in it.  I’m running the SHO into the peavey.  The SHO is at about 3:00 and I adjust the gain on the amp for the song or guitar I’m using.  The Showman is basically clean all the way up to 10, so whatever pedal is pushing it gives it it’s sound.  With that, I mainly use a BYOC OD2 with the trim pots cranked to the point where they don’t just feedback automatically.  I also mix it up with the overdrive on this Bardel pedal sometimes.

Not too much to change right now.  I was using a 4x12” sunn cab with the peavey for the longest time, but the switch to a 2x12” cab hasn’t had any change in volume or tone.  It’s just a lot easy for loading and on the van space.  I do switch up the Showman with a sunn 1200s every so often.  I’m always switching up guitars, pedals, heads etc to keep it interesting for me.  

Here's the Peavey Renown with the Sunn 1200s. Brad is hidden (sorry Brad). Photo from Mechanical Forest Sound.

SN: I noticed a couple of years ago you switched from an SG to a Jazzmaster. What was the reason for the change?

BfPJ: I like to think that I have a pretty distinct tone, but I get bored with stuff, so I want it to be ever evolving, but still be kind of tied back to the original vision of the band.  I picked up a jaguar in early 2008, but it needed some adjustments for it to be playing for me.  Had to pick up a mustang bridge, buzzstop etc.  I do this with all my Jags and Jazzmasters.   So it’s May 2008 and we’re playing the last show of a 3 week European tour.  It’s Primavera Sound in Spain in front of the biggest crowd we’ve ever played to.  We’re three songs in, I set down my SG, or so I thought.  Came back to it and the headstock is hanging off the neck.  Just a clean break.  So that sucks, but it was the last show, so no big deal and I go to grab my telecaster.  Pull it out and the jack is hanging out of the body.  No clue what happened between soundcheck and then. Three songs in, two broken guitars.  Luckily after some throwing around of the SG, I was able to borrow a tele from one of the other bands and finish the set.  

When we got home, I picked up another SG shortly after that, but it just had this massive neck and never had the feel of the other one.  I ended up just selling it and picking up another jaguar.  I was kind of sick of the Gibson g string falling out of tune issue as well.  I used a Jaguar with a humbucker in it for a while and actually recorded most of King of Jeans with that.  I’ve grown to really like using single coils for their clarity live so the jazzmaster falls into that category.  While we’re still pretty loud live, we’ve tried to clean up our sound for the live show.  

My main rotation now is the Jazzmaster, Jaguar with humbucker, Epiphone Sheraton [Pissed Jeans with a Sheraton!!!??? - Sasquatch] and a Tele Deluxe.  I mainly use the Tele Deluxe for shows we fly to since it has the smallest case, but when we were in Spain last year either me flinging it across the stage or Matt trying to do a windmill with it broke one of the tuning keys.  I’ve just been too lazy to fix it.  Had to take the Jazzmaster with us to Finland/Poland and I was nervous.  Wouldn’t you know it, the gear was lost for a little bit and we didn’t have it for the first show.

SN: What was your latest gear purchase, and why?

BfPJ: I’ve kind of slowed down as of late.  My room of gear was starting to get crowded and playing time has been going down.  The last thing I bought was a Mexican Strat.  I’ve always wanted a Strat, but never wanted to pay for an American one.  With most Fenders, it’s not where it’s made, it’s how the guitar feels.  I’ve played Squiers that have felt better than some American made Fenders.  This one had a hotrail in the bridge and just felt nice.  When playing live, the routine is play and put the guitar back in its case.  I never really clean them up or anything so they get pretty gross and beat up after a while.  This will be a good live guitar.  It’s amazing how thick the hotrails are.  Amp wise, I picked up a pretty cool Gretsch Super Bass earlier this year.  It’s Valco made and pretty interesting.  Has two transformers that each power one of the 12”s.  Just a volume and tone knob with a selector switch for guitar, low bass and high bass.  It’s pretty weird and sounds great cranked, but the speakers are a bit harsh in it.

Back of the Gretch Super Bass - cool.

SN: How does one achieve the best feedback, gearwise?

BfPJ: I guess that depends on the type of feedback you want.  With gear, the louder the better.  When we started playing, I tried to use feedback as part of the overall sound.  It’s so hard to contain when playing loud, so why no embrace it.  Most of the screechy feedback I get is from jamming my fist in between the pick ups.

SN: What's your favourite piece? or something you couldn't live without?

BfPJ: The hardest thing to let go of would be my 1963 Blonde Bassman.  It’s recovered, but everything else in it is 1967 or prior.  The thing just sounds incredible.  When it’s cranked on 10 it sounds like a 70’s marshall, but at lower volumes it’s clean and full.  I’ll never use it live or anything, but it’s my go to amp for playing at home.  I’m a huge ventures mark, especially the live stuff where it’s actually them playing.  I get super psyched each time I get to play a Mosrite through the Bassman cause it nails that tone.

SN: Are you a gear nerd?

BfPJ: To an extent, yes.  I love gear, I love knowing about what it does and how things play, but I’ve never got into the mechanics of them.  I tried to build a pedal once and got so frustrated.  I wish I knew more and was self sufficient when I comes to repairs, but I just have no patience. 

SN: What are you on the lookout for at the moment, if anything?

BfPJ: The old saying is the small old tube amps sound the biggest for recording.  Well, our producer, Alex Newport, had this 68 or 69 drip edge Fender Champ and the thing sounded incredible.  Everything on 10 was so fuzzy, but since it had a bass control, it was still really full.  So I’d love one of those, but I’d love to compare it to a blackface one.  I’ve played a blackface vibro champ, but I don’t remember it being that dirty.  Outside of that, pretty much any weird small tube amp.  I borrowed a Silvertone 1472 from my friend Joe and that thing was great too.  

SN: I take it your personal amp setup is quite crucial to the Pissed Jeans sound? How do you find it when you're in other places playing with backline that potentially sounds different from your idiosyncratic rig?

BfPJ: It definitely is important and we try to use our own gear whenever possible.  We rented gear our first trip to Europe and I used a Model T and beefed up JCM800.  It was great.  I’ve done my best to just not let it bother me when we’re playing with a backline and just trust the soundmen that it sounds good out front.  The hardest thing, believe it or not, is not using two amps/heads.  Using two amps isn’t really for volume, it’s more for filling out the sound.  I a lot of cases, the backline is a silverface twin or a JCM900.  Two amps not really know for their bottom end.  

SN: Has your setup been influenced by other musicians? How about when you were younger or just starting out, did you try to mimic the gear of bands that you really loved?

BfPJ: It definitely has.  Tone is like fashion.  When you’re younger, you’re still figuring out what you want and who you are.  When I first started playing, I had no money, there was no internet and places like guitar center didn’t exist by me.  It was trial and error, with plenty of error on my end.  I actually didn’t own too much gear for a long time.  When we were doing the Ultimate Warriors, I played bass and sang. I had a bass, but borrowed amps and when we were doing the Gate Crashers, I sang.  I was filling in on guitar for another band our drummer played with and I had to borrow a guitar and an amp to play with them.  For the longest time I figured to be a good guitar player, you needed to be able to play super fast and perfect.  It wasn’t until I realized the what makes a player good is tone and style that I figured out the sound that worked best for me.  I’m sloppy, noisy and have short stubby fingers so I just ended up embracing that.  I won’t ever be technically sound.  

When we started, I just wanted to sound like the first Fang record and I actually saw he had what looked to be a Renown, so that’s when I bought it back and started using it.  That record was a huge influence on the way I played moving from a scooped mid sound to mids all the way up sound.  I’ve always figured the best guitar sound is one where the amp sounds like it’s on 10 and ready to blow up. 

Peavey Renown - these old Peaveys are built like goddam tanks. Pretty good for bass too.

SN: Any advice for other bands when it comes to touring with gear? What has being in a touring band taught you about gear?

BfPJ: What I’ve learned is to not tour with anything you care about.  It may be fine mechanically, but cosmetically it’s gonna get beat up.  My sunn 1200s has had the frame cracked from Matt dropping it and the 4x12” cab tolex is just destroyed.   Guitars broken, pedals covered in beer etc.  Another key thing is you don’t know who or what you’ll be dealing with at shows.  Some sound guys are cool, but you need to be prepared to get your sound at a low volume and a normal volume.

My all time favourite band photo.

Huge thanks to Brad for going into epic detail about his gear. This was great. 

[sasquatch-nation-blog]

Thom from Echo Lake - buying amps in real time

Thom plays guitar in the spacey Echo Lake. Real cool sounds. Sasquactch Nation caught up with Thom right here about the internet to talk about his rig. And a good time was had by all. 

Sasquatch Nation: Firstly, what's your live setup these days?

Thom from Echo Lake: Ok it's a bit mental at the moment because we are going through a bit of a line up change, so I've got a few new pedals to help me out. I use an A/B splitter which my guitar and keyboard go into. Then they go through a danelectro delay pedal, holy grail reverb, frantone cream puff fuzz pedal, boss distortion and an akai head rush. Also use a boss RC-20 for samples that goes through the DI. 

My guitar is a Fender Jazzmaster and sometimes I use a Vox superlynx guitar too. Keyboard is some crappy busted up casio and my amp is a twin reverb. 

Vox Superlynx - this one's not Thom's but, like, use your imagination yeah?

SN: How's it working out for you, anything you'd like to change?

TfEL: Yeah all of it for gear that actually works properly! I want a better delay pedal for sure. I'm kind of looking around for the right one so I might treat myself before the tour starts. Also my amp is so temperamental, im getting so sick of it but i'm seriously sentimental and I love the thing. I was thinking about getting a [Fender] Deville amp, they sound good and are reliable. 

SN: What was your latest gear purchase, and why?

TfEL: My uncle got me a vox wah pedal for my birthday but I haven't had a proper chance to fit it into my setup yet, so I'm really looking forward to playing with that. The last thing I got with my own cash was loads of boring repair jobs, mainly the Fender Twin. So boring I can't even go into it.

SN: The "Echo Lake sound" really seems to be revolved around the guitar sound, is it something that took you a while to get right in terms of gear, or was it all prettymuch there from the start? How has your setup evolved over time (if any)?

TfEL: I've always used pretty much what I can get my hands on and then the fun part is experimenting with gear in different ways to make it sound good. I always write and record songs before we play them live so we never try to replicate the sound on record exactly the same way live. For example I use a pretty rubbish Casio keyboard but run it through the fuzz pedal and a mxr echo delay pedal and that sounds great. Without them it's pretty limited sounding. I have always used reverb and distortion when playing live guitar with other pedals sort of changing around those two, at the moment my setup is definitely the biggest it has ever been.

The Frantone Cream Puff. Not pictured: dignity. 

SN: What's your favourite piece? 

TfEL: That would probably be my FireWire interface and my laptop because without them I wouldn't be able to record songs or new ideas. I used to demo stuff on my old 4 track but that was always a much longer process. This way I get much more done!

SN: I know you guys rehearse and record in the gear mecca that is Holy Mountain studios - what would you steal from there if you could pick one thing?

TfEL: Damnnnn only one thing?? Ok it would have to be the Rhodes I've always wanted one, they sound so incredible. Can I be really cheeky and steal the space echo too? [Yes, but you have to use both together - Sasquatch]

SN: Are you a gear nerd?

TfEL: Sort of. I don't care about the names of things or how they work. What I mean by names is when people start talking real technical to you and it's all Rc20s and Dr3s  etc... I get a bit lost with all that stuff. I tried to understand schematics once but I got bored very fast, I've got a short attention span unless I'm actually just playing with the instrument or gear. But I do like to have good gear, I love seeing other peoples collections. That's probably the nerdiest I get but then I become jealous over all the cool stuff other people have.

SN: What are you on the lookout for at the moment, if anything?

TfEL: A good pedal board to keep them nice and safe. Possibly a new delay pedal. I'm also talking to a friend right now about buying his Fender Deville 2x12. I think we are going to buy it... Yeah! We just brought it! This is good news, we can't really afford this right now but it's not worth touring with the Twin as it's too risky! [People buying gear while doing an interview about gear, best ever - Sasquatch]

The Fender Hotrod Deville is the 60w 212 big brother of the 40w 112 Deluxe that eeeeveryone has. They've been in constant production since the mid-90s I think - real popular.  

SN: Any advice for other bands when it comes to gear? What have your years taught you?

TfEL: Try and understand how it all works and look after it properly! I spend far too much time getting things fixed but I don't look after them properly and if I only took it seriously about how this stuff works I could fix it myself. I should take my own advice but I know I'll never change, not now. That's what the years have taught me anyway.

Thanks for talking to Sasquatch Nation! Echo Lake are all over the goddam internet, listen to their stuff it's great. 

[sasquatch-nation-blog]

Adey from Fever Dream - wonky MIJ squire playing good guy

Cat from Fever Dream is one of my favourite drummers to watch. But drums are boring so we moved to the stage left of Cat and hit up Adey about how he makes those sweet washy sounds with guitars and stuff. It all went down right here on the internet. He's a funny guy, you should totally read this one.

<a href="http://feverdreamep.bandcamp.com/track/this-waste" data-mce-href="http://feverdreamep.bandcamp.com/track/this-waste">This Waste by Fever Dream</a>

SN: Firstly, what's your live setup these days?

Adey from Fever Dream: Imagine what a 16 year-old could afford to buy after saving their pocket money for 6 months, circa 1998. That’s my setup (sans Slipknot stickers). My one and only guitar is a black Squier Super-Sonic, which is like an upside-down Jagmaster that was made in Japan as part of the Vista series. For a Squier it’s really well made, and you don’t see many of them around (it looks a bit wonky, so I doubt they sold well). I bought it just after we started writing songs in Fever Dream, from a guy on the Drowned In Sound forum who’d broken the pickup selector switch and the bridge pickup - I spent about an hour and £20 repairing it and haven’t had any problems since.

I do have to say it's likely the fuckin' stupidest thing I've ever seen, but this thing kicks so much ass it's not funny. Why would that even be funny? Don't know man just roll with it, no one reads this thing anyway.   

Pedal-wise it’s: Boss TU-2 --> Marshall Drive Master --> Boss RV-3 Digital Reverb/Delay --> ProCo RAT II --> DigiTech DigiDelay X-Series. I don’t tend to touch any settings whilst playing as I have a hard enough time singing and playing and standing up at the same time, so I just use amps as speakers rather than relying on built-in distortion or reverb. That’s mainly because my own amp is shit, and only when I’m completely desperate will I drag it (a tranny Marshall G80RCD) to gigs. I’m always happy to use house amps or borrow the headliner’s (yes I’m that guy). The Drive Master is great as a tone pedal, and sets my base volume to just-above-clean. I’m falling out of love with the RAT, but that’s only because some amps seem to deny its very being.

SN: How's it working out for you, anything you'd like to change?

AfFD: I’d love to get one of the current Modern Player Jaguars, as they’ve got loads of pickup options for coil tapping and stuff. The pickups in my Super-Sonic aren’t the best and I only ever use the bridge as I prefer the bite you get in that position - I think I might be better off with a single coil. I’m not particularly precious about my gear, so I’d be reluctant to shell out that much - Squier has just released new Vintage Modified Jaguars which look pretty great though, so I might be tempted to get one as a backup. A Crowther Audio Hotcake is next on the list - not because I’ve tried one or know what they sound like, but because every band that I’ve ever liked has one. Same goes for a Marshall Shred Master - I’m pretty sure it would be better than the RAT, because it has Shred in its name. And better pedals write their own songs, right? I played through a Vox AC15VR recently and it sounded great, so I’d like one of those too. So yeah, I’d like to swap out everything except my delay pedals, please.

Adey hates all this shit, is what he's saying. 

SN: What was your latest gear purchase, and why?

AfFD: A pedal case! It sounds pathetic, but setting up pedals is the single most annoying thing when playing live, especially if you’re on a tight bill or at a festival. I’ve had a couple of occasions where my RAT wasn’t plugged in just so, and when I went to use it everything cut out - no fun.

SN: If I was to join Fever Dream, what would be the one piece of gear I need to fit in?

AfFD: A penis. To redress the balance. [Sometimes I think people don't take me seriously - Sasquatch]

SN: Whammy bar or no whammy bar?

AfFD: Whammy bar, definitely. That said, using the standard Strat-style trem on the Super-Sonic puts it out of tune straight away, so I use it sparingly (that’s another reason to get a Jaguar, thanks). It’s kinda hard to use distorted tremolo without sounding like Kevin Shields, and clean without sounding like Hank Marvin - it’s dangerous territory.

SN: What's your favourite piece? or something you couldn't live without, and why?

AfFD: I actually really love the Boss RV-3, as it has a perfect reverb and delay setting that I use all the time. It was an eBay steal - so much cheaper than buying two individual pedals - and it came highly recommended by some dude on YouTube playing Slowdive covers in his bedroom. I bought the DigiDelay recently to play around with reverse delay and looping, and it also has a nice chorus delay that I’m really trying to fit into a song without sounding too new wave.

SN: Are you a gear nerd?

AfFD: I geek out over the things that I know will make my existence worthwhile; that will make me whole. But I have no interest in Gibsons or wah pedals, and haven’t tried making my own effects or circuit bending - so, no?

SN: What are you on the lookout for at the moment, if anything?

AfFD: Right now, it’s a decent power supply (sexy). I went cheap with one from Sound Lab and it hisses like hell through certain amps - I’m pretty sure I’m gonna go for a Power Bank, it just limits me to the five pedals I have already.

SN: Any advice for other bands when it comes to gear? What have your years taught you?

AfFD: Measure once, buy twice. Oh, and file your saddles - broken strings are a boner kill.

Thanks for talking to Sasquatch Nation! And sorry for mostly talking about your drummer in the intro, I can be a real jerk like that.

[sasquatch-nation-blog]

Emma from Weird Menace

I played on the same bill as Weird Menace a couple times and guitarist Emma was playing through this badass Trace Elliot head and I wanted to know more about it. And that's the story of Sasquatch Nation and Emma from Weird Menace. The resulting interview is right here for you to read on the internet, just below these words and probably a little box with some music in it. 

Sasquatch Nation: Firstly, what's your live setup these days? How's it working out for you, anything you'd like to change?

Emma from Weird Menace: It’s pretty simple – currently, I have a Fender Jaguar going through a tuner, Pro Co Rat, Boss SD-1 Super Overdrive and Hardwire RV-7 Stereo Reverb. The Rat was out of action for a while so I was using the Boss Overdrive as a temporary stand-in. Since it's been working again I've been kind of enjoying having both with different levels of gain.

I’ve also been messing around with an Ibanez AD-80 Analog Delay recently so maybe that will make an appearance at some point.

They also come in blue for boys... hey whatever at least I didn't call you riot grrrl.

SN: I noticed you used a big Trace Elliot tube head the other night, it sounded amazing. You really don't see many of them around, and people don't seem to have Trace on their radar for amps - can you tell me a bit about it?

EfWM: Yeah, the Trace Elliot Trident.. It’s pretty great sounding. Unfortunately, it’s not mine but it’s not the first time I’ve used it. It belongs to Sound Savers Studio and is the same amp I used when we recorded with them at the beginning of the summer. I could be wrong but I think this range was built in the late 90s but there doesn't seem to be many around or much information  about them. I’m really into the tone you get through the distortion channel.

They are the size of a small house, but sound badass. Henry and Mark at Sound Savers know their gear. And probably some other people's gear as well, I don't know man ask them yourself. 

SN: What's your favourite piece? or something you couldn't live without?

EfWM: Really my favourite thing is the Jaguar but, in terms of pedals and stuff, I like the ProCo Rat a lot. I remember initially I thought it sounded too metal-band but I have since learned to love it and it's good for Weird Menace where we like to have a really loud, overdriven guitar sound at times.    

Never seen one of them Hardwire Reverbs before... cool. 

SN: Are you a gear nerd?

EfWM: Sort of. I can admit to having spent lots of time doing the usual.. watching Youtube demos and spending too long searching the internet trying to find out what's been used on a particular record or song but I’m also interested in how things can sound without using tonnes of pedals. For quite a long time, I was slightly reluctant to use them too much because I had this idea that I didn’t want to create too much of a dependence on them. I wanted to know I could play well without them first. Now I’m a lot more open to using them. Although, I still think it’s interesting to see what you can do by the way you are physically playing and employing different dynamics, using your amp, that sort of thing...

SN: What are you on the lookout for at the moment, if anything?

EfWM: I’m thinking about getting an MXR Micro Amp or MXR Distortion Plus but using it partially as a booster. An old Sovtek Big Muff could be pretty cool... [Sasquatch recommends Frederic Effects Green Muff]

SN: Has your setup been influenced by other musicians? How about when you were younger, did you try to mimic the gear of bands that you really loved?

EfWM: I’m not sure I’ve tried to mimic the gear of a particular band (I think replicating the Sonic Youth sound or something might have been a bit out of budget!) but yeah, definitely, been influenced. I think it's cool to learn about stuff from other bands you like and then use that as a starting point for something different.

SN: Any advice for other bands when it comes to gear? What has your experience taught you?

EfWM: I guess just be confident with it and don’t be afraid to try stuff out. Also, don’t be put off when stuff goes wrong and stops working when you’re playing a show!

Thanks for taking time out to talk with Sasquatch Nation!

[sasquatch-nation-blog]

Michael from Sealings talks to SN about his rig

Michael plays guitar for Sealings, with two other guys who don't play guitar for Sealings. Instead, the other guys play bass and drums. That's not entirely true because I think they swap around sometimes but when Michael plays guitar it's going to be pretty likely that the other guys are playing bass and drums, whatever don't be such whiney bitch about the details man. We hunted down Michael from Sealings and he spoke to us about his rig right here on the internet. 

<a href="http://italianbeachbabes.bandcamp.com/album/sealings-s-t-ep" data-mce-href="http://italianbeachbabes.bandcamp.com/album/sealings-s-t-ep">Sealings S/T EP by Sealings</a>

Sasquatch Nation: Firstly, what's your live setup these days?

Michael from Sealings: It’s pretty straightforward I think, pedal-wise I just have a big muff, a Boss Super Overdrive and a Roland Space-Echo which I play through a Fender Hot Rod deluxe amp. Me and Liam switch between guitar and bass on a few songs [FUCKING TOLD YOU - Sasquatch] but for the bass we just use a Marshall Blues Breaker which is played through a Hughes and Ketner guitar amp.

SN: How's it working out for you, anything you'd like to change?

MfS: Yeah it’s going pretty good I guess, the jag can sound a bit trebley, especially when the overdrive pedal is on, but I kind of like that shrill high-end feedback. The only thing I would really change is getting some new leads because ours always seem to break when we’re playing…

If that skull is not a bong I'm going to be very upset.

SN: What was your latest gear purchase, and why?

MfS: Last thing I got was a boss Tremelo pedal, I actually haven’t really used it for Sealings but it can do some pretty cool things when it’s set to a high repeat rate with the fuzz pedal on as well, so hopefully I’ll think of some way to use it which doesn’t sound gimmicky. It’s also good for when I wanna play surf music.

SN: If I was to join Sealings, what's the one piece of gear that I would need?

MfS: I dunno man, a car? That way we could drive places and not have to take all our stuff on the train. [A car is not gear - Sasquatch]

Not pictured: gear

SN: What's your favourite piece? or something you couldn't live without, and why?

MfS: Well the big muff is probably the thing I use the most, it’s good for feedback and it’s pretty much on all the time when we play but my favourite thing is the space-echo, it’s just really versatile and when you set the intensity and echo to full it can make some cool sounds. It’s also good for when you want shimmery chords to underlay a song or whatever, I spend a lot of time trying to find a setting on it which sounds like Robin Guthrie’s, I’m sure it’s possible but I haven’t found it yet…

SN: Are you a gear nerd?

MfS: No I don’t think so, I can’t really afford to be. I’m interested in guitar sounds and tones but I’m also interested in finding new stuff to do with the little we have. I don’t like watch videos of pedals or whatever, or scour the internet for information on what people are using, I’m content with what we have and any other addition would be frivolous.

SN: What are you on the lookout for at the moment, if anything?

MfS: Well I guess if I had the money to burn I’d get a Death by Audio pedal, they do some really cool stuff, especially the Total Sonic Annihilation pedal, but it might just be the name which is appealing to me. Other than that I guess I’d like a 1965 Fender Deluxe Reverb amp, but I probably wouldn’t even use that for Sealings or anything, I’d just use it to mess around with and play surf-guitar and Rock n’ Roll through.

SN: Any advice for other bands when it comes to gear? What have your years taught you?

MfS: I don’t know really, I find it kind of embarrassing when you see bands with these huge pedal boards but what’s coming out is just a very standard kind of sound, I mean some bands can do a lot through pedal manipulation so I don’t have anything against it strictly, it just seems completely unnecessary to me to have all this equipment and then go for a very safe sound that everyone has heard and anyone could recreate with just an amplifier in most cases. So I guess I would say stick with what seems essential and then loose the pedals that are just gathering dust. 

SN: Thanks for talking to Sasquatch Nation!

Sealings have badass green vinyl from the good folk at Italian Beach Babes records. They're a wizard. 

[sasquatch-nation-blog]

Working on the next issue, talking to some killer bands.

[sasquatch-nation-blog]

Henry from Sharm El Shakes - great guy, great gear

Menthol-smoking-Fall-fan Henry plays guitar in London group Sharm El Shakes. Kid's got chops I'll tell you that. He's been around the block and spoke to Sasquatch Nation about his rig, which always sounds killer. 

<a href="http://sharmelshakes.bandcamp.com/track/like-a-revelation-demo" data-mce-href="http://sharmelshakes.bandcamp.com/track/like-a-revelation-demo">Like a Revelation (Demo) by Sharm El Shakes</a>

[Hey so I had this idea to put the music at the TOP of the pages so you can play the music while reading the interview; it's that 'multimedia' experience that we were promised in the 90s - Sasquatch]

Sasquatch Nation: Firstly, what's your live setup at the moment?

Henry from Sharm El Shakes: Quite simple these days! Squier Jagmaster into Akai Headrush pedal into Deucetone Rat into Musicman 112 RP combo amp. So it has reverb and phaser built in, which are footswitchable. 

In Lovvers [Oh yeah Henry was in Lovvers - Sasquatch] it was basically the same but I would split into two amps with the Morley ABY pedal and just put the delay just into one amp which is good for the surf-style leads, and I had a Moogerfooger ring modulator which is clever because it can give you the robot sound (for our cover of 'Mongoloid' and 3 seconds of 'Wasted Youth')  and then with the oscillator on lower frequency it turns into a smooth analogue tremolo!

SN: What is it you like about the Music Man combos? I notice you actually use the built in tremolo too, cranked up quite hard, how's that working out for you?

HfSES: Yes, brilliant sounding amp. Mark Knopfler used to use the same type apparently! What I like is there's much more versatility than with a Fender Deville or any of those combos which everyone uses. The gain built in is fantastic, and it has a 'bright' and 'deep' switch which do much more intense things to the EQ than is normally possibly. So I usually switch them both in, then compensate by turning the bass and treble down, then it's really 'cooking'.

It's actually a built in phaser not tremolo, but I use it turned up to the fastest setting so its all wobbly and sounds a bit like a tremolo so I'll forgive you for that [Thank you - Sasquatch]. I think its a really cool tone for lead lines and works quite well in Sharm El Shakes as it creates a bit of weirdness in a late 70s way or something which we are going for.

SN: Your main guitar is some sort of Squier offset thing? tell me all about it.

HfSES: Yes the Squier Jagmaster, cross between Jaguar and Jazzmaster, there is not a Fender version of this, only Squier. Basically the Japanese-made versions are incredible and were made only between 1996 and 1998 until the Japanese factory closed (I just checked this fact) and now its only China made ones which are not as nice to play. I'm no expert on guitars, my friend Sal Melki used to let me play this guitar when we had a Silver Jews-style band at university, the neck was so light and fun to play that I bided my time until he sold it to me. Battered but great. And turquoise with tortoiseshell, an unbeatable combination.

[Photo by Owen Richards]

SN: What's your favourite piece of gear, or one thing you can't live without?

HfSES: A jack cable! Only joking [LOL HENRY STOP IT! - Sasquatch]. Probably the Akai headrush delay/loop pedal to be honest. It's not exactly  a best kept secret that these pedals are good. But the best thing for me is the digital delay setting, can be dialled in 100% accurately starting from 0, unlike most pedals e.g. the boss delay pedals, never seen the point of switching between '100ms delay' and '500ms delay' and things, the 'time coarse' and 'time fine' approach here works a hundred times better. 100ms x better. Also the loop function is really easy and is great for writing songs, just playing one idea and then trying different things over the top of it, written lots of songs that way. And finally the analogue delay simulator, with outputs for 4 different amps, used that in the studio a couple of times and it never gets old.

SN: What was your last acquisition?

HfSES: Replaced my Deucetone Rat, had one stolen a while back. It's two rats built into the same box which can be used separately for different tones, or together for in(s)ane feedback. Its my favourite distortion/overdrive/whatever pedal ever.

  [This duecetone RAT also comes in un-tilted]

SN: You've done a lot of touring with various bands, what has this taught you about gear?

HfSES: Gear is a vanity, take spare valves with you on tour, sense when your strings are likely to snap by inspecting them a few millimetres away from your eyes, many players have redundant pedals in their arsenal, a playable neck is the best friend of the touring guitarist.

SN: What are you on the lookout for at the moment?

HfSES: Replace my fried Moogerfooger Ring Modulator. One day get a massive Musicman 212 combo, probably the best amp ever and quite rare to get hold of. In the studio a 16 track tape machine, a royer ribbon mic, a spring reverb box.

SN: Are you a gear nerd? (I know you are)

HfSES: Ha ha, well sort of but more that I just stumble into things which I like and stick with them, I'm not actually very knowledgeable about how things work or what alternatives are available, I just have some pockets of incomplete knowledge like a kid who has got really into stuff his older brother is into but doesn't really know what he is blathering on about.

Thanks for talking to Sasquatch Nation!

[sasquatch-nation-blog]

Sophy from Novella: Epiphones and Pedalboards are cool

Sophie plays guitar in FFFM group Novella. She took time out from band practise and doing rad illustrations to talk with Sasquatch Nation about gear right here on the internet. She also uses perfect grammar when responding to interview questions (take note assholes).

Sasquatch Nation: Firstly, what's your live setup these days?

Sophy from Novella: I play an Epiphone Les Paul which everyone finds pretty funny because they're such Dad/pub rock guitars, but you know what man? They sound REALLY NICE, apart from that they are the heavy bastards but it does a great job of strengthening my lower back.

After a tuner I'm plugged in to an EHX Freeze, then an EHX Worm (I'm only using the tremolo and phase at the moment), then a Boss PH-3 Phase-Shifter, then a Visual Sound Jeykll and Hyde, and then an EHX Holy Stain (which I only really use for it's reverb setting). I bought a lovely new Vox AC30C2 for my birthday recently which has totally revolutionised everything. I've never owned a good amp and it's my baby. 

SN: How's it working out for you? Anything you'd like to change?

SfN: I'm in to the idea of getting a new guitar pretty soon. I've been talking to people about the Fender Toronado which seems to be little known and now out of production. They were Fender's answer to the Gibson SG and are some of the only Fenders ever factory produced with humbuckers (apparently). They come in some really gross colours and a lot of them have these hideous stripes on them so I'm trying to find a black one...it's so very very hard.

[Fender Toronado - got one for sale?]

Pedal-wise, I only just got the EHX Freeze a couple of months ago and was thinking to myself "wow, it'd be great it you could use some other effects on the latched drone sound and bypass them on your guitar" and then realised EHX had also thought this and literally the day it came through my front door they released the Super Ego Synth Engine which allows you to do exactly that and so much more including all the same stuff as the freeze. So, I'd like one of those too but I'm still too bitter to think about selling the freeze, I need to play with it some more anyway. I feel like I should enjoy what I have for a while. I'm getting a Big Muff with tone wicker though, It's just a standard Big Muff circuit but they've tweaked it so you can flick a switch and have complete tone control and get a whole bunch more sounds. 

SN: Pedal boards are not punk. Discuss.

SfN: I don't want to start a nerdy/bloggy/gear war or anything...But if you enjoy carrying your pedals around in a tote bag then you're a twerp [LOL twerp - Sasquatch], no harm in looking after all those tiny boxes that cost us all a lot of money. Being punk is not having any pedals. Or maybe having just one. You could carry it around in your bum crack or something. 

SN: Did you use any cool/different gear to your usual setup in the studio when recording the EP?

SfN: Not for the EP particularly. I'd just bought my Jeykll and Hyde so I was playing with that mostly...we did launch ourselves at a detuned guitar with a metal tube at one point but that's about it. We've just started recording again and it's this time around that we're experimenting a bit more. The studio we recorded in had a pile of amazing 60s and 70s synths and we we're playing one of those through an octave pedal to get this great drone sound. I kind of wish someone in our band would get all nerdy about synths and buy loads of cool stuff but everyone's too in to their guitar set-up to invest in anything else. 

SN: What's your favourite piece of gear, or something you can't live without?

SfN: Probably my Jeykll and Hyde. It's a really versatile piece of kit. You can get a real wealth of different overdrive sounds with it, which paired with the versatility of its distortion side make it like a rainbow of fuzzy goodness. 

[Looks complicated]

SN: Are you a gear nerd?

SfN: I don't know how to make pedals yet and physics was my most hated of the sciences, but I spend inordinate amounts of time watching youtube demos where the inevitable old man in snake-skin shoes will make a cool pedal sound like an explosion of naffness...so maybe a bit. It really annoys my boyfriend [Oh yeah it's SO ANNOYING when your GIRLFRIEND looks at GUITAR PEDALS ON THE INTERNET, poor guy - Sasquatch].

SN: Any gear tips for the gigging musician? What's the most valuable thing you've learned about gear from playing loads of shows?

SfN: I used to be a bit timid with my knobs, crank those knobs!

You heard the lady, now get to it. Thank you for talking to Sasquatch Nation and brightening up this squalid dude ranch.

[sasquatch-nation-blog]

Ian and Donnie from No Anchor - Big Riffs, Big Amps

Ian and Donnie are dual/duel bassists in Brisbane's No Anchor. They both spoke to Sasquatch Nation about Sunns, Rics, and T-40s right here on the internet. Did I mention they have their own custom model pedal from Tym Guitars? They do. 

Sasquatch Nation: Firstly, what's your live setup at the moment?

Ian from No Anchor: For almost ten years I've been playing an Australian made Lab Systems bass amplifier. I can't remember the model number, but it's blue and it's the one with the tube preamp. Recently my band mate Donovan got hold of a super cheap Sunn 1200s and it's amazing. So loud and it outputs such a consistent signal. I'm really, really impressed with it. Those things really are worth naming your band after.

Donnie from No Anchor: I use a solid state Sunn Concert bass head from around the mid 70's - early 80's, into a 70's/80's 4x12 Australian Audiocraft cabinet, I'm not a massive fan of 4x10's, they don't break up right for my style of playing, which is basically treating a bass like a big guitar. I hate valves as a rule, for my set up at least, they colour all the wrong frequencies and saturate too much at low volume. My set up is loud and reliable. They're the only two things that count.

[Donnie's rig - badass] 

SN: Ian, you've had that Ric for as long as I've know you, how's it stood the test of time given the thrashing you give it? Any mods over the years?

Ian: Oh yeah, it's a seen some work. I took it in to Tym Guitars one day and there was a new guy doing the services and he told me it was one of the most mistreated Rics he'd ever worked on. Years back Tim Brenan installed two steel rods in the neck and now it's virtually indestructible. It has some non-standard pick-ups in it as well but I'm not sure what they are. As with the amp, lately I've been really pushing myself to try new things. We've just made a new record and I used a Fender Starcaster bass guitar on every song. I loved it. The Fender P-Bass shape is one of the most tired and boring things going but it's a classic for a reason: sounds great, plays great. Even the cheap end of town. 

Donnie: I don't use a Ric, let me tell you instead about my Peavey T-40. It's the best Bass ever made. Blade pick-ups, some switches, some knobs to play with (although i don't know why you'd bother with things like that) and four strings. It's from the late 70's also and weighs the equivalent of about 3 fender p-basses, it probably sounds and plays about 3 times better as one as well, I'm not sure if that's a coincidence or not. Everything is stock standard except for some stickers. [Tony from Guitarnerd did an article on this bass back when it was owned by Luke from Violent Soho]

SN: You had a custom pedal made for you / the band by Tim at Tym Guitars, how did that happen, and what was the process of getting the sound that you wanted? Was there a lot of back and forth?

Ian: Yeah, Tim Brenan was really keen to have out input and made us a prototype before he went into production. The story of how it came to happen is pure Tim. I was fooling around in the practice room with a video camera and we ended up shooting some footage of Donovan 'road-testing' (i.e. making horrible, horrible white noise) with a freshly acquired 'Double Boost'. Tim saw it and offered to make us a version of the pedal that was louder, even more ridiculous. While putting it together he asked me how I approach distortion live and I told him I turn all the dials up to 10 on my Big Muff, than sweep the tone back until it sounds good in the room. So that's what the middle knob is: an exact replica of a Big Muff tone switch.

Donnie: Pedals are pedals most of the time, especially OD/Boost/Distortions they make clean sounds dirty or loud or both. Tim makes exceptionally good ones though, I personally didn't want to interfere with his design ideas too much, he's got them worked out pretty good. It's a privilege to collaborate with people like him and we're just lucky that he was willing to stick our name on something that No Anchor couldn't have collectively built if our lives depended on it. 

[Hay someone designed a custom pedal for my band no big deal right]

SN: You've done a fair bit of touring over the last decade - what has this taught you about gear?

Ian: That it's heavy to carry mostly. The most important part of any road gear is the handle. We borrow a lot of amps when we travel. And as such the one piece of gear I can't live without is Tim Brenan's Big Bottom bass splitter. Distortion pedals vary depending on the amp and sometimes some of my other things don't sound good at all but it I have that Big Bottom in the chain, it makes almost any moderately decent bass amp sound workable. It overlaps the split signals a little apparently, really boosting the mids. 

[Ian's pedal rig L-R: EH Green Russian Big Muff, Tym Big Bottom (v1), Boss Octave, Tym Real Gain Supernova]

Donnie: If you want everything to sound right, then you need to bring all your own shit. Or at least borrow stuff off people who have invested in good gear to begin with. That's what I've learned, almost everyone in Australian music uses shitty gear, of course there are notable exceptions, but, generally it's like people are actually clueless. The whole situation is frustrating to me, it's like, if i were a carpenter, I wouldn't buy tools that half-worked and were unreliable, because I wouldn't be confident that the work that I'd produce would be of the highest standard possible. People who do work like that, generally operate with those kinds of ideas in mind, it's their art and they take pride in producing quality results. Unfortunately, live music is treated as a recreational activity primarily and so these kinds of concepts fall by the wayside, everyone is primarily focused on having a party, it seems, and, the artistry comes second, leaving arseholes like me standing around shaking my head. 

Bring your own gear if you care about your art.

SN: Are you gear nerds?

Ian: God no. I feel like I'm a just passable bass player. All I know how to do is make particular sounds I like and repeat them. On my good days, I'm the ape from 2001: A Space Odyssey. I touch the monolith, pick up the tools and then brain other apes with them. Music really is an outlet for the non-nerd parts of my personality. 

Donnie: No. I know enough technical information about the hardware I use to produce the sonic results I'm after, I'd be a fool to know any less than i currently do and it'd be a waste of my time to obsess of the semantics. Sunn Amps are good. That's it.

SN: Are you on the lookout for anything at the moment? 

Ian: I always want a bigger speaker box. And maybe a bass guitar that shoots flames out the end. Alternatively, I wouldn't mind a POG. I use a lot of octave (the Boss OC2) and having a bit more control would be nice. Then again, control is overrated. 

Donnie: Maybe a good 15" speaker, and a power amp for the concert bass, more volume is all I'm ever after.  

[sasquatch-nation-blog]

Joe from Dignan Porch will make the Boss BF-2 cool again

Brothers Joe and Sam both play guitars in the swirly pop band Dignan Porch. Sasquatch Nation caught up with Joe (who also plays in Human Hair) right here on the internet.

[BF-2 all over that shit, love it]

Sasquatch Nation: Hi Joe. Firstly, what's your live setup at the moment?

Joe from Dignan Porch: I use either a mexican Fender Telecaster and a Fender Squier '51, which is like a cheap guitar fender did for a while with a humbucker and single coil pick-up, both need setting up pretty badly. I'm gonna take them somewhere for a service soon. Pedal-wise i'm keeping it simple at the moment with just an original Marshall Drivemaster and a Boss Flanger, these are pretty much all I need for our set as Sam my brother does most of the lead guitar.

Sam uses a Japanese Fender Jagmaster vista, a Swollen Pickle fuzz pedal (by way huge electronics), a Boss Blues driver, a Boss Flanger, a cheap Delay of unknown origin.

Hayley uses a Boss VE-20 Vocal Processor pedal (pretty cool pedal) and an Alesis Micron synth.

Ben uses by far our most expensive item, a 1967 Gibson eb-2 bass. Just straight in, no pedals.

I wont tell you about our amps, they are terrible so we try to borrow amps at gigs, we are in the process of getting some decent ones.

SN: You and Sam both use the Boss Flanger, is there a pedal that divides people more? Are you the only 2 people in the whole world that think they're cool? Tell me about the 'flange sweep'?

JfDP: Ha yeah, I mean it's an extreme sound, but you can get a pretty versatile mix of noises out of them, a light whoosing phaser, an intense wobble, gnarley noisey freak out, and if you create feedback with the flanger you get weird laser beam noises or the sound of birds chirping, the unpredictability is part of the appeal.

I think you mean the trademark 'flanger chop'? That's when Sam and I really wanna crank shit to a next level and do a sort of mid-song karate chop on the dials to turn everything up to full-flanger in a single swoop of the hand. But seriously, flanger is cool, it has become a big part of our sound and I think if you're gonna use these things there's no point being subtle about it.

[Subtle? I would wear one around my neck if I wasn't an 8 foot Yeti]

SN: What's your live vocal processor box? what inspired you to get one? (it works especially well with the flanger I think)

JfDP: It's a digitech vx 400 vocal processor. I got it because i wanted to a) put weird effects on my voice, b) take control away from soundmen c) help take the edge of my voice which can be a bit harsh and needs some echo. d) there are not many around and this one was affordable. [How 'bout f) you're a gimp? (sorry couldn't resist)- Sasquatch].

But overall i got it because i like the sound of an effected voice sometimes, it is part of what i wanted to do with this band. We only use the weird sounds now and then, otherwise it's mainly just there for a bit of slapback. I've inspired at least two people i know of to go out and get the same pedal. soundmen always groan when they see the pedal but it works fine and if it feeds back it's their fault.

SN: You're known as being a bit of a 'bedroom recording dude', what kind of kit do you use when you record at home?

JfDP: Yes I recorded the first Dignan Porch album 'tendrils' in my room on a Tascam Dp-01FX 8 track. But i did it because that was what i wanted to make at the time, and not using a studio was right for that record. It wouldn't be right for the band now unless I buy better gear, and effectively build my own studio, which is what I'd obviously love to do in the future.

I'm still using the 8-track though, it has definitely served me well. I've been doing demos on it recently, I've figured out how to export individual tracks from it, so my plan is to keep some of my demo tracks (ie, a guitar line or vocal part) and take them into a studio, put them into protools and build the rest of the song by fleshing out the original demos (with properly recorded drums etc). I think this is a good way to move forward as I still think original ideas sound best and re-recording in 'proper' studios often dilutes things. So what I aim to to do next is a record of demo / studio hybrids. Or alternatively record completely live. Our new song 'Sad Shape' is a completely live recording, and i think it turned out to be one of the best on the record, kudos to Henry and Mark at Sound Savers studio.

SN: BACK TO GEAR TALK PLEASE, are you a gear nerd? I think that maybe a lot of songwriters aren't gear nerds, because if you're talented enough to write awesome songs then why bother with nerding out on gear? This could be (and is) a bullshit theory.

JfDP: Yes I'm too talented to give a shit about gear. Haha, no I love gear but I'm a bit impatient with it, I tend to stick with what I know, and I loathe the idea of trying things out in guitar shops. But I'm no spring chicken, I've been playing in bands for a long time and I know what's good. I look and see what other people are using, and if I like it I might buy it. I have some nice bits, I have a vintage Fuzz Face pedal that on a good day sounds fantastic, I'd love to use it live but it is really unpredictable and sometimes just decides to screw up. 

[Hendrix, Asheton, Walsh]

SN: What's the one piece of gear you couldn't live without?

JfDP: At the moment the vocal effect pedal, it's just too core to our sound. 

SN: Any gear tips for the touring musician? What are you packing to go to the States?

JfDP: Number one item is a check list, go through and check all your gear is in the van, because if you're like us you'll leave something behind, us and a band we were doing a tour with lost a bass amp and guitar on the same night once, also bits of drum kit get lost so easily. If you have a list you can drink as much as you want and still get all your stuff back safe.

To the states I wanna bring all our stuff if possible, this means investing in decent cases. And another tip, if you're playing in other countries bring plug adapters, you don't want to get on stage in Holland to discover that none of your shit fits into their plugs, which may or may not have happened to me.

[sasquatch-nation-blog]

Sell your stack! Small is the new Big according to Leon from Colours.

Leon from London psyche group Colours talks about 15w combos with Sasquatch Nation, right here on the internet.

Sasquatch Nation: Firstly, what's your live setup at the moment?

Leon from Colours: Well at the moment, with a few on rotation, depending on adapters and batteries all working,

FOR MY GUITAR:

FENDER TELECASTER FENDER BLUES JUNIOR AMP BOSS LOOP station RC - 2 TURBO RAT ORIGINAL CRY BABY CHROMATIC TUNER BOSS DIGITAL DELAY

VOCALS: BOSS VOCAL PERFORMER VE - 20

AND FUN PRETTY NOISEY BITS: A ROLAND SP - 404 SAMPLER

SN: Those little Blues Jrs are great amps - do you find them loud enough on stage?

LfC: Yeah plenty loud enough, only ever have the master on 4 to 5 out of 12 on the volume, so lots of space to crank more.

SN: How's the whole setup working out for you, anything you'd like to change?

LfC: It all kinda works pretty well, I mean I'm still learning how to get more out of what I have. I'm a lover of reverb so I think I would like more control and variations of reverb for my guitar and vocals, and it not be a massive pain to do live. It's tough trying to do too many things live at once, especially while you're TRYING to sing.

SN: I hear that Colours have changed their sound quite a lot over the past couple of years - how has that affected your setup, or vice versa? Tell me a bit about before and after...

LfC: Yeah we defiantly have, I mean it's taken us this long to figure out how we want things to sound. We are kind of almost there, but I think live we still have loads of stuff we want to get better at. When recording the tracks we can really make it to sound how we like. We used to be a bit a little more slap dash with sound etc, but I guess we are trying to make more of a 'SOUND' whatever that is, with using a sampler, vocal pedals and more sparkly guitars instead of over heavy distortion. We still have a long way to go with getting is just right.

SN: What's your favourite piece of gear, or something you couldn't live without?

LfC: Personally its my vocal pedal, as i can control it all from on stage. When laying live before I used to use a guitar pedal for reverb on the vocals and it was a nightmare, It would freak sound guys out, and just sound shit. The vocal pedal I have now is just for vocals so you get a better signal, blah blah, and it has a sweet robot mode too.

SN: I picked up a Turbo RAT from somewhere or other and I just can't get along with it. I think I used it for about 30 seconds and it went back in the box never to return. What do you use it for? Lead lines?

LfC: Well, it's slowly falling out of favour, but it works kinda well with noisey bits with lots of echo, but I'm using it less and less these days. I like a more jangle guitar sound now.

[See how the wah pedal is trying to distance itself from the Turbo RAT?]

SN: If I wanted to join Colours, what single piece of gear would I need to fit in?

LfC: Ha! well, just bring a tuner, its sooo annoying when people want to borrow your tuner, once your set up! you can never have enough of them!

SN: Are you a gear nerd?

LfC: Im afraid I'm not a gear nerd, I would like to be, I just don't know enough about gear. I want loads of cool pedals, but Im just not sure what ones do what, I just want pedals to make shit sound cool! I just need someone to tell me where to get them.

SN: What are you on the lookout for at the moment, if anything?

LfC: I think some kind of tape echo guitar pedal would be cool! and a distortion pedal that's got a vintage style sound, mine at the moment has got a little too much beef behind it.

SN: Any gear tips for the gigging musician? what is the most valuable gear lesson you have learnt from playing loads of shows?

LfC: DON'T BUY A MASSIVE AMP! I have brought a bunch of massive, heavy, million watt amps, as I thought you needed one to play live, practice etc, but it seems you don't. Just buy one for a little more money and you can get one that's perfect for carrying and is loud enough.

Colours are a difficult band to google, but Sasquatch Nation recommends the Drip Haze 7" record.

[sasquatch-nation-blog]

New issue coming soon... here's where it all started for me, one half of it anyway.

[sasquatch-nation-blog]

Ollie from Cold Pumas and Tense Men gets complicated

Ollie Fisher plays in the excellent Cold Pumas and the excellent Tense Men. His guitar setups are nuts, so we asked him a bunch of questions about them right here on the internet.

Sasquatch Nation: I remember meeting you at the green door store and you handed me a diagram of your tense men setup - do you still have a scan of that or something? it was epic!

Ollie Fisher: See attached. It should be noted that this was when I stupidly used to use three amps so it's not quite so crazy as this now.

His phone number was on the back.

SN: What's your full live setup with tense men these days?

OF: I'm not sure how detailed you want me to go on this so I'm going to go for Full Detail. [Sasquatch Nation wants full detail always].

Guitar into tuner, then into an ABY pedal which splits the signal into two, with one output providing the bass loop and the other the guitar. The bass side goes through a Visual Sound Rote 66 Overdrive and then into a Line 6 delay pedal (those stupid big green things that everyone has) which I use solely as a sampler, and then into the bass amp. I keep changing the guitar side but it currently goes through an old Nobels fuzz pedal, Daphon analogue delay pedal, a Boss FRV1 '63 fake spring reverb pedal and then into the guitar amp. And I put the vocals through a Boss DD3 delay. And then I put Rich through a drum kit.

SN: What's the motivation behind such a complex setup? Has it evolved or grown/shrunk over time?

OF: There is absolutely no motivation behind this set up, in fact it's pretty much the opposite of what I originally wanted to achieve in this band. It was meant to be a fun, throwaway, simple band but somehow I always have to overcomplicate things. I am a victim of my own ego; the main thing is that I wanted to entirely be in control, which meant looping and therefore two signal paths and thus two amps. Although actually it's all relatively light hearted compared to the ludicrous set ups of many bands.

SN: What's your main difference in setup between Tense Men and Cold Pumas? what's your Cold Pumas rig?

OF: One signal path, one amp, no loop, and a different distortion pedal (Crowther Hot Cake).

SN: Are you a gear nerd?

OF: Compared to some people, no. But I do get excited by pedals so maybe yes a bit, and I've definitely had low points in my life where I've spent hours watching youtube pedal demos. I'm probably more into amps right now, or at least the idea of them. And by that I mean the idea that you can obtain the perfect 'real' sound from them, a purity of tone, MAN. My  old housemate had a strange old reel to reel tape recorder which had a valve amp built in and although it was only a few watts, it had one of the most arousing, REAL sounds I've ever heard.

SN: What's your favourite piece of gear, or something you can't live without?

My favourite thing is actually something I could easily live without as I never use it sadly - a Moogerfooger Ring modulator.

I have no idea what these things do but they kick ass.

SN: What was your last acquisition? Why did you get it?

OF: It was a Ken Multi Fuzz pedal. I bought it because I used to have one that broke and in my memory it had an amazing sound. I have since learnt not to trust my memory. But it's got a funny name so I don't care.

SN: What are you on the lookout for at the moment?

OF: I'm currently making a half-assed ebay attempt to get some sort of real spring reverb unit, with a view to using it for recordings one day. Haven't really found anything yet that I can currently afford.

Anyway that's enough, I've bored myself to death.

SN: Thank you for talking to Sasquatch Nation (is what I would have said if this was an actual interview and not hacked together by email)  

Cold Pumas have a full LP coming out this year and Tense Men I have no idea what they are doing, just google them hey.

[sasquatch-nation-blog]

James from Collider/Keel Her won't shut the fuck up about Selmer amps (but that is totally what we are here for)

The Tye Die Tapes guys up in Sheffield rule - I had the fortune of playing a show in their studio on tour recently. They are involved with a bunch of bands: James and Adam were in Bhurgeist (who just split) and now are in Collider, and James also plays guitar in Keel Her. They have a great label and a studio filled with rad gear, and James spoke about his guitar rig with Sasquatch Nation right here on the internet. He really fucking likes Dinosaur Jr. And Selmers.

Sasquatch Nation: What's your live setup these days? James from Collider/Keel Her: I play a Squire Jazzmaster, I’ve replaced the pickups with Seymour Duncan SP90-3 at the neck and an Alternative 8 on the neck. I pretty much always have them both selected. Adam (bhurgeist bassist and Tye Die Tapes buddy) is forever telling me I have too much low-mids in my tone. I disagree. I love low mids. My pedal set up changes a lot except for the Poly Chorus and [WEM] Copicat, right now I’m running it like so: Korg Pitch Black>Rams Head Big Muff Clone>Poly Chorus>Deluxe Electric Mistress>Holy Stain (set to tremolo)>LPB1 (line boost)>WEM Copicat. I really love the sound I’m getting at the moment, If I could I’d add a mid gain distortion maybe the MXR GT-OD. I also have an EHX Pulsar Tremolo pedal but the insides are all rusted and fucked so I’ve had to sub in the Holy Stain which isn’t great but it does the job. Amp wise, I swear by Selmers, in bhurgeist I play through a Treble ‘n Bass 100W and Adam goes through the 50W version, it has two channels a ‘treble’ and a ‘bass’ I patch them across so I’m going through both at the same time. I like to play through two amplifiers when I can and my second amp is usually my Trace Elliot Vellocette, which is a really great little combo. Gibson bought Trace out in the 90’s and rebranded the Velocette as the ‘Gibson Gold Tone’. It’s a beautiful Racing Green too and it only has two knobs, volume and tone so so simple.

60s Selmer Treble n Bass 100 - I played bass through a 70s one at Tye Die Tapes HQ, it was pretty badass.

SN: What's the main difference in your rig between Keel Her and bhurgeist? JfC/KH: The main difference I think is the guitar I play, I use Adam’s Mexican Strat in Keel Her, it plays like a dream, and sounds great, I also pile on the delay and widen the Poly Chorus oh and I turn the Big Muff down considerably! Also I tend not to lug the Copicat around as it doesn’t travel well on trains so I swap it out for an Aria Short Delay which is great! I’m less fussy about amps in Keel Her, I still refuse to play through solid state, but I’ll dabble with Fenders where as in bhurgeist it’s strictly Selmers,  Though this is mainly because I blew up two Fenders within a month of each other in bhurgeist.

SN: There's a lot of cool amps floating around in your studio, must be cool to get to try out a bunch of stuff? JfC/KH: Oh yeah, tell me about it! I’m so lucky! The guys who I run Tye Die Tapes with are just the best, Michael who deals with the studio side, builds amps, pedals, compressors and everything! He’s a great guy to know! He’s built my Rams Head [ie Electro Harmonix Big Muff Rams Head era] clone for dirt cheap! He’s just started a blog where you can see what he’s got on his bench!  http://ampsnshit.tumblr.com/ Adam is just the best guy on eBay. He’s forever turning up with a new head or a microphone!

SN: What amps have come through that you really like? Any that have been disappointing? JfC/KH: Man, I remember the day the Selmer’s came in. I thought I’d died and gone to heaven. I don’t think I’ll ever play anything near as good as the 100W Treble n Bass. Though saying that Michael had a Super Bass that I played though a while ago and that was such a dream to play through.

I’m not sure if I’ve ever been disappointed with stuff we’ve had around the studio. I mean, I really really really hate fenders, but we’ve probably only had one in the studio and then it was a clone!

SN: You're a big fan of the poly chorus - why is this? JfC/KH: It’s just a great analogue chorus, I’ve tried loads of different choruses but they all sound turd in comparison. The things that it can do just amaze me! I can never really put it into words so I just let people play around with it make their own mind up. The reissue sucks by the way so be wary of that.

SN: Any specific models to look out for? Adam chips in here: Am I ok to answer this instead of James? [Yes] I haven't really looked at the SPC circuit but I think the new ('smooth box') one is the same as the old one that we use. Aesthetically the old one is obviously way better and the big knobs on it mean that you can adjust with your feet, something that you can't do on the new one. This is especially useful because the 'width' knob is pretty sensitive and if that ends up too high you can end up sounding like you're playing in Arab on Radar which is good if you're actually playing in Arab on Radar but not so good if you aren't.

SN: I know Dinosaur Jr was a big influence on bhurgeist, what's your take on vintage muffs? I think there's so many good clones out there these days so why bother paying hundreds for a pedal that is renowned for being inconsistent with components anyway? Keen to hear your thoughts? Back to James: Yeah totally! Clones all the way, I’m lucky in having Michael as such a good friend, as I said earlier he made my Ram's Head clone, which saved me £££. I’ve never seen the point of blowing mega bucks on a vintage muff when with a little time browsing the internet you can find people like Michael doing it for half the price. With an exception to the Poly Chorus I’m not that big on collecting pedals, people treat them like Pokemon Cards or football stickers. I’m just after the best tone, not a Dark Shinny Charizard [I'm guessing people born after 1986 will get that reference - Sasquatch]. SN: What's your most recent acquisition? Why did you get it? JfC/KH: I think it was the LPB-1, I’d been talking to Adam for ages about how much I love it when J’s solos jump right out of the mix on Dinosaur songs, and I was like. “I want that!” SN: With J's solo sound, from what I've read he puts his main Muff through a send/return loop pedal that reduces the volume of the muff (which is on full all the time), then for solos he overriddes the loop and pow, the muff is on full volume - so it's actually reduced for rhythm rather than boosted for solos. JfC/KH: I'd heard that, but I'm not allowed anywhere near loop pedals of any kind. I think Adam got a court order out and everything. So the LPB-1 seemed like the most practical solution, for me any how. SN: One thing that's a bummer about living in London is that I don't have a car, so that cuts down so many options for travelling around and getting gear from eBay and classifieds - do you guys get out a bit to check out gear in the region?

JfC/KH: Yeah that must suck! Michael and Adam are forever going off on ‘Gear Quests’ as they call them, I’ve been on a few with them it usually involves meeting middle aged men in motor way service stations, buying their pride and joy and having them tell you about the bands they were in as kids. That bit is quite depressing, but the stuff they come back with is so good. We’ve just got this nice Acoustic full stack that’s a beautiful brown with tweed grills, I just want to play through that all the time. SN: What are you looking for at the moment gear wise? JfC/KH: Just a decent tremolo pedal really! Oh and a GT-OD as a mid gain distortion. Oh and a Fender Mustang but that’s a pipe dream ‘cos I’m skint. SN: Finally, are you a gear nerd? JfC/KH: I wouldn’t say I am more that I have a distinct idea of the tone I want and I have some excellent friends who help me get that. I’d be nothing without Adam and Michael. I love them.

Listen to Collider here:

<a href="http://colliderband.bandcamp.com/track/you-didnt-think-this-through" data-mce-href="http://colliderband.bandcamp.com/track/you-didnt-think-this-through">you didn't think this through by Collider</a>

Also definitely check out bhurgeist and Keel Her - use google, I'm not your mother.

[sasquatch-nation-blog]

Simon from Undead Apes ditches pedals

Undead Apes are a pop punk band from Brisbane. Simon used to play in a killer band called Sekiden who I saw about a billion times when I was in University. He knows his shit more than most and spoke to Sasquatch Nation right here on the internet.

Sasquatch Nation: Firstly, what's your live setup with Undead Apes these days? Last I saw you had something like an Epiphone Crestwood through a JCM800? Simon from Undead Apes: Yeah I'm using an old Epiphone Crestwood ET-275 that I picked up of Ebay in pretty bad shape but cheap and changed out the wiring harness and put in a “filtertron” style humbucker in the bridge [Filtertrons are dual coil humbuckers developed by Gretch, I think - Sasquatch]. The JCM 800 is the “uncool” reverb model (2205) but I've found if you wind the gain back a bit it still has a pretty classic sound in there.

A bunch of Simon's stuff, including said JCM800 and Crestwood, along with his Bassman Export 50w and a Russian Green Muff (not green anymore). The black box is a Tym Cube of Silence, which is a great invention. SN: How's the rig working out for you? Anything you'd like to change? SfUA: I love it.  It's super stable which is important to me I guess? That said I'm always looking for small things to tweak!

SN: You're quite a gear nerd, how much of an obsession is it? SfUA: Well I kinda fell into it. I would op-shop and trawl pawnbrokers and just find these old weird stompboxes, drum machines and synths and they were all old and cheap. This pre dates the internet at home and ebay so it was a bit easier to find bargains. I don't really buy so much vintage stuff now as it's gone a bit mental price wise but there is so much great boutique and reissue analog stuff coming out you'd be a nut to only buy vintage IMHO. At least twice a week I have to remind myself to stop reading about guitars and go downstairs and play the guitar!! (lame as it sounds) SN: What's the main gear differences between Undead Apes and your old Sekiden rig? Why the changes? SfUA: Well the big one is no pedals live! Sekiden was mostly Russian Green Muff into various valve heads and Undead Apes is just guitar to Marshall. I guess I wanted a clearer, more “classic” sound and the Marshall helps to achieve that. Sekiden was very synthetic and the guitar was holding down a bit of the bass territory so the Big Muff was key to that wall of square waves I guess.  SN: You've doing quite a bit of touring over the years, what has this taught you about gear? SfUA: KEEP IT SIMPLE.  Think about trouble shooting your rig in the dark half drunk (and then lugging it out). SN: What's your favourite piece of gear, or something you can't live without? SfUA: Jeez that's tough!!  I'd have to say my Ibanez (481 rickenbacker style) guitar but I guess that's a mostly sentimental selection [I have always loved that guitar, read all about it over at Guitarnerd - Sasquatch].  But really you can make music on anything (sorry to be pragmatic and boring). At least twice a week I have to remind myself to stop reading about guitars and go downstairs and play the guitar.

Simon on the right with his old Ibanez Ric copy, image from Before Hollywood.

SN: Ok you have to choose between guitar and synths - which is it? SfUA: Guitar every day of the week.  It's just really immediate and physical and great for anger management! SN: What was your most recent acquisition? Why did you go for it? SfUA: I picked up a Zvex Distotron. I went for It because it's kind of tough to borrow specific Marshalls when you tour interstate so I was really looking for something that could get that sound no matter what amp you get presented with (third show in I got loaned a 20 watt squier practice amp so not even the Zvex could fix that!!!!). SN: What are you on the lookout for at the moment? SfUA: Nothing really but I'm always browsing like a dork! I've been thinking about getting a 12 string electric because I really dig those sounds on the “Exploding Hearts - Guitar Romantic” album.  I assume a 12 string would be a nightmare live however! SN: How's the pawn shop/cash converters scene in Brisbane at the moment? SfUA: Played out like anywhere else in the world I guess!

<a href="http://undeadapes.bandcamp.com/album/killed-by-deaf-vinyl-download" data-mce-href="http://undeadapes.bandcamp.com/album/killed-by-deaf-vinyl-download">Killed By Deaf (vinyl + download) by Undead Apes</a>

^Get a load of this shit. And all the rest of it.

[sasquatch-nation-blog]

Tom from Old Forest

Old Forest are a trio of guys who are into drop D riffs and cartoons. Sasquatch Nation caught up with guitarist Tom right here on the internet and sorted out all his grammar so that people can read his answers. (Good luck with exams, punk.)

Sasquatch Nation: What's your live setup at the moment? Tom from Old Forest: I have a Boss DS1, a Big Muff, a Hotcake, Vox wah, Digitech effects processor for my flanger and stuff, and an LPB-1 boost SN: How's it working out for you? Anything you'd like to change?

TfOF: I wanna get a Proco Rat distortion pedal, i like the DS1 but i always wanna change stuff around and get new sounds otherwise it can get pretty boring. SN: I noticed you have a Hot Cake - I've never played one but people rave about them, but I don't usually associate them with the kind of heavy sludge rock stuff that Old Forest do. How have you been using it and what are your thoughts? TfOF:I got one because our friends Fanzine use one and i thought it sounded great. I know J Mascis and Thurston Moore use them too. They are really great. I stack it with the big muff and it just makes it really full and fat sounding adds a bit more beef

SN: I like that you have a wah, there's not enough of that around IMO - do you listen to Dead Meadow?

TfOF: I havent heard Dead Meadow before, but I Wikipedia searched Jason Simon and he is the nephew of the guy that created The Wire [No shit Sherlock - Sasquatch]. I can't remember why i got the wah, it was a christmas present. I borrowed a friend's crybaby before but I think the vox is better, it has a greater sweep. SN: Is it a challenge to get the heavy sounds you want, or does it come quite naturally?

TfOF: Not really, I play in drop D so it kind of just makes it alot heavier. I like playing in different tunings, I once even made my own tuning when i was drunk and wrote the best song since glycerine by Bush. SN: What's your favourite piece of gear, or something you can't live without?

TfOF: Probably the big muff, thats just one that I leave on all the time. without that it probably would sound pretty weak. SN: Are you a gear nerd?

TfOF: A bit, I go through phases where I will just watch pedal videos on youtube for hours or read about them on the internet, it annoys my girlfriend a lot [Sasquatch is married - Sasquatch knows]. I never had any money to buy them but I got a job and started buying new stuff. It's quite a weird addictive thing. I wanna try to make some of my own as well, I think that would be pretty cool having your own pedal that you have made, forged with hammer and fire. SN: What was your most recent acquisition? why did you get it?

TfOF: The Hotcake i think, just because alot of people I like used them and i heard they are awesome.

The Crowther Hot Cake - way cooler than a Tubescreamer.

SN: What are you on the lookout for at the moment?

TfOF: I really want a vocoder, electro harmonix make one for the guitar. Pretty wacky 

[sasquatch-nation-blog]

Lindsay from Sauna Youth talks secret weapons

Sauna Youth are a punk band from East London. Lindsay plays guitar; the kid's all limbs and hair. You should really check them out...

Sasquatch Nation: What's your live setup right now? Lindsay from Sauna Youth: I have a Fender Mustang going into a Boss TU-2 tuner, then an Arion SAD-1 delay, then a Line Selector which splits the signal between a fairly clean but slightly broken Fender Blues Junior and a completely fuzzed out slightly broken MusicMan 112RP, thanks to a Zvex Fuzz Factory that i've had on long-term loan from Eddy from Fair Ohs. The MusicMan is for when I need to take it to '11' which is most of the time. I think the fuzz factory has blown the speaker though, and not in that cool Kinks way, it just sounds terrible, especially when I play E or B which again, is most of the time. I used to use an akai headrush for doing little loops which was fun, but it too is slightly broken.

(normally when he plays there are wires that connect all the parts)

SN: I've got a Fuzz Factory but I can't get on with it. What settings do you use? I was using it in a doom stoner band and it was ok in that setting but kept farting out. I'm not surprised your MusicMan didn't like it. LfSY: Yeah they pretty wild! I turn the compression all the way off, and the gate up so it doesnt self-oscillate, the drive about a quarter of the way up, the 'stab' a quarter up....I think those Box Of Rock ones are supposed to be pretty good - J Mascis uses them I believe? [I think he uses a Fuzz Factory on acoustic - Sasquatch]

SN: You just went from a Gordon Smith SG to a Fender Mustang. Is it a USA, Jap or Mexi? What prompted the change? How are you finding the new axe? LfSY: It's Japanese I think. I just wanted a guitar that wasn't so destroyed! The Gordon Smith is really versatile thanks to the coil-tapping feature - I used it on the record that's about to come out - but it's kind of thrashed and a bit too ROCK BAND. I play a lot of single string 'lines' and the Mustang does a good job of accentuating all that..I also like that its 3/4 scale so you can get around the 'board like YNGWIE.

Dorkus with his old Gordon Smith SG - Photo by Kim Ford

SN: Am I right that you use two small amps on stage? Any problems hearing yourself on stage with small wattage and a loud drummer? LfSY: Yeah, I mean thats the reason I got another amp because a lot of the time I couldn't really hear what I was doing. Rich is a really loud drummer and also a lot of the time we have samples going as well... so I had to do something. Henry from Human Hair recommended the Musicman and it worked, at least before I blew it up. SN: What gear are you looking at getting next? LfSY: I really like Univox Hi Flyers, they kinda funky looking and are like a wonky Mosrite rip-off. Apparently Kurt played one for a gig or something... Also, Murphy (bassist in Sauna Youth) turned me on to Teisco guitars. They look pretty cool - I wanna get a more unusual guitar next I think. I REALLY like those Death By Audio pedals but they are pretty £XP£N$IV£. The feedback loop one is totally insane!

SN: You've done quite a bit of touring in various bands... what has this taught you about gear? LfSY: To not be too precious about it because ultimately its what your fingers are doing rather than the instrument itself. Obviously its nice to have nice stuff, but I jammed on an epiphone SG for about 10 years before graduating abruptly to a Rickenbacker 330 (which I had to sell to pay my rent...weeep). So yeah, I guess what it's taught me is to not care too much...! SN: What's your favourite piece of gear? and what can you not live without? LfSY: It would be the Arion SAD-1 delay pedal. It's the secret SY weapon - Rich has one on his vocal mic the whole time too. It's almost like a reverb because it sounds so trashy and it oscillates in a really musical way when you turn the repeat dial all the way up. You can get them really cheap on ebay. I found my first one outside a pub in Kingston upon Thames and haven't looked back.

Arion SAD-1... The one on the right looks SADDER.

SN: Are you a gear nerd? LfSY: I guess so, I mean I think most guitarists are to an extent. I once wrote a letter to Total Guitar magazine asking what bass the guy from Ash used. It's a non-reversed Thunderbird in case you were wondering...

Sauna Youth play all the time. If you want to know when, use google dipshit.