“The massive
distortion gets on my nerves after a while”
I agree Krispen, I find that the distortion tone is often times the
make or break point for me, of whether an artist really speaks to
me, or not. Using distortion for many guitarists represents their lead voice,
and in a way it’s analogues to what a sax player develops, when
choosing an instrument, thickness of reeds, and embouchure. Nels Kline
has a great sense of effects application, and at the same time his heavy
distortion sounds can get pretty abrasive to my ears. Which I’m
sure is the point. As they say one man’s pudding is another man’s
poison. Give me a Scott Henderson, David Gilmour, Carlos Santana or Jeff Beck
any day of the week as their tones are always stellar. I think the danger with
heavy distortion is that it can obscure a players personality and rob them of dynamic
range, not to mention making for a muddy sometimes indistinct tone. I
also realize that when you are trying to create sonic mayhem, distortion and
fuzz can be your best friends.
I love overdrive as to me its more controllable and sweeter
sounding, than fuzz or distortion, and my aesthetic leans more towards that
smoother, soft clipping sound. I have been using some octave fuzz as of
late, though I find I have to turn the treble down to get a smooth
enough sound for my ears. For a while my main overdrive has been a Duncan twin tube which is
very versatile, but recently I went looking for something in a smaller package
I could run on batteries if needed. I’ve always been a fan of Dumble
amps, and the smooth creamy sound they are famous for. I also know that the
Dumble design is based on black face era fender amps with a twist. Dumble
amps have a first gain stage that is essentially a solid state fet preamp, ( in
other words, he had the bright idea to install what amounts to a tube screamer
like overdrive inside his amps.) This circuitry is what gives dumble amps
their creamy smooth overdrive sound. Recently a pedal called a Zen Drive crossed
my radar, and on the recommendation of a work mate who owns one, I ordered one
direct from Hermida Audio in Florida.
All the buzz about these pedals is that they are as close to a Dumble overdrive
as you can find without spending $20, 0000 and up for a used Dumble
amp. The designer even has a big glob of black silicone glue covering up the
circuit to hide the mojo, much like Dumble did with his amps. I’m
happy to say that this is a fantastic pedal, with great range and
dynamics, somewhat like a vintage tube screamer without the annoying mid range
hump, and a wider range of overdrive tones. Originally I had planned to buy one
used on E-bay because traditionally, demand has outstripped production of these
pedals and there was usually a waiting list of several months. The problem was
that all of the e-bay sellers were jacking up the price $50-100 dollars to try
and take advantage of this situation. I simply e-mailed the builder and he told
me they were available and ready to ship. It cost me $188 delivered to my door.
If I could have found it locally I would have bought it, but as far as I
know Hermida audio has no dealer network. I can’t say enough good things
about this pedal, it sounds unreal, and it even looks cool to. The rumor
is Alfonso Hermida designed this box for Robben Ford so that he could get his
sound, when having to use rented Fender amps and didn’t have the luxury of
bringing his prized dumble. Whether or not this is true, I think he really
nailed the sound, and I am loving this pedal big time. This pedal rocks, and
considering what a re-issue TS-808 costs, it’s a bargain.
Bill
From: Krispen Hartung [mailto:info@krispenhartung.com]
Sent: Thursday, December 18, 2008
4:37 PM
To:
Loopers-Delight@loopers-delight.com
Subject: Re: One Guitarist, One
Drummer was: Altered Tunings
Heh heh...yes. Sorry. John Morris is someone I work with.
That was a habit based typo. :) I meant Joe. Damn, good
catch! No one else got that?
----- Original Message -----
Not that I know every guitarist out there, but do
you mean Joe Morris instead of John Morris, Kris?
Joe Morris certainly kicks ass - double threat as
guitarist and bassist.
It is very good, but
doesn't do what Interstellar Space does for me. And
clearly (with no disrespect to Nels, but more of a comment about the sheer
genius of Coltane), Nels' articulation on the guitar does not match
Coltrane's articulation and mastery of the sax. Again, I don't think
anyone would deny that without underestimating Coltrane.
I don't know much about Nels Cline, and have not listened to all of his
material. All of it is very good from what I have heard. I like the tracks on
the CD where he is playing clean, more than those where he has the shreader
guitar tone. The massive distortion gets on my nerves after a while.
I would like to hear John Morris (guitar) and Billy Kilson (drum) doing their
take of Interstellar Space. I saw Billy Kilson with Dave Holland a few
years
ago, and was blown away. I have never seen a jazz drummer play with such
energy
and speed. And of course, Morris that raw jazz tone that do well with a
homage
to Interstellar Space.
Kris
----- Original Message -----
> I think it fully earns the title. I find it pretty incredible. I'd be
curious to hear your reaction.
>
> Gorgeous version of "Lonnie's Lament" on it, too, after all
the chaos.
>
> Daryl Shawn
> www.swanwelder.com
> www.chinapaintingmusic.com
>
>> I was not aware of this CD with Nels. I will have to check it out.
The
question is, does it earn the title of Interstellar Space Revisited? That
album
of Coltrane's is insurpassable, allowing only remote approximations to its
level.
>>
>> Kris
>>
>>
>>> Nels Cline and Gregg Bendian's "Interstellar Space
Revisited" is a superb reworking of Coltrane and Ali's masterpiece.
>
>
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