Guitar Workbench 100
Shoegaze-in-a-Box: Catalinbread Soft Focus FX40
Some say shoegaze is making a comeback. The moody, reverb-rich, guitar-based genre plays on feelings of nostalgia, melancholy, and a lust for Jazzmasters. The folks at Catalinbread believe shoegaze never left, and we’re inclined to believe them after experiencing the Soft Focus FX40 Shoegaze reverb pedal. Pitched as an instant shoegaze button, the FX40 is […]
Songwriting Series: Blog Collection
Songwriting Techniques and Tips Do you dream of writing your first song, or just need some tips to enhance your own works? You’ve come to the right place. Find our collection of posts offering songwriting tips that will guide you from the first verse to the very end of your next song! A Guide to […]
Touch That Dial: Three Overdrive Pedal Tricks for the Studio!
Nearly every pedal company offers an overdrive effect. It’s a decently simple circuit to create, and there are a ton of variations available on the market today. From the first overdrives that were built to emulate tube amp breakup, to the modern active EQ-equipped studio darling ODs, overdrive pedals can serve a higher purpose on […]
The Post-Bridge: Finishing Your Song Strong
If you’ve been following our songwriting series to this point, you’ve gotten tips on how to write an intro, pre-chorus, chorus, and bridge. We’ve reached the end, and to close the series out, we will cover how to write various post-bridge sections! This area of your song builds on your bridge with a final chorus, […]
This Breedlove Abides: Jeff Bridges Organic Concert is Sustainable and Resonant
When I first caught wind that there was going to be a collaboration between Breedlove and Jeff Bridges, it just made complete sense. With Bridges’ advocacy for sustainability and Breedlove’s push toward becoming one of the greenest guitar companies on the planet, it was a marriage made in heaven. Adorning a solid torrefied European spruce […]
Take Control of Your Ambience With the Eventide UltraTap!
Ever wondered what it would be like if a vintage Echoplex had modern capabilities like saving presets, expression out, MIDI, and even tap tempo? The engineers at Eventide made that very thought a reality with the Eventide UltraTap reverb, delay, and echo pedal. The UltraTap delay algorithm may seem familiar to Eventide fans from its […]
Epiphone 1959 Les Paul Standard: All the Iconic Features at a Sliver of the Price
The Epiphone 1959 Les Paul Standard is an exciting addition to the Epiphone line since “bursts” are known as the holy grail of electric guitars. Where the Gibson Custom Shop ’59 Les Pauls can cost up to $8,000, the Epiphone 1959 Les Paul Standard comes in at $849. At a sliver of the price, you […]
Stacking Overdrives to Gain New Tones
As guitarists, there are few things we love more than a good overdrive pedal. If you’ve been playing for years, there is a good chance you have several lying around. While you may have chosen a few of your favorites to stay on the pedalboard, you may want to try stacking overdrives together. Stacking overdrives […]
Talk Box and Friends
When guitarists don’t want to sing, they buy a talk box — at least that’s what I do. An instrument in itself, the talk box was unleashed onto the world in the 1930s and became popularized in the 1970s. Mostly seen as a novelty, it can also be a major sound piece as a handful […]
