New Gear Report: Novation Circuit
If you visited Novation’s website in the past couple of weeks, you may have seen a teaser image like this: Well, Oct. 1 is here, and so is Circuit. What is Circuit? The literal answer is a comprehensive grid-based synth, drum machine and groovebox all in one. Novation sees it as the answer to musician’s eternal […]
New Gear Report: Moog Mother-32
Moog’s latest synth, the fully-analog, semi-modular Mother-32, is here! Ideal for synth neophytes, the Mother-32 requires no patching, but has that functionality if desired. Its 32-step sequencer can be instantly shifted in octaves or steps, and there are a slew of tonal and rhythmic adjustments to make via the low- and high-pass ladder filters, attack, decay, pulse […]
Inside the Moog Synthesizer Factory
Asheville, North Carolina is a mecca for artists and musicians of all stripes — but it’s especially dear to the hearts of analog synthesizer enthusiasts. That’s because Asheville is home to the Moog synthesizer factory, where 61 full-time Moog Music employees work to carry on the legacy of the company’s famous founder, Dr. Bob Moog. […]
Chelsea Wolfe – Abyss
Synth-heavy bass chords, each ending abruptly and eerily, open Chelsea Wolfe’s 2015 album Abyss. You’d almost think you were listening to some resurfaced soundtrack for 1997’s cult sci-fi epic Event Horizon if it weren’t for the eventual build-up of industrial doom metal and Wolfe’s haunting voice crooning like some kind of space siren. Maybe this […]
Episode 32 – Jim Lauderdale
Chris has coffee with Jim Lauderdale in a Nashville hotel room and gets the story on his incredible life and career. Be sure to listen until the episode's end to hear a stripped down acoustic version of Jim's classic tune, "The King of Broken Hearts."
Talking Gear with the Chicago Acoustic Underground Podcast
Your typical podcast recording setup doesn’t include a 24-channel digital console, a wall of custom-modded guitar amps, and a full drum kit. But Chicago Acoustic Underground isn’t quite your typical podcast. In his quest to capture the work of unknown artists, CAU podcast host Michael Teach has crammed his modest Chicago apartment with musical instruments […]
Perfect Pairings: Reverend Descent & Orange Rockerverb 100 MKIII
September’s Perfect Pairing: Reverend Descent H90 Baritone & Orange Rockerverb 100 MkIII Head This month, we’re plugging the Reverend Descent H90 baritone guitar into the Orange Rockerverb MkIII for 100 watts of earth-shaking low end. The Reverend Descent H90 Baritone features a 26 3/4″ scale neck, which means it’s long enough to accommodate baritone tuning, […]
Five Tips to Get More from Your Gear
Most guitarists don’t start out with top-of-the-line professional gear. Pretty much everyone I know had a no-name guitar, a garage sale drum kit, a keyboard from Craigslist or a hand-me-down instrument from a sibling or relative’s attic. Eventually though if they’re serious about playing, musicians slowly upgrade their gear by mowing lawns, saving allowances and […]
Uncle Acid & the deadbeats – The Night Creeper
If creepiness is a virtue, then English band Uncle Acid & the deadbeats possesses it in spades. For an album that opens with the lines, “There’s a man who’s just been waiting here all night long/As he watches you he’s smiling there all alone,” the band’s fourth full-length, The Night Creeper, sets an eerie tone […]
