5 posts tagged “the disco biscuits”

I caught the Disco Biscuits at the Boulder Theater last night - WHAT A SHOW!!!

I snapped a couple of pics.  Check 'em out!

(oh and I realize that the date on the bottom two is wrong - still getting used to writing 08!)

As a bassist in a funk/electronica band I am constantly on the hunt for different bass sounds.  In other words, I'm constantly looking to discover new effects pedals that morph and enhance the sound of my bass.  

Whether it's envelope filters, octaves, distortions, EQ's, wahs, phase shifters, chorus', synths, flangers, delays, overdrives, compressors, or something I don't even know about, I've always got an eye and an ear out for new sounds.  It's not easy though, it's very much a hunt. 

See here's the thing: the great bass players rarely make the pedals they use public knowledge.  I'm not really sure why, but it's just the way it is.  Maybe it's because they had to work to figure out which pedals their bass heroes used, and it's kind of a "you have to pay your dues" type of deal.  I just don't know. 

Of course this isn't the case with all bass players - some of them put lists of their gear right out there for everyone to see.  But for others you've really got to dig for some clues.

I have several techniques that I use when it comes to the investigation stage.  They're all pretty obvious steps, so by no means do I consider myself an expert in the field.  Actually in all honesty I suck at it.  So you can always google the bass player's name + effects pedals and hope that some fan has somehow sneaked a picture of their on stage pedal setup.  But you're lucky if you find this. 

Next I'll ask someone who's a much more skilled pedal detective what they think a particular bass player is using in a certain song.  This tends to be my roommate and guitarist and he usually produces good results.  I don't know how he finds out, but somehow he does.   If you don't have direct access to an expert pedal detective, then you can always try posting to a gear community like thegearpage.net, or harmony-central.com.

And then there is always the old fashion way of actually going to a show and trying to check out what they have on stage.  You can't always tell - sometimes their pedals are obscured by a monitor, or they're too far away.  But every now and then you get lucky. 

Today I got lucky.  Umm....in a different way than what you're thinking.  My expert pedal detective (roommate/guitarist) shared his discovery with me.  Again I don't question his methods - he just gets it done.  Here's what he showed me.

It's an add for a bass featuring Marc Brownstein (bassist, the Disco Biscuits).  If you'll direct your attention to his feet, you'll see what all of the fuss is about.  There are his pedals!!!! 

But there is still work left to be done.  We have to figure out what those pedals actually are.  Sometimes this is simple.  For instance, several of the pedals that he uses are Boss pedals - they're easily identified by their shape.  Furthermore, each Boss pedal has a different color.  Sometimes the shades are similar so it gets tricky.  So it looks like he's using (from picture left to right) a:

• Boss Super Chorus or Compressor (they're both baby blue)
• Boss Synth (silver next to baby blue)
• Boss Bass Equalizer (tan to the right of the big red one)
• Boss Super Octave (dark brown to the right of the tan one)
• and on the far right underneath the text I can make out a Boss Tap Tempo indicating that somewhere under that f*in text is a Boss Delay Pedal.
  

Next pedal to tackle is that big red one on the left.  I can make out that the pedal reads "Deep Impact" although its upside down and slightly faded.  So I googled "Deep Impact" and found that its is an Akai SB1 Deep Impact Bass Synth that is no longer in production (so it's going to be tough to find one for purchase and it will be mucho dinero). 

And I can determine what a couple of the other pedals are, but not all of them so I still haven't totally cracked the case of what Brownstein uses, but we've made a lot of headway.

So just wanted to share with you what goes into the music you listen to.  It's not just a bass, it's also a ton of effects pedals, and other crazy gear.  And let's not forget the all important and frustrating hunt for the pedals.

Oh and if anyone knows what is under that text on the right there...let me know.

Later,
the Dude of Music

Uhhh...so it's been a Bisco day!  I'm listening to that Trancgression show I mentioned in my previous post.  The Gangster into Helicopters is so sick.  I'm lovin it and wanted to share it with all of you.  Hope you enjoy!

Later,
the Dude of Music

Haven't been able to sleep much the past couple of nights, and it's because I'm really excited about what we have coming up in RockMe.  We've got something big in the works for your rockin pleasure.  I can't say what it is but if it all goes down as planned then our ear holes are going to get funked so hard that we'll all need a smoke afterward.

I'm not going to lie though - although I'm stoked for what's to come, it's got me a little stressed, which is why I haven't been sleeping so well.  And that brings me to the point of this blog: Find Your Happy Place.

Just when I was about to lose it I went to my happy place - music.  And my Happy Place right now is on archive.org where I'm listening to a nasty mcnasty show by the Disco Biscuits.  The "Mulberry's Dream" is ridiculous. 

So if you're stressed, then just relax and find your happy place...and yes I realize that your happy place may be a body part, but if that's what you gots to do then that's what you gots to do.

Here's one of my happy places...Trancegression Festival in Copper Mt., Colorado last summer.  This is a pic that I took on my phone during the Biscuits ridiculous set.  You can listen to that set right here.