This is a top-five style list. But it’s my top-five list. This is the list of my five favourite guitar moments from 2015. This is the Scarebear 2015 in review article I never thought I’d do. What can I say, I’ve rediscovered the blogging bug.
I’m pretty sure there’s a cure for that. I just don’t care to take it. … 2015 in review—My five favourite guitar moments
Let me start by saying that I’m not suggesting this list is some kind of top list in any way. This is not the top five metal albums of the year. This is not the top five guitar albums of the year. No, this is simply my favourite five new albums from 2015. I’ll hopefully explain why as I summarise each album. I’d also like to say that 2015 was an amazing year for new releases. You need only check out the list of albums released in 2015 on Wikipedia to see that.
Marilyn Manson, Periphery, Slayer, Lamb of God, Joe Satriani, Motorhead … It was a good year for metal releases. For me though, there were five albums that made me very happy. These are those albums (in no particular order). … My favourite five new albums from 2015
I’ll be honest with you. I didn’t know how much harder 52 pedal manufacturers was going to be when compared to last year’s 52 amplifiers. I fell behind on my weekly posting schedule—the real world can be such a needy thing—and finding so many different manufacturers who were all providing something that appealed to me in a way no other pedal manufacturer was proved to be a lot more time consuming than I had anticipated. Having said all of that, I’m glad I persevered. I’ve put together a list I’m proud of that is hopefully going to be of use to other guitar gear addicts.
So, 52 different pedal manufacturers all offering that something special in an attempt to gain access to your valuable pedalboard real estate. If you had to choose one new pedal, what company would you choose a pedal from? What pedal would you go for first? Me, I’d certainly make it one of the following 52 pedals. At least one … … 52 pedals—the summary
For a while now I’ve been lucky enough to have access to the SilQ app that the talented TonApp As created. You may know TonApp As through their handy little Guitar Capo+ app—which is also quite a sexy little app. Perhaps they’re cornering the market on sexy iOS apps. I’m sure that’s a niche market.
Anyhow, I’ve been playing around with SilQ and I have to say … I love it! There are EQ apps and then there’s SilQ—quite simply the best EQ app I’ve come across. I’m rethinking my opinion on EQ effects in a signal chain now—my previous opinion was not very high. … SilQ—quite the sexy little iOS EQ app
Oh, you have no idea how much I’ve been waiting for this entry to the 52 Pedals series. This is the last entry so I had to end on a high. That could have been tricky though. All of this research and writing tires me so. I’m worn out. I feel under-appreciated. I need something to make me feel once again motivated, powerful and loved. Clearly, I need someone to give me a Mercy Phuk.
You have no idea how much I’ve been looking forward to that last sentence. … 52 pedals, week 52—Wren and Cuff Mercy Phuk
I know I’ve had a huge overdrive and distortion preference in this series of 52 pedals, but I couldn’t let myself end the series without one final modulation pedal. It would of course have to be another pedal that works well with a distorted tone. So, without further delay, let’s add the Hermida EPH-3 Tape Sim Delay pedal by Lovepedal.
I guess I did just add further delay. Oh well … … 52 pedals, week 51—Lovepedal Hermida EPH-3 Tape Sim Delay
As I realised I was coming to the end of my search for 52 different pedal manufacturers, I reached out to my Twitter friends for suggestions on potential pedals I’d overlooked. One suggestion was Behringer. I was familiar with the company name and did go through their BOSS-style pedal range when looking for a potential pedal to include in this list. That was too easy though. And to be honest, too ordinary. The Vintage Distortion pedal however … That ticked quite a few boxes for me. Which is handy, because it’s clearly in the list. You can tell because you’re here right now reading about it. … 52 pedals, week 50—Behringer Vintage Distortion VD1
Well I guess not all of my final pedal entries for the 52 Pedals series need to be overdrive or distortion pedals. No, sometimes I like to add other effects to my overdrive and distortion effects. But even if you’re not as addicted to the metal as I am, a damn good reverb sound can be an impressive addition to your sound palette.
It sounds fancy when you say it like that. The Mojo Hand FX Dewdrop Reverb looks and sounds fancy to me. I could see myself loving it. … 52 pedals, week 49—Mojo Hand FX Dewdrop Reverb
There’s no point trying to hide it any further. I’m addicted to distortion pedals. There are so many different kinds. There are so many different manufacturers. I initially was attempting to make my mission 52 different guitar pedals all of varying types and manufacturers. The more I researched the more the mission changed. The mission became a search for the best distortion pedal. It was accidental. I didn’t set out to engineer these results. If I had, I’d have started with the Mission Engineering Delta III because … Mission. Engineering.
Oh well, I gave this intro a shot. … 52 pedals, week 48—Mission Engineering Delta III
I’ve realised lately that with so many different guitar pedals out there, one thing we all need to keep in mind is pedal board real estate. Well, if you’re like me and want to experiment with several different pedals you do. So unless you want to build a pedal board that is roughly the size of a N.A.S.A. styled control panel from a 60s science fiction movie, you’re going to need the occasional small pedal. But it will need to be a pedal that proves that old saying true. The saying that says “Good things come in small packages”. Not the old saying that says “Age is a very high price to pay for maturity”. That one has nothing to do with this article and nothing to do with me—I lack maturity.
A guitar pedal that does prove good things can come in small packages however is the Red Witch Seven Sisters—Ivy. That’s why it’s the 47th pedal in this series. Yay! … 52 pedals, week 47—Red Witch Seven Sisters (Ivy)
