Throwback Thursday: A look back and a website upgrade!

Sorry for the inaction but we have been busy over here! Pedals And Effects is about to upgrade but before we do that, I wanted to look back at my first video post!

When I built this website, I was looking for an outlet for my music gear obsession. I was hoping there would be an audience of people out there who were also searching for videos of gear that may not be covered by most mainstream sites. I also wanted to showcase how I use my own gear and my own take on using popular, top selling equipment. Pedals And Effects seems to have created a following and so we are getting ready to ramp up our site!

I remember video taping myself with my tripod, and Canon video camera (with a microphone attached to it) and cussing profusely as I messed up several takes. Making a video looks way easier than it actually is and I was determined to make this site work. I’m so happy to see how things have grown over the years, and the best is yet to come! Take a peek at the very first Pedals and Effects video and my initial announcement:

“I am pretty excited to announce the launch of www.pedalsandeffects.com. Because of my 25+ year obsession for pedals/stompboxes/effects, I wanted to share my experience and knowledge in how I construct sounds and music utilizing these devices. I have spent many hours crafting sonic ideas and it’s with these concepts, I feel can inspire my fellow musicians to stretch their musicality and originality and help them create sounds that define them.

On any of the records I have been a part of, I can say I rarely just ran my bass direct into the console or bass amplifier. The majority of the time, I typically run anywhere from 1 to over 10 pedals. I do love hearing just the bass with nothing on it but maybe a little E.Q., yet that never gets me as excited as taking my bass signal and tweaking it to the particular piece of music I am to record onto. I like my instrument to provide the same function in the ensemble as if it had no effects on it but I always want my voice/sound to have some uniqueness to it. I love when anyone comments on my performance’s tone as innovative or creative. Though some musicians believe that it’s all been done before, I say sonic crafting is limitless. Pedals and effects have inspired me to be more innovative with sounds that lifted my instrument into the future unknown.”

I didn’t isolate my bass in the video so you hear my pick hit the strings as loud as the amp/speaker output. The voice audio sounds like I am in an empty room (and I kind of was back then) because I didnt have a lot in there. I am now being suffocated with gear and we now film video with GoPros (Yes, GoPro endorses Pedals And Effects!) and we isolate the amps for recording.

Well now we are updating Pedals And Effects.com with a new SquareSpace look, new logo, webstore, merchandise, collaborations and so much more. All this will reveal itself over the couple of weeks and we are hoping for a re-launch sometime in March!