Booze and Blues

Drink Spotlight: Champs Elysees

2012-01-12T20:25:00.000-06:00

...it's not exactly like I haven't been drinking. I mean, it's been the holidays! I've just found not very much drive to continue in my quest for making every drink ever. I'm sure someday I'll come back to it, but in the mean time, I thought I'd feature a few more drinks. The first one is this: the Champs Elysees.

It's funny how drinks come in and out of style. I mean, here in St. Louis, there really aren't many craft cocktail bars around. Unfortunately, it's still way, way easier to get a delicious craft beer in this town than anything resembling an exquisite cocktail. That is, of course, unless you're at my house! But supposedly, this may be one of the next big cocktails get revived, so I thought I'd give it a shot. And I've been looking for something to do with my Chartreuse....

The Champs Elysees:

1 1/2 oz. brandy or cognac
3/4 oz. lemon juice
1/2 oz. simple syrup
1/2 oz. Chartreuse
1-2 dashes aromatic bitters

Shake and strain into cocktail glass.

If you're looking for an analog, this cocktail is quite similar to the Sidecar. It's built very similarly, but where the sidecar uses triple sec as a sweetener, the Champs Elysees opts for equal parts Chartreuse and simple syrup. The Chartreuse is an herbal liqueur, so it has a very definitive sweet component, and it makes for a fairly balanced cocktail. The cocktail is definitely tilted slightly towards the "sweet" side, but not overbearingly so. The herbal nature of the Chartreuse offers a lot of complexity to the Sidecar, and the dash of bitters, just a bit of spice. It's a good thing, too, as brandy is good but not particularly assertive, so it makes a good base for more intense flavors.

I'd highly recommend this one. It's a good introduction to Chartreuse and it's delicious!

All I want for Christmas is a modded Valve Jr.

2011-12-22T14:20:00.003-06:00

Ok. So. Sorry about disappearing for all of November. And like most of December. On the plus side, it means that I've been really busy playing and working retreats and finding as many jobs as I possibly could and could not be bothered to do anything else. Certainly not much drinking and writing about it. I'm way behind on that project, and so it might scale itself to a life-long goal, rather than a scant year or two....

But it wasn't all work! Gear has moved around, as it is wont to do. The biggest changes include some trades: I traded my Musicmaster amp for a 1981 TS9 and a cmatmods Signa Drive, and I traded my Gretsch for a Strat. I've updated my pedalboard that I used for leading (which I'll show you guys in a later post) and I picked up, modded, and am now in love with, another Epiphone Valve Jr.

If you remember way back, I had a head/cab Valve Jr. back in the beginning of my guitar-playing days. I mostly got frustrated with it because of the fact that it is a head/cab which for whatever reason just seems like a big hassle to me. But then I found a little Valve Jr. combo on Craigslist for $75, and I thought to myself, why not?

Pictured: the most cumbersome 5 watts ever.

I figured, worst case, it will teach me a lot about amps and soldering and general electronics work, and if I screw it up, I'm only out a little. So I grabbed this little guy and a soldering iron and got to work.

I used the kit from Watts Tube Audio, choosing to go with the "Voxy" mod simply because I like AC30s but am almost never in a situation where I can crank one to get power tube distortion. I also planned on adding a "bright" switch because I like that. So I drilled a nice hole for the switch. Note to self: no matter how much of a pain it is, REMOVE THE CIRCUIT BOARD BEFORE DRILLING IN THE CHASSIS. I drilled right through a little capacitor on the stock board, which I was going to remove anyway, but it kind of gave me a wake-up call. Don't do that.

For the bright switch, I did a lot of research to figure out the best way to do it. One of the easiest ways to do it is to wire a small capacitor (in the order of pico-farads) across the volume pot and give it a switch. It's the same idea as a "treble bleed" mod that a lot of people will do to their amps or even their guitars, just with a switch. The idea there is that the resistance in the volume pot at any position other than wide-open sucks some of the highs out, so the treble bleed switch just adds those back in. The effect is lessened the more the amp is turned up, but that's just because those frequencies start to poke back through anyway. The first capacitor I used was apparently not rated for high-voltage applications. It was promptly destroyed and fuzzed out. So that was fun. Lesson learned, I got a 100pf capacitor rated at 250v, and it's been working fine.

So I got to soldering the board up. That all went well enough until I plugged it in and turned it on and promptly fried a power tube. To this day, I'm not sure if it was just a tube that was on it's way out or what, but it started sparking and generally doing a lot of scary things that you don't want to see in an amp. I triple-checked my wiring, reflowed some solder on some sketchy joints, installed a new power tube, and this time brought it up to full-voltage slowly (using a variac), and it seemed to fix the problem. I left it at full voltage for a while to make sure nothing died, and when I was satisfied, I screwed everything back in.

The only other major change I made to the amp was installing a 12ay7 tube in the pre-amp slot, rather than the stock 12ax7. If you don't know anything about tubes, that's okay. Basically, 12a_7 tubes are all electrically compatible. The important part is that a 12ay7 tube has a lesser gain structure than a 12ax7, meaning that an amp with one in it doesn't get quite as dirty as it would normally. I did the same thing with my Blues Jr. and it expanded the amount of control that I had over the volume. And also, the tube I used was a nicer NOS tube, so it just sounds better (and smoother) in general, since a lot of the distortion you're getting, even full-out, is preamp tube distortion. But now I get more use out of the volume knob, and can actually get a clean tone out of humbuckers, something that was all but impossible with a 12ax7.

Here's a quick video. It's just a really simple showcasing of what the amp can do, just my Tele straight in (or rather, through the JHS buffer and my pedal board, but with no other effects on). I play the same phrase on the bridge, middle and neck position, with me toggling the bright switch and turning the volume up. Since the amp is only 5 watts, I can turn it all the way up and not get things hurled at me. It's still loud, mind you, but it's not uncomfortable to be in the same room with.

I took it out to a Mass last weekend, and my sound guy was blown away at the clarity. I played it with the bright switch engaged, and used my Tele and Strat, and we put a '57 in that taped-off square, pointing towards the center of the speaker. When I went to plug it back in afterwards, I noticed that it kind of stopped working. Or, more specifically, that the tubes weren't glowing. So I made sure to go over the connection between the power transformer and the tubes (kind of a sketch one anyway) with a lot of solder, and now it's nice, clean, and reliable.

I should probably do a proper demo, putting some effects and stuff on there, but I just wanted to get a baseline tone out there. That's not even my clean tone, since 99.7% of the time I also have a Dynacomp and a BBE Sonic Stomp going. But expect more videos in the future, since this was way easier to do than I would have thought....

Baseball Heaven

2011-10-29T14:34:00.000-05:00

I'm not sure if this was obvious or not, but I'm a Cardinals fan. Now and forever. And last night I got to go to game 7 of the World Series and celebrate with 50,000+ fans (in the stadium and on the streets of St. Louis) as we won our 11th World Series. There really are no words for the way that this silly, frustrating, glorious game makes me feel, for the emotional roller-coaster that has been the past two months. Living and dying with every win and every loss. Cheering with everything I have and barely being able to even hear myself in a crowd of tens of thousands. Seeing people in this great city put aside their differences, if only for a short while, and cheering, united. No black, no white, only Cardinal red. And to be able to hug random strangers in the stands, to high-five everyone you meet, to feel such an incredible surge of fraternity with everyone in the city, just incredible.

This year in particular taught the lesson that nothing's over until it's over, and that fighting and striving and never, ever giving up, on your dreams, on yourself, does pay off. And that, win or lose, it's how you played the game that matters, and there's always a tomorrow to redeem yourself, if you have the courage to reach out and take it. There's always the next season, the next game, the next inning to turn everything around and go from the underdog to the champion.

And that is why baseball is the greatest game.

I wasn't sure this day would ever come...

2011-10-21T11:21:00.001-05:00

In spite of my sporadic posts (which is, I promise, the last time I'm going to talk about that), I've actually been quite busy with moving around guitar gear lately. Too busy, in fact. Maybe one of the reasons why I haven't been posting much is because I could never figure out what gear to talk about, since I was getting so much new gear so often. And it's come to the point where I'm now doing one of the most difficult things I've ever done related to guitars:

I'm down-sizing.

I looked up the other day and I had 9 guitars. 9! I don't have 9 sets of hands! How could I have that many? The fact is, it just kind of happened over time. But it made me realize just how much money I had tied up in cheap guitars, with about four different plans to upgrade them and make them my own. But I can't justify 9 guitars. So I'm selling off two of them to make some money to, you know, actually upgrade some of the others.

Best example: I've had an Epiphone Les Paul forever. But what I really want it some kind of ES-335. So I bought and Epiphone Dot, with the thought that I'd eventually upgrade all of the hardware and the pickups and end up with a very good guitar. But what I've realized is, that was kind of my plan all along for the Les Paul. So what am I going to do? Sell the Dot and another guitar and finally make the upgrades that I've wanted to make. I still want an ES-335 someday. But if I upgrade the pickups on my cheapie Les Paul, then someday when I do get a nice Gibson ES-335, I can just swap out the pickups and have a guitar to drool over. And in the mean time, I can get pretty good tone from my Les Paul, and I can then sell it with the original pickups and not lose any money.

I'm not sure why it took me 9 guitars to figure all of that out. I've been putting money in to my pedalboard for years, only having recently slowed way down and concentrated more on upgrades than on buying new things because they're shiny. Amps are the same way; I got nicer tubes and am on the waiting list to have Bill M mod my Blues Jr., and in the mean time I've been digging my Musicmaster way, way more for how clear of a tone it puts out. And that's even with a 35 year old speaker. Something about the hand-wiring, I'm sure.

So yeah, this isn't an exciting post. More like a "responsible" one. How boring.

New Gear: Tom Anderson Crowdster

2011-10-15T13:28:00.000-05:00

Apparently I can't stay away from red guitars. Well, this one was only semi-intentional. I've actually had this baby since the beginning of the summer; I'd saved up lots of money and decided that it was time to take the plunge, and I must say, it's awesome. I put on strap locks and it's good to go. Months of working later, it's still just as great as it was in May.

I really, really like working with it, since it never feeds back, but it does open up a few interesting points. One, you never realize just how much of your own monitoring of your guitar playing comes from the sound of the guitar hanging around your belly. I never use monitors if I can help it, just because most of the time it's just me, and I can monitor myself by turning the house sound up loud enough to fill the room, but when I'm playing with a band, I need a lot of my acoustic in the monitor mix just to hear myself. Also, this guitar has a surprising amount of low-end. Even though it won't feedback at high levels, it's big and boomy without any eq-ing, but just a few slight tweaks and you get great acoustic tone.

And, of course, there are the handful of times that I need a legit acoustic guitar, with no amplification. Luckily for me, those time are few and far between. On account of how I'm such a huge rock star. Boom.

Pedalboard Update - October 2011

2011-10-06T12:12:00.000-05:00

I figured I needed to put SOMETHING up here, so here goes. A lot of my gear has made rapid shifts in the last few months, what with buying lots of guitars and getting other ones setup, but the pedalboard has been relatively constant for a while now. Actually, strike that. It's been completely consistent. I can't really even remember the last iteration of my 'board that I put up here, but this one is only one pedal off from what I've been rocking for about 2 months, so there's that.

The main thing that's changed has been the positioning of a lot of the pedals. I usually find myself using the overdrive pedals to give me a different flavor, then use the RC booster almost entirely as a solo boost, which is why it's extremely easily accessible there at the bottom of the board. Next to it is the CE-2 because I love that pedal but it's on/off switch is really, really old, so sometimes it doesn't exactly respond when it gets stomped on. So it's in the bottom row so that I'm not all off-balance in the event that it doesn't go on or off right away. The sonic stomp and the Dynacomp are both always on, so their position doesn't matter as much; I really liked the Dynacomp in the position that I've had it in forever because it's out of the way, but I've been running out of room so I had to get creative. I did take off the speed-knob attachments though, so now it's nearly impossible for me to turn those knobs accidentally with my foot while I'm going for another pedal. And I was able to work a legit fuzz in to the board. I really like this one so far, but I need to play with it a lot more to really figure out how to dial in the fuzz sounds I like. But this one (the Barber Trifecta) plays nice with buffers, so it was nice to not have to put it first in the chain or anything like that. But as for the signal chain:

Guitar -> JHS Little Black Buffer -> MXR Dynacomp -> VOX Wah (Modded for true bypass) -> Xotic RC Booster -> Gravity Drive -> Analog.man TS-9 (modded to TS-808 specs) -> Barber Trifecta Fuzz -> Boss CE-2 Chorus -> Voodoo Labs Tremolo -> Ernie Ball Volume Pedal -> Boss DD-7 (with external tap tempo) -> Line 6 DL4 -> BBE Sonic Stomp -> Boss Tu-2 Tuner -> Boss RV-5 Reverb -> Amp

Overall, I'm pretty happy with this setup. I got another Keeley modded BD-2 that I love, but between that and the Gravity Drive (which is a Marshall Bluesbreaker clone), it didn't make the cut. I had it over my Fuzz, but now that I have a fuzz, I couldn't find the room for the BD-2; it will probably find a permanent home on my leader-board, which is my next project. But this setup lets me do everything I need to do. I've got a low-gain drive (Gravity Drive) and a medium-gain drive (Tubescreamer) along with a dirty fuzz (Trifecta) for when I need that. I've got a solo boost that will further drive whatever drive I have on, or that will make my clean tone sparkle for a lead or push the amp a bit more. I can stack the drives too, if I want (I like both the gravity drive and tubescreamer on at the same time). I can use a Wah and delay for some ambiance, or fuzz and delay for pad work. I can use tremolo, chorus and/or delay to do crazy stuff. My tuner also functions as a kill switch if I need to stop all of my delay or feedback or what have you. And with my buffer, compressor and Dynacomp, my clean tone is rich and full in spite of the 50+ feet of cables between my amp and guitar. The only thing I can't do is POG-type stuff, but I'm not sure what I'd cut to make room. Maybe the fuzz? We'll see how much use it gets.

Oh yeah. I also got a VOX coily cable. Because I want to be Jimi Hendrix. But mostly because it's really convenient to not be stepping all over my cable all day long. I do like what this particular cable does to my tone, though.

...someday I'll come back to this blog....

2011-09-21T11:06:00.002-05:00

So here are the things that have changed in my life since I last wrote here:

Started using my Musicmaster to play out a little more. It's awesome. It makes me rely on pedal-based overdrive since it doesn't have a Master Volume, but I've been doing that anyway. It's also way lighter than my Blues Jr. and it sounds wonderfully hand-wired. If that's even a thing it can sound like.
Took my Strat in for a complete setup and my Mustang in for repairs. Free plug for Skip Goez. He knows what's up.
Am switching bank accounts. Bank of America has earned my ire.
Wrote a whole new Mass for the upcoming changes. The non-Catholics here probably have no idea what that means, but it's kind of a big deal. I will hopefully have some YouTubes up at some point; right now I'm working on finding some compositional software to get it all written out professionally. Any suggestions?
Speaking of writing, I've had two different book ideas pass through my head, and I need to get started on two talks that will be happening shortly.
Have a Barber Trifecta Fuzz on the way that should be here today....and my board has changed, as it is wont to do, ever so slightly since the last update. But I've been playing out a lot more and I like where it's at now. But yes, the fuzz will require shuffling everything around, since fuzzes don't like buffers and as it stands right now, the buffer is the first thing in the chain.
Turned 26. So that was fun.
Still have to do a review of the Gravity Drive. Long story short, it's a Bluesbreaker clone! And I love it.
I never thought I'd do a bullet-point-format post? I guess I am getting to be like Karl....

Splendid.

Ben

Fender Mustang

2011-08-13T08:54:00.000-05:00

I figured since I'll be out of town again this whole next week, I should probably actually say something about the previous teaser post, rather than just leave you hanging. Basically, I traded a few spare pedals and a few hundred dollars for a '66 Fender Mustang. And I know I say it with every new guitar purchase, but I'm in love, all over again. I've never played a legit, vintage guitar (unless you count one of my good friend's pre-war Gibson, which is magnificent, but which I've only held and strummed for about a minute), much less owned one. I'll just say, I can see what all of the fuss is about. It needs some going-over electronically, which will be good because it will give me motivation to finally take my Strat in for a professional setup, but man, it sounds amazing, and it plays perfectly. It's definitely cooler than me. Look for some clips once I get it back from Skip.

Teaser post.

2011-07-28T08:14:00.000-05:00

I'm going to be out of town for more than a week. Here's something to tide you over.

Beauty Spot Cocktail

2011-07-25T17:29:00.000-05:00

Another twist on the Bronx.

Beauty Spot Cocktail:

1 oz. Gin
1/2 oz. dry vermouth
1/2 oz. sweet vermouth
1 tsp orange juice

Shake and strain into 3 oz. cocktail glass with dash of grenadine in the bottom.

A few things to learn from this one. First, it's maybe my favorite variant of a Bronx, being basically a "perfect" Bronx cocktail with some grenadine thrown in. Here, "perfect" is shorthand for having equal parts dry and sweet vermouth, rather than one or the other. As you'll probably see if I ever get around to it, it's a pretty common term. But the dash of grenadine is a nice touch, adding both in terms of presentation and flavor profile.

Next, and I can't stress this enough, fresh orange juice. The difference between just taking an orange, cutting it in half and squeezing out a bit of juice, versus using the preservative-and-sugar-laden store-bought stuff or the stuff from concentrate is, well, incredible. Something gets lost in translation when you use the frozen concentrate stuff, and the juice from a carton tastes like an approximation of orange juice. What it lacks in flavor, it makes up for in sweetness. Both of which are not strong qualities in a cocktail ingredient. So use fresh juice whenever you can swing it, which, in North America, is pretty much year-round.

And lastly, you'll find the Bronx is fine. It's not my fave, as I tend to find a drink that includes orange juice to be somewhat lacking, but this one came together nicely. Probably a 4 out of 5, if you'd like an arbitrary ratings system....

Beals Cocktail

2011-07-20T19:22:00.000-05:00

Here we have another scotch-based cocktail, but this one is a bit more balanced.

Beals Cocktail:

1 1/2 oz. scotch
1/2 oz. dry vermouth
1/2 oz. sweet vermouth

Stir and strain into 3 oz. cocktail glass.

I've often heard that if you want to take a dominant ingredient and make it play well with others, you have to introduce an equally dominant ingredient. Fight fire with fire, if you will. Well, there's not much to dry vermouth, but sweet vermouth has a bit more...character. Dry vermouth is understandably more refreshing and light, whereas sweet vermouth is, well, sweet. And deeper in flavor. Simply adding a bit of sweet vermouth really does do a lot to balance things out. It's still very, very heavy on the flavors in the scotch, but it's bearable. Not my favorite, but yeah. Bearable. Not exactly a ringing endorsement, but then, there really aren't a lot of "good" classic scotch cocktails. For a reason.

Beadlestone Cocktail

2011-07-19T20:16:00.000-05:00

Beadlestone Cocktail:

1 1/2 oz. scotch
1 1/2 oz. French (dry) vermouth

Stir and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass.

Man...scotch is hard to mix with. I know I keep saying that, but even I, who happen to love scotch, had a rough time with this one. Granted, the old half-and-half isn't exactly the golden ratio of mixology, and with something as mild as dry vermouth, it's no wonder that this didn't quite work out. Not sure what else to say, other than "no."

I tried to get cutesy with the picture, though. So I guess that's something....

ProTools

2011-07-14T16:17:00.000-05:00

So I went to start doing some recording when I realized that I didn't have ProTools on my computer anymore! That was kind of a shocker. But, now it's remedied, and I'll be doing some recording.

That's really all I had to say. I've gotten like 4 new pieces of gear since I last updated all that, and am rapidly approaching a fifth, so there's some stuff in the back-logs that I'll get to once life slows down just a tad, but for anyone in youth ministry, I'm sure you can appreciate just how busy summers can be!

Barton Special Cocktail

2011-07-01T20:25:00.000-05:00

Barton Special Cocktail:

1 1/2 oz gin
1/2 oz apple brandy
1/2 oz scotch whisky

Stir with cracked ice and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass.

Oof. This is one of those cocktails for someone who likes alcohol. I've kind of touched on it before, but there are a few things that put a "cocktail" apart from a "drink", as commonly imbibed by your typical sorority sister. One of the more....uncompromising detail is that, if you're drinking, you should taste the alcohol. This one definitely passes that test.

A few potential reasons for it. The obvious is, it's alcohol mixed with more alcohol and a bit of water. But besides that, the scotch I'm using definitely isn't the smoothest. Granted, that's 100% by design. Scotch is really hard to mix with in general since it's such a stringent spirit, but great scotch is incredibly smooth. It's also hundreds of dollars. Decent scotch, like what I'm using, is a pretty good middle-ground between taste and dollars, but again, when you're mixing, it's often....fussy. In cocktails. Otherwise it's straight-up manly.

But yes, an intense cocktail. I'm not going to give it full marks because it's a little too much, which is saying something when you've had as much experience with alcohol as I have. But the combination of the smokiness of the scotch and the apple from the apple brandy is really nice, so maybe there's something there, waiting to be discovered....

Baron Cocktail

2011-06-28T23:05:00.000-05:00

Two in a row! Alright.

Baron Cocktail:

1 1/2 oz. gin
1/2 oz. French (dry) vermouth
1/2 tsp. Italian (sweet) vermouth
1 1/2 tsp. orange curacao

Stir with cracked ice and strain into 3 oz. cocktail glass. Garnish with lemon twist.

Here we have a rather delightful twist on the Martini. Actually, it's more than delightful. I've had probably a hundred Martini's over the last few years, with probably twenty different variants, and it's not much of a stretch to say that this might be my favorite. The good thing about a Martini (I mean a real one, not one with chocolate liqueur or passion fruit syrup or UV Vodka) is that it's familiar. Comforting, even. I've had a lot of bad cocktails in a lot of bars, but as long as you watch the bartender and let them know that a Martini is a cocktail with an appreciable amount of vermouth in it, you're going to get more or less what you had in mind.

And that's what's so delightful about a slight twist on an old favorite. Because sometimes the simple gin/vermouth/olive combination gets a bit....tired. Always good, always strong, always welcome, but sometimes I'm not looking for that. This twist reminds me (for good reason) very much of my previous favorite twist, which was a Martini made with half gin, half vermouth, a few dashes of orange bitters and a twist. In a drink as simple and subtle as the Martini, you really discover just how much flavor the lemon twist imparts on the drink. This, in turn, opens your eyes to how much of an effect any ingredient can have, no matter how small. This drink is huge, because a few dashes of orange curacao and a dash of sweet vermouth, and you get a drink that's exceedingly familiar, yet where the Martini has the dry botanicals of the gin and a hint of brine off of the olives, this one sings with fruity flavors from the orange and lemon peel, and the splash of sweet vermouth gives you something a bit more complex. Rather than dry and brisk, you get a drink that is flavorful and refreshing, all while still being, at it's heart, a Martini.

I can't recommend this one highly enough, though I suppose one caveat is that I do, in fact, love a good Martini. If you're not really into them, then I guess it might not be for you, but this is far and away the best Martini I've ever had.

Barbary Coast Cocktail

2011-06-27T22:25:00.000-05:00

Having gone exceptionally long (almost all of June....) without a post, I thought I'd start drinking again. I know, twist my arm, right?

Barbary Coast Cocktail:

1/2 oz. rum
1/2 oz. gin
1/2 oz. scotch
1/2 oz. Creme de Cacao
1/2 oz. cream

Shake and strain into 4(ish) oz. Cocktail glass.

You can see my generic, "well" brands in the picture up there, though there shouldn't be anything there that surprises you, at least not if you've been reading for any amount of time. Once again, a cocktail calls for a decent amount of creme de cacao, and once again, the Marie Brizard disappoints with it's awful nose and chemically aftertaste. I really, really need to find a drink that will mask that ingredient and then drink it all down in that fashion, and move on to another brand, because I feel like this has been a lot of cocktails that could have been passable with another cacao.

As far as the drink itself, it's sort of an everything-Alexander, which is interesting. Sidenote: it is a brave barkeep who decided to pair scotch with creme de cacao. It kinda works, though. Man, I need another creme de cacao.....any volunteers?

New Gear: Gretsch 5129

2011-06-03T14:36:00.000-05:00

This one has been a long time coming, since I've actually had this guitar since March, but that extra time has also given me the chance to evaluate it in a lot of legitimate, gig-type settings. I saw it hanging on the wall in the used section of a music store that I rarely go to, and it called to me. I plugged it in to a few amps, turned some knobs, and fell in love. Behold!

If you've never owned or played a Gretsch, you're missing out. There is a difference between the bottom line (Electromatic) and top line Gretschs, but I think it's only the difference between solid wood and laminate, and some fanciness in terms of binding. The electronics, the build quality, everything else is on-par, and I think made in the same factory in the good old USA. What that means is that the tonal difference between a $2000 Gretsch and the $700 Electromatic version is there, but it's really subtle. I much prefer that to the Gibson business model, where an Epiphone Les Paul, we'll say, sounds just awful compared to it's big brother, and isn't even manufactured in the same country, let alone the same plant.

This particular one doesn't seem to be a part of their standard line anymore, but it seems to be in the same line as the White Falcon. It's got single-coil pickups, a Bigsby tremolo and a hollow body. Let me just say, this thing is awesome. I absolutely love hollow-body guitars for the extra grit and feedback that you can get at normal volumes. And something about all that extra space inside of the guitar really rounds everything out, controlling the highs and the upper-mids so that it becomes really difficult to get a harsh sound out of this guitar. Sure, you can go countryesque chicken-picking with it, but even those tones won't tear your head off like a Tele can. It's just a more mellow, smoother tone. Hard to explain.

I got turned on to Gretsch guitars by (who else?) Hillsong United. They use them. A lot. I saw them live a few times in the last year and it seems like everyone was using some kind of Gretsch with a Tele or Strat as a backup.

Also, I used this guitar with my Blues Jr. to record the clip of the Westbury overdrive from just a few days ago, so give it a listen and you can hear some of it's tones. This is probably my favorite guitar, and I've had it for the least amount of time. I try to play it every chance I get!

New Gear: Westbury W20 "The Tube" Overdrive

2011-06-01T11:37:00.000-05:00

So the last few weeks have been a bit crazy; sorry! As promised though, here's a quick demo of a pedal that I got in a trade on Craigslist. I like it, but I can't justify keeping it so it's out on the Gearpage as we speak, with perhaps a stop on eBay in it's future. So if you like it and you're interested, shoot me an e-mail!

I present, the Westbury W20 "The Tube" Overdrive:

Here we've got a Gretsch hollowbody going into the tube, into my Blues Jr. And some less-than-spectacular playing, combined with some in-demo tuning. Recorded on the iPhone. All the makings of a rock star, I tell you....

It's an interesting pedal. Clearly, it's not transparent. The closest comparison I can make is that it's similar to a Tubescreamer, except that there's a 12ax7 tube in it so it's much warmer. From all of the information I can gather, it was made in Japan in the 1980's, then re-released by Nady once they bought Westbury. There are some people who really, really love it and seek it out since it's super rare. It does have some pretty nice drive at lower gain levels, but it's just got way more than I think I'll ever need. Maybe not though. I'm kind of on the fence, but I'm not in love with it.

You knew this day was coming....

2011-05-15T00:45:00.001-05:00

I've been a little frustrated with my pedalboard for a while now. I know, I know, a guitarist saying that he's not happy with his gear is like...I don't know...something. Point is, we all expected it, right? Well, just this night I've undergone a pretty drastic re-imagining of my electric rig. There are some old favorites that have migrated back on, and some pedals that have been on the board since the beginning that are either absent, or will be quite shortly.

This all started when I got my shiny, legit Tubescreamer and the tone faeries announced their presence in a flash of lime-green light and with the unmistakable sound of a mid-range hump. And I (almost) never wanted to turn it off. Then, I thought, I like this compressor, and it should always be on, too, so let's throw that in there. Then, I started to play around with my volume pedal as a means to control how much drive my amp was getting, so that one was "always on", too. Little by little, pedals moved from my looper to just in front or behind it until I had more out than in. Then, I began to find some minor annoyances with the looper itself. Nothing drastic; an LED on the first loop that decides to work intermittently. The not-so-silent switching. The space/weight it takes up. It made trying to experiment with stereo amps very awkward. Some of the buffers in the pedals (most notably the DL4) would add a noticeable amount of treble just by virtue of being included in the signal chain when that particular loop was engaged. These are all minor points, to be sure, but I think you can see where I'm going with this....

Yeah, it's gone.

Not gone as in "gone forever" gone, at least not yet, but I gave my board a good, hard look and just sort of found myself subtracting off things that I never used. The backup DD-7 is cool, and it's not something I'll never do again, but I was using it so infrequently, particularly when I can just tap in a short quarter thing on the DL4 and get the same effect. I also literally never turned on any of my distortions (Aria Disnortion or the Keeley-modded DS-1) in a live setting, preferring instead to just stack my drives, so since they weren't pulling their figurative weight, I wasn't going to carry around their literal weight. The signal chain, as of May:

Guitar -> JHS Little Black Buffer -> MXR Dynacomp -> Vox Wah (modded for True Bypass) -> Analogman TS-9/808 Silver Mod -> Fulltone Fulldrive 2 MOSFET -> Voodoo Labs Tremolo -> Boss CE-2 -> Ernie Ball Volume Pedal -> Boss DD-7 -> Line 6 DL4 -> BBE Sonic Stomp -> Boss TU-2 -> Boss RV-5 -> Amp(s?)

Basically, this is all of the stuff I need. I've forgotten how much fun it is to play with a Wah and a Chorus. And literally the only reason why I can possibly do this board is because of the Little Black Buffer and the really good cables that I made earlier. That thing really is magic, because there's no discernible difference between my board and going straight in. I mean, I'm sure a difference exists, but it sounds amazing to me. The Fulldrive might turn into two or three other ODs, but for now it's versatile enough to stay on the board. The TU-2 acts as a kill-switch if my delays are getting ridiculous (the one biggest benefit to having the looper), and the outs on the RV-5 means that I can run in stereo if I so choose.

This definitely isn't the end-all, be-all, but it's where I'm at now. Having to lug around an 80+ pound pedalboard was getting tiresome, so even if this is 5 or 10 pounds less, it's going to make a difference!

Bamboo Cocktail

2011-05-10T21:34:00.000-05:00

Bamboo Cocktail:

1 1/2 oz. Sherry
3/4 oz. French (dry) vermouth)
1 dash orange bitters

Stir and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass.

Interesting cocktail. As a wine-based cocktail, it's very light and easy to drink. Also as a wine-based cocktail, I honestly have no idea how old my Sherry/vermouth is, so I'm positive that it's past it's prime. I have no idea how to get around this: wine oxidizes, and it is not pleasant. All alcohol oxidizes, but high-proof alcohol does so extremely slowly, to the point where it's shelf-stable for years after being opened. But I don't drink very much wine in general, and wine-based cocktails are few and far between. As a result, this is probably better than my current example of it. I wish I could buy wine in 1 oz. bottles.

Yet another reason to hate Guitar Center

2011-05-05T14:42:00.000-05:00

Sorry about the extreme lack of content in the last few weeks; I have been busy, but most of that "work" has involved playing a lot of Fallout: New Vegas. It's awesome.

But I was thinking about this earlier today. I have 4 amps in my possession right now, though I'm not sure which ones I'm going to keep. Probably the best thing I could do is sell all of them and pick up a really, really nice combo, like a Matchless or a /13 or something, so that's kind of the long-term plan. I just have to figure out how to do that without being without an amp for X amount of time. But I was looking at one of them when I remembered one of the greatest lie I was ever told in a Guitar Center:

"It's a good practice amp!"

When I had no idea what I was doing with an electric guitar, that statement made sense. I need to practice, right? Why shouldn't I have a practice amp? The amp in question here is a 25 watt Peavey Transtube amp. It's got lots of effects and a "vintage" setting that kind of sort of almost makes it play like a tube amp, but not really at all. But the salesman said that when I got better, I could get a bigger amp! And until then, I could use this one to practice with! Woo!

What I didn't think about at the time, and what honestly took me buying a real amp first to realize, is why would I ever want to practice with something I wasn't going to use live? That little amp...it's not awful. That would be unfair. But it's not good, either. I haven't used it since college when it was my only amp. It doesn't sound like me. It makes me sound bad. I plug into anything with tubes and everything is instantly warmer and more awesome. But why would I want to practice on something that makes me sound bad, and that would necessitate me changing the way I play or all of my gear's settings just to sound decent when it's not the way I'm going to play live?

The other thing is, 25 watts is plenty for almost anything. Did the salesman foresee me rocking a full stack in a club? I mean, maybe he did, that's what 99% of his customers want to do. They also buy Dimebag Darrell guitars and Boss Metal Zone pedals to go in front of those 250 watt solid-state full-stacks. Awful.

I think it's all a ruse to sell awful amps to naive teenagers or completely clueless parents, and either way, it's despicable. The people who know good tone will buy the premium gear that they have and not even glance at the crap. The only people who will think twice will have to be talked into it, as they're going to gravitate towards the name-brand stuff if they know anything at all, or else they will have to be led towards whatever they end up buying. If you're okay with leading helpless, gullible people into paying significant amounts of money for poor tone, then I guess it's on your soul, Guitar Center. For shame.

Baltimore Bracer Cocktail

2011-04-26T22:35:00.000-05:00

A bracer cocktail seems to be one that has Anisette or some other Anise-flavored liqueur in it. This one is apparently from Balitmore.

Baltimore Bracer Cocktail:

1 oz. brandy
1 oz. Anisette
white of an egg

Double shake and strain into 4 oz. Cocktail glass.

This is a pretty good cocktail. Egg really adds a whole other dimension of texture to drinks, and here it mellows things out. I really like the combination of anisette and brandy, and the egg draws it all together. If you're still afraid of raw egg in a cocktail, I think you're missing out on a lot...

This is definitely a keeper. A good, quick drink for when you need, well, something bracing.

Need to play acoustic AND electric?

2011-04-19T10:38:00.001-05:00

So as is apparently my style, I posted furiously for a few days and then did nothing for a week. This has got to be murder on my readership (if any), but maybe it will make it sound cooler if I say that I was busy working on side-projects. That's what rock-stars do, right? Side-projects? Like when Bono teams up with Elton John to...help him move his couch...or...something. Bam. Side-project.

Anyway, despite the fact that I haven't said anything much about guitars in a while, there have been some updates/upgrades/poor decision-making on my part that you'll likely be hearing about in the next few days, but the punchline is that I have actually been quite busy over the last month, playing a lot of guitar and leading a lot of worship. Basically, playing music rather than writing about the things that help me play music. I thought I'd tease you with a shot of what I've been rolling with for about a month now. It's a good, small board for leading via acoustic or electric that has everything I need and nothing I don't and manages to get it all onto one Pedaltrain Jr.

It also draws inspiration from Kristian Stanfill, because of course I can never just make my own decisions, but the idea is, like he says there, just to have some basic electric tones and to let your electric guitarist really do his thing, not step on any toes, things like that. But The acoustic side runs through the Hardwire tuner, the Fishman magic pedal and the Strymon OB.1 and then to my direct box and on out to the house. The electric goes through the Boss tuner, the MXR compressor, the Tubescreamer and the Boss DD-7 to the amp. This lets me do a lot of rhythmic things, clean or dirty, and lets the guy who is focused on making electric guitar noises make the crazy, lead-sounding ones. And of course this board is getting broken up as we speak because I'm going to be playing with my big electric board over the Easter weekend...but I'll probably come back to this, or something like it, very often. Maybe with some reverb, too.....

Bachelor's Bait Cocktail

2011-04-05T21:53:00.000-05:00

...wow. What an incredible name.

Bachelor's Bait Cocktail:

1 1/2 oz. gin
1 dash orange bitters
1/2 tsp. grenadine
white of one egg

Shake and strain into 4 oz. Cocktail glass.

This really is quite delicious, though I think I probably put closer to two dashes of orange bitters in than one. But I love the egg white, as it really mellows out a drink that otherwise is all alcohol and doesn't taste at all like it. Which makes me laugh even more at the name, as I'm sure it could very well have been the Appletini of the 1930's. Definitely one for anyone who likes tasty things and would recoil a bit at a strongly alcoholic drink. Like a beautiful young lady. Or pretty much anyone today. But the lots of gin plus the hint of orange and grenadine really meld well with the frothy egg white to make this a really delightful drink with a (presumably) wonderful back-story.

Also note, since it's a drink with egg in it, I employed the dry-shake method first with the spring from a Hawthorne strainer to whip it up nicely and emulsify the egg, after which I put in the ice and shook it to chill. While it's definitely possible to get the same great texture without using this method, it takes literally ninety seconds or so of good, hard shaking which will really wear you out. Use this little trick and enjoy the benefits of technology.

Bacardi Cocktail

2011-04-05T13:08:00.000-05:00

Here we have a cocktail that shows us evidence of just how old (and actually distinguished/legit) Bacardi is as a company. Interestingly enough, they started out in Cuba and the recipe and/or process hasn't really changed much, so when you're looking for a good Cuban rum (say, for your Daiquiri or your Mojito), Bacardi is not only a cheap brand, but it's actually very stylistically faithful.

Bacardi Cocktail:

1 1/2 oz. Bacardi rum
Juice of 1/2 of a lime
1/2 tsp. Grenadine

Shake and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass.

Taste-wise, it's very like a Daiquiri, by which I mean, the cocktail invented long, long ago, and not just the fruit syrup mixed with rum that you get today. The main difference is that it's much more tart, in that the only sweetening ingredient is the grenadine, and there's not much of that. But it does contribute a nice, cheerful pink color.

Not super well-balanced from a sweet/sour perspective, but this is also a classic, so maybe that's okay. Maybe not. I'd just go for a bit more balance.

Drink Spotlight: Le Matin

2011-03-30T23:37:00.000-05:00

Looking for a nice update for the Old Fashioned? This, like the Sazerac, is a fancy update.

Le Matin:

2 1/2 oz. Rye whisky
1/4 oz. Benedictine
1/4 oz. Maraschino liqueur
3 dashes Peychaud's bitters

Build in rocks glass full of ice, and stir.

Good. Just good. Takes a little bit of time for the ice to mellow things out, but it's just great. The Maraschino and Benedictine add few complex, but still well-blended, flavors that really define the drink. It's still very rye-centric, and since my stock rye is Rittenhouse 100 proof, it's got some kick to it, so you definitely have to enjoy cocktails like the Old Fashioned, or even just be a fan of whiskey in general, to appreciate this cocktail, as otherwise you might not be able to get over the burn of the alcohol. But then, what were you expecting from a drink composed of just over 3 oz. of alcohol and some ice cubes?

I'm a little surprised that there's no garnish; a Maraschino cherry seems like a no-brainer, given the Maraschino liqueur within. It would definitely help overcome the extreme rye-ness of the whole drink. It's quite good, but then, I love whiskey....

Babbie's Special Cocktail

2011-03-30T21:24:00.000-05:00

Babbie's Special Cocktail:

1 1/2 oz. Apricot brandy
1/2 oz. sweet cream
1/4 tsp. gin

Shake and strain into 3 oz. cocktail glass.

I think I'm finding that I'm not a huge fan of cream in cocktails. Not that it's bad, or doesn't serve an important purpose; it definitely does! Cream adds a huge textural element that would just not be present without it. It's just so...heavy.

That said, in this drink, it kind of works....at least as well as the rest of the cocktail works. The gin probably might as well not even be there. It probably would work with a slightly less assertive Apricot brandy, where the little hint of gin would actually add something, but it's pretty lost here. This cocktail isn't awful, I just think it could be improved with a bit more gin.

B & B

2011-03-28T23:27:00.000-05:00

B & B:

1/2 oz. Benedictine
1/2 oz. Cognac or Brandy

Layer the brandy on top of the Benedictine in a Cordial or shot glass.

That one warms the cockles....and saying things like that makes me feel fifty. Oh well. This is a classic drink that was apparently popular enough that you can buy B & B in a bottle, which I believe is mixed 50/50. But then it's possible to change it up and fix the ratios to something you prefer, though this is fine.

I think I really like Benedictine. It's sweet and spiced and wonderful, and when mixed with a little bit of brandy, it mellows it out. I will say that I'd probably prefer this drink on the rocks or something like that, but that's mostly because I just don't really like shots.

Atty Cocktail

2011-03-28T20:26:00.000-05:00

Here we go, last "A" cocktail! Hooray!

Atty Cocktail:

1 1/2 oz. gin
1/2 oz. french vermouth
1/2 oz. Creme Yvette

Shake and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass.

Once again, I don't have Creme Yvette, but I do have Creme de Violette, which is, theoretically, the same. What we get is a cocktail that's got the botanicals of the gin mixed with the smooth, sweet, floral character of the Creme de Violette, and that's rounded out with the vermouth. I like it, though I'm not sure I love it. Not because it's not good; it's actually rather exquisite, which isn't a word I use often. I'm just still getting used to the Creme de Violette. But it's a really well balanced and put-together cocktail. It's on the list.

What does not show up is the really pretty, jewel-like violet color.

Drink Spotlight: Singapore Sling, take 2

2011-03-25T15:36:00.000-05:00

So having discovered some discrepencies between what I thought was a Singapore Sling and what Wikipedia believes to be a Singapore Sling, I thought I'd do the honest thing and try out both. It should be noted that the changes are minor and all of the ingredients seem to be accounted for, it's just the ratios that are slightly different. All that said, here's what I came up with.

Singapore Sling (IBA version):

2 oz. Gin
1 oz. Cherry Heering
1/4 oz. Cointreau
1/4 oz. Benedictine
1/2 oz. Grenadine
4 oz. Pineapple juice
1 1/2 oz. Lemon juice
1 dash Angostura bitters

Shake very, very well and strain into some sort of very large glass (mine is 15oz.). Garnish with whatever you have lying around, but probably a pineapple chunk and a Maraschino cherry.

This version is actually very, very tasty. Wikipedia suggests using a blender to get the frothiness that you so desire, but I just shook the bejeezus out of it and got a fairly good amount of foam. Since the drink doesn't have any ice in the glass, you could probably fit it almost perfectly into a pint glass, but I decided to go on the larger side just to be safe. I did garnish with a cherry floating in an orange-peel boat, but it decided to sink. All for naught anyway, as the foam would have covered it up. Just jam something on the rim for color.

The only substantive difference between this version and the other version is Lemon vs. Lime juice. The other version is the one that you'll get if you go to the hotel that invented the drink, but the actual original recipe has been lost to the ages so even they will say that theirs is an approximation. The above recipe is the International Bartenders Association standard, though it should be noted that the IBA isn't exactly the end-all, be-all of mixed drinks.

I think I'd probably take the other version and shake it, and then it would be a game-time decision as to whether it's served up or on the rocks. But shaking it gives it a great, foamy pineapple head, which is just delightful and really added a nice texture to the drink. But the other version is definitely more complex since it's not being drowned out in lemon juice and the other ingredients are a bit more prominent. This one was dangerously easy to drink, though. Probably depends on the mood....

Around The World Cocktail

2011-03-24T21:48:00.000-05:00

Around The World Cocktail:

1 oz. Pineapple juice
1/2 oz. Creme de Menthe
1/2 oz. gin

Shake and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass.

What an interesting combination of flavors. The mint makes everything super cool to the taste, and the sweetness of the pineapple combined with that coolness isn't something I've ever experienced before. The gin's botanicals round everything off. Maybe not my favorite drink in the world, but it is really good once you get past the odd combo. Definitely give this one a try.

Drink Spotlight: Bombshell McGee

2011-03-24T17:15:00.000-05:00

I was looking for something to break up the monotony of continuous Apricot brandy, and boy, did I find it. I came across this little gem that actually manages to use Jagermeister, well, competently. That's quite a chore because most booze nerds shun the stuff as rocket fuel for frat parties, as well as being so potent of flavor (think of how difficult it is to mix with scotch...), but it's actually a legit liqueur that just happens to have some very, well, brash flavors. Well, here's a drink for you:

Bombshell McGee:

1 oz. spiced rum
1 oz. Kaluha
3/4 oz. Jagermeister herbal liqueur
2 dashes Angostura bitters

Build in a rocks glass filled with ice, and top with splash of club soda. Garnish with orange twist.

This drink comes to us care of the great Dr. Bamboo, who is, quite sincerely, one of my favorite in a long line of people who mix alcohol and the internet. He spoke in great depth of his love for Jager, despite it's unpopularity, and finished it off with a drink that he deemed a "low-rent Negroni," which is fair. It's definitely got some rough edges, but that's rather the point. The Jagermeister fights with the coffee liqueur (which I've often thought overpowers any drink it's put in; case in point, put it in twice as much tequila and you get a great drink that is still dominated by the Kaluha....) and both kind of overwhelm the spiced rum, but that's okay. He used Sailor Jerry which I heartily endorse, though I didn't have any lying around so I went with the inimitable Kracken, which is a dark spiced rum. Delicious.

I really like this drink because it's complex and has layers of flavor. The Jagermeister is definitely there and adds a lot of interest to the drink, and the spiced rum basically just waters down the coffee liqueur and makes it palatable. The orange peel does it's job, too. Definitely a good cocktail if you're trying to figure out what all Jager can be, especially if you're not the typical Jager-bomb connoisseur.

Apricot Nectar Rickey

2011-03-23T22:53:00.000-05:00

Apricot Nectar Rickey:

Juice of 1/2 lime
2 oz. Apricot Nectar
1 cube of ice

Add ingredients to 8 oz. Highball glass and fill with club soda. Garnish with spent lime hull.

This one is interesting for two reasons: it's the first non-alcoholic drink I've encountered in the book, and despite that, it's extremely faithful to the "rickey" drink formula. In fact, it's a delightful rickey because of the natural sweetness of the apricot nectar.

And oh, apricot nectar. Let me just say up front that I have no idea what apricot nectar is. Is it juice? Is it juice-like? I mean, the drink was good and refreshing (and, being non-alcoholic, suitable for all ages), but it wasn't really anything to write home about. Especially when actually finding the key ingredient was a bit of a trick. Not like crossing the Indian Ocean on the spice route to procure spices for the seven richest kings of Europe, but it's not something that most grocery stores have just lying around. Pro tip: look in the Mexican section, or, failing that, go to a Mexican grocery.

Apricot Fizz

2011-03-23T22:42:00.001-05:00

Apricot Fizz:

Juice of 1/2 lemon
Juice of 1/2 lime
1 tsp. sugar (2 tsp. simple syrup)
2 oz. Apricot brandy

Shake well and strain into 7 oz. Highball glass and top with club soda.

This is really quite delightful. I think I just have a thing for Fizzes. Something about the light, persistent carbonation that just seems to cushion and soften all of the rough edges of the drink and give it a nice, interesting texture. I suppose if I hadn't been drinking nothing but drinks based upon apricot brandy for the last few days, I'd say "what a novel blend of apricot flavors and tart citrus fruit!" It's good, it's just I'm getting a little weary of apricot by now...

Apricot Cooler

2011-03-22T22:09:00.000-05:00

The temperatures have been steadily in the 70's here in St. Louis, so it's with the summery weather that I'm experiencing this drink for the first time. Definitely made for the summer months.

Apricot Cooler:

1/2 tsp sugar (or 1 tsp simple syrup)
2 oz. Apricot Brandy
Club soda

In a 12 oz. Collins glass, put sugar and 2 oz. club soda, and stir. Fill with crushed ice, add apricot brandy and top with club soda. Garnish with orange twist or lemon twist (or both).

The term "cooler" is definitely apt, as this is mostly ice and club soda. With a product as heavy and flavorful as the apricot brandy that I have, it's really, really nice to dilute it with 8-10 oz. of water (of either the really cold or really bubbly varieties). The citrus twists add just a little hint of other fruit flavors and really carry the drink. The sugar is probably necessary, but the apricot brandy really is quite sweet. I suppose with nothing to counteract the sweetness, it's just up to the club soda to dilute things, but it's fairly delightful. I may be making quite a few of these in July and August.

It Might Get Loud

2011-03-17T12:43:00.000-05:00

I love Netflix. Netflix + PS3 = streaming a lot of random things any hour of the day. Including "It Might Get Loud", a documentary starring The Edge of U2, Jimmy Page and Jack White. Just awesome.

Of course, being a worship leader, I'm intimately familiar with The Edge, so there wasn't much new I learned about him. But I'm ashamed to say I didn't know much about Jimmy Page, who apparently spent a lot of time in England as a session guitarist before Led Zeppelin happened. And then there's Jack White who I knew absolutely nothing about and was 100% surprised by how amazing he is as an artist. So real and completely focused on music as expression. Amazing.

What's coolest about the documentary is that it brought together three artists who have very different styles and outlooks on how to make music, but they're all successful in being musical artists. Jimmy Page was easily the most technically skilled of the three, Jack White is a big fan of rawness and purity of tone, and The Edge uses tons of effects to completely define his sound. They talked about everything from how they got into music, struggles in their careers, writing, influences, their favorite guitars, all that. And at the end, they all jam out and you can definitely hear them coming through their playing. Amazing.

See it. It's great. It made me re-evaluate Jack White and want his sweet Kay guitar.

Upgrading my Musicmaster Amp: The Plan

2011-03-14T12:52:00.000-05:00

I've discovered two things about making upgrades to an amp. Well, I've discovered a lot of things, but here are two points: 1) it's necessary, particularly with a vintage amp that has seen a lot of wear, and 2) it's not as much fun as buying a new pedal. I really like my Musicmaster Bass amp from the late 70's, and I've decided to take some good advice to, rather than buying new gear (since I'm happy with what I have), do some upgrades. So here's what's on the list. It is threefold.

1) A new speaker - While I really appreciate the sound of a well-broken in speaker, I feel like there's a lot that this amp is missing. With a 40+ year old speaker, it's not surprising that I'm probably not getting everything I can out of the amp, as speaker technology still revolves around a paper cone and a magnet, both of which can and do degrade over time, even with minimal or no use. The thing that sucks is that I'll have to take some time to break the speaker in, but it needs to happen, so better sooner rather than later.

2) New tubes - Or, perhaps more accurately, nicer tubes. The biggest problem here is that I have no idea what's going on with the current tubes. If they are in fact from the 70's (not likely, but possible. The guy I got the amp from said it spent most of it's time in his dad's closet), then they are probably better than the bargain tubes that Fender is putting in it's new amps today, and the fact that they've lasted this long means they've probably still got some life left in them. Or they could be new tubes that he put in right before he sold it to me. I need to research, but either way, this is one area I'll be really concentrating on. Some nice NOS tubes or something like that.

3) A good attenuator - I love this amp. I don't love that it has only one volume knob. Wait, let me rephrase. I love this amp. The sound guy, the bands I play with, and the little old ladies in the third row don't love that it has only one volume knob. My favorite way to play this thing is to turn it to 10 and use my volume pedal and playing dynamics to control the distortion, because that way, it doesn't get much louder or softer, just more or less distorted. But I can only do that in the privacy of my own home when no one's around. So to make this an amp I can actually enjoy playing out with, I need a good attenuator, one that will give me a Master Volume knob that doesn't suck.

The hidden fourth thing on the list, and the thing I should probably do before I do anything else, is take it to a good amp tech and have it serviced. It's got a lot of...peculiarities...that tend to come with a vintage amp. Lots of noise. Loose tube sockets. It's probably got leaking capacitors and all kinds of fun things like that. Just having it looked at and tuned up would put my mind at ease, and it would ensure that any other upgrades I do to it are actually necessary. But the key thing is to do them one at a time so I can actually appreciate what's happening and changing with each upgrade so I can decide what I like and what I don't. I definitely don't want a whole new amp; I like this one just fine!

Drink Spotlight: Singapore Sling

2011-03-13T23:11:00.000-05:00

So here we have an interesting but of drinking history. The original recipe was lost, and what follows has been pieced together from best guesses and reputable sources. That being said, it's recently come to my attention (as of Googling "Singapore Sling" just two moments ago,) that the Singapore Sling is shaken and served up, not on the rocks, which would result in a nice, foamy texture via the pineapple juice. But either way, the recipe seems to be fairly close.

Singapore Sling:

1 1/2 oz. gin
1/2 oz. Cherry Heering
1/4 oz. Cointreau
1/4 oz. Benedictine
4 oz. Pineapple juice
1/2 oz. Lime juice
1/4 oz. Grenadine

Build in a highball (here, pint glass) filled with ice and stir. Float a drop of Aromatic bitters and garnish with orange slice and cherry.

Let's just say that this drink is intense. It's really, really good but just look at all of those ingredients! It tends to be the case that Tiki-styled drinks can really rack up the ingredients, and while this drink has no rum in it at all, the large number of fruit juices and such, especially the pineapple juice, place this thing firmly in the "Tiki" camp. It's also really, really good. Really complex, too. The combination of gin and Benedictine is a winner, and it's really well balanced between sweet and sour, bitter and fruity. And refreshing, too. A great drink, but the reason why I'm only just now putting it together is that it took me a while to acquire all of the ingredients.

Not that Cherry Heering and Benedictine are particularly difficult to find, but they are expensive and it took me a while to make it happen. Well worth the wait.

Apricot Cocktail

2011-03-12T21:14:00.000-06:00

Okay, just one more page of "A's". Time to get my game face on.

Apricot Cocktail:

Juice of 1/4 lemon
Juice of 1/4 orange
1 1/2 oz. Apricot brandy
1 tsp. gin

Shake and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass.

Lots of fruit juice in this one, combined with the apricot brandy, and you get a big, sweet glass of alcoholic goodness. I sometimes wonder if we modern cocktail enthusiasts (read: drunks) give the modern bartenders serving up Appletinis and Chocolate Martinis with a Chocolate-syrup rimmed cocktail glass too much crap for the overt sweetness in their drinks, covering up the alcoholic content with a sickening amount of sugar and fruit juices. But this one is making it happen, all the way from 1935. It's probably a very similar mechanism happening; there are just as many sweet drinks as dryer ones, but tastes weren't tilted towards these kinds of drinks in the early days of drinking. Or maybe they were and we all just try not to talk about it. James Bond just wouldn't have been the same character ordering up a chocolate Martini.

As it is, this drink is just way too sweet. Maybe the products were a bit different in the 30's, but it's awfully overwhelming. I'm still going to finish it, but it tastes like a lot of sugar. On a positive note, the color is dead-on for an apricot, so that's pretty awesome.

New Mass Parts

2011-03-11T15:28:00.000-06:00

It's been a little while since I've posted anything even remotely musical, but a few years back I wrote some Mass parts for Lent. This was back in school, when I actually knew what terms like "Dorian Mode" meant, so they're, of course, a bit funky and I think I did a good job of capturing where I was at that particular Lent. Well, they've also been my go-to Mass parts during Lent for the last few years, so now that I'm leading more places than ever (and have had some other people ask to do them all over the place), I went ahead and YouTubed (which is totally a word, Firefox spell-checker!) some sketches of them so people could at least hear what they sound like.

So check them out! I'll probably start posting a lot of stuff up there just because it was way easier than I ever thought. And it's pretty surprisingly good quality, considering it's just my iPhone4's video app. Just think, even ten years ago, shooting a video and putting it on the internet took thousands of dollars of equipment and hours of editing and uploading, and now you can do it with a $200 iPhone and a few touch-screen touches. Technology is a b.

Drink Spotlight: Tequila Old Fashioned

2011-03-08T23:52:00.000-06:00

I really like the "Old Fashioned" family of drinks, so much so that I decided to take a brief detour away from the Old Mr. Boston to look at this drink in particular. As with any particular foray, this one wasn't without cause; I've been in search of a good Passionfruit syrup as for some reason or other I've gotten it into my head that I needed to make a Hurricane for today, Mardi Gras. Which is, incidentally, an overly Catholic holiday representing one last chance to get all of your sin out before Lent begins. So it's a great day to be Catholic, so much so that the rest of the world took it upon itself to have a hell of a party for pretty much no good reason at all. But I guess everyone's Catholic on Mardi Gras....

Anyway, back to the task at hand. Passionfruit syrup is proving very difficult to find in St. Louis, MO in the middle of March, so my quest took me to all manner of hippie-style organic grocery stores, all to no avail. However, I did manage to pick up a few random things that I've been wanting to try out: coconut water, Q brand Tonic water (which I've heard great things about, and am scared that it's going to live up to the hype so I won't be able to buy the $0.99 stuff anymore) and Agave syrup. These are all odds and ends in various esoteric drinks, but I wanted to give at least one of them a shot before my drinking habits devolve slightly over the next 40 days. Not that that's my Lenten thing, just doesn't seem to be right to be boozing it up like crazy during some of the most solemn days of the year. So, to the point, the Tequila Old Fashioned.

The Old Fashioned is a venerable cocktail that I haven't gotten around to yet, so here's the brief rundown. Basically, it came about when someone would say "I'd like a whiskey cocktail, in the old-fashioned way" at a bar, the term "cocktail" originally meaning a drink consisting of some sugar, some spirit, and some bitters. That's all that you had to have to be a "cocktail", and yet it's amazing the number of "cocktails" in existence today that can't even satisfy those basic requirements... But regardless, the Old Fashioned Cocktail came to be known as a whiskey drink (or a brandy drink in some parts of the country), whereas the original Old Fashioned Cocktail was just any spirit with sugar and bitters. And I love whiskey, but this particular drink is a great way to explore other spirits and enjoy different tastes. Behold:

Tequila Old Fashioned:

1 tsp. agave syrup
2 dashes Angostura bitters
2 oz. tequila

Combine agave syrup and bitters in an old-fashioned glass. Add ice and stir to mix ingredients and start ice melting. Add tequila and stir some more. Garnish with lime peel, expressing oils over glass.

It's a really simple recipe that really lets you get creative. Note that the spirit in question is all-important in this drink, so use quality tequila. This is not the time nor the place for Montezuma. I used a reposada, 100% agave gold tequila, but anything that is 100% puro de agave will do. The agave syrup is a twist on the standard sugar cube, and it helps to keep tequila's flavor nice and forward as the drink dilutes. What I noticed immediately is that tequila is a surprisingly mild product. I've certainly had my share of bad tequila, and I would never call myself a "tequila" man, but I was expecting harsh, intense flavors. What I got was mild and complex, and it really let me discover what this particular tequila is really all about. I can see why some people compare great tequila to a great scotch. There's the smokiness at first, but also the depth of flavors. I could easily imagine premium, single-malt-style tequilas that have all kind of different flavors hiding beneath the agave notes. I wonder if that's a thing? The sad thing is, probably not, because the dominance of good old Jose Cuervo has ensured that any Americans that might be in the market for such a product were long ago turned off on tequila as a bad experience.

Approve Cocktail

2011-03-07T21:03:00.000-06:00

Approve Cocktail:

1 1/2 oz. Bourbon or Rye
2 dashes (Angostura) bitters
1/2 tsp. orange curacao

Stir with cracked ice and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass. Garnish with orange and/or lemon twist.

So at first, I saw 1/2 tsp. and thought I saw 1/2 oz. So there's that. But in spite of that, this drink still turned out a lot like I expected: very non-dilute with a pretty strong alcohol burn. Which is, unexpectedly, the first drink out of the book that I'd say that about. The other ones have all managed to manage the alcohol with a good amount of water.

And yet in spite of that, still not a bad drink. Interesting play of flavors. I went with rye, my brand of which is 100 proof (which could very well be the root of the problem), and I opted for the orange twist. Not anything to write home about, but not bad either.

Apple Pie Cocktail

2011-03-01T23:08:00.000-06:00

Apple Pie Cocktail:

3/4 oz. rum (Bacardi Gold)
3/4 oz. Italian (sweet) Vermouth
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. Apricot brandy
1/2 tsp. grenadine

Shake and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass.

This cocktail is a mystery. It immediately follows the "applejack" cocktails so I 100% expected some applejack, particularly because of the fact that it's supposed to taste, well, somewhat like apples. Instead, we get a rum and vermouth concoction with Apricot brandy and grenadine for flavoring and just a hint of lemon juice for tartness, and it comes out tasting, well, somewhat like an apple pie. Maybe it's the spices in the vermouth, the fruitiness of the grenadine and apricots, and the tartness of the lemon, all coming together to trick my taste-buds into "apple pie" mode. (Which is, by the way, different from "apple pie a la mode". Yeah, sorry about that joke.) But it's incredible. Not a hint of apple-ness anywhere.

This does explore some really interesting psychological space that I'm sure I learned sometime about taste being a super imprecise sense. Something about how tastes are made up of things like bitterness or sweetness, but there's not an "apple" neuron that lights up when we taste apple. Wait, not imprecise. Actually super precise and completely adaptable. Somehow the mix of these ingredients is perfect, and whomever invented this drink was a master. This one will definitely get repeated, if only for the really cool psychological lesson that it taught me.

Also, a quick note to make this and many other drinks much easier to make: the standard barspoon is about 1/2 of a teaspoon. It's rare that you get ingredients in less than 1/2 of a teaspoon's measurement, so when you're looking for the precision required from this recipe, it's pretty easy to do. And in a lot of cocktails, the "flavoring" ingredients are often in scant measurements. I still haven't figured out a good, repeatable "dash" for ingredients not in bottles with a tiny opening (like bitters) though...

Applejack Sour

2011-03-01T21:59:00.000-06:00

Applejack Sour:

2 oz. Applejack
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tsp. Simple Syrup (1/2 tsp powdered sugar)

Shake well and strain into 6 oz. Sour glass. Fill with club soda and garnish with a cherry and a lemon slice.

The Sour family is another one that we'll get way more into as we progress through the book. I'm sure this is indicative of how the Old Mr. Boston book handles this drink, and it's definitely "sour." The juice of 1/2 of a lemon works out to about 3/4 oz. of juice, which in today's world would balance out with about an ounce of simple syrup to adjust it to modern palates, though with all of the club soda watering things down, it really tamed the drink and made it potable. This one worked really, really well, as we once again have the combination of applejack and lemon juice working well together.

On Transparency and the Theory of Guitar Tone; or, New Gear - Analog.man TS9/TS-808 Silver Mod

2011-02-22T13:51:00.002-06:00

I get the feeling that with every bit of gear I get, I move further away from Karl and closer to James Duke. I still think Karl has some great tone and some of the things he does with delay makes me weep. I think James Duke is more like me, though. I'm really messy and stuff. I try to be transparent, but no matter how much I clean myself up, there's still going to be little bits of me left behind. Like a slight mid-hump. I think the thing I like most about his gear is that he's got a few pedals that are "always" on. Now, of course, that doesn't actually mean always. Just, maybe, 80% or 90% of the time. Or maybe actually always. With this last little bit of gear acquisition, I think I've figured out why.

"Transparent" is one of those gear buzzwords that people like to throw out there. From a technical standpoint, I suppose it means that whatever you put in, you get out. The equilization doesn't change, or the level is the same, or there aren't any little nasty digital artifacts or fuzzy analog distortions or anything at all. Or maybe it means that it will preserve your playing dynamics. Or that your guitar and your amp sounds like your guitar and your amp. As a marketing tool, it's an awesome concept. You can buy this new piece of gear and it won't hurt the tone that you've worked so hard to find for so long! As a logical concept, what the hell does that even mean?

What does "your guitar" sound like? Can you even hear "your guitar" in a vacuum? The very nature of the electric guitar is that it interacts with an amplifier. What does "your guitar" sound like? Largely, that depends on what amp you are playing through. A Fender American Standard Stratocaster is going to sound one way through a Fender Bassman amp, and a very different way through a Marshall "Bluesbreaker", and still another different way through a Vox AC-30. Even the impedance of the guitar cable that you use will change how your guitar sounds. And then, what about effects pedals? Every pedal, if it's True Bypass (another great buzzword that can mean pretty much anything) or buffered, is going to affect your sound. If it's connected to your guitar and amp, off or on, it's going to change things. The war is often in how much or how little of a change. Even the most "transparent" of pedals is going to affect your sound in some way. It would be impossible for it not to.

Here's the point. I recently was able to do a straight up trade of my Boss BD-2 with the Keeley Mod in it, for a pedal that I've been questing after the entirety of my guitar journey. From day one, everyone always said, you've got to have a Tube Screamer. Everyone has played through one at one point or another, and it's a major piece of gear that shapes the tone of some of the greatest guitarists who have ever walked the earth. John Mayer. The Edge of U2. Eric Johnson. Stevie Ray Vaughn. Rory Gallagher. The list goes on. So I researched it, seeing that there are many variations. The original Ibanez TS-808 is the Holy Grail, with vintage ones easily reaching $500. Then there are reissues, and mods, and copies, and "new" versions, and everything under the sun. My Fulltone Fulldrive 2 is (in "Vintage" mode) a Tube Screamer clone. The Tube Screamer is literally the most copied, most sought-after pedal in existence. So, naturally, there are good ones and better ones. Most people who are being honest will admit that there is a difference between the $500 one and the $200 reissue and the $100 sound-alike, but they will also admit that they're pretty small differences, not usually justifying all that extra money, and that they all sound "good" (if you're really interested in the full history, there is a really good rundown from analog.man). So as a result, I was happy with my Fulldrive 2, because it's pretty close to a Tube Screamer. Close enough for me, anyway. Until now.

What I got was originally some kind of TS9 (probably a reissue) that was modded to TS-808 specs and then beyond with analog.man's "silver mod". Basically, it's "better" than the original TS-808, but the changes are super subtle, so subtle that you likely wouldn't be able to tell unless you knew what you were looking for and you had both the original and the new version in front of you. In blind tests, most of the differences are so subtle as to be non-existent. But for many, getting a mod done is a good way to get vintage tone for a fraction of the cost and with some upgraded reliability. For me, it only cost me my BD-2, and considering I got that pedal for a significant discount, it was something I just couldn't pass up.

Pictured above: Tone.

Here's where all of that talk of "transparency" comes back in. I've been playing around with this TS9 for a little while now, and I really like it. It's not "transparent" in the sense that it doesn't affect your tone. It does do a really good job of preserving the dynamics and feel of your playing, so in that sense, it could be called "transparent". At "unity gain" (a fancy term for the same volume level coming in as going out, and no extra gain added), my guitar sounds very similar to when the pedal isn't there, except that it's a little thicker sounding and it's got more sustain. For those of you who aren't familiar, those are generally good things. I know I really like it. Then you can play with the gain knob and get all different levels of distortion, and it's all really smooth sounding. Not harsh. Which is good when that's what you're going for.

I like the idea of an "always on" pedal, because if you like your tone more with it on, why would you ever turn it off? And I think this one is one of them. I've got a DynaComp in my chain right now that is always on, too. Is it going to give me the same tone as going from my guitar straight into my amp? No. But then, I'm not sure I really like that tone, at least not with the guitars and amps I have. It's thin and a bit brittle. Not awful, since my guitars aren't awful, and not something that can't be fixed with a few upgrades (which are most certainly next on the chopping block), but definitely not pleasing to me. I like my tone much better when I've got my compressor going, even though it is by no means "transparent". And now I like it even more with my modded Tube Screamer. It sounds like awesomeness. And I've still got all of the weight of my playing dynamics.

The point is, in many fewer words, if it sounds good to you, then it's good. If it inspires you, then it's good. Jimi Hendrix used a tone-sucking coiley cable his entire career. Mark from the David Crowder*Band has a Boss NS-2 Noise Suppressor pedal in his chain. That pedal, objectively, sucks. But ask him about it (because people definitely have), and he'll tell you, "I like my tone better when it's on." And really, that's all that matters.

Don't buy in to the marketing, or even feel free to disregard what I say. Play with what sounds good to you.

New Look, Same Stuff

2011-02-16T16:14:00.000-06:00

I decided it was time to update things a bit around here. Maybe it's the unseasonable warmth or the general, cautious optimism of 2011, but the old design was starting to feel really drab and dull. Now it's bright and shiny! And it's got a few cool new features, too.

Let me know if you've noticed anything that's not working like it used to, or if anything is broken in general.

Enjoy!

Applejack Rickey

2011-02-15T20:45:00.000-06:00

The Rickey is a great drink family that has a long history and has, with some slight variations, spawned drinks such as the Tom Collins and the Mojito. It was invented in Washington D.C. during one of the many hot summers of the 1880's when the politicians required a drink to refresh and reinvigorate them. It's an extremely simple drink, originally made with bourbon, the juice of half of a lime, and club soda. So, here's a variation:

Applejack Rickey:

1 1/2 oz. Applejack
juice of 1/2 of a lime (about 3/4 oz.)
1 lump of ice

Pour in 8 oz. highball glass, and top with club soda. Garnish with spent lime hull.

This drink is super refreshing. Some of the modern versions of the Rickey will add some sugar or a sweetener to adapt it to modern palates, but with Applejack having some inherent sweetness, it's absolutely not necessary in this drink. The apple and the lime mix well, though the lime hull in the glass adds tons of the more...earthyness? that can come with limes. Not bad, just different. It's also possible that the club soda I used wasn't entirely fresh, so it's not as effervescent as it should have been, which probably would have lightened things up a bit.

I will say, with a drink as delicate as this one, where there really aren't many ingredients that add flavor, quality really, really counts. Use the best quality you can, and you'll get rewarded with a great drink.

Applejack Highball

2011-02-14T19:27:00.000-06:00

Applejack Highball:

2 oz. Applejack
1 lump (cube) of ice

Put in 8 oz. highball glass and fill with ginger ale or club soda. You may garnish with a lemon twist.

Of course I don't have the lemon. It would be nice, though. Ginger ale has lately gotten a bad rap as a cure-all of mixology. Drink taste funny? Or bad? Or unbalanced? Just top with ginger ale! But often the best drinks that use ginger ale are the Highball family, which includes the venerable Presbyterian and the incredible Dark and Stormy. And this drink.

Good stuff. Applejack + ginger + the theoretical lemon peel is a nice flavor combination, and it's quite refreshing. What's interesting is that you can just as easily go with club soda rather than ginger ale, which certainly makes a very different drink, but awesome. I'd definitely not skip the garnish in that version, though.

Tap Tempo Troubles...

2011-02-04T17:11:00.002-06:00

(Sorry, this is a super technical and probably super boring entry, but if you're into electronics, enjoy! If not, just go watch that Ryan Adams clip I uploaded in the last entry. It's way more interesting.)

So you remember how I said that I had an ingenious plan to make both of my DD-7's sync up to one tap tempo? By home-brewing a Y cable that split the signal and sent it to each delay? Turns out my soldering sucks.

I would tap in a tempo, and first of all, the delays would only kind of get the idea. Like they'd catch three out of four times I'd step on it. Then one would be a few milliseconds off from the other, so they would drift in and out of sync. Kind of a cool effect, to be honest, but definitely not what I was going for. What could I do? I could of course get one of those cool tap tempo boxes that has two outputs. That would be the easiest. Though if you're looking at my current pedalboard, you'll notice that there's not much room left, so it probably wouldn't have fit. And this was more fun.

Step one involved ordering an insert cable. An insert cable is used to send and receive information from a device. It's got a Tip-Ring-Sleeve (TRS) end on one side and two Tip-Sleeve (TS) ends on the other, where one gets the signal from the tip, the other from the ring, and they share a sleeve. That's pretty much the only kind of split cable with 1/4" ends that you can buy without having something specially made. Since quality literally does not matter to me, I got an $8 job (with shipping and handling) from Zzounds.

Step two was to find a TRS jack. Radioshack to the rescue. $4.

So then a little bit of wizardry. I took out the old jack, saving as much wire as I could on the leads and making a note of what wire went to the Tip (or carried the signal) and what wire went to the Sleeve (or was the ground). Then I connected the Tip and Ring terminals together on the new jack with a little bit of wire that was laying around (you can literally use anything) and soldered it in place. The last step, solder the signal wire, which previously was attached to the Tip, to the Tip/Ring connection, and the ground wire to the Sleeve terminal. Put the little box back together, et voila.

Now, when I tap in a tempo, both DD-7s get a strong signal because I'm not compromising the integrity of the cable, and they both stay in sync. There is, of course, a downside. If I were to use a normal (a.k.a. unbalanced, TS, Mono) 1/4" cable, pretty much like all guitar cables you ever come in contact with, the Ring terminal will come into contact with the Sleeve, short-circuiting things and making it not work. So this is only a stereo tap tempo pedal from now on. Though I would think that if I used a TRS -> TRS cable, it would still work perfectly...something to experiment with. If only I OWNED a stereo cable...

...just don't tell Loopmaster. I may have voided the warranty. ;-)

Ryan Adams

2011-02-03T23:26:00.001-06:00

Yes, I know, not exactly a new artist. I think he's already got 5+ albums out. But I just discovered him a few months ago, and I can't stop listening. He's so raw and so poetic. A rare combination, even rarer to do it well. Check him out.

Favorite lyric so far: "Oh the empty bottle, it misses you, and I'm the one it's talking to."

I feel like I must also say that I don't like "country music", whatever that means, but I really can't get enough of this guy. He doesn't really categorize neatly, which also appeals to me.

Applejack Cocktail

2011-02-01T21:13:00.000-06:00

Applejack Cocktail:

1 1/2 oz. Applejack
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 tsp. grenadine

Shake and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass. Garnish with lemon twist.

Two points: one, which I may have made in an earlier post, is that when you're doing a lemon twist, do it over the glass so you get the essential oils to spray over the drink. You get all of the functionality out of the twist, in addition to the pretty garnish. Second, Applejack. I had no idea what Applejack was, but our good friends at Wikipedia inform me that it is distilled from apple cider. Whatever it is, it is delicious.

This cocktail is nice, sweet, light, and fruity. It barely tastes like alcohol, which is dangerous. But it is quite delicious. The apple and the sourness from the lemon cutting the sweetness of the grenadine balance out perfectly to make a tasty drink. It's on the list.

Apple Blow Fizz

2011-01-29T16:42:00.000-06:00

Is it just me, or is that a really unfortunate name?

Apple Blow Fizz:

2 oz. Applejack (Lairds)
juice of 1/2 of a lemon
1 tsp. sugar (2 tsp. simple syrup)
1 egg white

Shake and strain into 8 oz. highball glass. Fill with carbonated water.

The effect of egg in a cocktail imparts a really smooth, creamy texture that's just wonderful. There's a lot to be said about the benefits, but some people will say that raw egg is bad for you, be it Salmonella or what have you. For one, since the Salmonella scare of the last few years, standards have been tightened up at egg farms. The odds of getting Salmonella from a bad egg were pretty slim to begin with, but with some extra care given to the screening process, the odds are now statistically insignificant. If that's not enough to convince you, then I'll also say that both alcohol and lemon juice are powerful antiseptics. I'm not worried. You can do the drink without it, it doesn't alter the taste, but the texture really is awesome, so I highly recommend it.

Also, a note on technique. In order to get a rich foam on top like you see in the picture, you have to shake really, really well, because egg isn't accustomed to being separated. There's a neat trick that I'll pass along: take the spring off of a hawthorne strainer and put it into the shaker, along with everything but the ice, and shake it everything pretty hard for a while first. This is called a dry shake, which would be advised in any egg cocktail, but the addition of the spring really helps to emulsify the egg and helps hold off on the wear and tear on your arm.

After you've done the dry shake, open the shaker, add the ice, and shake it to chill. I double-strained it, and the foam comes through fine. And it's pretty delicious. The apple and the lemon make it like an Appletini, which I abhor, but it's delicious regardless, and the soda water makes it so refreshing. It's a keeper.

Pedalboard update for January

2011-01-28T17:59:00.001-06:00

Okay, so what started out as me just wanting to add a few pedals turned into a full-blown cable-building frenzy which has only just now concluded. And the end result is probably the slickest 'board I've ever put together. Mostly because, when I was in Home Depot looking for a wire stripper, I came across some cable tie mounts which were running $2 for 10 of them, so I said, "Why not?" I also ran across a quality multimeter which I needed and a 10-foot piece of 2x10 that eventually became a soldering workstation, but that's neither here nor there. Point is, new pedalboard!

As you can see, there's a lot of new stuff on there. The current signal chain is:

Guitar -> JHS Little Black Buffer -> Strymon OB. 1 Compressor -> volume pedal -> loopmaster bypass strip:
Tuner out: Hardwire tuner
1. - Fulltone Fulldrive 2
2. - Boss BD-2 (Keeley mod)
3. - Pigtronix Aria Disnortion
4. - Voodoo Labs Tremolo
5. - 2 Boss DD-7s
6. - Line 6 DL4
7. - Boss RV-5
-> BBE Sonic Stomp -> Amp

That's a lot of changes. The astute readers will note that things look an awful lot like Daniel Carson's latest board. That's not entirely by accident. I prefer to think of it as a blend between him and James Duke. Mostly, the fact that we've got a volume pedal, a compressor and a tubescreamer of some kind that's almost always on. I actually had an MXR Dynacomp for about a day that I'd gotten used from guitar center for $40, but it had this nasty mechanical throbbing sound that was probably some sort of malfunction, so back it went, but it reopened my eyes to how much a compressor really adds to a guitar. Does it color my sound? Sure, everything does. But I think I like my tone better (95% of the time) with my OB.1 in the loop.

I also blatantly stole the dual DD-7's synced to a single tap tempo from Carson, but it's great. I love the DD-7, and I've been trying to find a delay like it so I can run dotted 8ths on one and quarters on the other, or quarters and halfs, or just have one doing reverse and one analog, or anything like that. I kept trying out tons of different delays to make it work, when it turns out that all I needed was just another DD-7. And if you're going to try to sync them yourselves, be forewarned; it's hard to find a cable that will do what you want it to do. It's not a good idea from an audio perspective to split your signal like that, so no one really manufactures a cable that will do precisely that, because there's no market for it. I had to invent my own using three separate hunks of cable and a whole lot of solder. But it was fun, and now things are awesome.

They also both have the RV-5. I wanted the RV-3 for a long time. I don't really want to pay $130 for a pedal that was $80 a year ago, though. I don't care about Radiohead. Also, the RV-5 has a modulated reverb that everyone seems to love. Just got it in the mail today, slapped it on, and considered my board to be complete. But the modulated reverb does sound sweet.

Here's what I'm particularly proud (and anal) about:

Yep. All those glorious cable ties. I got some black ones while I was at Home Depot. And you can see my JHS buffer, still hanging out underneath there on the left side, still making my tone awesome without giving away that he's the one to blame for the awesomeness. Booyah.

So that's that. For now. Board rigged up with a bypass looper, a great buffer, and Canare GS-6 cables with G&H Showstopper plugs. I can't possibly complain about my board's tone-sucking abilities anymore. Now any sucking that happens is my own fault. Or my amp/guitar's......

Appetizer Cocktail

2011-01-26T22:21:00.000-06:00

A simple twist on the Bronx Cocktail.

Appetizer Cocktail:

3/4 oz. gin
3/4 oz. Dubonnet
Juice of 1/4 of an orange

Shake and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass.

This one is simple enough, and delightfully, doesn't have any Creme de Cacao in it. That said, I've never been a huge fan of Bronx-style cocktails. They're good and everything, but in my opinion, orange juice just doesn't add much to a cocktail, particularly in small amounts. Maybe it's because I'm so used to drinks composed solely of a glass of orange juice with some alcohol in them (Screwdriver, Tequila Sunrise, etc.) where the orange juice is a huge part of the drink's flavor profile. But honestly, this isn't bad. It's a standard, and I'd recommend it if you don't have any experience with this kind of drink.

Apparent Cocktail

2011-01-25T18:59:00.001-06:00

This one's a pleasant surprise.

Apparent Cocktail:

1 oz. gin
1 oz. Creme de Cacao
1/4 tsp absinthe

Shake and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass.

As I said, I was expecting something bad to happen here, but was pleasantly surprised. The strong flavors in the gin and absinthe keep the bad flavors in the Creme de Cacao from becoming readily, ahem, apparent. But what we're left with is a chocolate aftertaste with none of the unpleasantness. A very intriguing cocktail that starts licorice and ends chocolate. And not too sweet, which is good. I think I may have found one legit use of my Creme de Cacao...

I even used my "bad" absinthe, expecting this to be dreck (hence, the light blue tinge), but since it's used in such a small amount, the only quality of the absinthe that comes through is the strong licorice taste from the anise, which is perfect for this absinthe since it's so...unrefined...that the anise flavor is super far forward as to overshadow any of the other flavors and it actually works well in this drink. The weakness when compared to a good absinthe is a strength in this drink.

A quick update from guitar world...

2011-01-24T12:00:00.002-06:00

I should never bother saying "done!" when it comes to guitar. I know, I keep referencing how my gear constantly changes, but it seems like I'd learn to be okay with the constant change, to not feel the need to say that I've found the perfect rig for me....oh well.

Right now, I've started the long, yet rewarding, process of soldering up my own patch cables for my entire board. I had some solderless cable kit from Livewire, which was okay. It was really convenient. The cables suck, though. Really unreliable when you move them around at all. Which, with my (and most other guitarists') inability to pick a setup and stick with it, is not exactly a good feature.

It's also giving me a chance to develop my soldering skills, which is awesome. I'm using Canare GS-6 cable and G&H Showsaver plugs, which have a copper core so they conduct really well. I was going to use GS-4 cable, but for 50 feet of cable, the difference was like $15. The plugs were the expensive part, by a lot. I'm making 22 cables for my electric board and 3 or 4 for my acoustic one, which is more than 50 plugs. I kind of sprung for good ones, but even the cheap ones would have run in excess of $100 for as many cables as I'm making, just for the plugs. I guess I figured, it's probably cheaper in the long run to do it right the first time.

Pictured: ingenuity!

I've got a lot of work to do, but it's fun to have a project. And once I'm done, I won't really have any more excuses to put more money into my effects, other than perhaps buying more effects....but I'll finally have some rationale to upgrade my amps!

Angel's Wing

2011-01-23T21:28:00.003-06:00

Angel's Wing:

1/3 oz. Creme de Cacao
1/3 oz. brandy
1/3 oz. cream

Layer in a Pousse Caffe (shot) glass in the order given.

Again, because of the cream I'm using (it's 30%, and I suspect heavy whipping cream would float better. Or worse. Maybe just differently. But either way, brandy floats on the cream I have.) I flipped the cream and brandy so it would layer better, and it seems to be slightly better. At the very least, it looked pretty good.

I also use an Oxo jigger most of the time; it's super handy for any and all measurements, but it should probably have a 3/4 oz. mark on it, and maybe a 1/3 oz. one. But lucky for me, google says that 1/3 oz. is almost exactly 10 ml, and the jigger has milliliters going up the side. Perfect.

Again, a Creme de Cacao-heavy shot. Not bad with the brandy, but this one barely tasted like anything. I guess I shot it too efficiently.I wouldn't recommend it, unless you like chocolate.

Angel's Tip

2011-01-22T17:27:00.000-06:00

Angel's Tip:

3/4 oz. Creme de Cacao
1/4 oz. cream

Float cream on Creme de Cacao in a Pousse Cafe (shot) glass and garnish with cherry.

Yep, here we have a shot composed almost entirely of Creme de Cacao. Can you guess what I thought about it?

I will say, the cherry added a lot to the shot. I really need to find a Creme de Cacao that I like, but I'm afraid that this grand experiment in mixology is going to turn me off of the stuff for good. Too sweet, too chemically-tasting. When straight cream is used as a mellowing agent, you know it's got to be rough.

Angel's Kiss

2011-01-20T19:37:00.001-06:00

Strap in boys, it's going to be girlie shots for a while. If it's any consolation, this one didn't come out quite as pretty. Everything was going well until I got to the cream...maybe you should put the brandy on top, since it's going to want to be on top anyway. Probably.

Angel's Kiss:

1/4 oz. Creme de Cacao
1/4 oz. Creme Yvette
1/4 oz. Brandy
1/4 oz. cream

Layer into Pousse Cafe (Shot) glass in the order given.

I went back-to-back with this one, because there's so little alcohol in either of these shots, so I figured it couldn't do much harm. There's definitely more of a kick to this one, with 3/4 oz. of liquor instead of 1/2 oz. in the previous shot. Still and all, not quite as delightful as the previous shot. Maybe it's the added alcohol, maybe it's my general distaste for the Creme de Cacao that I have (and, perhaps, all Creme de Cacao everywhere...), but I didn't enjoy it quite as much. But brandy and chocolate flavors traditionally pair well together. I'm a little puzzled by the Creme Yvette, but it's not unpleasant, just doesn't go so well with chocolate as it does with the fruity flavors in the Angel's Delight.

Angel's Delight

2011-01-20T19:14:00.001-06:00

I'm not exactly one for shots, but this was delicious. Plus, it gave me the chance to do some layering, which isn't something I often do....because I'm not exactly one for shots...

Anyway...

Angel's Delight:

1/4 oz. Grenadine
1/4 oz. triple sec
1/4 oz. Creme Yvette
1/4 oz. cream

Pour carefully in order given into Pousse Cafe (shot) glass, so that each ingredient floats on the proceeding one.

Speaking of floating ingredients, let's see what Jamie Boudreau has to say on the subject.

In a word, delicious. Quick word of warning: I don't actually own any Creme Yvette, but it's long been said that you can sub Creme de Violette for Creme Yvette. Both are flowery liqueurs that are purple in color, though Creme Yvette has more of a vanilla and citrus taste to it. Still, quite delicious. The flowery taste is really something that is foreign to the American palate; we don't eat flowers, by and large. I'm not sure if it's more appropriate in other countries, or if it's a hold-over from a time gone by, but the orange, pomegranate and violet flavors all meld together interestingly in this drink. Also, it's really, really girly (read, sweet).

American Grog, take II

2011-01-19T11:27:00.001-06:00

That's better.

American Grog:

1 lump (cube) of sugar
juice of 1/4 of a lemon
1 1/2 oz. rum (The Kracken!)

(Put ingredients in a hot whiskey glass and) fill with hot water. Stir.

It might just be the lighting, but there's a very color to this drink. Part of it is almost certainly the rum I used; in keeping with the pirate/sailor theme, I chose a hearty, nautical-themed rum: The Kracken. It's a black spiced rum that is delightful. Of course, spiced rum is very different from non-spiced rum, but when it comes to rum, there's such a vast difference from one to the next that picking the "right" rum for this drink is probably more art than science. If I wanted to be completely correct, Pusser's Navy Rum is probably the closest we could get, but I chose something overproof with a lot of flavor, because that's how pirates roll in my mind. Plus, there's a freaking kracken doing battle with a pirate ship on the bottle. Come on.

Again, an interesting drink. Not one I'd turn to, but then Grog was never meant to be the height of drinking culture. The rum is definitely more suited than whiskey to this kind of drink, and the dilution makes this very easy to get down. The heat was nice on a(nother) cold day. If you're a pirate, give it a try.

American Grog

2011-01-18T16:11:00.001-06:00

Sorry about the vaguely fuzzy picture. I guess I was feeling...vaguely fuzzy...

American Grog:

1 lump (cube) of sugar
juice of 1/4 lemon
1 1/2 oz rum

(Put ingredients in a hot whiskey glass, and) fill with hot water and stir.

Okay, so again going with the "vaguely fuzzy" feeling, for some reason I read "rum" and heard "whiskey". So pictured above is some sort of grog made with whiskey. I guess I was tired last night. Not 100% period-incorrect though, as both rum and whiskey (or, at least, the whiskey I used) are quintessentially American spirits. Oops. I'll try it again.

I'll just say this: it's not often that I get a hot drink. It was very...welcome? given the time of year and the blustery cold outside. Grog was originally invented to keep sailors from getting ridiculous in an era where sailors were issued half of a pint (umm, 8 oz.....) of rum a day because, apparently, umm, sailing just ain't the same when you're not tanked. Grog added a lot of water in an effort to get the sailors to drink the water that they so desperately needed, and to make sure that their daily rum-ration was spread out a bit. This drink isn't nearly so watered down as traditional grog would be (depending on the size of the glass, though that's something that needs a bit more research. A quick googling indicates that a whiskey glass is around 7 oz. full, so the one I used above is under-sized. Tonight, I'll rectify both those mistakes. Call it a do-over.

Ever have a dream you were so sure was real?

2011-01-15T10:09:00.001-06:00

(Caveat: I just watched Carlos' talk on disturbing and disrupting the local church. It's long, but it's good, and let's just say it might be on target. That may have been one of the wells that my subconscious was drawing from here. Or maybe it was God trying to tell me something profound. Or maybe I'm pompous and presumptuous, and have a huge head. It's sometimes really hard to tell with this kind of thing...)

Just woke up from a dream. I was leading worship at the biggest Catholic youth conference I've ever been to, and which I'm sure I've talked about on here before, Steubenville (Mid-America, in this case). We had Mass, followed by Adoration, which for my non-Catholic people is a lot to get into, but it's basically a time of worship where, because of our beliefs about the Eucharist, we believe that Christ is physically present for us to look at, be with, touch (in some cases), and worship. The God of the Universe comes down, sits on the altar, and deigns to let us worship him.

Anyway, point of the story. Instead of leading from here:

I was leading from here:

and it made all the difference in the world. I was literally sitting in a stadium seat with my Adam Bitter hat on, my guitar strapped around me with a mic in front of me, my bass player to my left and a drummer somewhere behind. Presumably also in the stadium seats. A little impractical, maybe, but it was a dream. It was also the most incredible feeling: I could lead, but completely be myself because no one except for the people sitting around me had any idea who was leading. I was completely free to worship when I'd lead everyone to the point where the didn't need me anymore. We got to the Adoration portion of the evening, and I could worship just like I have been at every Steubenville I'd ever been to, sitting amongst the crowd, except that I was in charge of where the evening went. I don't remember everything I sang, but I ended with "How Great is Our God" and it brought tears to my eyes to hear all of these people surrounding me, worshiping along with me, with a song that I barely use anymore because "it's so old man! like from 2004!", but that was almost surely huge in my formative years when I was coming to know (Conocer) God after so many years of knowing about God (Saber) (when I, in actuality, had no idea what I was doing).

Then, in my usual way, to bring home the fact that this was, in fact, me doing all of this, Adoration ended, the host speaker took back over, and the youth minister I've worked with the most, the one who's been with me as I've been learning how to be a music minister, Jen, tapped me on the shoulder and told me that I did a good job, to which I replied, "Kind of. Could have been better. I don't know." Which is probably what I've said at the end of pretty much every Mass, Adoration, time of worship, whatever, that I've ever led. I'm really bad at taking compliments. But then one of my teens, who I was also sitting next to, said "I liked the way that you put your guitar down and prayed."

Interesting.

American Beauty Cocktail

2011-01-11T10:20:00.000-06:00

...I'm just way behind on my drinking. No matter, time to hit it, and hit it hard. One drink here, one drink there, and I'll be out of the "A"s.

American Beauty Cocktail:

1/2 oz. Orange juice
1/2 oz. French (dry) Vermouth
1/2 oz. brandy
1/2 oz. Grenadine
1/4 tsp. Creme de Menthe

Shake well and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass. Float port.

There's, to use the parlance of our times, a pant-load going on in this cocktail. Two different wines (very prominent on the nose), brandy (which is distilled from wine), then some orangey-grenadine notes, with just a hint of mint at the finish. Quite sweet, but not unpleasantly so. Everything plays well together, with the mint definitely featuring itself quite prominently, which just goes to show you how potent creme de menthe is. 1/4 tsp. is barely more than a dash, and especially in 3 oz. of other stuff, you'd expect a milder ingredient to get lost.

This also gave me a chance to try out my new grenadine. I made it using a pretty simple process, one I would think would be a "standard" of sorts; basically, I boiled the seeds from a pomegranate for about half an hour, strained them out, took the left over stuff and added twice as much sugar (I think there was about two cups of liquid, so I added four cups of sugar, also at a bit of a boil to get things to dissolve) and bottled it. In all honestly, I should have put in a bit of neutral alcohol (vodka), but the simple act of boiling everything, as well as that proportion of sugar or greater, act as a good enough preservative to keep things shelf-stable. I've got a Rose's bottle filled with stuff out, then another huge bottle in the fridge to refill from.

I'd done the same thing before, but I think this one turned out a bit better; the pomegranate I found was huge, so there's a lot of flavor going on. I didn't even need to add any food coloring to this one, which I did to my previous batch, because there was just a great color right out of the pot.

Anyway, back to the cocktail. It's good. I'm not sure it will make the rotation, but there's a lot of very interesting stuff going on here, and it stays interesting the entire drink through. It's surprising how well everything plays together, given the completely even proportions (which I find rarely works) and the plethora of ingredients, but yeah. Good drink.

New Gear: JHS Little Black Buffer

2011-01-03T16:23:00.006-06:00

It's been quite a while, but if you are at all like me, you know that the Christmas season makes things busier, rather than more relaxing. Something about working for the Church seems to transform me into Bizarro-Superman, where I only work weekends and holidays mean I'm at work (church) for five Masses in 48 hours. Such is life.

Between Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, my normal Sunday that followed, and a week-long trip to Chicago for New Years (well deserved and well received), I've been much too busy to string two words together on the internet, but I assure you that the time spent in real life (hereafter referred to as RL) was well worth it. Time to refuel and relax, and spend time with the people I love. That is, after all, what the holidays are all about!

First, a bit of bad news. Yesterday, Sunday, directly following my noon Mass, I slipped on my awesome gold String Dog Cable. I love this cable. It sounds boss, and I've yet to hear guitar tone as nice as simply going guitar -> String Dog Cable -> amp, mostly because I think that the tone faeries that they've somehow managed to enslave and bind within the insulation of said cable are at their happiest when there are none of those tricksy pedals getting in their way. But beware if you get this cable, on a tile or otherwise smooth, hard surface, it is very slippery. Low coefficient of friction. I've almost bit it a couple of times in the past, but this Sunday I couldn't catch myself, and I landed on my guitar. Kind of.

Luckily for me, I was using my now-relegated-to-backup-status Breedlove. Lucky because the Breedlove is built really solidly, whereas my Taylor probably would have had some serious damage. There appears to be almost minimal damage to the guitar itself (though appearances can definitely be deceiving), but the electronics aren't quite unscathed. The guitar has developed an interesting grounding issue, to the point where I get a very off-putting hum that randomly flares up during moments of quiet contemplation, and which render the onboard tuner sometimes useless. When plugged in. Unplugged, it's just fine. But in my position, mostly useless. So my options, as I see them, are to either get it fixed, which probably won't be too bad, or use it as an excuse to catapult myself towards an premium guitar. I love excuses. To be continued...

I did get a bit of an early Christmas present to myself, in enough time to wire up my electric board and play for two Christmas Masses. Normally it makes me really nervous to go out and play some untested gear for the first time, but let's just say that I was completely in love with my tone. I give you, the JHS Little Black Buffer.

Since my latest incarnation of my electric board, where I have my old-school, tone-sucking Volume Pedal first in my guitar chain, I'd noticed, well, a lot of tone-sucking. Particularly when I'd engage a loop that had a pedal with a buffer in it (mostly my delays) and I'd get an extremely noticeable increase in highs simply because of the presence of a buffer, any buffer. The true-bypass strip was doing it's job, but it was doing it a bit too well. The problem being, I thought that all of my buffered pedals buffers sucked too much to move to an always-on position.

So I did what I always do when faced with a gear-related decision: I checked what some trusted sources had done to combat the problem, then copied them completely. For this one in particular, I noticed that James Duke had recently gotten a buffer from JHS and loved it. Some quick perusing of some sound clips of theirs and I was hooked. I also want a lot of their drives, but that's neither here nor there. $95 later, (free shipping, no less) and my order was on it's way to the factory.

(I should note a dissenting (kind of) opinion. Karl likes the Fryette Valvulator buffer, which has an honest-to-goodness tube in it, and can also serve as a regulated power supply for a few effects, which is really handy. As it is also like $240 + shipping, and the sound-clips on JHS' website were sufficiently impressive, I saved a little money. Still, tubes.)

Got it on the Monday before Christmas, and installed it thusly:

It's all secret, strapped to the bottom of the board. It's almost like it's not even there, just hanging out, making my tone insanely better without garnering any attention of it's own, just like a buffer should. The chain is guitar -> Pedalboard bypass -> buffer -> everything else, so that the first thing the guitar sees is, effectively, about an extra foot of cable and jacks, then the buffer.

Let me just say, wow. I've taken to plugging straight in lately because I really like tone, and this buffer gives it all back. Only I still get to play with my pedals and I get complete control over my volume/distortion level with my volume pedal. All the life, all the snap, all the feel, all the vibe, all the everything is there. Buffers are cool. Get one.

And it makes me laugh that every guitarist I talk to who has put a buffer on to his board says the same thing, that they can't believe what a difference a buffer makes. And yet most guitarists don't have one. Particularly for me (my style is very much rhythmic, as opposed to lead, which makes sense since I grew up leading worship from an acoustic and am not a "good" guitar player by any stretch), where clean tone is really important, having an actual clean tone that is, well, clean, is huge. Get one.

Christmastime means Eggnog time.

2010-12-16T17:18:00.003-06:00

So I'll be taking a brief break from the Old Mr. Boston to bring you an holiday favorite: Eggnog. If you are anything like my lovely girlfriend, you're probably recoiling in fear at the very mention. I can only imagine the horrors to which you have been subjected; stuff from a carton, warmed on a radiator, curdled whatever...I'm here to tell you, real Eggnog, like any real cocktail, is delicious and delightful. And very much Christmas to me.

I think this drink has been subjected to the same indignities of a lot of classic cocktails. Like the Daiquiri, the Margarita, the Martini, the Mai Tai, when something is delicious and perfect, it will be popular, which means that enterprising bars or, umm, milk companies, will take it upon themselves to profit. The easiest way to profit? Shortcuts.

Lime juice? Simple Syrup? Smash those two together and make Margarita mix. But instead of lime juice, let's use lime flavoring and acerbic acid, because limes (and, by extension, lime juice) are expensive and go bad. Oh, and cram some preservatives in there to make sure it will keep for six months on the shelf. It's not sweet enough. Americans like sweet things. More sugar. Just add some Tequila, and presto, the finest drink ever created! Thanks a lot, Mr. Cuervo.

I think Eggnog has suffered the same fate. You want to put this drink into a carton, pasteurize it so it will keep for a month, and then sell it everywhere. Only one problem, and it's the one that the food industry seems to never realize: fresh tastes better. Preservatives taste bad, and aren't particularly good for you, either. But as a result, because it's there and it's easy, most Americans haven't ever had good Eggnog. Just the stuff that comes in the carton. Just add your favorite liquor!

I'll admit that, coming into the Eggnog experience about two years ago, I was an Eggnog virgin. I'd never tasted any of it, anywhere, and had no psychological links between Eggnog and Christmas. Then I tried this recipe, from the great Jeffrey Morgenthaler, and I really, really enjoyed the drink. Not as some festive, nostalgic thing that comes around this time of year, but as a really genuinely delicious, balanced drink. Truly, delicious. If you have preconceptions about Eggnog, you're probably not going to like it no matter what I say, but I'd urge you to give it a try, fresh, to see if it can be salvaged. But as with anything that's survived for this long, there are a lot of variations. A quick page through Old Mr. Boston gives about 8 recipes for different Eggnogs. The one I'll be using until I find something more delicious is below, and it's easy enough to make using only a household blender, or a shaker and a lot of time and strength. Whichever you'd prefer.

Morgenthaler's Eggnog:

2 large eggs
3 oz. granulated sugar
1/2 tsp. fresh grated nutmeg
4 oz. heavy whipping cream
6 oz. whole milk
2 oz. brandy
2 oz. spiced rum

Blend the eggs on medium for one minute. Continue to blend for another minute, adding the sugar. Add the rest of the ingredients and blend until combined. Refrigerate until chilled to allow the flavors to gel. Serve in a chilled wine glass and garnish with more grated nutmeg.

The recipe above yields a lot. I triple it, and it fills a 2-quart container. Mr. Morgenthaler suggests that this will give you two healthy servings. I'd say, emphasis on "healthy." It's good though. I'm pretty sure that if you keep it refrigerated, it should last for quite a while, given the alcohol and, well, the pasteurized nature of most of the ingredients. At least a week. So make up a pitcher and enjoy by the fire as the snow begins to fall, and repeat as necessary!

Allen Cocktail

2010-12-14T23:45:00.004-06:00

Allen Cocktail:

1/4 oz. Lemon juice
3/4 oz. Maraschino liqueur
1 1/2 oz. gin

Shake and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass

In a word, terrific.

This is really similar to another classic cocktail, the Aviation. Similar ingredients, but in different proportions. Here, the Maraschino liqueur (Luxardo is my brand) really forms a huge component of the drink, bring a sweetness and an interesting, partly cherry, partly floral component to the drink. The slight bit of lemon juice cuts through the sweetness and adds just that little bit of tart. The overall impression, at least to my palate (and it's weird, so maybe my palate is a bit weird) is of grapefruit. Don't ask me why. If you were to garnish it with a genuine Maraschino cherry, I probably wouldn't argue.

This probably will also make the cut as an overall "winner". I'd definitely recommend this one, particularly if you like the Maraschino liqueur, which admittedly does take a bit of getting used to. But I'm a fan.

Alexander's Sister Cocktail

2010-12-13T13:27:00.007-06:00

Gin? With Cream? Again? Well, at least I've got no end of pictures of cocktails that look all white and smooth in a cocktail glass...

Alexander's Sister Cocktail:

1 oz. Gin
1 oz. Creme de Menthe
1 oz. Cream

Shake and strain into 4 oz. Cocktail glass.

The Creme de Menthe is a bit of a curveball, admittedly. I actually had a good feeling about mixing something juniper-y (like the gin) and something minty. Maybe that's because I've got previous good experience with cocktails that combine gin and mint, though admittedly, (and seemingly the same as with the Creme de Cacao) I much prefer a fresh sprig of mint to something from a bottle. Again, this is a Marie Brizard product that I'm using (White Mint Liqueur, in this case), and again I'm less than impressed, moreso because of how unrelenting the flavor is than the overall product, which is nice and sweet and smooth. Which will be good in a drink that uses very small proportions or just a dash to add something interesting in the background, but when the liqueur is a base spirit, it's just a bit overwhelming.

I think this brings up an important point: every product is different, so the great bartender is the one who knows everything behind the bar and can make adjustments on the fly to still produce a fantastic cocktail. Now, the very best bartender also knows his or her clients, knows their tastes, knows what they are expecting when they order a particular drink, and is also willing to make adjustments based around that. For instance, in my limited experience with gin as realized in the Martini, I can usually find a variation or version of the cocktail that works well with any given brand of gin, which is really handy when you're out at the bar and want something good. It's also damn infuriating (probably for the bartender, too) to ask for a Martini and feel this compulsion within yourself to be super exact on the details: what ratio, what bitters (if any), what garnish, up or on the rocks. (Trick question: the answer to that last one is always "up". Savages.) But it's equally infuriating to ask for a Martini and receive a cold, frothy glass of vodka and ice. Maybe ignorance really is bliss...

For some brands of spirits, this time-tested ratio will unleash the absolute perfect drink; for others, the result can be just okay. Bartending is certainly more involved than just putting a few things into a glass and shaking it around until something cold comes out. Art. And science. And I'm a nerd.

Alexander Cocktail No. 2

2010-12-12T21:14:00.005-06:00

Alexander Cocktail No. 2:

1 oz. Brandy
1 oz. Cream
1 oz. Creme de Cacao

Shake and strain into 4 oz. Cocktail glass.

Here's why the Brandy Alexander is the most famous member of this family. Something about the combination of Brandy (which is a wine derivative) and Chocolate works pretty well. Certainly much better than Gin, in my opinion.

I think this is one of few cocktails that almost every source gets correct, which isn't really all that surprising, given the simple 1-1-1 ratio. For all that though, I'm either not a huge fan of chocolate in alcohol, or I'm not a huge fan of the product that I'm using (Marie Brizard's White Cacao Liqueur). I can't honestly say I've got a lot of experience with Chocolate drinks, and this is most certainly a dessert drink, given both the texture imparted upon it with the creme and, well, the presence of the chocolate. It's good and iconic for a reason, just probably not one of my personal faves.

Alexander Cocktail No. 1

2010-12-09T23:51:00.003-06:00

I'm sure we're going to get into a few of these, but this is the first in a drink family that has spawned drinks such as the Grasshopper and the Capri. I'm not sure if it has a name more profound than the "Alexander" family though, because that seems to be the standard. But before we get to the standard, we get this interesting concoction.

Alexander Cocktail No. 1:

1 oz. Gin
1 oz. Creme de Cacao
1 oz. Cream

Shake well and strain into 4 oz. Cocktail glass.

I say interesting because I've never heard of any sort of "Gin" Alexander. This drink family is known for being very creamy, almost a dessert-cocktail family, mostly due to the presence of the cream, but gin is a new one. The Brandy Alexander is the standard, following which, this one seems just...interesting.

I will say this though, it almost doesn't matter. The botanicals of the gin are so far in the background that it almost might as well not even be there. Not balanced in that respect.

And the book calls for "1 oz. Sweet Cream" which puzzled the hell out of me until I did a quick Google search. Apparently, it's sweet cream as opposed to sour cream. Or, just "cream", by today's vernacular. I chose a standard cream (30% milkfat, to be precise), rather than heavy whipping cream (40%), simply because I didn't see the need, and it still provided a nice, smooth texture. Cream is a really interesting ingredient that I can't usually get behind, and I feel like for me, I needs to be very dessert-like for that consistency to make sense to my palate, which means it should also be way sweeter. An interesting cocktail, but probably not the best in the family.

Albemarle Fizz

2010-12-08T22:22:00.004-06:00

Okay, second chance.

Abelmarle Fizz:

2 oz. Gin (Seagrams)
Juice of 1/2 a lemon (3/4 oz.)
1 tsp. Sugar

Shake well and strain into 7 oz. Highball glass, and then top with club soda. Add 1 tsp. raspberry syrup.

I did it correctly this time. No ice in the glass, just chilled club soda to top. And I gotta say, I like it. The large increase in the amount of the club soda really increased the fizzy-ness and gave the drink a delightful texture. The bit of raspberry syrup (which is, in a nutshell, a few raspberries muddled in some simple syrup) added a bit of flavor and actually kept the drink fizzy. Of course, it sank immediately to the bottom and didn't incorporate into the drink, which may or may not have been due to the density of the syrup I was using, but whenever you do something like this, adding the syrup last, it's going to do that. But just by virtue of the drink being full of club soda, and the syrup making its way down to the bottom, there was a hint of raspberries imparted to the drink that was nice.

Audrey Assad

2010-12-08T15:56:00.004-06:00

Okay, I figured I should put something music-related up here so that you don't think I've been doing nothing but drowning in booze for the last week. This probably would have been a lot more cutting-edge and "it's okay, I knew about her when she was indie" if I'd come out with this before she started making it to the main-stream of Christian music, but I did see her very recently. Kind of.

She came to one of my churches (I have so many...but this one was the one where I actually figured out that God likes me, specifically, rather than God likes me, in general. It's where I went to youth group, and I've still got so many ties and friends in that place.) and played a show with some chick named...Kerrie Roberts. Who has some pipes. But I digress. I Saw like four seconds of Audrey, and she still blew me away.

If you've figured anything about me, it's probably that I like artists who can be real with me. When they're singing or playing or leading worship, I know that they're actually worshiping. Karl had a really good post on this just recently. Point is, that's the vibe I got from Audrey. And I know how hard it is to worship, night in and night out, with an ever-changing group of people, on the road. And that's why I was so impressed. Here's her big song, called Restless.

Alaska Cocktail

2010-12-08T00:13:00.005-06:00

Chartreuse is one of those great cocktail ingredients that has survived the ages and is a crucial ingredient in a lot of classic cocktails. I didn't own any before undertaking this project though, so this will be, for all intents and purposes, my introduction to Chartreuse. And it's a doozy.

Alaska Cocktail:

1 1/2 oz. gin (Seagram's)
3/4 oz. Yellow Chartreuse
2 dashes Orange bitters

Stir and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass

Let me just say that 3/4 of and ounce is quite a lot. This cocktail is essentially a Martini with Chartreuse (an extremely potent, herbal liqueur) in place of the vermouth. It makes some sense, since both can be enjoyed on the rocks as an aperitif, but, well...Chartreuse is rather intense. Some of my friends tell me that they like to do a shot of it at a nice bar. That seems a bit crazy to me.

We'll see if this ingredient grows on me. This cocktail was just so far away from what I was expecting that I couldn't enjoy it. Super intense, and super herbal.

Alabama Fizz

2010-12-06T23:53:00.006-06:00

Well, it figures. The first drink in the book that calls for a garnish and I can't deliver. Stupid winter months.

Alabama Fizz:

2 oz. Gin
Juice of 1/2 a lemon (about 3/4 oz.)
1 tsp. sugar (2 tsp. simple syrup)

Shake and strain into 7 oz. highball glass. Top with club soda and garnish with two sprigs of mint.

There's a lot to like about this recipe. For one, it's really unfortunate that I don't have mint just lying around right now; one of the long-term plans is to get some kind of indoor herb garden with good mint, almost exclusively so that I can have cheap drink-making materials year-round. Or I suppose I could just move to San Diego. But the point is, fresh mint adds a lot to a cocktail, even if it's just in the nose. It would certainly add an interesting dynamic to what is essentially just a Tom Collins otherwise.

Also important: the specification of the size of the glass. The neat thing about this book is that it's really precise about what glassware to use. The shape isn't nearly so important as the size. When you're talking about putting a drink into a cocktail glass, in most cases it's mostly academic or a matter of presentation. When you're talking about a drink that gets topped off with something though (club soda, tonic water, ice, ginger ale, vodka...), size is extremely important. The difference between a 7 ounce Highball glass and a 12 ounce Collins glass is, get this, 5 extra ounces of club soda. That's the difference between a potent, flavorful cocktail and a light, refreshing one.

One final interesting note, as this is the first drink I've used that hasn't been put into a Cocktail glass. The actual wording of the recipe for this drink is "Shake well with cracked ice and strain into 7 oz. Highball glass. Fill with carbonated water. Add two sprigs of fresh mint." What you will notice about that is that it doesn't mention ice. I thought that was a whimsical missing piece, because of course you need ice in this drink, but then I thought about it and paged through the book to find some drinks that absolutely should have ice in them, and they did. In far smaller proportions than I'm used to. So, in actuality, no ice in this drink. which means that you get about 4 1/2 to 5 ounces of drink after the shake, and top the remaining 2 or so ounces with (chilled) club soda.

That's completely foreign to the modern American palate, where I've been trained to fill a glass to overflowing with ice and then add the drink, melting the ice as you go. What I need to decide is how closely I'm going to follow the book in this case. One the one hand, it's a very small difference (in this case) as the ice is going to be water eventually anyway, albeit less fizzy than club soda. On the other hand, the drink wouldn't dilute in the least if there were no ice in it, which has both positives and negatives. There is the option of just adding half of the ice that I normally would, which would seem like a fair compromise, except that there's a good, physics-based reason as to why I've been trained to consistently fill the glass with ice: The more ice, the less ice will melt and the more consistent the temperature (and dilution) of the drink from first sip to last.

I realize as I type that this seems to be a completely ridiculous detail. I likely wouldn't even be discussing it if it weren't for the fact that Old Mr. Boston was ridiculous specific on what he wants; the Gin and Tonic, for instance, requires one ice cube, whereas the Tom Collins asks for "several". I think that artistic integrity demands that I abide by the letter of the law, because I'm not adjusting any other cocktails for modern tastes, but if you'd choose to make this yourself, it would be legit to use a little ice. After all, it was good with ice. But don't miss the mint, if you can help it. I'm positive that that would add a lot of interesting depth. I'll have to try this one again in the summer.

Alabama Cocktail

2010-12-04T23:36:00.005-06:00

This drink is really interesting.

Alabama Cocktail:

1/2 oz. Lemon juice
1 tsp. (or two barspoons) simple syrup
1 tsp. Orange curacao
1 1/2 oz. Brandy

Shake well and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass.

The very first thought I had at looking at this drink was "Sidecar", perhaps the finest drink known to mankind. The reason why I had that thought was that all of the ingredients are the same. What's really interesting is that this thing tastes nothing like a Sidecar.

It might be obvious, but I think that these two drinks can teach you everything there is to know about what makes a good drink and what makes a terrible one, and the importance of being precise in your measurements. The Sidecar is delicious. This is...not. Again, not undrinkable, but I wouldn't ever consider this one "good". It's like a sour glass of brandy. It's harsh. Same ingredients, different ratio, completely different outcome. Where the Sidecar is balanced and terrific, this drink is a mess.

After Supper Cocktail

2010-12-04T23:18:00.007-06:00

Supper? Dinner? For people my age and in this part of the country, there isn't a difference though I can appreciate that one means "lunch" and one means "dinner", and it's not the one you think. So perhaps this one would more correctly be called the "Dessert Cocktail?"

After Supper Cocktail:

1 oz. Apricot brandy
1 oz. Orange curacao
1/2 oz. Lemon juice

Shake and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass.

So it's almost as if Old Mr. Boston himself heard my pleas for more lemon juice, and present us with a drink virtually identical to the one previous. Except with more lemon juice. As I suspected, that small change really brings a lot more balance to this drink. The result is that this drink is positively delightful. Still sweet, but like I said, balanced. This one's going on the list.

After Dinner Cocktail

2010-12-02T22:58:00.004-06:00

First cocktail with Apricot brandy. I'll just say this: it is very difficult to pin down that particular ingredient, or even any of the various fruit brandies. There's something called Eau de Vie which is, I believe, apple brandy, then there's a pear brandy and a peach brandy. Then, in order to find what is considered to be Apricot brandy, I had to go to an apricot liqueur which is nothing more than Cognac (which is brandy, just from the Cognac region of France) and apricots. The French are oddly specific.

After Dinner Cocktail:

1 oz. Apricot brandy
1 oz. orange Curacao
1/2 tsp. Lemon juice

Shake well and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass.

As per usual with shaken drinks, I double-strained this concoction. To me, 1/2 of a teaspoon seems to be a very scant amount of lemon juice, which is evidenced in the still fairly clear complexion of the drink. I won't say it's unnoticeable, but I could have used more. The little bit does help cut the extreme sweetness of the drink slightly, though again, I could have used more balance. Perhaps a more fitting name would be the Dessert Cocktail with all of the sugar. Very sweet (though not undrinkably so, but some might disagree), and very delightfully fruity (I really like the way that the apricot and orange flavors play together), but probably not going to make my regular rotation.

Affinity Cocktail

2010-12-01T17:29:00.006-06:00

So I know this looks really similar to everything else; I keep hoping to find the words "Garnish with...", but so far, nothing. But that's not really the end of the world, because I didn't really find this cocktail to be anything special.

Affinity Cocktail:

3/4 oz. Scotch
3/4 oz. Italian (sweet, red, whatever) vermouth
3/4 oz. French (dry, white, etc.) vermouth
2 dashes orange bitters

Stir with cracked ice and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass.

Scotch is hard to mix with because it has such an assertive, smoky flavor, but this isn't the way to do it, I don't think. Going 2:1 the opposite way with vermouths really does cover up the scotch, and the orange bitters makes things interesting at the end, but nothing shines here. It's very vermouth-y, which isn't really the end of the world (vermouth is delicious), but it didn't do much for me. I will say that, in most cocktails calling for scotch, you can save your money and just use a decent blend. No sense in pouring a $100 single-malt anywhere but into a highball with a little water or one huge ice cube.

What this cocktail does do is really illustrate what happens when you stir something vs. when you shake it: it comes out crystal clear. I'm not sure the picture really did it justice, but this drink did sparkle nicely.

New Gear - Squier Classic Vibe 50's Telecaster

2010-11-30T11:01:00.007-06:00

So remember way back when I posted something about this guitar? Turns out that when Guitar Center gives you a 15% off coupon and you've had your eye on something for a while, there's no stopping the brutal impulse to spend that follows in the 12-24 hours after consuming turkey.

So after trading off my ASAT, I knew it was only a matter of time before I really, really wanted another telecaster. I actually did logic this one out a little bit though. I knew I needed that Tele sound, and that I really liked the versatility that comes with a Telecaster, but I wasn't getting it from my ASAT because, well, the pickups weren't Tele pickups. And a few other reasons. It was a great guitar with a nice sound, but it wasn't what I wanted, and it was expensive to boot.

I could have gotten a 52-RI tele like everyone else, but I just straight-up liked the way that this one sounds. It sounds like rock and/or roll.

I put on the white pickguard because the coupon made it free. Also free with the coupon: tax. Oh, and for some reason Guitar Center wanted to just give me a Fender gig-bag. Now if I could just get that damn "Squier" sticker off of the headstock...

Adonis Cocktail

2010-11-23T22:09:00.005-06:00

I have another confession (it seems that all this drinking is making me confess an awful lot...). I know nothing (and I repeat, nothing) about wine. For all of my enjoyment of obscure and delicious liquors, nothing. My parents drink a lot of wine. They love it. I had a roommate in college who couldn't drink beer and very rarely went for the hard stuff, but he learned a lot about wine. Even my younger sister knows more about wine than I do. It just...isn't something I can get into.

So when I do drink wine, it's either something sweet and girly, or else it's vermouth, on the rocks with a twist. Because vermouth is delicious and will forever remind me of Italy. So when I saw that this cocktail calls for "dry sherry," I went to the liquor store and stared stupidly at the rows of racks of wine. I didn't know if it was white or red, or really anything about it other than that sometimes people cook with cooking sherry. So I asked the salesman for a "dry sherry", and he pointed me towards a really small rack with just a handful of bottles. I guess it's not something people drink all the time. And while I sought all of the wisdom that Wikipedia could tell, I just ended up picking a cheap bottle that's labeled "Dry Sherry", figuring I couldn't go too wrong. So while it may not be the best, it probably tastes like sherry. Hopefully. So here we go.

Adonis Cocktail:

1 1/2 oz. Dry Sherry
3/4 oz. Italian (sweet) vermouth
1 Dash orange bitters

Stir with cracked ice and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass.

This is actually really pleasant and refreshing for something that's all alcohol. Granted, I'm used to cocktails like this being a bit more potent (this is basically a Manhattan with sherry instead of Whiskey, and this wine is only 36 proof, as opposed to the 80 proof of almost any liquor), so there's a lot more room for the flavors to play. The orange bitters round things out nicely, giving it a fruity finish. Traditionally, this would be an aperitif, or something you serve pre-meal to get your gastric juices flowing, and I could see it working well there.

I grow suspicious of websites that rate things and always give everything high marks, but so far everything has been drinkable and interesting. B+.

New Pedalboard

2010-11-23T13:08:00.004-06:00

So, after having successfully predicted that I was done re-arranging my pedal board, I've re-arranged it some more! Things really haven't changed since May though, which is a shocking amount of time considering that I play electric guitar.

This was spurred by two events: one, my recent purchase of an MXR Carbon Copy Analog Delay (which I need to play with more, but I've been looking for an actual analog delay for a while now, and I got a pretty good price on it), and two, I was watching Daniel Carson (Chris Tomlin's guitarist) take me through a song I already knew (Our God, in this case), and he finished with a shot at his pedalboard and something just clicked. He's definitely not the end-all, be-all of guitarists, but he needs to get tons of different sounds and he does so pretty simply. So I simplified.

First, I had to decide what effects I actually use. So off goes the Wah, the Chorus and the eq pedal, since I've never actually turned any of them on in front of people. I do intend to take a bit of good advice that James Duke (John Mark McMillan's guitarist) gave only to me (and anyone else who would read his blog), and that is that, just because it's not on your board doesn't mean you should sell it. I don't know how to use chorus, but that doesn't mean I never will, and my CE-2 is a really good chorus that would probably be somewhat hard to find again. And as much as tastes change with electric guitar playing, who's to say I won't want it some day in the future?

Once that was settled, I rethought my chain, mostly because I saw a cable in this video going from Daniel Carson's guitar straight into the volume pedal. And my volume pedal's always been in a loop. Which means I never turned it on as much as I'd want to. I decided that I wanted to try using my volume pedal as an always-on kind of pedal, even though it does suck some tone. If that really bothers me, I can just go find a good buffer. So here's the chain as of November:

Guitar-> Ernie Ball Volume Pedal -> Loopmaster bypass strip:
- Tuner out: Hardwire Chromatic tuner
- Loop 1: Fulltone Fulldrive 2
- Loop 2: Boss DS-1 (Keeley mod)
- Loop 3: empty
- Loop 4: Voodoo Labs Tremolo
- Loop 5: Boss DD-7 (with tap tempo, just to right of bypass strip)
- Loop 6: MXR Carbon Copy
- Loop 7: Line 6 DL4
-> Amp

With my pedalboard bypass securely fastened (via both velcro and a zip tie) to the top right corner of my board.

What I like about this setup is mostly that the volume pedal gets in on the action. I'm not very happy just setting my drive somewhere and keeping it there during the whole song. Hitting another boost or something just feels really...discrete to me. Mathematically speaking. Which, in this case, means the opposite of discreet. It was really noticeable to me when I kicked on a drive, and that kind of bothered me since I feel it should be a smoother transition from a clean part to a dirty part. Continuous.

What it all boils down to is that I've got more playing to do. I need to get a good feel for how my effects interact now. I also have an open space where I can plug in a flavor-of-the-week effect, be it a drive (I've had my eye on a Bluesbreaker for a while) or a POG or whatever. Maybe even something that can change from gig to gig. And I think I'm still on the lookout for a Trem with a tap tempo (really digging the Cusack Tap-a-whirl), and there's a good chance I'll end up with some kind of buffer before everything's said and done. But before I go all crazy and buy tons more stuff, I need to just get better with what I have! But that's not as much fun as buying new pedals...

Absinthe Special Cocktail

2010-11-21T13:29:00.004-06:00

Look familiar?

Absinthe Special Cocktail:

1 1/2 oz. Absinthe
1 oz. water
1/4 tsp. sugar (1/2 tsp. simple syrup)
1 dash orange bitters

Shake and strain into 3 oz. Cocktail glass

Very, very similar to the Absinthe Cocktail. The difference is a bit more water and using sugar as the sweetener, rather than Anisette. The difference is pretty pronounced, though. The flavors in this drink are much cleaner, and the orange bitters really shine. Before having opened this book I never would have thought I would enjoy the flavor combination of orange and anise, but it's really pleasant. This is a keeper.

I should have scaled back the water a touch since there is water in the simple syrup, but I forgot. The extra water in the recipe is specifically because you're making a simple syrup in the drink, so you need a little more to get the dilution correct. I will (almost) unfailingly use simple syrup in a drink rather than granulated sugar for one big reason: sugar doesn't dissolve well at a low temperature or in alcohol, two things that are rampant in the cocktail shaker. So it's way too easy to leave a drink feeling a bit gritty if you just throw some sugar in and call it good, unless you really, really shake or stir it. It's a feel thing, and there are definitely some drinks that prefer a sugar cube or granulated sugar, but it's usually for a good reason.

This being the last "Absinthe" cocktail, the Absinthe Frappe is notably, umm, absent from good Old Mr. Boston. Shame. Try it sometime.

Absinthe Drip Cocktail

2010-11-20T20:24:00.005-06:00

Here we go. THE Absinthe drink, mostly because, well, it's just Absinthe with a little water and sugar to balance things out. Anything you've ever heard about Absinthe stems from this simple drink, mostly because this is how they did it. Pablo Picasso. Jules Verne. Degas. Oscar Wilde. Edgar Allan Poe. And, of course, Vincent Van Gogh.

Absinthe Drip Cocktail:

1 1/2 oz Absinthe

Dissolve one lump (cube) of sugar, using the French Drip spoon, and fill glass with cold water. Use old Fashioned Cocktail glass.

First, my makeshift equipment:

I don't have an Absinthe spoon, but a strainer (here, my fine strainer, but I've used a Julep or a Hawthorne before.) works just as well. There is also such a thing as an Absinthe glass, which basically just has a bulb at the bottom that measures an ounce or an ounce and a half of Absinthe, but a simple rocks glass is perfect.

A good trick: when you first start to pour, get the sugar cube wet and wait a little bit to give it time to dissolve a little. That way, you're not trying really hard to dissolve it and adding more water than you'd like. But what's not very clearly said in the directions: drizzle the sugar cube with the water, the slower the better, so that the sweetened water falls into the Absinthe slowly. Can't stress enough: Slowly.

Very important note: Do not light your sugar cube on fire unless the Absinthe that you're using is just dreadful. That's a practice that started in the Czech bars because, well, a lot of the Czech Absinthe is...just dreadful. You completely destroy a lot of the delicate flavors present in a good Absinthe when you put a large amount of caramelized sugar into it. And, actually, depending on your Absinthe, you may not even need the sugar. Kubler isn't terribly sweet in and of itself, so I use the cube.

The amount of water you use is completely up to you. I've gone as little as 3:1 and as much as 6:1, but it's completely up to your taste. Just make sure that it is ice cold, since you're not going to be adding any other ice to the drink otherwise.

The great thing about this drink is it really depends on the Absinthe you use. Much like a whiskey, where a little water opens things up and brings out all of the flavors, the water added to the Absinthe brings out all of the different botanicals and flavors that you'd never get if you were just drinking a warm shot.

Also note: Absinthe louches. That's a fancy word that means "gets cloudy when you add water." It has to do with the oils in the liquor that are released with the addition of water, and it's really pretty cool to see. As you add water, even one drip at a time, you'll see nothing, nothing, nothing, and then suddenly you'll see things starting to get cloudy (in a layer, which is awesome), followed by the liquor completely turning cloudy. Very cool effect. If mine were green, it would louche green, but since mine is clear, it louches milky white.

It's an expensive hobby to have a lot of different Absinthes, but you can taste subtle differences between the different brands in this format. So, if you can, get a good one, and enjoy!

Absinthe Cocktail

2010-11-18T18:10:00.006-06:00

I have a confession: I love Absinthe. And part of it might be the mystique surrounding it, the culture that it involves. Plus, it's delicious.

It's been illegal for a long time in the U.S., but recent updates to the law surrounding imports have made it completely legal. Which is great, because now we get everything, including the top-tier Absinthes that have been enjoyed throughout the rest of the world. My current one (because Absinthe is rather expensive and I can't really justify having many more than one) is Kubler, which is Swiss Absinthe blanche, meaning it's clear in color, rather than green. It's probably the most cost-effective brand out there, being really quite good for much less than some of the exquisite brands.

But enough about that.

Absinthe Cocktail:

1 1/2 oz. Absinthe substitute (or, since it's legal here in 2010, Absinthe)
3/4 oz. water
1/4 oz. Anisette
Dash orange bitters

Shake well with cracked ice and strain into 3 oz. cocktail glass.

Normally don't quite agree with recipes that call for water, as most good recipes should get all the water they require within the ice, but as we're dealing with Absinthe (which usually starts out at a mild 100 proof and can range all the way up to 160 or 180...), I'm okay in this one instance. And honestly, this is quite nice. The orange bitters give you just a hint of orange at the end, though I could probably use a little more, but it's very nice. The Anisette adds sweetness without diluting the flavor of the Anise that's so present in any Absinthe. And as much as I usually enjoy an Absinthe drip, this is a nice alternative. B+

Abbey Cocktail

2010-11-17T18:49:00.007-06:00

Being a (cocktail) nerd requires, amongst other things, a lot of sources. The internet has largely done away with the need to have a lot of actual, "physical" books, but I've found that once people know that you like making drinks, you get a lot of interesting gifts. One that I got recently is an old copy (probably 1948) of the Old Mr. Boston Deluxe Official Bartender's Guide from an aunt who found it in her basement. Blatantly stealing an idea from this guy, I find myself only reaching for a handful of cocktails (the Mai Tai, the Manhattan or Old Fashioned when out, the Martini when I'm feeling elegant) when I need a good drink, so I've decided to take this book in depth, and make every drink. From Abbey Cocktail to Zombie.

All that knowledge for only $2.00...

Is there likely a lot in this book that's just awful? Sure. Are there as yet undiscovered gems? Who knows. To me, at least, if I found even one great drink that I knew nothing about, it would be worth it. So here's hoping...

A few notes before beginning. First, this might take me a while. There's like 157 pages. That's a lot of booze. Kids, don't try this at home. Even having one a day would probably take me more than a year, and I have no intention of doing that, or of getting rid of a lot of my music content; after all, that's why most of you are here! But when I do something, I tend to...obsess. A bit. So we'll see. Next, I probably won't mention it too much, but unless otherwise noted, use fresh juices. It makes a world of difference, especially considering that this book was written in the late 40's when that's all they did, so the particular ratios are likely balanced for that. Lastly, because it's funny to me, this book recommends Old Mr. Boston brand alcohol, which don't exist anymore. So I'll make a note of what I use, but keep in mind that every product has a different flavor profile (man, I sound like an alcohol marketer), so I can only really say it works or doesn't work based on what I'm using. I will have a "standard" gin, rum, brandy, and so forth, but feel free to tinker! Some recipes don't sing until you've got the right spirit in the glass.

Abbey Cocktail:

1 1/2 oz Dry Gin (Seagram's)
Juice of 1/4 orange (~1/2 oz)
1 dash orange bitters

Shake well with cracked ice and strain into 3 oz. cocktail glass. Add a Maraschino Cherry.

A very simple Bronx cocktail (which is one that we'll get to, eventually).

This is going to sound exceptionally odd, but for a good, generic gin, I'm actually not opposed to Seagram's. There are certainly better gins out there, and there's been a big move towards less juniper-centric gins in recent years, but my test cocktail for gin is the Martini. If it makes a good one, it's a good gin. And honestly, Seagram's gives me everything I need in a gin, and the price is outstanding. So it's the default.

One other point I'd like to make, and this one is about technique: whenever I strain something that's been shaken, and it's going into a glass without ice (such as in this example, and as opposed to shaking, say, a Mai Tai), I fine-strain it (right around 1:20). Mostly this just keeps ice shards out of the drink so that what comes out of the shaker stays consistently diluted from the first sip to the last.

The verdict: pleasant enough. While the Seagram's isn't the smoothest alcohol ever, it's assertive enough to mix with and the water coming off of the shake tames it well. The drink doesn't really sparkle, which is usually one of my complaints when you have an orange-juice based drink that gets diluted from the shake, rather than just being built. You get a nice orange flavor, which is always fine when mixed with gin. The orange bitters don't really add much, and it always puzzles me when a drink calls for orange bitters and orange juice; it's like it's trying to get everything to play nice, but it tends to make things kind of bland.

In the eternal words of Homer Simpson: "It passed the first test: I didn't go blind."

DC*B - SMS [Shine]

2010-10-25T19:47:00.000-05:00

Epic.

New Gear: Taylor 314ce-LTD, and Bonus Gear Review: Fishman Aura

2010-10-20T19:55:00.005-05:00

...so much for having a lot to write about, huh?

Seriously though, this month has been crazy busy. The biggest thing has been, in the last two weeks I've played in two weddings while attending three (including one that was my best friend). That's a lot of extra stuff to do when you already don't really have a weekend. I've got another wedding this weekend, and Halloween coming up the week after that...it's a good thing I don't have a day-job, because I'm exhausted!

Anyway, all that is a big fat excuse, which I don't like doing. What else have I been doing with my time? Playing with my new child. Meet the Taylor.

Solid (Sitka Spruce) top, solid (Brazilian Rosewood) back and sides. Ebony fretboard. Built in November of 2001. It's got the older pickup system which actually sounds pretty darn good with no effects. Satin finish which is not perfect, but nothing more than a ding or scuff which is probably pretty good for a nine-year old guitar. Speaking of the age, it's in a great place for an acoustic guitar; the neck is still perfect and the tone woods have really opened up. Great depth of tone fingerpicking, flat-picking or strumming. Definitely brighter than my Breedlove (I mean, it's a Taylor), but that helps it play even better in a full-band setting. And as much as I try to not be the guy who's affected by the name on the headstock, you can feel the quality in this guitar as you play it. I'm not sure quite how to describe it; "delicate" would be the wrong word, but maybe "fine"? The wood resonates together so that you can feel it in the guitar, against your hands and in your gut.

And it only cost me my ASAT. Sad to see it go since it was my first "real" electric guitar, but I honestly can't justify having a premium Telecaster that never gets played. This gives me two acoustics so I can have a backup (you know, when I'm wrecking it for 20,000 fans), and in fact was quite a bit in the black for me, as trades go. I just couldn't pass it by. Plus, I LOVE (in case you haven't figured it out yet) the Squier CV Telecaster if I ever need a Telecaster, which is a bit more cost-effective. I'm thinking I need an ES-335 of some kind first, though...

But anyway, the second half: Fishman no longer sells their Aura pedal in a locked-in flavor, like the "Concert" model that I bought sometime last year. Instead, they sell a one-size fits all pedal that comes pre-loaded with some Dreadnaught images, but comes with access to the entire library of images. Big bonus: if you have a Dreadnaught guitar, a Concert guitar and a nylon-string guitar, you don't have to buy three pedals. You can customize your one pedal to have any images you need. I thought that they should have done that immediately, but the fact that I could upgrade for really cheap is just as good. A bit more exciting is that there's a whole set of images for the Taylor 314ce, which means I didn't have to fiddle around too much to find some images that really make my guitar sound like my guitar. It's also great because there's no practical reason to have more than three or four images per guitar; I mean, how many different situations are going to come up where a different shade of tone is going to be just perfect? I've settled on a solo-acoustic tone, a band tone, and two different finger-style tones, but I can't think of any other needs. 16 presets is nice, but I only need like 3.

All in all, it's great having a brighter guitar that I can play with in a band and a more balanced guitar that I can play in a solo-acoustic situation. Or, having a backup acoustic that can be tuned to something crazy to make things go smoother when I play out. I keep telling myself that my Breedlove is going to be my workhorse guitar and my Taylor is going to be my "nice" guitar, but I can't seem to put the Taylor down...

Ever feel like everything changes in one week?

2010-10-03T20:55:00.002-05:00

So, over the course of the week, I have:
- sold my broken PS3
- purchased a shiny new PS3
- traded my G&L ASAT for a Taylor 314CE-LTD (and am beyond excited about this)
- taken Fishman up on the upgrade offered for their Aura pedals
- moved my compressor and tuner off of my electric board and onto my acoustic board
- Gotten an iPhone4

and all of these are (lame) reasons why I haven't recorded any amp demos yet, and all are things that will likely get written about in the near future. Might as well start now.

iPhone4. Awesome. I've literally had it for just over 24 hours, and I've already used it about six times to find info or use an app. It's incredible. I didn't really want to be this connected to the internet (it updates me whenever I get an e-mail, which is good and bad), but I've already stopped caring. I can take pictures and send them to anyone. I've got like 7 gigs of music loaded on (all of the mp3's I've bothered to collect) and can take them anywhere. It's like a swiss-army knife for the modern world.

I'm still looking at all of the hundreds of apps that are available. I need to decide if it's worth it to pay $10 for a strobe tuner from Peterson (way cheaper than a Strobostomp 2, but how often would I use it?) and look into some sort of dock for my car so I can use it as an mp3 player. It's just incredible that I can fit everything I ever need into a device that weighs less than a pound. Technology rules.

Did you ever switch off an "always on" pedal?

2010-09-25T20:46:00.003-05:00

So I was playing around with my strat and new amp tonight, and it sounded pretty good. I went to go for a solo, and instead of hitting the boost button on my Strymon OB, I hit the bypass button. And it was like the heavens opened up and choirs of angels were grooving on it. My electric chain has had this great compressor sitting first and foremost in my chain, and always on, for about six months now. Then again, my amp has been different.

Just something about my Strat straight into this amp is intense. Everything was so musical, open, alive. I'm not hating my compressor (it's awesome, and besides, I bought it mainly for my acoustic playing, I've just been really, really lazy about it), but it's like a light-bulb went off when my OB.1 did. Just the slightest bit of compression really changed the way that this amp sounded with this guitar. I wonder if that means that my Blues Jr. has a good amount of natural compression, so the difference was pretty minimal?

Point is: I LOVE THIS AMP. Clips coming this week, once I get a chance, because you've got to hear this thing.

New Gear: Fender Musicmaster Bass Amp

2010-09-23T10:04:00.005-05:00

So I still can't stop buying gear. This one might be a little different; I might actually be in love. I'm still not sure yet if it's because of the tone or because of how freaking cool it looks, but here's my new amp!

Details: built in 1977 (going strictly by the date of the speaker), 6v6 tube amp (solid-state rectified) by Fender. It's got tone and it's got volume. And 12 watts. When I got it, it had a three-pronged, grounded power cord, which was a plus, but someone had broken the grounding tine off so they could fit it into a two-prong outlet. Aside from being moderately unsafe, it also gave me a ground hum, but four dollars and twenty minutes later, problem solved.

Let me just say, this thing is a monster. Built for basses, it's got just the right amount of low-end, and it crunches really, really well. I'm also very jazzed because every tube-amp I've owned has been EL84 based and this one has a whole other kind of tube. I just really, really like the sound that this thing is putting out, and that's with unknown tubes and the factory speaker, both of which are likely to get an upgrade sometime soon, but for now, it sure ain't broke.

There's a lot of debate that goes into old Fender amps, something about black-face vs. silver-face. To be honest, I don't think I care because this thing sounds great, though admittedly, I've never played a black-face amp. I will say that, for about $350, I got an all-tube, hand-wired (hard to believe, but Fender hand-wired their amps up until sometime in the 80's), truly vintage amp. That no one else has. A few mods to make it perfect, and I think this one is going to be a keeper.

I'll get out a more formal review once I've had some time to test it out (maybe even with sound clips, if you're lucky!), and I still haven't reviewed the Boss CE-2 that I got about two months ago, so that's on the block. Get excited, because I sure am.

New Goals:

2010-08-30T15:45:00.003-05:00

1) To read something new every week, to further my development as a human being. This week, Everybody Wants to Go to Heaven, but Nobody Wants to Die by David Crowder and Mike Hogan. It's infectious and I couldn't put it down, mostly because it's written in a style that means that, if I went off and thought about something else for a while, I'd completely lose the strain of his/their thoughts. It further convinces me that David Crowder is a genius of great magnitude, mostly meaning that he thinks like me. Drawing from varied sources and not being afraid to ask the question. Awesome.

2) To write something new every week, to further my development as a musician. In this sense, meaning, developing a fully-formed composition every week, not just throwing some stuff together and calling it good. In my experience, this usually takes between 1 and 10 hours of concentrated effort, so it's definitely not too much to ask of my infinite "free" time. Also, did you know that Bach wrote 1126 compositions throughout his lifetime? Not just keyboard and organ works either, but fully-conceived orchestral works. I can manage a few minutes of original music a week.

Basically, this all boils down to, "do something and don't sit around all day on the internet and playing video games." Which I'm good with. Also, of a general note, I need to find at least an hour a day in which to be musical. Piano, guitar, writing, doesn't matter, so long as I'm getting better.

Bits and Pieces and Guster

2010-08-23T22:51:00.004-05:00

Played my ASAT at Mass this last weekend. Haven't played that guitar in a while. It was the tone I was going for all along, particularly on the closing song "Your Grace is Enough". Neck pickup, tone rolled off about 95%, Fulldrive 2 on light mid-humped drive and with the extra boost engaged during the solo, with some untimed analog delay going to make it sound huge. Perfect. I love playing electric. Can't believe I've been neglecting my fancy Tele for so long!

Which sucks because my constant opportunities to play electric may be numbered. Not sure yet, but I may be picking up another Mass to lead on Sunday morning, meaning I won't be able to volunteer anymore. I'll be lucky to play electric (without being the worship leader, that is) once a month!

Oh yeah, and I picked up a Boss CE-2 that looks like it's lived a hard life but sounds spot-on. Not that I use chorus all that much, but it really is a great, iconic pedal so I couldn't pass on it! So far I'm mostly using it to add some depth to my delay when I'm playing pad work, and using it on a heavier setting on occasion when doing some lead work. I really need to listen to more music that uses chorus, because it's not something I've got a natural affinity for, a lot like my tremolo. Though I did recognize some nice light chorus on an acoustic rhythm guitar that was being picked on a song that was huge in the 90's (and naturally I can't remember what song it was, but think of all those great bands from the late 90's).

And last point, I recently re-discovered Guster, after having listened to them almost nonstop in High School. I love that they don't take themselves too seriously, and their sound is so diverse and unexpected from song to song. A great band.

I'll leave you with one of my favorites:

Typewriter. Classic.

Book Review: What Women Wish You Knew About Dating

2010-08-09T10:27:00.004-05:00

by Stephen W. Simpson, PhD.

I need to read more. When I was little, my family would go to the library every week and we'd spend half an hour, an hour, two, picking out books to read over the coming week. I read voraciously, on trips, sitting around the house, didn't matter. I'd read books about sharks when I wanted to be a marine biologist (which I think everyone does at one point). I'd read scary novels like Jaws and Jurassic Park, and everything Stephen King has ever written, after seeing the movies and wondering why everyone always said that the books were better. I'd read all sorts of Tom Clancy novels, because something about his details-oriented writing style really pulled me in; you could tell this man had spent his life in the military simply by the serious precision and details-oriented prose. I (eventually) read the J.R.R. Tolkien Lord of the Rings saga and the Hobbit after it was recommended to me by my uncle, and after about six false-starts. My favorite books had very few words in them and were made by a man named Stephen Biesty. They had a lot of different things that hand been cut up and shown in excruciating detail, and I would spend hours looking at these incredible pictures and imagining how it all fit together, seeing how everything had a place. This won't do it justice, but here's an example:

I learned a lot about the world from pictures like this.

None of this has anything to do with the book in question; I sort of just realized that I don't read anymore, and need to. Donald Miller, author of a lot of great Christian life books like Blue Like Jazz and Through Painted Deserts, recommended to me that I read this one. Because I talk to him all the time and we are all sorts of friends. Seriously though, he put up a quick review on his blog, saying "if you're a single guy in your twenties, just buy the book and read it as soon as possible." And I thought to myself, "Hey, I'm a single guy in my twenties." Perfect.

The thing that I kept thinking as I was reading it was, I already know all this. Kind of. It's the same phenomenon that I get when I talk to girls about what guys think. We're not that complicated, but women insist on reading thousands of things into our motives, in viewing our actions through their own girl-colored filter. And they're always wrong! I think the fact is, it's very difficult to make sense of things in any other way than what makes sense to us. If it's not something we've experienced, then it's not the way that we're going to see something. I'm bad at examples, but here's a try: a guy goes out with a girl, and she drops all sorts of subtle hints to him that she's not interested in him (not calling him afterwards, making excuses about why they can't have another date, talking about other men with him) that, to her, are blatant. It's not that the man is oblivious. It's mostly that, when a guy doesn't like a girl (which is, admittedly, pretty rare), he doesn't communicate in hints. He's direct. If a girl wants a guy to know that the ship has sailed, she has to be direct, because for a lot of guys, it's all he's going to understand.

What's most important is that I knew all of this stuff about dating already. Kind of. Simpson puts it all in language that is understandable to guys. The book is written in a very straightforward, logical way, taking you through the process of getting a date and the why's of what's happening during that date. It's not dumbed down. It's written in a way that men naturally understand. I love it.

I also love that he speaks from a very sound position, psychologically. He definitely brings in the theology at times, but it was easy to tell that he's a psychologist, first and foremost. I really respected that, because frankly, it's needed. I've been on countless guy's retreats, listened to talks on male sexuality and relating to women, and it's all been somewhat helpful, but I need more than just "because you should." This book is bold in that it points out the gray areas that most people just sort of tapdance over, like all of the space that exists between a kiss and sex, and how to help yourself navigate that space. It's a much, much healthier explanation of human sexuality from a Christian perspective than I've ever gotten, outside of Pope JP2's Theology of the Body. The difference is, I read this in about four hours and it's easy to break down.

The best part is that this book tells you what you already kind of know. There's a difference between being a boy (here, he uses the term "guy") and being a man, and he gives a lot of good advice on how to take yourself from boy to man. This is particularly needed in our culture today. Quick aside from...I think it was Developmental Psych.

In the early part of the last century, lives were lived quickly. The Great Depression and the World Wars, and especially the fact that people weren't living nearly as long, so shortened things that many people lost a childhood. You'd be a kid at the age of 9 and working in a factory at 10. You'd go to war at 17 and come back 45. Now, we're rebelling against this in a huge way. Most people my age won't consider actually starting a "career" (meaning, more than just a job that pays the bills) until they've been out of college for a few years, if ever. We bum around Europe for a while. We go to grad school because we don't want to go to the real world. We play videogames well into our 30's. We don't move out and find our own house until we're good and ready. We date a lot of girls but marry almost none of them. Whereas my mom had kids when she was 21, and her mom when she was 17, most women I talk to say that 28-30 is the target. We have this expanded period of adolescence, almost entirely because we can, and there's a great desire to just not grow up until you have to.

For people my age, that blurs things a lot. There's no advice on how to live this period of my life, mostly because we're the first generation living it. And I've noticed that it's taken a negative (my opinion of my own life) turn, in that I'm still a boy when it comes to relating to women. I don't want to be. I want to be the guy who doesn't "worship and fear" women, but who's comfortable talking to them on a one-on-one, person-to-person basis. I was just starting to figure some things out about how to get there when I came across this book, and it gave me clear insight into what I've been going through the last year or so, and has further defined, in my mind, what I need to do from here on out. It's stuff I already knew. Kind of. I just wish I'd read this book when I was like 16. But the author said that a lot of what he's drawing from came when he was 26, so I guess I'm still about a year or two ahead of the curve.

And the thing that will always make me laugh is, if I gave this to my dad or my grandfather, he'd laugh right in my face. He never had to deal with this stuff, and he'd see it as silly crap. That's okay. That's so okay. And it's why this book is needed, because it's just so foreign to anyone that we have as a source of advice on how to be men. For them, "just grow up" might have worked (or might have caused long-lasting emotional scars that no one wants to talk about), but it's a little more complicated than that for us.

If you're in college, or high school, or in this weird post-college, pre-career place, read this book. You'll probably learn a lot about yourself, even more than just how to get a date or how to talk to women. It's a snapshot of life in a place where everything is "okay" and nothing is clearly defined. It's a life-jacket.

A question to the worship leaders out there:

2010-07-26T10:13:00.002-05:00

Which may be foolish to ask, seeing as how the vast majority of the hits that this thing is getting is for people searching for ways to cheat in MLB 2K10, but I may as well ask it anyway:

How do you balance volunteer worship leading with paid? Even though I'm still pretty new, I've taken a pretty strict little-to-no volunteer attitude for a number of reasons, but I'm interested in everyone else's opinion.

I hate Christian rock.

2010-07-08T23:21:00.004-05:00

First, so that everyone's on the same page, I love Christianity. I love God. I love worship music. I am a music minister who loves to pray with music and connect to God through music. In no way is anything that I'm about to write going to undermine my beliefs in the use of electric guitar to worship God. Keep all that in mind.

Ok. So the back story is this. St. Louis has had a classical music station (Classic 99) for better than 60 years, but recently they sold their station (99.1) to Joy FM, a local Christian music station. There are literally novels that could be written as to how much of a tragedy it is to lose a free source of classical music, but that's another story. Because I now have access to an entire radio station that previously was very static-filled and otherwise not valid, I've gotten to listen to some Christian rock that I'd previously only heard tell of. And let me tell you, I'm not impressed.

What's spurred this recent post is that I just heard a song where the lyrics were "the beauty of Your majesty, the wonder of Your glory". What? Could you possibly pick a set of words that are any less cliche or made any less sense? I mean, I liked that song way better when it was called "Beautiful One" by Jeremy Camp (who is another serious offender...). But seriously though, what do those lyrics even mean? You can't just go "the (adjective) of your (adjective)" and call it a day. It's lazy, and complete nonsense.

I also hate that "Christian Rock" is called thusly because of the presence of electric guitars, but those guitars are being played...boringly? There's no aggression, no edge, no distortion of any kind. Just a generic, inoffensive wall of sound set way back in the mix. How is that rock? Soft rock, maybe, but soft rock sucks. I mean, when I'm real before God, it's pretty damn offensive. I'm a sinful dude. I don't like it, but hey, I am what I am, and by the grace of God, I'm trying to make myself more presentable to God, but no matter how well-dressed I get, He knows me, knows my faults, knows my ways, and knows my heart. I hate that "Christian Rock" is "family friendly". It's just too squeaky clean to be real. And I hate fakes.

And that's why I hate popular Christian music. You're writing music that is, frankly, bad, bland and uninteresting, and it's being sold solely based upon the merits of being "Christian". It's got all of the lyrical depth of a Ke$ha song, but because you're singing about God, it's legitimate music that sells records. That wouldn't fly in literally any other industry, but apparently it's okay for Christian music, because the average Christian likes bad music. And the average Christian feels better about themselves because they're not listening to "that crap on the radio". Come on.

(Pictured: That Crap On The Radio)

I'm with Michael Gungor on this one. If you're making good music, no matter what you're singing about, you're glorifying God. If you're making bad music, no matter what you're singing about, you're not glorifying anything. You might as well be singing about brushing your teeth with a bottle of Jack, for all that God cares. Harsh? Music is music, and it's either good, or it's bad. No label or name of a genre will convince me otherwise.

Some light recording

2010-06-27T22:39:00.003-05:00

I've been in Toronto for a whole week, but I thought I'd throw this up real quick.

The pastor of the parish where I've been LifeTeen Director for the last few months has been reassigned, and tonight we celebrated his last Mass. It was a really emotional night, and we had a lot of bittersweet worship time, and said goodbye. Literally the day that my flight left last week, I did a quick recording of a Catholic classic, Here I Am, Lord to be used in a video for him, since it's been a really powerful and important song in his life. And, because the teens are awesome, the video is up on YouTube. It's Redman's You Never Let Go, then my recording, complete with a few pictures of me rocking it mid-Mass, along with a whole lot of pictures of Fr. Tom being awesome. Enjoy!

...I need to buy/make a pop filter.

MLB 2K10 cheats.

2010-06-11T21:01:00.006-05:00

I love baseball. I love videogames. For the longest time, the only baseball videogame I had was R.B.I. Baseball II for the Nintendo Entertainment System. And it is glorious, except that Ozzie Smith and Nolan Ryan aren't still in the major leagues. So now that I have a sweet PS3 slowly sucking my time away from me, a while back I decided that I wanted to get a baseball game. For those of you who aren't as well-traveled as I am, there are two basic choices: MLB The Show and the MLB 2Kx franchise. I went with the latter, though I find myself regretting it a bit.

I have a problem with sports videogames in general because of simple economics; it's not necessary for a game developer to put much effort into a sports game, as the competition simply isn't there and, frankly, sports fans are plenty happy with a mere simulation with pretty graphics, and on top of that, you need to release a new game every year. For reference, some of the best games ever, such as the Final Fantasy series and Fallout, take many years to develop and perfect, and the result is a stunning game that crosses the boundary into "art". But as a result of the economics of the sports game market, you usually get the same game year after year with slightly better graphics and updated statistics. But a lot of the most important parts of playing a game, namely, gameplay, sometimes get left in the dust.

And so it is in MLB 2K10. Each player has stats, which is good. What that means is, in any given play, a pitch from a pitcher to a location will result in some sort of hit or a swing and miss from the batter. All of these calculations are done in the background, but the results are sometimes not convincing. Like when you're working a batter inside, and somehow he manages to hit a fastball that's in on his hands and drive it to the opposite field. That's pretty much impossible in real life, but because the game said "this batter will hit the next fastball", location doesn't seem to matter much. Or, even worse, if you're a great pitcher, you're only going to give up little bloop hits or shots up the middle. Because the game doesn't know how to realistically portray a strong ground ball through the defense, since the defense seems to cover the entire field at times and none of the field at other times, depending on who's batting. All in all, you get the feeling that some batters are going to reach base no matter what you do, and that's a very helpless, depressing feeling for a videogame.

Way, way worse is their My Player mode. Way worse because I was so excited about it. You get to make your own player. I want to be a pitcher, so now I can be a pitcher. And it is cool that you have to slowly work your way up through the minors to get to the majors, and develop your skills as you go. What is completely and utterly frustrating, however, is that you have no control over when you leave a game as a starter, and the AI tends to handle managing decisions with all of the tact and strategy of, well, a crack-addled 12 year old. Some situations that I have encountered: I'm pitching a complete game shutout into the 9th inning, and it's not really a close game (say, 4 run lead). I'll get two guys out, then give up a base hit and be taken out. I'm in the 7th inning, have just given up two runs to make the game a 2-2 tie with the bases loaded, and I'll be left in to get slaughtered (when you're in a tight spot, your control gets terrible and sometimes you can't even see the strike zone, so you're pretty much screwed). I'm ahead in a 9-2 game with a low pitch count, and I'll get randomly taken out in the 8th after having retired the first batter I face that inning. All of those managing decisions are, objectively, wrong, and they're just some of many.

Now, it used to be easy to pitch complete games in this game. Batters have no patience, so I would routinely throw complete games with my pitch count below 90, but then they made a patch. Now, it's become extremely difficult. And it's difficult to throw a complete game in real life. For one, batters take a lot more pitches, meaning that most starting pitchers will reach 90 pitches somewhere between the 6th and 8th inning, depending. But what I hate about this game, what drives me absolutely crazy, is that it cheats. In real life, if a pitcher is having a good game, but not a great game, he will be taken out in the 7th or the 8th, and the bullpen will get the final outs. In MLB 2K10, the game checks on the 26th out, does a calculation to see how good of a game you've had as a pitcher, and how close the game is, and will either leave you in or call in the closer to get a one out save. In real life, if the game is close in the 9th, unless I've only thrown like 90 pitches, for the love of everything holy, bring in the closer to start the inning. Don't let me get two outs, tantalize me with the possibility of a complete game, then jam the closer in there in the last minute. That's just mean.

The problem is that this game bases everything on the almighty pitch count, which is something that bad managers rely on. Back before they kept track of pitch counts, starters would routinely throw 140-180 pitches a game, and would sometimes touch 200. Now, you're lucky to throw 100, in part because I think that human beings like round numbers. A better system, and one of winning managers (read, Tony LaRussa, manager of the World Champion St. Louis Cardinals...), is to actually look at what's going on in the game, have a job for every pitcher in the bullpen for all possible situations, and use them accordingly. If you consistently gave a major league closer one-out saves, he'd do terribly because it communicates a lack of trust.

Also , when I throw a 98 or 99 or 100 mph fast ball, you should not be able to catch up with it. My current pitcher has an electric fastball, but guys are getting hits off of him all the time. When I go from a 99 mph fast ball to a 77 mph changeup, they swing and make contact like it's nothing. That should be causing serious problems to all kinds of batters, but it seems to only be the pitchers that I can strike out with three straight 97+ mph fastballs (with good movement!), which is not very realistic.

Also also, if you're going to make a baseball game where players can be called up from the minor leagues mid-season, then please make sure that you have actual players in the minor league affiliates. I'm tired of seeing generic players with weird names show up on major league rosters.

You have one job to do: to simulate a real-life game, with real players who actually exist. And you have a whole year to get the stats right. Do it. I'm not going to buy another game from the MLB 2Kx franchise unless they prove they can fix these issues, because it just frustrates the fans who want to play through a whole season or a whole player's career. And, for the record, the St. Louis Cardinals (or any team at all, for that matter) would never let Albert Pujols slip through to free-agency, and yet, that's happened each of three times that I've played My Player mode for a few years and there's nothing I can do about it. Twice, no other team even picked him up. Really? No team wants the greatest baseball player currently playing, and perhaps one of the top 10 players of all time? No one?

Sorry...I just had to get that out...

With everything, with everything...

2010-06-05T23:07:00.002-05:00

Just had an incredible adoration time. Played with my favorite youth music minister, Adam Bitter, at a Timothy 4 retreat. Played, among others, How He Loves and With Everything. Played my heart out, then played some more. Played electric, and really put my new pedal board through it's paces. Just. Awesome.

I don't really have a lot of words, so sufficient to say, it was a great, incredible worship experience. I really love being the sole electric guitarist in a band, because I have complete freedom to either add something pretty or interesting over the top of a song, or to take the song where it's going by really driving it rhythmically. And, it also leaves me free to throw up my hands and just worship sometimes.

What a great night.

Drink Spotlight: Gin and Tonic

2010-05-28T18:58:00.005-05:00

I realized yesterday that it's probably been several months since I've even thought about putting up any booze-based information, and while the vast majority of my (imaginary) audience is way more interested in guitars than in gin, I felt I was being untrue to the spirit of this place! So I decided I'd share with you one of my all time favorite cocktails: the Gin and Tonic.

What? Way too simple? Pedestrian, even? I'm okay with that. As much as I appreciate a well-crafted cocktail made with foreign and difficult to obtain ingredients and mixed just perfectly, there's a lot to respect with the simple G&T. For one, in the modern-era bars where service is defined as speed at all costs, one of the very few cocktails that is "safe" to order is the beloved Gin and Tonic. It's really, really difficult to screw up, particularly in most bars where the hand holding the liquor bottle is a bit on the light side. It's one of very few cocktails that you can order in a bar that will turn out exactly like you'd expect, no matter what bar you order it in. And, well, gin is delicious.

That's not a popular opinion, but it is mine. Whenever I try or get a new gin, the iconic Gin and Tonic often does as much for me in telling me about the gin as taking it straight. The other litmus-test cocktail for me on the gin front is, of course, the Martini, but there are a lot of gins out there that simply aren't balanced well for a Martini, some of which will give you a truly awful drink no matter how you mix it. Tonic is forgiving, however.

So, let's talk about it:

The Gin and Tonic:

1 1/2 oz gin
tonic water

In an 8 oz glass filled with ice, build gin and top with tonic water. Garnish with lime.

Extremely easy, but there is one detail that is very important, and is often missed or misunderstood by the beginner. The term "top" is a very dangerous one, as any recipe that involves topping a cocktail with something needs to pay very, very close attention to the size of the glass. In an 8 oz. glass, as I've suggested, this will tend to work out to around 3 oz of tonic water, which is just about perfect, once the ice melts a bit. A bigger glass will require more gin, a smaller glass, less, but always try to account for the volume of ice, and attempt to get your tonic:gin ratio to 2:1, as that's where the magic happens with this particular drink. Once you've found a suitable recipe for any particular glass, this actually makes dispensing Gin and Tonics extremely easy, as the only ingredient requiring measuring is the gin.

This drink, perhaps more than any other, is summer to me, so wherever you are, as the temperature begins to approach that of the ninth circle of hell, enjoy!

It is finished.

2010-05-24T20:15:00.003-05:00

Well, it finally got here.

I put my order in just about six weeks ago, and my Loopmaster bypass strip, tap tempo and pedal board bypass arrived today. I had about ten things to do today, but upon finding a long, thin package on my doorstep this afternoon, I put aside non-childish things and spent the better part of the day getting things set up. Step one (cut a hole in the box?) was to take a side trip to the he-who-must-not-be-named and pick up some more patch cables. And by some, I mean lots. I ended up going with a kit (or three) made by LiveWire, simply because I needed to get the biggest number of cables at as cheap a price as I could, and I got these for around $6 per cable. And it's DIY, meaning that I got every size I needed without any guesswork, which was a huge plus. I am planning, some day, maybe, on getting some really nice cables of the solder variety, simply because, well, I could have paid just a bit more and gotten fantastic cables instead of generic ones, but I also play on a weekly basis and could not have waited for shipping. But first impressions are that they conduct signal passably well. I did have a digital multimeter on hand to check them after assembly, and had to re-assemble two of the twelve I made, so that saved me tons of stress.

The little box next to the strip is a tap tempo. I used the Boss FS-5U for a long time, and it works perfectly, but I could never get velcro to stick to it, and it took up an awful lot of space for a tap tempo, so I went ahead and got one while I was ordering. All the functionality, 1/4 of the size. The box next to that, with the fun stickers on it, is called a pedal board bypass. Basically, I've got everything routed so that I have one consistent and easy-to-reach place to plug in my guitar and amp (marked G and A, respectively), instead of having to find the right place on the bypass strip or to track down which pedal is last and first in my chain. A small touch, but I really like it. I was also going to try to zip-tie it to the bottom of my pedal board, underneath the wah in my picture here so that the I/O ports would seem to almost be a part of the pedal board, but there wasn't quite enough clearance. Still good this way, though, because I can see what I'm doing.

And so, for the last time (until I completely change my setup again...), my chain is:

Guitar -> Strymon OB. 1 -> Loopmaster bypass strip:
1. Vox Wah
2. Boss GE-7
3. Fulltone Fulldrive 2 MOSFET
4. Keeley DS-1
5. Voodoo Labs Tremolo
6. Ernie Ball Volume Pedal
7. Line 6 DL4 -> Boss DD-7 (with tap tempo)
Tuner out: Hardwire HT-2 tuner
-> Amp.

The logic here is that the Strymon compressor is always on, and is true bypass anyway, so it doesn't need to be in a loop. The bypass strip has a master bypass switch, so I can clear out everything and go guitar -> compressor -> amp when I feel like it, and it has a tuner out so that's not in my signal path anymore (though I really don't mind that particular tuner's sound when it's off). The only other thing I have to say is that it's almost like Loopmaster makes their stuff specifically for Pedaltrain pedal boards. The bypass strip fits perfectly on one slat, with the right angle cables hanging neatly down through the first open space. Very orderly and awesome.

I'll leave you with a spaceship shot, since I've never done it and I now have like twice as many LEDs looking back up at me. Happy pedal board day!