You knew this day was coming....

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

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

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

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?

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

...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

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

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

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

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.