Effects Bay

The following is a guest review by Kevin Ian. If you are interested in writing a guest review, please contact me!

Hello!

I was contacted by Todd of Grumpy Toad FX recently and he asked if I wanted to try a new build he has been working on. It is a build of The Shoctave, a mix of a Fuzzy Overdrive and Octave down circuit. Todd is the first to say that while it is NOT an original design of his, he does now offer it to people who are interested in the pedal.

Plugging into this pedal, I noticed a few things:

The dirt section of this pedal is peculiar. If it’s a fuzz, it’s a very tame-almost overdrive in character-fuzz. However, if it’s an overdrive, then it’s very fizzy in character. Think Blues Driver with Big Muff tendencies. I really like the sound and it got along with my P90′s perfectly. This pedal might be a bit too dark for humbuckers.

The Gain section brings the dirt from a slightly dirty boost to full on raging fuzz. It stacks decently with other pedals, though I would recommend this pedal first in your chain as with most fuzz. I found the middle gain the most useful, as it was touch-sensitive with enough dirt to make chords interesting and single-note lines sing.

The Mix section is where you can blend between the dirt, the octave down, and any combination in between. Where most pedals with octave down capabilities don’t track well, this one does. It’s not a practical effect for chords, but it works well with single-note runs and some power-chord applications. That being said, those who love a splatty sound will enjoy the gain dimed with some octave mixed in.

I have included a video that shows the range of the pedal. This is a pedal I recommend for people who want to experiment with their sound and have not entered the realm of octave down effects.

Todd at Grumpy Toad is a stand-up guy and his work is always well-done and professional. Even if this pedal is not to your liking, he has other things in his arsenal that will appeal to your tone needs. I own four of his pedals that have taken permanent residence on my board!

You can find Grumpy Toad here

Kevin Ian is a multi-instrumentalist who is more known for his work in The
Common Men. You can find their latest album “Let it Burn” via iTunes,
Amazon, CD Baby and Bandcamp. For more information, please visit
http://www.thecommonmen.tk or http://www.facebook.com/thecommonmen

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHWAejfYrwM

–
The Common Men. Nor-Cal Post-Punk Vanguards
New Album “Let it Burn” Out NOW! http://thecommonmen.bandcamp.com

Popularity: 2%

Incoming search terms for EffectsBay.com:

• shoctave schematic
• sx hawk ultra
• grumpy toad Shoctave
• grumpy toad custom fx
• sx hawk ultra review
• dwarftcraft the internet review
• dwarfcraft pedal decals
• why does my gibson explorer sound splatty
• toad fx
• what pickups for sx hawk ultra

The following is a guest post by Kevin Ian Common. If you are interested in guest posting, please contact me!

Hello Everyone!

Life has been pretty busy as of late, and I have also been trying to find a way to use video in these columns, as it will be easier for everyone to understand my chord charts if I put them to practical use. Until then, here is a short and sweet column about ending songs… or “cadence.”

A cadence is defined as a harmonic sequence (at least two chords) that closes a musical phrase, section, or piece of music. Songs that end without a fade out have some kind of cadence. I’m going to define the most used or identifiable forms of cadences and give you simple chord examples (no charts, just chord names).

I will also simplify these as best I can, so you can utilize them right away. Mind you, some music theory is required to understand some of these progressions, but logical reasoning and your ear can help you out too… it just takes a little longer

Authentic Cadence:

Most pieces of music end in an Authentic Cadence. It is defined as IV V I, or, in the key of C:

F G C

In the key of Cm:

Fm G7 Cm

Half Cadence:

Most songs that have different sections use these without even knowing it. They are considered “open” or “imperfect” because they don’t really end the song, they lead to something else. In the key of C, they end in V (G):

C Dm G, C G, or D G

In the key of C, a D is a Secondary Dominant. You can Google this term, but it basically means the borrowing of other tones from other keys to make the main key stronger. You use D to make G stronger so when it resolves to C, it’s even stronger still!

In the key of Cm:

Cm Ddim G, Cm G

To make a Half Cadence make more sense, let’s take a basic progression:

Am F C G for the verses. Let’s say your chorus is: C F G C. The G in the first progression acts as a Half Cadence when it leads to C.

Plagal Cadence:

This is a now-disputed type of cadence, but I will still include it here. It is also known as the “Amen Cadence.” It is defined as IV I. In the key of C:

C F C

In the key of Cm:

Cm Fm Cm

Deceptive Cadence:

This cadence is defined as V (G in the key of C) resolving to any other chord, most likely IV, vi, or ii. It is known as deceptive because it deceives the listener when it ends. In the key of C (it is most effective when writing in major keys):

C F G Am, C F G Dm, C F G F

Picardy Third:

This is the most basic kind of manipulation at the end of a song. Whatever key your song is in, change the last chord, whether from major to minor, or minor to major. In the key of C:

C F G Cm

In the key of Cm:

Cm Fm G7 C

Thanks again! My life has slowed down a bit for the next few weeks, so I hope to have another one to you soon!

- Kevin Ian Common

thecommonmenmusicgmailcom

Kevin Ian Common is a multi-instrumentalist who has been involved with live music for a little over a decade. He studied music theory and composition at a local university. He has played guitar, bass, and drums for various bands. He is currently the vocalist/guitarist for The Common Men, a post-punk band from Northern California. You can check them out on Myspace, Facebook, or Twitter. Their main page is on Myspace: www.myspace.com/thecommonmen

Popularity: 3%