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Like It's 1999
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Here's another one of those music/guitar posts that are so not-popular.
Yesterday it dawned on me that I'm not really trying to get back to 1986-1996, but 1999. Walking around under the partly-cloudy skies of the Marietta Square I longed for the days when springtime meant encountering the Urban Shakedancers playing a four-hour outdoor show somewhere downtown, or wandering around a backstage area at Music Midtown with my press pass and tape recorder thinking I was "getting somewhere". These days springtime means...walking around the Square under partly-cloudy skies, which is pretty nice in itself, but...
Later that evening, though, I got the slightest taste of 1999 when I went to the Wild Wing Cafe to see what was shaking at their crawfish broil. There was a band playing called Zydefunk that was the best thing I have had the opportunity to hear in quite awhile. The guitar player had a Dr. Z boutique amp and boutique Full Drive overdrive pedal and really knew how to put them to use, and the bass player was ridiculously good -- nearly as good as Cliff Burton (ha ha)! Unfortunately the audience was the usual Wild Wing mix of over-30 East Mariettans and frat boys who like to stare at the sports on TV, so though the audience applauded and stayed for the whole set, it wasn't the frenzy that a good crowd of 20-something music fanatics could bring. I asked the guitar player if he had ever played the Brandy House or done the Dunhams' radio show, and he said yeah, back in the late `90's they had done that circuit. He also informed me Jakes Roadhouse is still there but now it's called Club 29. I think I'll make a note to be in the audience for the next Zydefunk show.
In the meantime my own compulsive guitar goody spending has continued. A few posts back I reported purchasing a Bad Monkey overdrive pedal (good) and a Hot Head distortion (bad). I have now purchased a second Bad Monkey! Note to guerilla music merchandise marketers: these Internet forums really do stoke sales to gullible people like me. I'm quite happy to have two of these modern classics, however, and I got $10 knocked off the price both times, too. So I got two of these for $60 combined when the Ibanez TS-808 Tubescreamer that it's modelled on goes for $170, so I'm still waaay ahead!
Colorful boxes that make neat noises have spaced my brain out, and as a result I'm not as far ahead as I was. A couple of months ago I got a Boss BF-2 Flanger pedal for $51, and that was a catch at that time in the E-Bay market, when they were usually bid up to $60+. So a few days ago I saw one set to go for $40 within an hour with no bids. I love that little purple box so much I thought it would be great to have a backup (you know, with all of this heavy playing out I'm doing), so I set my snipe. Then I started having second thoughts, but rested easy knowing someone would surely outbid me. THEY DIDN'T! So I've got a second Flanger on the way.
Here comes the disturbing part. Then I watched some other BF-2 auctions...they're going for around $30 these days! HUH? I'm convinced it has something to do with the fact Van Halen was talking about touring a couple of months ago and that put Flanger pedals in people's minds, but now the VH homefront is silent so you can get `em for genuine bargains. Now I'm thinking I should grab a third while they're low, then wait for Eddie to poke his head out again and sell it for double my money, therefore recouping the $30 I've "lost".
Now I'm also wanting to get a second Boss PH-2 Super Phaser, but because some dickhead from Nickelback uses one the prices can get up there. I looked into the MXR Phase 90, the famous one, but people report a bad distortion in the reissues. Also looked at the Electro-Harmonix Small Stone Nano, but people report a volume drop when it's engaged. So it'll be more Boss products for me.
I kinda think I'm developing a consumerism problem, but on the other hand I have a definite idea of what I'm wanting, with a finite end, so maybe it's all right. If this was totally random maybe it would be something else. Yes, that's it. Yep. Absolutely.
Thank you for coming by. Please gather your belongings and exit to the right. |
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Posted by Art | 11:01 AM EST |
5 comments
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Springtime in Atlanta is wonderful, ain't it? The fair temperatures and low humidity make mowing the grass and doing yard work *almost* enjoyable.
Zydefunk - a great band indeed. They can frequently be found gracing the stage at Fuzzy's. Check the Fuzzy's website.
Perhaps it would be more fun to spend time playing with those pedals rather than trying to find out if you paid too much compared to what the next guy paid.
And now that you've spent so much time and money on stuff I think it's time to go find a band to jam wit so's you can put all yer toys to work. Try craigs list and georgia musician.
Someone else commented (and I deleted it, figuring it was the usual suspect) that I was knocking the over-30 Wild Wing crowd while being over 30 myself. Yes, I'm over 30, but not the typical Wild Wing attendee. I know what second-line drumming is and I once owned a Radiators CD, so I could appreciate Zydefunk more than the gathered Celine Dion fans.
I wish they played more 'Zyde'and less 'Funk' though. The bass player is very good, but a little 'busy'. I think his name is Charlie, and he went to my college. Not sure though.
Art, here's a stupid question: have you ever used pedals for vocals? I used to own a quadraverb my brother gave me, but it was an old model, and not very good ( or at least I couldnt understand it ). I'm fairly technical, though.
Yup. Charlie Wooten is his name.
I wonder if that guy's related to Victor Wooten?