Xploration • Curation • Recommendation
Highlights from the 4th Witney Pedal Party, 3rd time at Fat Lil's
So it was about time that Doug Tolley, the Chase Bliss UK Ambassador got the cover slot for his own party! It was a momentous occasion in many ways - including the final concert later that evening for his ’Nine is the Level’ band project. Where he gave away the 4 key albums from that project at the show - and I of course picked up a full set. [Oscillations, Crumbs, Remnants, and Traces].
I also picked up a Witney Pedal Party 4 T-Shirt, and 2 pedals on the day, and the unsung heroes for the day were very much show technician Johnny Davies, and venue owner Paul Spink who were both heavily involved in the setup.
As is often the case - Doug’s Chase Bliss stand - was swamped throughout the show - and I did not get the opportunity to get a demo on the new Chompi synth, nor follow-up tips on the recent Lost + Found pedal - but Doug did drop a couple of hints!
When I first arrived with my travel companion Patrick (Intensive Care Audio), it was just Doug and Johnny at the venue. And for about an hour those were the only stands set up!
Doug’s wife Lou kindly offered to pick up Patrick and me from nearby Hanborough Station - so the journey in was relatively smooth - and those trains and connections were all on time. Albeit my usual Paddington to Oxford route was down for the weekend, and the longer Marylebone to Oxford route took an extra half hour each way. Train transition times were incredibly tight - and we only just managed to board the follow-on trains in time - literally by seconds!
The journey back was more complex! My good friend Phil (Slap Me Thrice / Pedal Experiments) had offered to drop me off at Hanborough for the journey back - but we spent 20 minutes trying to get his car to start - and I then had to sprint into the town-centre taxi rank to get to the train in time - I arrived with just seconds to spare!
It was Phil’s turn to treat for lunch - a long established tradition - and we hit the usual Como Longe for burgers - for a fairly late leisurely lunch. We love trading stories from the trenches - and there are for sure many adventures and travails within that near year span!
As mentioned - the journey back was mostly beset by delays - and I arrived in London with massive delays to the Bakerloo Line - which meant a 20+ minute wait for a train. I had set off just after 7 in the morning - and crossed the threshold of my home again at 21:10 - quite a long day!
I came home with the Intensive Care Death Muff (long overdue), and the new soon-to-be launched Great Eastern FX #2 Obsolete Devices pedal - more details for that coming this Wednesday - launch day!
Thanks to Phil for the valiant attempt to drop me off - he had to wait a further 3 hours for the RAC to arrive (Faulty starter motor!). And thanks to Phil for the great selfie from the show - as below. Overall another very enjoyable event - albeit the footfall wasn’t quite as significant as for previous shows - but then again - this one is quite late in the year. The final show of the year for most of us! I’m proud to have supported these shows right from the start!
Just two stands set up early doors - Intensive Care Audio and Chase Bliss. It would be nearly an hour until the rest got into position! Free choice - and first come first serve for the stands / tables!
All the stands in place, Holy Island arrived just in the nick of time - and Gwion set up his stand incredibly quickly! I think he was the first to pack his up also - evidently a pro for setup and break-down duties!
Survivors selfie at the show end - thanks to Phil for the snap!
Intentive Care Audio - Patrick
As mentioned - Patrick was my travel companion for the day - certainly on the journey up, while we kind of got separated during the return!
It has long been on the cards for me to get in his latest Death Muff Fuzz pedals. For a variety of reasons that didn't happen until this show - while I had first been introduced to that pedal (prototype) back at the London Synth and Pedal Expo in March!
A really cool Aggressive / somewhat velcro take on a Fuzz - really pretty high gain, and with an unusual 4th Chaos control - which somewhat sparks up the output further - more details on that with the review this Friday,
Patrick also did a blistering demo - on his Recovery Phase pedal - which made everyone want to get one - including Adam from Birmingham's Noise Maker Market Show - who indeed - picked up the demo pedal that Patrick had on his board. He was travelling relatively light on this occasion - and did not have very many pedals on him - which is why I cut a deal with him before he start of the show - to secure one of the just 2 Death Muffs he had brought with him!
Patrick was on great form at the show - while as a left-hander - he was missing his guitar. But he soldiered through the Show and Tell section just fine!
My review for the Death Muff goes up on Friday!
Great Eastern FX Co. - David
David also had a brand new pedal with him - which is embargoed until Wednesday Noon!
I can say though that its is the #2 pedal in the Obsolete Devices Series - which feature super rare NOS Vintage Components.
I can't even reveal the colourway - as that reveals its own hints.
Needless to say it's quite the unique specimen - both in terms of function and output.
I look forward to telling you more on Wednesday!
David concentrated on his XO Variable Crossover pedal for his 'Show and Tell' segment - which delivered a tonne of different and variegated sounds!
I'm still loving my gold-hued Focus Fuzz Deluxe!
Blind Panic Devices - Matt and Tony
blindpanicdevices.bigcartel.com
Matt had his family with him at the show as usual - his parents Jackie and Tony - which I spend some quality time with at the recent Glashow show. And they had a granddaughter / niece along for the day too - whose anonymity and privacy is protected for the occasion! Jackie was busy knitting a nativity scene - which she does every year - and cautions for charity. Mary and Joseph and baby Jesus were arleady done - but she still had to complete the somewhat complex 3-Kings! For which the deadline was this coming Friday. Jackie is always the designated driver - and won't be able to knit on the long journey back home North - she has a challenge on this year for sure - and we all wish her the best of luck.
Matt also had a new pedal at the show - here in prototype format - and awaiting the final boards!
I love near enough everything about this new Mult-FX Bad Signal Pedal - including the colourful TV Test Card Artwork, and Custom 3D-Printed knobs - somewhat per my suggestions! I might have preferred it a little more compact - but it is kind of excused by virtues of just how much it has onboard!
Matt is hoping to launch this one before Christmas - but there are a few moving parts still - so it may bleed into next year!
The Bad Signal combines Ring Modulation, Tremolo, and Fuzz with a core Delay Effect - it needs some serious hands-on time to be able to fully report on all the different tones and textures this can deliver.
Matt had a valiant go at a full-range overview for the Bad Signal - for his Show and Tell segment - while he's hoping to make the demo more connected - as it's currently a little fragmented. I look forward to assisting on breaking down exactly what this pedal is capable of. I think you need to experience it live-and-direct to get a full feel for its many capabilities.
So a launch post os coming up either late this year - or early next! And a hands-on review too!
Audio.Computer - Ben and Daughter
Ben's Audio.Computer was a replacement for Bleak District Effects' Phil - who was alas held up with parenting duties!
This was my first encounter with Ben of Audio.Computer - and his Beat Friend Drum Machine - based on the early Roland CR-78 CompuRhythm pre-handicaps Analog Drum Machine,
His Beat Friend is a cool Analog take on those sounds - with additional digital controls - and a really smart Digital effects sections - which includes Bitcrusher, Filter and Reverb FX.
This is such a simply and elegant device - but with sufficient variation - and 'Swing'.
The only think I would change is to add a few more variations on the fill effect - or even ramdonise that - like the new Beat Buddy 2 does.
Would also be cool to be able to trigger something like a speed doubler or half-timer - by pressing simulaenously on both white buttons!
Generally I was hugely impressed - and this £500 device is definitely going to be my next drum machine early next year - it seems to be exactly what I need! I always talk about finding your own lane for different effects - and this very much seems to fit the bill for me.
So I will be getting in touch with Ben early next year no doubt!
The Beat Friend is also available from SoundGas!
Oh - and I busted the Registration iPad twice - and Ben's daughter was instrumental in helping getting that back to normal working condition - I also somehow managed to inadvertently change the keyboard to French format! All good in the end of course!
Holy Island Audio - Gwion
I don't believe Gwion had anything brand new for the show - albeit he did have a new fetching colourway for his Deforming Envelope Delay pedal.
And his Blast Radius is still very much a target for me along with the Angel Teeth overdrive / Distortion.
Gwion of course had a long way to come from Wales - and arrived just in the nick of time - but was set up within mere moments - I don't believe anyone was even half as quick as that. And he was by far and away the first to pack up - his setup has obviously been honed to perfection.
I still have a few active Holy Island targets! Gwion doesn't always have the pedals I desire at these shows. While I'm determined to finally do something about that early next year - it's about time I got some Holy Audio onto by board!
Gwion is from the same noise-maker school as I - and I love the raw potency of those pedals. All this pedals are a little as if injected with steroids - for an envelope more livelier performance.
Great show and tell segment too - some glorious heavy / doomy sounds there!
Audio Kitchen - Adam and Steve
It's been a while since I encounter Steve on the show circuit - I think it was one of the recent London Synth & Pedal Expo shows.
He had a new and as yet unnamed / code name 'Mu-Filter' on the board - which sounded pretty tasty - even hough the Audio Kitchen demo / show and tell segment was somewhat beset with noise floor challenges.
The Fitler segment was the clearest part of that demo - and I felt it showcased it very well - while the noise floor interfered a little with the main Valve Pedal demos. And using that synth / sequencer turned out not to be the best idea for a reference sound.
There was much on the board to admire - including my long-term favourite EL-84 emulating solid state Fake Plastic Trees Preamp Pedal.
He also had the coolest example of his plug-in cabinet for the Big Trees Preamp - so you can make that into a combo!
I still feel the Cabinet needs a handle - while Steve says most of his customers said they didnt want one. For me it's about ergonomics and practicalities as the easiest way to carry an amp - is with a dedicaed handle. Having to cradle it whenever you wish to move it - seems somewhat counterproductive to me - while I seem to be in a minority on that subject!
Really cool sounding pedal for sure - and I look forward to reporting on the new 'Mu-Filter' whenever that is ready for launch - will be interesting to see what Steve has called it then!
