GUITAR AND BASS DISTORTION VST PLUGINS (with Free Vst effects inside)

Hello and welcome to this week's article! Today we're going to talk about VST guitar distortions!
Let's start with the typical question "what is a distortion"?
The distortion is a tool used by musicians to add bite and aggressiveness to a sound that can be usually guitar or bass, but it can also be used on vocals, drums and anything else (noise and industrial music experimented a lot in this sense).
A distortion takes the raw incoming signal and intentionally boosts it to the point where the top and bottom of the sound wave "clips", causing the sound to distort.

This operation deliberately degrades the signal, but if handled carefully this distorted signal can sound pleasing, and today it is an essential requirement for many modern music genres.
As for the overdrive and the fuzz, pedal distortions were created because in the sixties and seventies guitar amps were usually not able to deliver a distorted signal, they were only able to give a saturated sound if the power amp was cranked to the limit, and this was not enough for the young bands of the time that were searching for more harsh and gritty tones.
Since a guitar distortion is more strong than an overdrive, many guitarists of the eighties, especially in the heavy metal scene (for example Judas Priest and Steve Vai), were used to plug a Boss Ds-1 distortion in the clean channel of an amp and use only the distortion generated from the stompbox, but in the last two decades we have seen an increasing of the popularity of amplifier distortion (that in the meantime have become very strong) ad its digital simulations, to the point that an overdrive is today often used just to tame some frequency of an already distorted guitar amp tone, instead of adding gain.
Guitar distortions are still today very popular, nevertheless, and every guitar and bass effect producer has some in their catalogue.


Here are some of the best free Guitar and Bass Vst distortions, try them out and let us know what do you think!

Ignite Amps PROF.E.T: a preamp stompbox that sounds extremely well, maybe one of the best free metal preamps around.

Mercuriall Audio Metal Area: A simulation of the Boss Metal zone, extremely realistic and with an interface even better than the original.

Softamp GT: The simulation of the Sansamp GT2 stompbox, really suggested both for guitar and bass.

Softdrive GV: The simulation of the legendary Marshall Guv'nor Stompbox

Retro Sampling Stomp Box Collection: a free collection of guitar stompboxes, including distortions.

7Amp Guitar Distortion Pedal Emulator: an interesting distortion for guitar with many controls

TSE BOD: a bass overdrive-distortion modeled after the Sansamp Bass Driver DI

Extremist: a vst guitar distortions with a 15 band equalizer


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REVIEW: SCHECTER DEMON 7 SBK

Hello and welcome to this weeks'a article! Today I'm going to talk about another interesting 7 strings guitar: the Schecter Demon 7.

This Made-in-Indonesia model is a 7 strings-fixed bridge guitar, with basswood body and rosewood fingerboard, with pearly crosses as inlays.

The guitar comes from the factory with a couple of Duncan Design HB 105/7 active pickups, which doesn't sound very good, so the owner of the model portrayed in these pictures switched them to a couple of Emgs, anyway the overall building quality is pretty solid, as it is the good precision of the finishes, which can especially be noticed in the smooth satin paint and the beauty of the inlays. 

The quality of the neck, and in particular of the fretboard is very satisfying, and the weight is well distributed, even if, playing the guitar, it's easy to notice the economy of the woods, especially from the body, which does not resonate particularly.

Today Schecter and Esp/Ltd guitars, which are owned by the same holding, are built in the same factory using the same tools, so the real difference lays in the design choices: the two brands have different shape models and specs, for example usually the 7 strings Schecters have a 26,5" scale while the Esp features a 25,5" one, but the woods, the paints and the instruments used to build them are all the same.

All in all this Demon 7 is a good mid-low budget guitar, that looks good and that can deliver a pretty good sound, surely is a proof that budget guitars in the last few years have taken a considerable leap of quality forward: a guitar of this playability and with this specs, ten years ago, would have probably been sold for twice the price.

SPECS TAKEN FROM SCHECTER's WEBSITE:

Construction

Bolt-on

Body Material

Basswood

Top Contour

Arched Top

Binding

Aged Crème 1-ply

Neck Material

Maple

Fretboard Material

Rosewood

Inlays

Grey Pearloid Gothic Crosses

Scale

26.5” (673mm)

Frets

24 X-Jumbo

Fretboard Radius

16” (406mm)

Neck Shape

Thin ‘C’

Thickness

@ 1st Fret- .787” (20mm)/ @ 12th Fret- .866” (22mm)

Nut Width

1.889” (48mm)

Nut

Graph Tech XL Black Tusq

Truss Rod

2-Way Adjustable Rod w/ 5/32” (4mm) Allen Nut

Bridge Pickup

Duncan Designed HB-105/7B

Neck Pickup

Duncan Designed HB-105/7N

Controls

Volume/Tone/3-Way Switch

Bridge

Schecter Custom Hardtail w/ String Thru Body

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HOW TO USE A CLIPPER (with Free Vst Plugins)

Hello and welcome to this week's article, today we're going to talk about Clippers!

What is a Clipper? A clipper is a software similar to a Limiter, with the difference that a Limiter works as compressor but as you said it has zero attack, configurable release, infinite ratio and it automates gain, while a clipper on the other hand doesn't change gain, but shapes input signal according to a specific function (soft or hard clipping) which leads to gain decrease but its just side effect. 

Why is it important? Because it can do some things that a Limiter can't, and vice versa it has some downside that a Limiter doesn't, so it's important to know both of them and choose the right tool for our job.

Although Limiters are basically compressors with a 1:20 to 1:infinite ratio (according to the type), they work differently from a clipper, which is basically a brickwall that just cuts flat everything that surpasses the given threshold; the only thing that can be adjusted is basically the knee of the cut, which is the softness of the level curve before starting the actual clipping.

What is the basic difference between a Limiter and a Clipper? A clipper is so hard that on one side is very easy to distort and ruin the song (while with a limiter there is usually a curve of sound degradation that can be tolerated before really damage the result), on the other side the Clipper helps us raising the overall volume retaining the (perceived) shape of the transients.

This means that using a Clipper instead of a Limiter will expose us more to the risks of really unpleasant distortions, but it will also help us retaining the snap of the snare, for example, which is the first thing that gets degraded when pushing a Limiter.

The controls are usually the same of a limiter: there is a Gain-Drive knob that raises the signal level, a Threshold-Clip knob that sets when the plugin should activate, and sometimes a knee control that helps slowing down the initial attack of the Clipper.

To understand when to use a limiter and when to use a clipper we shoul try both of them at the end of our Mastering Chain, and see for that specific project which tool is the most suited.

Today there are many Free Vst Clipper, and some DAW also features a bundled one. 

Here are the most used freeware ones:

Gclip: probably the most famous and appreciated free Vst Clipper

Ncl Basic Soft Clipper: very simple soft clipper with Drive control

Lvc Audio ClipShifter: the most complete of all, available in both freeware and paid version.

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REVIEW: FENDER SQUIER STRATOCASTER VINTAGE MODIFIED '70 (WITH SAMPLES)

Hello an welcome to this week's article!
Today we're going to talk about an interesting low budget guitar: The Squier Stratocaster Vintage Modified '70, released in 2013.
Squier, as we all know, is a musical instrument brand owned by Fender Musical Instruments Corporation, and with this name they release instruments of the Fender roster aimed to the lower price area: pickups and mechanics are less expensive and woods are less valuable to make the price more affordable, but the playability is still quite good.
This brand is especially good for beginner guitarists that needs an affordable instrument with a quality standard guaranteed from a top brand, and that's why Squier guitars are usually preferred to unautorized Fender clones, even if cheaper: this brand tries to recreate in detail an authentic Fender experience, and this model, the Vintage Modified '70, is a good example.

This made-in-indonesia model recreates some of the characteristics of '70s Stratocasters: the big headstock (bigger than the current production), the glossy neck, which is maple but with a "vintage" look, and the six joints tremolo, while the current models features only two.
This bridge creates also a bit more space (2mm) between the strings than the modern one.
This model is called "Modified", though, because the original '70s guitar had a very thick neck with a radius of 7", (which means very round, which is good for playing chords but, especially for today's standards, it's quite unconfortable for playing solos), while this one has a radius of 9,5", a little more flat and versatile.
Some of these are built in the Cort Guitars and Samick Guitars factories, and this can be seen on the serial number (if there is an S it's Samick, if there is a C or a SC it's Cort).

In the second picture you can see the three Duncan Designed pickups, while in the last pic the guitar shows an humbucker (I have mounted a Seymour Duncan Distortion, with coil tap, to give to this guitar a bit more versatility).

My judgement is very positive, I have even used this guitar in recording the Wisteria album "8-Bit Nightmare", which you can hear here (this is the cover of The Beatles' Eleanor Rigby):

Specs taken from the Fender Website:

Body Material: Basswood
Body Finish: Gloss Polyester
Neck Material: Maple
Neck Finish: Gloss Polyurethane
Neck Shape: "C" Shape
Scale Length: 25.5" (64.8 cm)
Fingerboard: Maple
Fingerboard Radius: 9.5" (241 mm)
Number of Frets: 21
Fret Size: Medium Jumbo
Nut Width: 1.650" (42 mm)
Position Inlays: Black or White Dot
Middle Pickup: Duncan Designed™ SC-101 Single-Coil
Neck Pickup: Duncan Designed™ SC-101N Single-Coil
Controls: Master Volume, Tone 1. (Neck Pickup), Tone 2. (Middle Pickup)
Pickup Switching: 5-Position Blade: Position 1. Bridge Pickup, Position 2. Bridge and Middle Pickup, Position 3. Middle Pickup, Position 4. Middle and Neck Pickup, Position 5. Neck Pickup
Bridge: 6-Saddle Vintage-Style Synchronized Tremolo
Tremolo Arm Handle: Vintage-Style Tremolo Arm
Tuning Machines: Vintage-Style

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HOW TO ADD REALISM TO YOUR MIDI TRACK! A guide for dummies

Hello and welcome to this week's article! 

This time we will talk about how to make our midi drum track more realistic, but the same method applies to any other Vst instrument, such as a piano track.

Let's start with a midi that we have, for example a very fast death metal song midi track: the faster the song is, the more evident will be that the hits are unnaturally precise and even in terms of strenght, while a drummer tends to have some slight fluctuation in timing and hit intensity (e.g. obviously a blast beat drum part will be hit with less strenght than a slower part).

Now, we can slightly move each single drum hit in the piano roll and raise or lower the velocity manually (which is the best way, but it's a very long process), or randomize some parameter in order to get this job done quickly.

If we want to adjust each velocity manually, it's important to know some basic rule:

1) The blast beat or press roll snare parts are usually at a much lower velocity (= hit strenght) than the other parts of the song, and it's a good rule to increase the strenght in the accents and lower it in the other hits.

2) The same rule of the accents applies also to the hi hat and the ride.

3) The crash cymbals should be treated creating variations in velocity only if they are played one next to another, otherwise it would be normal if the drummer hits them full strenght.

4) The tom fills usually should start stronger and then lose intensity, and we can also consider that the toms hit by the right hand (if the drummer is right handed) can be set with a slightly higher velocity than the other ones.

5) It's a good rule, especially for rock-metal songs, to leave the kick velocity constant. If we're working on a jazz song, instead, we should variate this one too.

More info on how to correct the velocity with the pencil too can be found HERE.

If we want to use a midi randomizer, instead, we can do as follows:

1) Move slightly the hits (this function can be also found bundled in some of the most recent drum Vsti). First off we need to select the section of the song or the single drum part we want to process, then we must go (in the Cubase/Nuendo interface) in Midi->Quantize Setup. 

From the Quantize Setup menu we can input in the "Random Quantize" section the amount of the variance we want to apply, and usually for a realistic drum sound, a good amount is 5 Ticks: if we increase it more we risk to create excessive "mistakes" made from our "virtual drummer".

2) Randomize the velocity. This will randomize the strenght used to hit the drums in our song.

We need to select the song part, or just one or more drum parts, for example only the hi hat of our song, and go to Midi->Logical Editor. 

From this new menu we can look for a preset (e.g. "Random Velocity 60 to 100") or manually find the "Action Target" corresponding to the Velocity control, and under "Operation" we must choose "Set Relative Random Values Between", and then we can choose under "Parameter 1" and "Parameter 2" a minimum and maximum value, between 0 and 127; once we have decided, we just need to press "Apply". 

A good starting point could be to try randomizing from 90 to 110 or 120, then we can adjust to taste. 

Eventually, if we have something that needs to be retouched manually, e.g. a press roll part, we can always correct it with the pencil tool. The ideal result will probably be a mix between manually adjusted velocities and randomized ones, according to the song part.

Hope this was useful!

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INTERVIEW: JASON HAUSMAN

       

Jason Hausman is an Emmy Award Winning composer, sound designer and songwriter, who has many projects (one of which with Marillion's guitarist, Steve Rothery), and who has composed countless songs for television shows and commercials, winning, among the other prizes, dozens of ADDY and TELLY Awards.
You can check out his work at his website http://www.hotsake.tv

GuitarNerdingBlog: Hello Jason and welcome to Atoragon's Guitar Nerding Blog!

Introduce yourself to our readers, tell us your story!

JasonHausman: Well, I was born and raised in Terre Haute, Indiana. I started playing violin at age 10 and then switched to percussion at age 12. I was digging into drum kit fairly seriously early on. I found myself humming and singing along with the records I was playing to. It wasn't too long before I was singing and playing drums in bands. After high school I went to live with my father in North Carolina and ended up attending The University of North Carolina at Greensboro as a percussion performance major. I started playing guitar and fronting bands at that time. I eventually left UNC-G and started playing in rock bands as my main focus. I played a lot of gigs and put out a few CD's etc. It was a fun time and a hard time. But I would certainly do it all over again.

Fast forward 10 years and I found myself in a job interview with Jay Howard Production Audio in Charlotte, NC. I got a job answering phones for the studio. Within a few months I was engineering, which quickly led to my becoming Operations Manager. Within another year I was General Manager. After 5 years I made the decision that I wanted to open my own place, which would focus less on voiceover recording and more on custom music, scoring and sound design. I opened Hot Sakē in December of 2004. It's been a good ride, I certainly don't have any complaints.

GNB: Tell us about your career. By visiting your websites ( http://www.jasonhausman.com/ &http://www.hotsake.tv ) it appears that you've already had an interesting career, taking part in different projects, especially as a studio musician.
Which are the ones that you consider your career highlights? Which are the artists that influenced you the most? Is there still some collaboration that you'd wish to do?

JH: Having my music on a Super Bowl Ad for Carmax was awesome. The EMMY's are always a nice reminder that I am at least on the right track. Last year I won a National TELLY Award for Best Sound and Sound Design in a Documentary. The EMMY I won last year was for a PBS documentary. I brought in Steve Rothery (Marillion) on that project, as well as my main go-to for contract composing help, Dan Hood.

Steve and I had worked on some of my personal music together but Steve had not done anything for TV. It was really cool working with him and a new experience for me as well. Songwriting is a very personal thing to me, even as a commercial composer - I prefer to do it alone. It was a lot of fun with Steve though and he, of course, brought a lot to the table. I hope to bring him in on some more projects in the future.

I just finished a new single called Failure that features Dave Foster of Mr. So & So on lead guitar. Like Steve, he is just such a good dude and a great guitarist. He really put some incredible stuff on that track. The video was just shot and we should be releasing it with some b-sides in March. Dave and I plan to do some more work together this year.

I have another tune I plan to release soon that I wrote with Steve. Native Instruments Maschine endorser, Justin Aswell will be a part of that tune as well. Hoping to release it with a video in June.

Other dream collaborations? Trent Reznor, David Sylvian, David Torn for starters!

GNB: I've heard that you are a guitar lover and are about to receive two Jason Hausman signature model guitars and a signature amp! Tell us about your love for this instrument and about your favourite models, as well as your creations!

JH: I currently endorse four incredible companies: Jack Dent Guitars (Electrics), Oldfield Tube Amps, Coobs Guitars (Acoustics) and TheGigRig.

Jack Dent asked me a couple years ago if I would like to have a Jason Hausman Signature Model. We have been working on it for about two years. Jack is a true perfectionist and wanted this guitar to be something truly special. We are in the final stages of finishing up the first one. It is going to be a very cool guitar - mahogany neck and body, topped and backed in sculpted birdseye maple, ebony fret board and Lollar P90 neck pickup and mini-humbucker bridge pickup. I am honored to be a part of the JDG family which includes Steve Rothery and Steve Hackett.

Paul Gussler of Oldfield Tube Amps has been a good friend and big supporter of what I do for a long time. I currently have two of his amps: a Hot Sakē Edition Marquis 30 combo that has both a 10" and 12" speaker (Blue Pup and Blue Dog) and a Marquis 15 head with a single 12" cabinet. They are truly amazing amps. Steve Rothery ordered a Marquis 15 immediately after playing mine. Other artists include Bon Lozaga and Bob Weir.

I just signed on with Coobs Guitars and Mr Coobs is currently building a Jason Hausman Acoustic Model. I am really looking forward to this guitar. It is a close design of an old acoustic that my mother found at a yard sale in the early '70's for $25. A slightly modified 000 body style. I've had this guitar most of my life and there is something about it that is magical, but it has seen better days. I am excited to have something more dependable and well. built as only Coobs can build it!

Through my friendship with Rothery I discovered the UK company called TheGigRig. I have an artist deal with them. Their switching systems keep my insane pedal boards under control with simplicity and elegance. Just love their stuff!

 

GNB: What do you think about the state of the music business? What are your thoughts about today's underground and mainstream music scene?

JH: I am honestly really excited about what has been happening with the music industry. The doors have been kicked in. It's just awesome! With YouTube, Vimeo, SoundCloud, Facebook as well as the power of current computers and DAWS, the sky is the limit for upcoming artists. The difficulty is finding the good stuff. It rises to the top eventually though. I think it kind of finds you. With artists like Radiohead and Sigur Ros still cranking out brilliant works, and new artists like James Blake and Fink, it is a really exciting time.

I love a great pop song as much as the next guy, but I tend gravitate towards those coloring outside the lines. always have.

GNB:  What do you think about the digital music distribution? And what about the file sharing? How do you think the music business will evolve in the future?

I love that it destroyed the big labels stranglehold on the industry. I hate that is making it more and more difficult to be a working artist. Marillion have made it their business to work the new system to their benefit and I am blown away by the loyalty and willingness of their fan base to fork out money consistently for that band. They were arguably the first band to bust away from the major label system and make the Internet their label. Now it seems to be the norm. Steve Rothery just received 4 times the $15,000 euro asked for on KickStarter the other day! That is fan support!!

We are seeing artists placing songs in film, commercials etc. these days in order to not only get exposure but also to make money. It's tuff out there with the file-sharing going on. That said, every time it's shared it's a potential new fan. What I am seeing though, is that with the immediate accessibility to recorded music, fans are starting to crave live music again. They are also starting to wake up, finally, to the horrible audio format called the MP3! I am seeing more and more people with vinyl and turn tables at home. It is exciting to see.

GNB: Let's talk about live music! Which have been the best gigs you have ever played? Do you consider yourself more a live musician or a studio one?

I consider myself to be both. I built my career on gigging. So playing live is something that I crave. Since starting Hot Sakē, gigging has had to take a back seat to my scoring and sound design career. I love torturing sound in the studio and thinking outside the box, so Hot Sakē is truly my favorite playground. I just have to get out and perform live every once in awhile to wake that other part of my soul back up. I have shared the stage with some incredible artists over the years. I have also been smart enough to surround myself with musicians that are MUCH better than I am. This achieves two things, makes me look better and also stretches me as a musician.

I've shared stages with Fuel, Herbie Mann, Larry Coryell, Ben Folds Five and so many others. Some of my favorite shows have been with Sunshone Still and my old trio godmanradio. So many great moments, I just love performing live. I like pouring myself out into the universe.

Speaking to that, the memorial show for band mate Rodney Lanier at The Chop Shop in Charlotte, NC. We only played a couple songs, but I felt him flowing through me, the gear, the air and everyone in the packed room. It was magical. It was like one of those dreams where you are on stage and you can play things in a way you never thought you could. I felt connected to everything in a way that seldom happens in a lifetime of looking for that conduit.

So, to that I say it is the friendships made through the bond of music. It's what is most important to me. My circle, and especially the boys of Sunshone Still, lost a dear friend and incredible musician in Rodney right after we finished the latest Sunshone Still Record. It really drove home how deep the music bonds us together.

GNB: Tell us some funny story: which one has been your best/funniest experience as a musician?

JH: Funny is having a gig at a bar in Eveleth Minnesota during the High School National Hockey Championships. Having the entire club turned away from the band watching hockey on the TV while the owner of the club is coming up to us every 5 minutes telling us to turn down to the point where we were so quiet it sounded like we were playing through an iPhone with ear-buds! When we asked if we could just stop playing he said "F*&k no! (insert Fargo Accent) I am paying you to play! So play, just be f*&king quiet!" Ahhh, such is life on the road.

And your worst one?

This is something I have only told a couple of people, but it changed the course of my stage life. When I was a young drummer in middle school I was asked to perform a snare drum solo moment in my hometown. This was to be all the school bands in the city performing several pieces in the civic center for a huge crowd. It was a really big deal to be asked to play this solo. At first, I thought I was the only one to be performing the drum solo and I was totally fine with it. When I found out that a drummer from another school was to perform it with me, I was suddenly extremely nervous. I practiced constantly and felt like I was ready. At the dress rehearsal I choked and the other drummer nailed it. I went home that night and instead of bucking up and getting my act together I devised a plan.

The day of the concert I told my mom I was sick and stayed home and hid in my bed. That is the one that stuck with me to this day and will for the rest of my life. I have blown songs, flubbed parts, forgotten words and made an ass of myself on stage. But since that one moment of complete and utter defeat I have lived my life turning that failure into energy. I just get up there and do the best I can and pour everything I have got into everything I do. Still making up for it I guess. Making up for the regret of that moment. I've never had stage fright since.

 

GNB: Since many readers of our blog are interested mainly in the technical side of the guitar world, can you tell us your studio and live equipment?

JH: My current live rig is a relatively long list.

Jack Dent Hot Sakē Edition Tele Thinline with bigsby, Fralin P-90's and a kill button. This JDG will soon be joined by my new signature model described above.

Fender Telecaster (American Standard - Ash Body/Maple Neck) with Fralin single coils, and a kill button, 60 cycle hum button and a "microphone on" button (mic taped to pickguard).

Oldfield M15 head with oversized 1x12 cab with ToneTubby Green

Trailer Trash pedal board with TheGigRig custom built Quartermaster10

Pedals: zVex Super Hard On, Ernie Ball Volume, Sonic Research Strobe Tuner, Old ProCo Rat, Older Fulltone Fulldrive2, Cochran Timmy Overdrive, Fulltone Supa-Trem, EH Pog2, Empress Superdelay, modified Boss DD-5, Malekko Phase, Strymon BlueSky Reverb, Korg KAOSS Pad Quad and Boomerang 3. My favorites being the Timmy and the Strymon BlueSky.

I also use, eBow, Cello Bow, BleepLabs Thingamagoop2 (into my pickups), springs, alligator clips, pencils, voice through pickups etc. My thumb ring is actually one of my go-to sound devices on guitar.

Studio includes all of that and a Tascam field recorder so I have an entire world of instruments just outside the studio door. Lots of guitars, a bass, gretsch drum kit etc. I use Apple Computers, Logic Pro X, and tons of software instruments and plugins. It's all about efficiency and speed in my business. When it hits you, you can't waste time plugging up a bunch of outboard gear. You gotta start putting it down while the iron is hot. To be honest I have just a few cheap mics and a couple cheap mic preamps. I can't live without my Blue Baby Bottle mic (most expensive mic I have at $399 - which is cheap!), my contact mics, my $5 ebay pill bottle mic and my pair of Oktava MK-012's. Oh, and my closet of sound making toys!!!

GNB: Can you tell us about the recordings of your latest album?

JH: I am bringing a lot of my experience as a sound designer into the process to my new music. The songs have tortured animal sounds (a la Talk Talk), drums made from beads, pinecones, my voice and anything I can hit. There are abstract ambient pieces, classical pieces as well as more traditional rock tracks. I have decided to release a series of singles with b-sides (EP's) throughout the year. A couple of videos and a lot of music.

Beyond the collaborations with Steve Rothery and Dave Foster, Matt Postle and Radek Rudnicki of RPE Duo, Justin Aswell of Mr Invisible and Bon Lozaga of Gong/Gongzilla will also be making appearances. Everything else on the songs are performed by me at Hot Sakē. Rothery is graciously playing on several tracks. He is simply put, a brilliant lyrical guitarist and a damn good guy.

GNB:  Is there any advice that you'd like to tell to our fellow guitar players?

JH: Play for the love of it. Think outside the box. Pour it out of you no matter what it is that churns inside. Don't wait for anyone else to make your career cause it's on you. Oh, and most importantly, be nice.

GNB: I know that you love to produce music with sounds of objects, such as office equipment, or with sounds taken from the nature. Tell us something about this unusual interest!

JH: It's nothing new. Foley artists have been doing it for decades, as have bands like Pink Floyd, The Beatles and Talk Talk. It's just something I gravitate to. I find all these great sounds banging on some pipe on city streets or a hollow log in the woods. Three of my favorite bass drum sounds that I have ever stumbled upon: old TV set, nylon webbing on a baby stroller and a scale of a pinecone. It really came about from the sound design we create at Hot Sakē. We don't like to use sound libraries. We prefer to make the sounds from scratch. If we DO use a library sound it might be an animal growl that we then torture and turn into a part of a transition swoosh or a car engine. One of the tracks Dave Foster and I are finishing up from the new record has my voice as most of the drums run through a myriad of FX and then re-amped through a guitar amp. It's a HUGE drum sound. I just get lost in the process of making sounds. It's so Zen.

GNB: The interview is over! Tell us about your latest album and projects! Thank you very much and we hope to see you soon live!

JH: We finished doing shows for the last Sunshone Still record and I am hoping Chris Smith will be bringing the band the sketches for the next record. I love playing guitar, noise and doing album arrangements for that project. It's the first time I have not been the lead vocalist in a band and it really stretches me as a guitarist. I am not at all a conventional guitarist. sort of the anti-guitarist, I look at it as just another tool to make noises with.

I am finishing the first of many EP's for this year. Currently working on a Neo-Soul Hip-Hop project called The Bodacious Wicked with the incredible Dre Rock. I plan to do some writing with Justin Aswell, Dave Foster and musician/producer Patrick Boyd. I am hoping to write some tunes with the boys from RPE Duo as well (hint-hint boys!). They are just brilliant! We will see what the future brings!

At Hot Sakē it's been projects for Britax, Husqvarna, Brica, Volvo Trucks, PBS to name a few. I am just starting the score for a short film call "Like Rats In A Trap". I guess I am kind of all over the place! I wouldn't have it any other way!

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FREE EXCLUSIVE ACOUSTIC DRUM SAMPLES MADE BY US!

Hello Everyone!
Today I'm making to you a little gift: a small archive with some oneshot sample of  a drumset I've recorded and mixed for the pop-rock band Fuoriskema some month ago; the drumset is a Yamaha Stage Custom Advantage Nouveau with Ufip Cymbals and it was played by Giacomo Ricci.
The samples are recorded 24 bit/44khz with an Rme Fireface preamp, a set of 10 microphones (sm57 for snares, md421 for toms and so on) and are already processed;
although they are only oneshot (one for each drum part) I think that someone could find them useful, for example they can be blended them with your own sound in order to give some extra punch.

These samples can be loaded with any drum sampler or drum replacer and can distributed freely, as long as the archive with the included informations stays unaltered.

The sample pack can be downloaded Here: Guitar Nerding Blog Rock Samples.

I hope this was useful, let me know what do you think!

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