Shoegaze was and is much more than Muffs and power chords. It's about pedal placement and getting interesting sounds. I love SRV too, but a lot of people feel the same way about him as Mick evidently feels about the Shoegaze sound.
That Pedal Show Absolutely! I just felt that more of the sonic idiosyncrasies could have been addressed in a Shoegaze show. Like reverbs and chorus before fuzz and delays, the use of multiple delays, etc... Having said that, I do look forward to the show every week and appreciate that they even come up around holidays.
You guys should do a video checking out the old school effects units that the early shoegaze band used, like the alesis midiverb 2 and the yamaha fx500, exploring those reverse reverb sounds that bands like slowdive are known for. Amazing show guys! greetings from a fan in Bolivia! :D
For anyone still watching this today, it's great that the TPS guys mentioned the current climate and how it would suit a revamp of the shoegaze scene. So many great young bands doing this kind of thing like Slow Crush, Elephant Tree and even bands that do similar things mixed with heavier metal genres like Deafhaven, Respire etc.
I was today years old when I found this episode and my god was it worth the wait. Watching these guys make good fun of an entire sub-genre (which I consider myself a big fan of) was hilarious...and holy balls were these guys baked.
I applaud the guys for stepping WAY out of their comfort zone, but they may as well just have done a video about fuzzes and left the shoegaze part out of it. :)
That Pedal Show have you ever heard of this band in the early 90s called "Adorable" with their album called "Against Perfection" that's a total shoegaze
great muff sounds, but you guys probably should have tried covering a few shoegaze songs to get the proper feel of them, I've found that the wall of sound is mostly created by even, non-patterned strumming. Also Sonic Youth is not shoegaze!
+Robin S Yeah, I expected better from these guys. Their videos are usually informative but this one falls short in favour of shallow cliches :| +Ray Grimm Exactly! reverse reverb>fuzz what a missed opportunity!
I'd put some Sonic Youth stuff into the shoegaze category. they're a band that took the shoegaze thing and did something else with it and combined it with other things, sort of like Smashing Pumpkins (although they combined it with other stuff obviously).
Sonic Youth didn't "take shoegaze and did something else with it", they were doing the big guitars + melodies thing way before shoegaze was a thing and always kept an experimental edge even when they mellowed out later in their career. They never straight up chased the blissed-out straightforward structure most shoegaze bands had. Granted, with bands like Swirles lumped into 'shoegaze', it's apparent the term 'shoegaze' is a bit meaningless in the wider picture. Sonic Youth shared similarities with what would become shoegaze, but saying any of their stuff is shoegaze is a bit of a stretch.
Wow are you serious? Lets see. "Shoegaze was around before Sonic Youth." SY formed in 1981 dipshit, shoegaze was popular in the late 80s. SY a garage band, the end? Oh so now we're just gonna focus on their early 80s discography? Ignoring the fact that they have 20 YEARS worth, which includes albums ranging from daydream nation to rather ripped? Shoegaze being shoegaze because of the amount of pedals they used and melodies/droning guitars? What do you make of post rock then? What about bands that aren't my bloody valentine? I don't need you to tell me what shoegaze is. People like you need to be less self righteous and do some reading up. I agree that lots of bands try to shoegaze but rarely get it right, especially those that try to rip off mbv with power chords.
Verve's first album 'A Storm in Heaven' is my personal favourite of the genre. Saw them live in '94, when they had just added 'The' and were transitioning to a more classic rock sound. But Nick McCabe still brought on the wall of beatific noise: Strat or 335 through a Quadraverb and tape echos into cranked Mesa/Boogie and Jazz Chorus amps.
I can't believe you guy's lived in England and missed out on all that great stuff from late 80's and 90's music coming out of England at the time. "Shoegaze" was just a bit of all the great stuff coming out then. I grew up listening to The Smiths, Ride, Stone Roses, etc... mainly coming out of England.
+Jin J We didn't 'miss it', more ignored it. In the same way the metallers ignored blues, or the punk ignored jazz. Dan grew up in Australia, btw, and he heard no music at all. Just shearing sheep and fighting crocodiles his entire childhood. ;0)
@@ThatPedalShow LOL. Love shoegaze but who cares if you got it wrong or right. Learned about fuzz and made me want fuzz pedals. I think a LOT of people are just discovering or re-discovering shoegaze now anyways. A bit late to be so hard-core.
@@ThatPedalShow There's a huge story there you've only got bits of. MBV's Loveless came out six weeks after Nevermind. Yes, grunge largely eclipsed the UK indie-alt sounds (Manchester 'baggy,' shoegaze, and a universe of other great bands like House of Love, Adorable) for a few years. You're right to note the 'trance' bit and certainly there was plenty of MDMA involved. Till the grungies went and made heroin chic again. By '95 of course it was all cocaine and Britpop.
"We realised we knew nothing about a genre and didn't fancy learning about that genre, so here's some pedals that are almost totally unrelated to that genre"
go watch all the episodes and then read your comment you will understand that your argument is super invalid … you learn A LOT with this youtube channel … and this not television if you dont like it just go watch another show … you know you have that power on youtube right ????
One would think "That Pedal Show" would have been a staple of shoe gazers had youtube been around. The very idea of shoe gazing was guitarist staring down at their massive pedalboards.
I think we should appreciate that while Mick and Dan may not be the biggest fans of the genre, they still researched, recorded, and edited an entire show based on viewer requests. I think they did a great job demoing the pedals, and I could handle the sometimes negative comments about a genre I really like. I know I don't have only nice things to say about all kinds of music. The satire at the beginning was cheesy and funny too, and I think it came from a good place, not meant to be totally dismissive. Thanks for putting on this show guys!
+Tim Dubroy Thank you Tim, very balanced of you. I think we always knew we would antagonise some people if we took a lighthearted look at a genre and you're right - it always comes from a good place with us. People see it as some kind of snobbery which of course it isn't. Hard for us to be snobbish about music! We like rock'n'roll ferchrissakes. Thanks for watching!
Not a problem! You guys put in a lot of work and should be allowed to state the occasional opinion (you are usually unbelievably balanced). Big thank you for the show and for the advice. Per your suggestion I swapped my modded SD-1 for a Tube Screamer Mini into my Dr. Scientist Frazz Dazzler fuzz, and that helped bring some mids into my Fender clone!
Well said, Tim, this was pretty much my take on it as well. Also, if anyone (like I do) wants really fine-grained and super indepth discussion of various shoegaze sounds and how to achieve them, there's no shortage of that on the internet.
Agreed! The Internet does provide every flavour of critic and as detailed a discussion as anyone needs (or doesn't need) about this any any other guitar gear topic. I hope that Dan and Mick continue to take a fun and lighthearted approach to this stuff, especially when they go outside their comfort zone based on fan requests.
Years ago, I was watching a live Pearl Jam video . My father walked in, stood there for a second, and then said, "Why do you insist on associating with the unwashed set?" I really miss those little nuggets.
Love the show, but I have a bone to pick. What does this episode really have to do with shoegaze? You mentioned Verb, but there was no real discussion of how some of the textures in shoegaze are created. Kevin Shields is famous for running a reverse reverb into his fuzz. Many other players have used delay and other types of echo in front of dirt/fuzz to achieve different textures. This episode is focused solely on fuzz pedals...yet no discussion about rethinking the pedal chain to achieve true shoegaze tones. And no mention of the Keeley Loomer pedal which is essentially Kevin Shields tone in a box. Love the show! Cheers!
Yeah: wrong amps plus wrong pedals plus a pretty vague understanding of what differentiated shoegaze from the US noise-pop side (Dinosaur Jr, Pavement, etc.) makes this frustrating to watch.
Great hearing and seeing you guys let your hair down (so to speak!). Thoroughly enjoyed the episode - thanks for the laughs, and your long-tenured service to the guitar community!
Yeah you just kinda have to listen in a different way. Particularly when you have weird things like verb before your gain, or subtle modulation, or tremolo bending techniques, there can be a whole lot in that sound if you listen closely. And it can become mesmerizing as Daniel was noting towards the end of the clip. In ways it's like when you guys sit and listen and pay attention to all that detail in the trails of some of those reverbs or delays in those shootouts... it's just about coming up with songs specifically around those sounds. It's just a different mindset you take when you sit down with the guitar. Things become much more about texture, tone, and melody than riffyness, and playing off the heavily effected or drawn out vocals which can obviously be off-putting or boring to some players... depending on what you grew up listening to. For several of the bands there is an element of 60s pop or surf throwback if you listen to it carefully. It's just that they've taken a little more melancholy approach in key and texture. I was in jr high and high school when the genre first emerged. Here in the States it was kinda one of the sub-genre's of alternative (120 minutes anyone?), but wasn't breaking into the mainstream like others were at the time. I was more into Jane's Addiction, Primus, Rush and getting into the Pumpkins first album around that time... but have been completely sucked into the genre over the past 6 months or so.. and my "Shoegaze, Fuzzy, Reverb" playlist on Spotify has become my daily go-to it seems. There's a lot of good stuff that's come recently though that's either completely steeped in the genre or heavily influenced by: Fleeting Joys Ringo Deathstarr Whirr Cheetahs No Joy Nothing Pinkshinyultrablast Sounds Like Sunset Flyying Colours Deafcult Infinity Girl Amusement Parks on Fire And more of that surfy pop thing going... The Brother Kite Raveonettes Real Estate Diiv Lots of big effects boards with those guys.
I know a lot of people have commented on this video to complain, and I'm sorry to be another one but I'd like to say that there's much more to shoegazing than just plugging into a dirt box and cranking your amp. Things like chord voicings, alternate tunings, drones and whammy bar technique are as important to the sound as pedals. Actually, take away the distortion and a lot of those bands play chords that are surprisingly folky.
Would love to see a Dinosaur Jr/Sonic Youth centered episode! The former is the reason I bought a Jazzmaster. Also good news for Dan, you actually won't need to get an offset on loan for that kind of episode; J Mascis uses a vintage Tele into an AC30 on a lot of the post Farm studio recordings.
23:50 Mick: oh is that what it does? Can’t believe I couldn’t find someone who commented on this. Couldn’t stop rewinding and laughing. Love the show guys. Thanks for the content.
LIKE-MINDED UNWASHED!!! How very dare you sir! I am now writing to the Independent and my local MP in utter outrage! I've never been accused of being like-minded in my life! I actually just literally sprayed my laptop with juice laughing at that. This is such a fantastic episode!
Ahhhhh, smell the snobbery?......not to be confused with shrubbery....Love the show boys...and to be clear, Mr. Mick, power chords are magical... power chords led to my first snogging. LOVE power chords
+Aaron Carothers Hey I didn't say they weren't magical, I just said I was running out of them! They are the most magic thing of all - I grew up on Quo fercrhrissakes! ;0) Thanks for watching.
I just put one speaker in from of me and the other behind and sat in the middle with 2 delays (set at different speeds) and a reverb on. It was my first time. We always remember the first time ;) Props to the vid.
Offset guitars? Lush; Gibson ES-335, Epiphine Riviera, Rickenbacker, Telecaster, Gibson SG. Ride; Gibson ES-335, Les Paul, Rickenbacker, Gretsch Tennessean. Swervedriver; Les Paul. Slowdive; Telecaster, Epiphone Casino, Telecaster, Rickenbacker. MBV play Jazzmasters and the singer of Ride plays a Jaguar. But in the main it's Telecaster/Rickenbacker/Gibson - plus they were old instruments that sounded amazing.
You know you Love playing Shoegaze ,its so much fun playing with pedals. Better than those boring old blues riffs that Everyone plays over and over. The 5 tones dull the senses. Do you buy pedals just to make your blues playing sound better? How did it feel having hair? Shoegaze is pedals and this is a pedal show. Theres more out there than Overdrive and Am pentatonic LOL !!!!
Ride from Oxford started as a top shoegazing band, also The Dandy Warhols wandered there every now and then in the early days. I personally think it started with the availability of cheap strong cider, and army surplus stores! :) The best version was Curve, they took the essence of it and added a dance beat... ultra hypnotic! Check out their LP Doppleganger... very cool still.
This is maybe one of my favorite of your vids. You do get that Shoegaze was pedal guys looking at ALL the fuzz and reverb pedals in front of them and not the audience, right? You'd be Wallgazers based on the backdrop.
While Kevin Shields and some others played through Marshalls, you'll often see players like Neil Halstead (Slowdive) playing through JC 120s. And I recall seeing a lot of Boss pedals on boards (PN-2, DD-3, etc.).
I've been on a shoegaze fix for a couple of months now and been GASing for a Jazzmaster or Jaguar. Then you guys come along with this video. I haven't clicked on a video this fast.
yeah I'd second this, affordable, punchy and have kept their aftermarket value and even increased for good reason. Mine has been a workhorse for nearly ten years since I blew my first student loan on it in '08. Good times.
Thank you for making this video, so that I can finally know something that Dan doesn't! 😊 That's one for me, and 999,999 for Dan. 23:22 Classic Big Muffs have four transistors, not two. 1.) Input gain stage 2.) First clipping stage 3.) Second clipping stage 4.) Gain recovery stage after the tone control.
A Jazzmaster!!!! Finally!!!! I LOVE my Jazzmaster!!! But you gotta have the rhythm circuit. It MAKES that guitar. So versatile. But I think this episode might have been more aptly titled "Doom Rock riffs". Lol! Love the show. Keep it up!
I do not understand why people say Nirvana killed shoegaze when bands like the Smashing Pumpkins and Stoner Metal bands like Kyuss did essentially noisy early 90s metal/grunge but with a shoegaze effect. SP was literally interviewed about how shoegaze impacted their sound. Nirvana even replicates their sound too. I think the problem was more labels ignoring shoegaze and focusing on the gritty side of grunge/desert-stoner and even sludge metal. I also think it impacted doom metal and trip hop too. People just forget how much of an impact it had. Trance/Techno even replicated that loud trance state to a degree.
Interesting! It’s kinda funny when we can zoom out and look at it historically. I think it’s been the same down the generations, Mick here. You have artists who want to do their thing, then you have labels and press who need to label it, put a package on it and sell it. I guess what ‘killed’ shoegaze is what ‘kills’ any band or movement, and that’s a withdrawal of income. “That blonde-haired dude with the habit is going to sell all the records this year, so unless all you other assholes want to keep doing it for the art, it’s over.” I genuinely believe record labels and press are that cynical. Ergo, it’s all just music. The money and the sales effort is what forces it into a genre that can be sold to da kidz. I wonder if Cobain hated Nevermind? It’s a slickly produced pop record. Hmmmm?
shoegaze was never about big muff, MBV, Slodive, Ride, JAMC, Swirlies never used muffs. Big muff kills all the chime of the guitar but shoegaze sound is mostly based on oldschool jangly sound
Seriously, I was expecting more RAT based pedals especially considering that's what Kevin Shields was using as his primary drive pedal for live shows. Never understood and association with big muffs and shoegaze, it always sounded more like cranked AC30/Marshall tone to me with a lot of open/suspended chords
"imagine a room of likeminded unwashed..." Dan that should be the title of your next novel! That was bloody poetic ;) Great show and a great excuse for you guys to mess around with alot of fuzz pedals. Love it! I'm imagining a cock-rock-chorus-extravaganza for your next installment ;)
Aways appreciate your light-hearted approach. You give everything a little light even if its not your thing. Keep it coming. I've learned a lot and experimented a little because of you guys.
Only Shallow is SUCH A GOOD SONG. Also, I have Earthquaker Devices Hoof Reaper (cloven hoof, tone reaper and octave up button all in one box) and it rocks. I also have their avalanche run reverb and delay and the two together (reverb before fuzz) gets that shoe gaze sound no problem.
39:38 Mick: "What have we learned?" Dan: "I learned that... I like Big Muffs".. - I was sooooo thinking Mick would say "...And you can not lie". (ala Baby Got Back).
the best part of a big muff is the tone and sustain you can get for soloing, especially if you stack with a boost pedal. I realize that creating a wall of sound was the focus of the episode based on shoe gaze being the topic, but I wish you guys had touched on that as well. Great episode though keep up the good work!
Whoa. Flashback time. Used to hang out with a band called Chapterhouse. Ah, those were the days. Or at least I think they might have been. If only I could remember.....
Smashing Pumpkins was very much Shoegaze on their first LP, Gish.Corgan has said that Gish was a conscious MBV ripoff. Siamese Dream kept the Big Muff thing going, big time.
my favorite description of shoegaze is kevin shield's explanation of an infinite horizon. maybe this can give you guys a little more insight into what the genre means to fans. 'trance' is right but there is also something very emotive and visual about shoegaze music that other styles of music don't touch in the same way. I would figure from your guys love of tone you'd be into it as i feel like shoegaze takes tone obsession to another level and often about its juxtaposition.
This episode is like listening to your dad rap.
Instablaster
Perfect attitude for shoegaze
Grandpa shoegaze!
Either one of these guys would be more than welcome in a band like Swervedriver or Spiritualized.
@@sinarrecordsmedia2262 OG shoegazers are all grandpas.
Came for the Shoegaze, stayed for the Stoner Rock :)
Awesome episode.
Shoegaze was and is much more than Muffs and power chords. It's about pedal placement and getting interesting sounds. I love SRV too, but a lot of people feel the same way about him as Mick evidently feels about the Shoegaze sound.
+Edward J. Rodriguez Absolutely! (Mick here). That's what's great about music isn't it?
That Pedal Show Absolutely! I just felt that more of the sonic idiosyncrasies could have been addressed in a Shoegaze show. Like reverbs and chorus before fuzz and delays, the use of multiple delays, etc... Having said that, I do look forward to the show every week and appreciate that they even come up around holidays.
+Edward J. Rodriguez Maybe there's a Shoegaze MkII somewhere!
+Edward J. Rodriguez Maybe there's a Shoegaze MkII somewhere!
You guys should do a video checking out the old school effects units that the early shoegaze band used, like the alesis midiverb 2 and the yamaha fx500, exploring those reverse reverb sounds that bands like slowdive are known for. Amazing show guys! greetings from a fan in Bolivia! :D
I saw MBV live. Unbelievable volume...all enveloping. Like getting washed away in a wave.
Do a DOOM episode! Hail Electric Wizard
I'm signing this petition
@@killslay Me too!
For anyone still watching this today, it's great that the TPS guys mentioned the current climate and how it would suit a revamp of the shoegaze scene. So many great young bands doing this kind of thing like Slow Crush, Elephant Tree and even bands that do similar things mixed with heavier metal genres like Deafhaven, Respire etc.
No reverse reverb or delay,? No tremolo arm use? You're missing out on a lot of the shoegaze/MBV vibe here.
+elekibuumu Yep, fair comment! We may revisit with somebody who can offer a little more expertise. Thanks for watching!
'We may revisit with somebody who can offer a little more expertise'...Please do :-)
what are you talking about shoegaze and fuzz are literally the same
jason funderberker literally what
literally irony
Ahhh, 2 years later and "My Stinking Arm Stump" still resonates!
I was today years old when I found this episode and my god was it worth the wait. Watching these guys make good fun of an entire sub-genre (which I consider myself a big fan of) was hilarious...and holy balls were these guys baked.
"Imagine a room of like-minded unwashed"
After all these years this cracks me up
I applaud the guys for stepping WAY out of their comfort zone, but they may as well just have done a video about fuzzes and left the shoegaze part out of it. :)
At about 13.30.... "Mustang Saddles - guess you better slow your mustang down". Totally irrelevant post, but thats how my mind works ;)
Cap, PLEASE do a The Captain Meets with these guys. I would love to know more about their backstory, and I think you're just the man for the job.
+CaptAnderton Bloody hell! You got to 13:30?!
+CaptAnderton Bloody hell! You got to 13:30?!
ride saddle ride
That Pedal Show have you ever heard of this band in the early 90s called "Adorable" with their album called "Against Perfection" that's a total shoegaze
great muff sounds, but you guys probably should have tried covering a few shoegaze songs to get the proper feel of them, I've found that the wall of sound is mostly created by even, non-patterned strumming. Also Sonic Youth is not shoegaze!
Zhi Chung Ng I heard they use reverse reverb
+Robin S Yeah, I expected better from these guys. Their videos are usually informative but this one falls short in favour of shallow cliches :|
+Ray Grimm Exactly! reverse reverb>fuzz what a missed opportunity!
I'd put some Sonic Youth stuff into the shoegaze category. they're a band that took the shoegaze thing and did something else with it and combined it with other things, sort of like Smashing Pumpkins (although they combined it with other stuff obviously).
Sonic Youth didn't "take shoegaze and did something else with it", they were doing the big guitars + melodies thing way before shoegaze was a thing and always kept an experimental edge even when they mellowed out later in their career. They never straight up chased the blissed-out straightforward structure most shoegaze bands had. Granted, with bands like Swirles lumped into 'shoegaze', it's apparent the term 'shoegaze' is a bit meaningless in the wider picture. Sonic Youth shared similarities with what would become shoegaze, but saying any of their stuff is shoegaze is a bit of a stretch.
Wow are you serious? Lets see. "Shoegaze was around before Sonic Youth." SY formed in 1981 dipshit, shoegaze was popular in the late 80s. SY a garage band, the end? Oh so now we're just gonna focus on their early 80s discography? Ignoring the fact that they have 20 YEARS worth, which includes albums ranging from daydream nation to rather ripped? Shoegaze being shoegaze because of the amount of pedals they used and melodies/droning guitars? What do you make of post rock then? What about bands that aren't my bloody valentine? I don't need you to tell me what shoegaze is. People like you need to be less self righteous and do some reading up. I agree that lots of bands try to shoegaze but rarely get it right, especially those that try to rip off mbv with power chords.
hahaha great episode! I have no idea how Mick held it together for 45mins. genuine laughs in this one
I fuckin lost it at "Like Minded Unwashed" Haaaaaaaahahahahahahahaha
Yes! And double-lost it at Mick losing it ;->
Verve's first album 'A Storm in Heaven' is my personal favourite of the genre. Saw them live in '94, when they had just added 'The' and were transitioning to a more classic rock sound. But Nick McCabe still brought on the wall of beatific noise: Strat or 335 through a Quadraverb and tape echos into cranked Mesa/Boogie and Jazz Chorus amps.
+George O'Donoghue Definitely a show in there George. We should find an appropriate guest... Thanks for watching!
He'd be a great guest! Check out his signature guitar: m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1790213857882345&id=1400354463534955
Saw them in Leeds early 92 supporting Ride.
It was the first time I’d heard them and their sound blew me away especially Nick McCabe’s guitar sound.
Watching this video on I phone lent against the window while washing up before my girlfriend comes home. Rock and roll or what!
I can't believe you guy's lived in England and missed out on all that great stuff from late 80's and 90's music coming out of England at the time. "Shoegaze" was just a bit of all the great stuff coming out then. I grew up listening to The Smiths, Ride, Stone Roses, etc... mainly coming out of England.
+Jin J We didn't 'miss it', more ignored it. In the same way the metallers ignored blues, or the punk ignored jazz.
Dan grew up in Australia, btw, and he heard no music at all. Just shearing sheep and fighting crocodiles his entire childhood. ;0)
That Pedal Show 'the serenity!'
That Pedal Show LMAO POOR DAN
@@ThatPedalShow LOL. Love shoegaze but who cares if you got it wrong or right. Learned about fuzz and made me want fuzz pedals. I think a LOT of people are just discovering or re-discovering shoegaze now anyways. A bit late to be so hard-core.
@@ThatPedalShow There's a huge story there you've only got bits of. MBV's Loveless came out six weeks after Nevermind. Yes, grunge largely eclipsed the UK indie-alt sounds (Manchester 'baggy,' shoegaze, and a universe of other great bands like House of Love, Adorable) for a few years. You're right to note the 'trance' bit and certainly there was plenty of MDMA involved. Till the grungies went and made heroin chic again. By '95 of course it was all cocaine and Britpop.
My favourite episode yet. I love some shoegaze. The noises that My Bloody Valentine, Slowdive, even Cocteau Twins make - unreal.
"We realised we knew nothing about a genre and didn't fancy learning about that genre, so here's some pedals that are almost totally unrelated to that genre"
+Vincent J Ives You were at the planning meeting?
@vincent it was really painful to watch
go watch all the episodes and then read your comment you will understand that your argument is super invalid … you learn A LOT with this youtube channel … and this not television if you dont like it just go watch another show … you know you have that power on youtube right ????
Jojo Giles Wow, you’re right. They should definitely refund your TH-cam licence fee. Oh, hang on.
Come on, guys. That was fun. Don't be so serrious about your favorite genre. Leave that to the metal kids
One would think "That Pedal Show" would have been a staple of shoe gazers had youtube been around. The very idea of shoe gazing was guitarist staring down at their massive pedalboards.
"Like Minded Unwashed"....OMG,
that literally knocked me off my chair!......epic episode!!
I think we should appreciate that while Mick and Dan may not be the biggest fans of the genre, they still researched, recorded, and edited an entire show based on viewer requests. I think they did a great job demoing the pedals, and I could handle the sometimes negative comments about a genre I really like. I know I don't have only nice things to say about all kinds of music. The satire at the beginning was cheesy and funny too, and I think it came from a good place, not meant to be totally dismissive. Thanks for putting on this show guys!
+Tim Dubroy Thank you Tim, very balanced of you. I think we always knew we would antagonise some people if we took a lighthearted look at a genre and you're right - it always comes from a good place with us. People see it as some kind of snobbery which of course it isn't. Hard for us to be snobbish about music! We like rock'n'roll ferchrissakes. Thanks for watching!
Not a problem! You guys put in a lot of work and should be allowed to state the occasional opinion (you are usually unbelievably balanced). Big thank you for the show and for the advice. Per your suggestion I swapped my modded SD-1 for a Tube Screamer Mini into my Dr. Scientist Frazz Dazzler fuzz, and that helped bring some mids into my Fender clone!
Well said, Tim, this was pretty much my take on it as well. Also, if anyone (like I do) wants really fine-grained and super indepth discussion of various shoegaze sounds and how to achieve them, there's no shortage of that on the internet.
Agreed! The Internet does provide every flavour of critic and as detailed a discussion as anyone needs (or doesn't need) about this any any other guitar gear topic. I hope that Dan and Mick continue to take a fun and lighthearted approach to this stuff, especially when they go outside their comfort zone based on fan requests.
i knew if i scrolled down enough i’d eventually see some reason. Kudos!
Mick's reaction to Dan's description of the people being put into a trance just by the sound is priceless.
Did they just say sonic youth was shoegaze?
whoa !!
To be fair, they’re an oft-cited influence on a lot of the guitarists involved in the scene... but to call them shoegaze is kinda silly.
and dinosaur jr isn't?? kevin's biggest american influence was j mascis!!!!
Sam Riley and Ian Curtis was influenced by Bowie
Almost all shoegaze bands cite Sonic Youth as an influence and they often get included in lists. Another odd choice is Alvvays but there you go.
Thanks for doing this. I recently saw my favorite fuzz heavy Swedish rock band Truckfighters and have been hunting for a good fuzz. Perfect timing.
Years ago, I was watching a live Pearl Jam video . My father walked in, stood there for a second, and then said, "Why do you insist on associating with the unwashed set?" I really miss those little nuggets.
"Imagine a room of like-minded un-washed" LOL! I love shoegaze, and that was hilarious. :)
Love the show, but I have a bone to pick. What does this episode really have to do with shoegaze? You mentioned Verb, but there was no real discussion of how some of the textures in shoegaze are created. Kevin Shields is famous for running a reverse reverb into his fuzz. Many other players have used delay and other types of echo in front of dirt/fuzz to achieve different textures. This episode is focused solely on fuzz pedals...yet no discussion about rethinking the pedal chain to achieve true shoegaze tones. And no mention of the Keeley Loomer pedal which is essentially Kevin Shields tone in a box. Love the show! Cheers!
Yeah: wrong amps plus wrong pedals plus a pretty vague understanding of what differentiated shoegaze from the US noise-pop side (Dinosaur Jr, Pavement, etc.) makes this frustrating to watch.
Also a lot of what they were playing sounded to me just like chugging metal power chords in a fuzz pedal :/// idk.
Fully agree !! NOTHING to do with Shoegaze.....
@@jojojiles jeez. Haha you must feel great about yourself
@Thomas DiSanto
You're so fucking boring.
Great hearing and seeing you guys let your hair down (so to speak!). Thoroughly enjoyed the episode - thanks for the laughs, and your long-tenured service to the guitar community!
the jam was the sort of stuff we'd play at college, i think its because its easy to play but sounds massive
+Joe Scott Mick here: I was laughing while were playing it, but listening back I really like the tune. Kinda hypnotic! Thanks for watching!
That Pedal Show Therein lies the nature of shoegaze
Yeah you just kinda have to listen in a different way. Particularly when you have weird things like verb before your gain, or subtle modulation, or tremolo bending techniques, there can be a whole lot in that sound if you listen closely. And it can become mesmerizing as Daniel was noting towards the end of the clip.
In ways it's like when you guys sit and listen and pay attention to all that detail in the trails of some of those reverbs or delays in those shootouts... it's just about coming up with songs specifically around those sounds.
It's just a different mindset you take when you sit down with the guitar.
Things become much more about texture, tone, and melody than riffyness, and playing off the heavily effected or drawn out vocals which can obviously be off-putting or boring to some players... depending on what you grew up listening to. For several of the bands there is an element of 60s pop or surf throwback if you listen to it carefully. It's just that they've taken a little more melancholy approach in key and texture.
I was in jr high and high school when the genre first emerged. Here in the States it was kinda one of the sub-genre's of alternative (120 minutes anyone?), but wasn't breaking into the mainstream like others were at the time.
I was more into Jane's Addiction, Primus, Rush and getting into the Pumpkins first album around that time... but have been completely sucked into the genre over the past 6 months or so.. and my "Shoegaze, Fuzzy, Reverb" playlist on Spotify has become my daily go-to it seems.
There's a lot of good stuff that's come recently though that's either completely steeped in the genre or heavily influenced by:
Fleeting Joys
Ringo Deathstarr
Whirr
Cheetahs
No Joy
Nothing
Pinkshinyultrablast
Sounds Like Sunset
Flyying Colours
Deafcult
Infinity Girl
Amusement Parks on Fire
And more of that surfy pop thing going...
The Brother Kite
Raveonettes
Real Estate
Diiv
Lots of big effects boards with those guys.
"My Stinking Arm Stump"...Oh man...I'm dying over here!
The EHX Holy Stain was MADE for this episode! Oh and I don't think anyone can shower less than Zakk Wylde on tour!!
For the first time, I see Dan and Mick really kick back and take the piss outta this episode. Brilliant! Keep it going lads, we love you!
I know a lot of people have commented on this video to complain, and I'm sorry to be another one but I'd like to say that there's much more to shoegazing than just plugging into a dirt box and cranking your amp. Things like chord voicings, alternate tunings, drones and whammy bar technique are as important to the sound as pedals. Actually, take away the distortion and a lot of those bands play chords that are surprisingly folky.
Don’t apologise! Dan and I royally fucked this up. Should take it down really. You’re right! Thanks for watching!
Would love to see a Dinosaur Jr/Sonic Youth centered episode! The former is the reason I bought a Jazzmaster.
Also good news for Dan, you actually won't need to get an offset on loan for that kind of episode; J Mascis uses a vintage Tele into an AC30 on a lot of the post Farm studio recordings.
Man people tear on the emoness of shoegaze but I love the stuff.
Edit: Also, need to put the reverb BEFORE the fuzz.
23:50
Mick: oh is that what it does?
Can’t believe I couldn’t find someone who commented on this. Couldn’t stop rewinding and laughing.
Love the show guys. Thanks for the content.
Sick Mustang. I've thought about putting a P-90 in the bridge pickup of mine, so it was nice to hear one that had already had that done.
I've just barely started watching the video, I'm already laughing my ass off. That intro is just brutal.
Cheers for stepping out of your comfort zones guys. Actually made me want to get a fuzz.
LIKE-MINDED UNWASHED!!! How very dare you sir! I am now writing to the Independent and my local MP in utter outrage! I've never been accused of being like-minded in my life!
I actually just literally sprayed my laptop with juice laughing at that. This is such a fantastic episode!
Wall of sound? Going into a trance?
I'd love to see an episode where Dan listens to Sleep - Dopesmoker!
What an album man...
Yees!
This is one of my favorite episodes. I hope you guys go out of your comfort zone and explore different styles more often!
Ahhhhh, smell the snobbery?......not to be confused with shrubbery....Love the show boys...and to be clear, Mr. Mick, power chords are magical... power chords led to my first snogging. LOVE power chords
+Aaron Carothers Hey I didn't say they weren't magical, I just said I was running out of them! They are the most magic thing of all - I grew up on Quo fercrhrissakes! ;0) Thanks for watching.
You guys throw a couple back before this one? Had me smiling.
I just put one speaker in from of me and the other behind and sat in the middle with 2 delays (set at different speeds) and a reverb on. It was my first time. We always remember the first time ;) Props to the vid.
Offset guitars? Lush; Gibson ES-335, Epiphine Riviera, Rickenbacker, Telecaster, Gibson SG. Ride; Gibson ES-335, Les Paul, Rickenbacker, Gretsch Tennessean. Swervedriver; Les Paul. Slowdive; Telecaster, Epiphone Casino, Telecaster, Rickenbacker. MBV play Jazzmasters and the singer of Ride plays a Jaguar. But in the main it's Telecaster/Rickenbacker/Gibson - plus they were old instruments that sounded amazing.
I hope there is a part 2 where you explore the ambient delays and the reverse reverb sounds that a lot o shoegaze bands use...
I still love Slowdive and MBV. It's nostalgic to me to the time when I was a teenager playing in garage bands in the 90's.
My Stinking ArmStump!!!! What a great band name!!
"The Likeminded Unwashed"... best band name I've ever heard XD I got dibs! lol
You know you Love playing Shoegaze ,its so much fun playing with pedals. Better than those boring old blues riffs that Everyone plays over and over. The 5 tones dull the senses. Do you buy pedals just to make your blues playing sound better? How did it feel having hair? Shoegaze is pedals and this is a pedal show. Theres more out there than Overdrive and Am pentatonic LOL !!!!
Thanks guys......I just laughed yelled NUT CORE super loud at work.
Ride from Oxford started as a top shoegazing band, also The Dandy Warhols wandered there every now and then in the early days. I personally think it started with the availability of cheap strong cider, and army surplus stores! :)
The best version was Curve, they took the essence of it and added a dance beat... ultra hypnotic! Check out their LP Doppleganger... very cool still.
+GEOFF NIGHTINGALE Cider and Army Surplus. Love it!
BTW... what you hinted at about a revolution coming, I agree. The X Factor backlash....Hopefully powered by Hammy's and vintage guitars !
hopefully powered by anything for under a 100 quid :P
Geoff Nightingale You mentioned Curve. I like you. Check out www.coloringelectriclike.com
Geoff Nightingale EPC ECO
YES! I wanted an episode on new popular fuzz circuits but this is somewhere I didn't expect the show to ever touch on. Cheers for the ep guys!
+Fleshie Cheers Fleshie! We both really enjoyed this one. And learned something too. Thanks for watching!
This is maybe one of my favorite of your vids. You do get that Shoegaze was pedal guys looking at ALL the fuzz and reverb pedals in front of them and not the audience, right? You'd be Wallgazers based on the backdrop.
While Kevin Shields and some others played through Marshalls, you'll often see players like Neil Halstead (Slowdive) playing through JC 120s. And I recall seeing a lot of Boss pedals on boards (PN-2, DD-3, etc.).
Boss pedals were ubiquitous on UK indie boardsaround 1990, mainly because they were the pedals you could get hold of.
Great job guys! This is the only music channel that I actually enjoy reading the conversations in comments section as much as the show itself!
I've been on a shoegaze fix for a couple of months now and been GASing for a Jazzmaster or Jaguar. Then you guys come along with this video. I haven't clicked on a video this fast.
+Dominic Fernando Mick here. I'm currently gassing really bad for a Jazzmaster. Mmmmmmm
I'd recommend the Classic Player, Mick. Slightly hotter bridge pickup and a Gibson style bridge piece before the jazzmaster trem. Look 'em up.
SoulIsTheGoal I'm afraid that the wang bar is too close to the bridge on the CP - just doesn't feel like a jazzmaster
Dominic Fernando if you want something really different, I just picked up a Vintage Mod Jazzmaster Baritone. Kicks @$$.
yeah I'd second this, affordable, punchy and have kept their aftermarket value and even increased for good reason. Mine has been a workhorse for nearly ten years since I blew my first student loan on it in '08. Good times.
Thank you for making this video, so that I can finally know something that Dan doesn't! 😊 That's one for me, and 999,999 for Dan.
23:22 Classic Big Muffs have four transistors, not two. 1.) Input gain stage 2.) First clipping stage 3.) Second clipping stage 4.) Gain recovery stage after the tone control.
could you guys do a vid about building a pedalboard on budget, like under 500 for the total package?
+slaytanic7961 Yep. We have a bunch of that stuff coming up in the next few months. Hooray!
Watched the Ed O'B episode, searched "TPS Shoegaze", came here and laughed - thanks guys!!!!
A Jazzmaster!!!! Finally!!!! I LOVE my Jazzmaster!!! But you gotta have the rhythm circuit. It MAKES that guitar. So versatile.
But I think this episode might have been more aptly titled "Doom Rock riffs". Lol!
Love the show. Keep it up!
I do not understand why people say Nirvana killed shoegaze when bands like the Smashing Pumpkins and Stoner Metal bands like Kyuss did essentially noisy early 90s metal/grunge but with a shoegaze effect. SP was literally interviewed about how shoegaze impacted their sound. Nirvana even replicates their sound too. I think the problem was more labels ignoring shoegaze and focusing on the gritty side of grunge/desert-stoner and even sludge metal. I also think it impacted doom metal and trip hop too. People just forget how much of an impact it had. Trance/Techno even replicated that loud trance state to a degree.
Interesting! It’s kinda funny when we can zoom out and look at it historically. I think it’s been the same down the generations, Mick here. You have artists who want to do their thing, then you have labels and press who need to label it, put a package on it and sell it. I guess what ‘killed’ shoegaze is what ‘kills’ any band or movement, and that’s a withdrawal of income. “That blonde-haired dude with the habit is going to sell all the records this year, so unless all you other assholes want to keep doing it for the art, it’s over.” I genuinely believe record labels and press are that cynical.
Ergo, it’s all just music. The money and the sales effort is what forces it into a genre that can be sold to da kidz. I wonder if Cobain hated Nevermind? It’s a slickly produced pop record. Hmmmm?
shoegaze was never about big muff, MBV, Slodive, Ride, JAMC, Swirlies never used muffs. Big muff kills all the chime of the guitar but shoegaze sound is mostly based on oldschool jangly sound
Seriously, I was expecting more RAT based pedals especially considering that's what Kevin Shields was using as his primary drive pedal for live shows. Never understood and association with big muffs and shoegaze, it always sounded more like cranked AC30/Marshall tone to me with a lot of open/suspended chords
yeah! Only Shallow is an awesome song but also it is the best demo of AC30 ever
Agreed. Maybe fuzzy underlying bass, but I associate verb and whammy technique with gaze more than muffs.
My favorite "gazefuzz" is a Fulltone Octafuzz in "normal" (no octave action) mode. Keeps a lot of chime while still the epic wall of distortion.
Juzeppe Romanelli agreed. My main fuzz. Haven't found one that beats it, although I haven't found a solid big muff to put up against it yet.
My new shoegaze band name is: "The Like-Minded Unwashed". Thank you Dan for naming my new band.
I always thought shoegaze had more focus on reverb / delay and open chords
My Stinking Arm-stump.. I'm laughing so hard that I'm crying. Don't ever stop, guys!
"imagine a room of likeminded unwashed..." Dan that should be the title of your next novel! That was bloody poetic ;) Great show and a great excuse for you guys to mess around with alot of fuzz pedals. Love it!
I'm imagining a cock-rock-chorus-extravaganza for your next installment ;)
Aways appreciate your light-hearted approach. You give everything a little light even if its not your thing. Keep it coming. I've learned a lot and experimented a little because of you guys.
+Denis M ah that's great Denis :)
Only Shallow is SUCH A GOOD SONG. Also, I have Earthquaker Devices Hoof Reaper (cloven hoof, tone reaper and octave up button all in one box) and it rocks. I also have their avalanche run reverb and delay and the two together (reverb before fuzz) gets that shoe gaze sound no problem.
dude the leslie episode and now this! my mind cannot completely comprehend how you're constantly reading it..
+noodles1930 Hahahaha!! Lasagne for dinner again?
Sonic Youth - NOT a shoegaze band
Shoegaze - NOT killed by Nirvana
thanks a lot guys for taking my/many others' requests for this episode! enjoyed it alot thanks!
39:38
Mick: "What have we learned?"
Dan: "I learned that... I like Big Muffs"..
- I was sooooo thinking Mick would say "...And you can not lie". (ala Baby Got Back).
"Like Minded Unwashed" needs to be the next TPS t-shirt!
Big fan of the show, die hard Shoegazer, That was NOT Shoegaze! Just stick to the stevie ray vaughan licks =)
I own a fig fumb it is single handedly the best fuzz I've played.its really nice to sculpt your sound the stone deaf guys are killing it!
I may be wrong but I think MBV put reverb and delay INTO fuzz. That's how you get those big squally sounds. Again, I may be wrong. Great video though
Oh, how I love Fridays!
the best part of a big muff is the tone and sustain you can get for soloing, especially if you stack with a boost pedal. I realize that creating a wall of sound was the focus of the episode based on shoe gaze being the topic, but I wish you guys had touched on that as well. Great episode though keep up the good work!
Learned absolutely nothing about shoegaze but did learn I must have a Fig Fumb and hopefully create a nut-core band called The Likeminded Unwashed.
+Jeffrey Ogden That's as much as we could hope for Jeffrey! Thanks for watching!
leave them alone this is one of my favorite episodes
Whoa. Flashback time. Used to hang out with a band called Chapterhouse. Ah, those were the days. Or at least I think they might have been. If only I could remember.....
Aaahhhh, flashback time indeed! You just made me search for my old copy of their album "Whirlpool"! Great stuff!
I'll have to dig my copy out now.
Looking back I should have put up the link to "treasure".
Who knows? Career resurrection time?
I went to an in store signing for Chapterhouse back in high school. Store was lunch Long Beach, Ca. nice guys. Whirlpool is amazing.
"store WAS in Long Beach, Ca"
Best part of todays show was Mick saying hey you people with your in tune guitars and brilliant guitar sounds...get out of here!! I was in stitches.
Next episode, post-rock sounds and pedals? Dan? Mick?
Thanks Dudebros
Excellent! Vintage TPS.... up there with the Metal Zone episode and my all time fav.... the Christmas special😏.
Cheers, Justen.
I have just worked out why a "Cloven Hoof" is so named.
Just when I'm about to complete my Rams Head clone!!!!
Yes, yes YES!!!!!You guys ROCK!!!!!!
I loved the first 'my stinking arm stump' record. The vocals were so powerful.
+Dan Higginson There's always one! ;0)
18.54 "Likeminded unwashed" haha I spat my tea out
Could've sworn Dan said "Bareknuckle Poonani" at 12:15
This vid gets a like purely for the extra production effort at the beginning LOL!!!! Haven't even watched the rest of it yet.
Smashing Pumpkins was very much Shoegaze on their first LP, Gish.Corgan has said that Gish was a conscious MBV ripoff. Siamese Dream kept the Big Muff thing going, big time.
The intro has me dying of laughter
You guys are unreal! You cannot be stopped.
You guys are so pedalcore.
i spat my drink out when mick said "for some reason i was instructed to look at my shoes"
“It’s the Big Muff...massive!” LOL
my favorite description of shoegaze is kevin shield's explanation of an infinite horizon. maybe this can give you guys a little more insight into what the genre means to fans. 'trance' is right but there is also something very emotive and visual about shoegaze music that other styles of music don't touch in the same way. I would figure from your guys love of tone you'd be into it as i feel like shoegaze takes tone obsession to another level and often about its juxtaposition.
I got a real kick out of that double entendre joke, love it!
Well, we like to give you one from time to time.
"Give you one" 😉
There was actually a lot of drugs. Loveless was recorded on basically a 5 year ecstacy bender.