What an interesting couple of months it has been. Apparently I have had a chest infection that has gradually progressed since October and peaked in mid to late December. That is the most ill I have been for a long time, and I am still resting and recovering.
I have also finally got access to my ‘new’ car, after three months of being messed about. That is a story for another time though.
I was a very lucky man this christmas, and recieved 3 guitar pedals. Black Arts Tone Works Pharoah (black edition) - this is a pedal from the early 2010s that is a suped up big muff. It has both germanium and silicon transistors (or it can override both), and is great for solos or thick power chords. A handy tool for recording.
I also received a Wampler Plextortion pedal. I have wanted one of these for the last decade, another dirt pedal that has a specific sound that can be manipulated well for recording.
The cherry ontop however was the Boss CE-2 Waza. I previously sold my CE-2 from the 80’s over a year ago, and it was replaced by the wonderful Past Fx Chorus Ensemble, a lovely re-creation of the original Roland (boss) CE-1. However, as it was based on the original, it was made mainly for keyboards. Although guitarists have used it, it’s been mainly single coil guitarists. And despite the switch inside, I have found it is not ideal for medium hot- to compemporary humbuckers. So I have relegated this to being a recording piece of gear, and it has been replaced on the board with the CE-2W. It is the CE-2 pedal, but also settings for CE-1 chorus and CE-1 vibrato, but works with humbuckers and distortion well.
So, the end of 2023 was rather difficult, but it was tinged with some positives in the regard to gear. Going forward, in 2024 i want to start focusing on recording. This will involve upgrading my rather dated setup. I also want to find a project or band that I can contribute to, as I really miss playing with other musicians and writing with other people. Having just been very ill, it makes you appreciate the small things, and I would also like to generally be doing more this year.
Stay tuned - Sly.