Guitar & Bass Tones
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My Overdrive Collection (and Why I Built the Opaque Drive)
I developed the Opaque Drive to be the final say in overdrive pedals, but I had to try a plenty of pedals before realizing I set out to make my own! The pedals on this list are all legendary in their own right, and each influenced the development of the Opaque Drive. Read on to…
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The Sound of “Two Giants”
This past Halloween I released my latest record, an EP called Two Giants! This EP was a big step for me since I’ve long wanted to incorporate vocals into my music. On these songs, some close friends came together and helped with lyrics and vocals, and the result is my best-sounding work to-date! Read on…
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Quad Cortex Captures Available Now!
The amplifiers and pedals of Substation Onyx are now available for free through Neural DSP’s Cortex Cloud! In this post I’ll be talking about some of my favorite captures available from the device list (which will be continuously updated!) and where you can hear these sounds within music we’ve worked on!
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The Sound of “Petrichor”
I’ve started the school year with a new song that falls outside my artistic wheelhouse! “Petrichor” is a lo-fi/chillhop song that I wrote for my wife, who enjoys napping and reading to this kind of music. Here’s some of my favorite toys that were used to put this song together!
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The Sound of “Solid-State”
My friends at Keeley Electronics and Paralleled Lives Tones recently gifted me some guitar pedals and impulse responses (IRs), respectively, so naturally I got inspired and put together a little song. The convenience of both pedals and IRs lent itself to a fully solid-state signal chain for both the guitars and the bass. The result…
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The Sound of “Crash”
2024 is off to a fast start with my newest song! “Crash” was written and recorded in the back quarter of 2023, and it’s crammed full of chaotic riffs, high-gain leads, and layered synthesizers. This song is a lot of fun to hear and play, so it only makes sense that it was a lot…
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The Sound of “The Jump To Nowhere”
My largest undertaking to come to light in 2023 was my collaborative album, “The Jump To Nowhere”. Written in parallel to “Art Imitates Life Imitates” and recorded and produced shortly after, “The Jump To Nowhere” is a progressive metal album that pulls from djent, progressive metalcore, and electronic music from video games. If any of…
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The Sound of “Burnout”
Aggressive rhythm guitars, distorted bass, and aggressive drumming are all staples of a modern metal song, but the use of delayed clean guitars, reverb-soaked lead guitars, string arrangements, and 8-bit synthesizers are all a part of what gives this song its own touch. A lot of gear is also needed to make a song like…
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The Sound of “Breather”
About this time last year, I was coming off of a whirlwind of activities in regards to music and music production. My debut solo album garnered way more attention than I was prepared to handle, The Jump To Nowhere recording sessions had come to a close and mixing/mastering that album was in full swing, and…
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The Sound of “Herald”
My most recent song, “Herald”, was released on all digital platforms this past Friday, and it goes without saying I’m very proud of it. This song marks the start of a solidified musical direction for me, as I chase a perfected sound that incorporates groovier elements of modern metal (djent, if you will), the percussive,…
Substation Onyx 