Solo show.

11/25 Trade Support

Trade event with Fuk Punk.  Always a good time. 

Yojigen Show 10/14 (Public Space 四次元)

A good night had by all. I genuinely loved all the bands that played this last Tuesday at Yojigen.  I hope to have more nights like this soon, and I'm grateful to have the chance to play music in Japan or anywhere.  Check out The Whys (all girl surf rock group) and The Routes (garage rock)  Here's some video from a few bands and us. 

The Whys

The Routes

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dnFkeKp73gA&list=PLyBDNZgGA4cfMViNjP0IIbtiX7zpxKLhc

This was pretty good

A song with Tess

A new "piece/logo" that I hope will upset some.  It's about time to get the joke.  A lot of crap going on.  Some good, some ehhh. 

Some video from Sept. 27th @Cavern Beat

Hell of a night.  I met a lot of nice people, and I'm grateful for the good turnout.  Hope we didn't stink up the place too much.  We did some new stuff that still might need work.  Looking forward to the next one!  Surf Coasters, The Whys, The Routes!

*Update:  The Surf Coasters had to back out of the gig due to the incoming typhoon.  The show however will still go on. 

The Surf Coasters

*Update:  The Surf Coasters had to back out of the gig due to the incoming typhoon.  The show however will still go on.

An all surf rock night!  Well, minus us.  I guess we have about a 10 second break down in one song that somewhat resembles surf rock.   Well, we're excite to play what so many great bands.  We love the Whys and the Routes.  The Surf Coasters are new to me, however I'm a fan after watching some killer shows off youtube.  They tend to make to the West Coast of the States fairly often it seems, so check them out if they come to your town.   

Tuesday, October 14th @ 四次元(Public Space Yojigen).  Doors at 7pm and the show starts at 8pm.  2000 yen with a free drink to get in.  With: The Surf Coasters, The Whys, The Routes, Godzilla Snacks (us), and The Paralyz

10月14日 四次元 ゴロツキ失禁ナイト vol.13
チケット 2000円 one D order
17時入り リハ
オープン19時半
すたーと20時
(The Paralyz)パラライズ,(Godzilla Snacks) ゴジラスナックス, (The Whys)ホワイず,(The Routes) ルーツ, (Surf Coasters)サーフコースターズ
DJ クラチ BIG BEAT.

Some Video Game Art

So this "piece", will be showing at the Eugene Downtown Initiative for the Visual Arts as a partner with the Oregon-based Indie Game Con on Friday, October 3rd.  I did this as a video game themed "art" work.  So, if you're State side and near my alma mater, go check it out.   

Solo-ish Show

I'm starting to love these.  I play what I want and there are few preconceptions or complaints.  That's one of the thing I  like about Japan.  No know-it -all music snobs who ruin the experience.  I just want to play a few songs I enjoy and leave it at that.  Well, with that said, I love my band.  They don't judge me and they are way into just having fun and playing music.  Man...., I feel like we lost that a bit back home.  Fuck off.  Just take things for what they are.  Well, I should have a few vocal guests for this one.  I hope it goes over well.  There might be a noise section or two.    Oct. 4th @ Gigi

International Band Night @Cavern Beat

We get to play with the Routes again.  The 9 piece ukulele group which should be interesting.   This one should be fun.  Lots of nice people helped put this one together, so if you're in my time-zone, come check it out.  At the Cavern Beat.  We got a small write up in a local magazine here as well: http://fukuoka-now.com/event/international-band-night-2014/. 

We have a big show in the works for October.  With The Surf Coasters

 

Here Cometh the Son

So a good friend of mine spent a great deal of time finishing a book. Personally I find his writing brilliant and funny, so if you can, support his efforts and buy his book. I doubt you'll be disappointed. The book is a satirical lost writing from Jesus, which ends being up found in the year 2000. Turns out Jesus has been spending more time on earth with us and hates everything we've become. This is a hilarious and at times facetious hate list about humanity at the present. An entertaining list of everything that is wrong with humanity, including fads, social media, marketing, language, grammar,and everything else we trick ourselves into believing. Whether you're an Atheist or a devout follower, I think anyone with a good sense of humor and writing will enjoy this book. Go support art and literature.  

http://www.amazon.com/Here-Cometh-Son-Gospel-According/dp/0991314506/

Zvex Fuzz Factory / Fuzz Probe Settings

One of my favorite fuzz pedals of all time is the Fuzz Factory/Fuzz Probe.  So far...  The thing is, the reasons I love it are the very reasons many people find it frustrating.  It's so versatile and each knob is so sensitive and interdependent, that it is almost impossible to figure out right away.  The pedal really contains a lot of sounds within it, and it can be very versatile.  However, it takes a lot of time twiddling with its knobs and even the knobs on you guitar. So, in hopes to help you speed the learning process along, I thought I would post some of my favorite settings I've found useful on this pedal.  Before that, I should try to explain my understanding of what each knob does. 

Vol (Volume):  Volume....  Not much else to say about it, other than it's a really high output pedal, so I hardly ever set this above 9 o'clock. 

Gate:  Kind of like a noise gate.  Can be turned up to decrease any unwanted feedback or squealing when the Stab knob is turned down.  It also seems to affect the sustain of some notes, if turned up high. 

Comp (Compression):  Changes the attack of each note, turned down, it's off, turned up your attack is softened.  When turned all the way up, sometimes you can get a single pitch. 

Drive:  Same as any other dirt pedal.  Sometimes know as a "gain" knob.  This adds the fuzz and hair to the sound.  Turned down, the pedal can get fairly clean, almost like an overdrive pedal.  Turned up, you almost hit Big Muff Fuzz territory. 

Stab (Stability):  This is an odd knob.  From what I understand, this controls the voltage to the circuit (hence the loss of stability at times).  Most of the time, if you just want this pedal to act as a normal fuzz, keep the stab all the way up at 5 o'clock.  As you turn it down, you can some wacky squeals and sounds.  The squeals can again be controlled with the Gate knob.  The Fuzz Probe is the same thing as a Fuzz Factory, however they added a proximity plate to allow you to control this knob with your feet or hands, or whatever.  Things can get crazy with this.  I often have to turn the volume down to mess with this knob. 

Tip:  Your guitars volume and tone controls also change the sound of this pedal DRASTICALLY!   I've managed to get overdrive sounds from a volume knob turned down, and I've made pitch shifting controls with my volume and tone knobs. Also, like most Fuzz Face type circuits.  This pedal likes to be the first in a chain of pedals.  Any pedals with buffers or wah pedals before it change the tone of the pedal drastically.  Most people find the change in tone unpleasant. 

So, with all of that said, here are some of my favorite settings for this insane piece of equipment.  The following settings are ordered from the least amount of gain at the top, to the highest gain towards the bottom.   All settings are notated in clock form with the volume set at 9 o'clock and the volume knob set to your preference.

Name	Gate	Comp	Drive	Stab
Overdrive Fuzz Blues	2:30	7:00	7:00	10:00 **Turn guitar volume down to clean up the sound.
Punky	2:30-3:30	7:00	7:00	5:00
High Octave (turning the drive up works too	2:30	7:00	9:00	5:00
Traditional Fuzz	9:00	7:00	1:00	5:00
Resonant Fuzz	7:00	7:00	12:00	4:00
Thick Crackle	2:30	12:00	1:00	9:00
Fuzz Face	7:00	7:00	12:00	5:00
60's Fuzz	2:00	8:30	3:00	5:00
Stooges Fuzz	3:00	7:00	3:00	5:00
Fuzz Splutter	3:00	12:00	3:00	9:00
*My Standard Fuzz Tone	7:00	7:00	3:00	5:00
Lead Crackle	3:00	8:00	5:00	5:00
Smashing Pumpkins-esque	3:30	9:00	5:00	10:00

Probe Action Settings:

Name	Gate	Comp	Drive	Stab
High Probe Control (w/feet)	7:00	7:00	4:00	9:00 with the guitar volume down
Turn the guitar volume almost all the way down, and stomp on the probe for notes to come out	7:00	7:00	5:00	9:00

Weird Sounds:

Name	Gate	Comp	Drive	Stab
Arpeggio	12:00	3:00	3:00	3:00
Rough Velcro	7:00	4:30	5:00	2:00
Static	12:00	12:00	5:00	7:00
Quick Squeal Trick	12:30	12:30	4:30	4:00 Quickly turn the guitar volume off for squeals
Spaceship Ray-Gun: with a Tremolo Pedal in front and a Delay pedal behind the fuzz	12:30	11:30	3:30	7:00 the tremolo pedal can be behind the fuzz, but you get less "ray-gun".

Mr. Lum's Tap Emporium

I usually provide and maintain this site with only free content.  However, if anyone feels like giving a few bucks on GoFundMe, my brother is looking to start up a craft beer outlet and bar, back in Oregon.  He's a true beer lover like myself, and I know he would run a great place with the right backing.  Hell, $10 gets you a free pint of beer, so if you're near Monmounth, Oregon, that's not a totally bad deal.  Here in Japan, it costs me about $9 for a pint of good beer.  So, again, if you feel like being generous and donating, I would thank you.

Aug. 23rd Show

 

Should be a good night.  Looking forward to seeing and playing with a few of these bands.

 岡崎康洋(蝉)/Godzilla Snacks  ゴジラスナック/TALLBOY/ポカムス @cafeandbar_gigi

Lum

Thanks from Godzilla Snacks, more shows to come, the Future

The "Kill Your Fucking Boss" event at Graf was a lot of fun.  Probably the most fun I've had at a show since Portland.  It was gratifying to play for so many people who love music and were willing to come out on a Wednesday night.  The Routes were great, Pussy Strunk was fun, and Pear of the West did a laid back acoustic show.  We didn't have our ovaries that night.  Maybe she'll play some future shows.  Thanks to Chris for the photos.

Speaking of the future.  Yes Portland, I'm coming.  Just waiting on lots of paperwork and getting my life together enough to move it.  Scary.  Until then, I have a not-so-laid-back acoustic show in two weeks at Gigi.  I'll being playing a song for Josh.    More shows on the way hopefully.

Sitarcaster Viewer Build

I thought I'd share a video from Dave who found my Electric Sitarcaster useful and built something for himself.  Sounds damn good! 

@Graf 「KILL YOUR FUCKING BOSS #11」

This should be a good show.  A bargain by Japan standards.  A good show and a drink for $10 isn't band.  The bands are pretty good too.  I've seen The Routes a few times and have to say they're one of the better bands in the area.  I guess some of the records have been mastered back home in Portland.  We're playing with a new/old bass player.  We're missing our ovaries.  I suppose no one knows us, so most of the songs will be new to you, and maybe even us.  

Some Acoustic Shows Coming Soon

 

Some acoustic shows coming up and maybe a few stripped down shows.  I'm coming in to piss off the sentimental type.  

For you know who...

Josh Hemminger

 This one hurts. He was too young, but as we all find out, life is fragile. Someone I considered a damn
good friend passed away. Details are sketchy, but the sad fact is, I'll never see this guy rock out to
another show, I'll never get to spend another barbeque with him, or have sidesplitting laughs with him
again. This guy kept me going, and I wish I told him that. In fact the outpouring of love I’ve seen for
him today is great. I however just hope most of you were able to tell him those feelings while he was
with us.
Josh had a great spirit. He was the life of any event or party. Someone who was real and not full of
anything. I don't remember him ever trying to be anything but strait with people. Whether is was
harsh, loving, or bombastic with chaos. For a few years I remember him front and center at almost
every show I played, screaming his head off. He was giving out more energy than the band. For years
after that he would remain probably my biggest supporter and fan, and thankfully a friend. He would
show up to almost every show I had, and if he didn't, you could bet the show was going to suck or lack
something.
He was the kind of guy who would always be there for you too. Selfless. I could call that guy at any
hour of the day a total mess and he would pick up. Never upset, just glad to hear from you. I
remember having many deep and long phone conversations with him. Not sure if we figured
everything out about life, but we philosophized. He was a little deeper than people may think. I think
people liked to judge him by first meetings, but after a few minutes he could win anyone over. I don't
know if people gave him enough credit for how giving he was. I can remember a number of times
freezing outside some crappy bar and he would offer you his coat, or his shoes, or a couch to sleep on,
even gas money home.
He cared, but didn't cared too much about useless things. He lived by many of his own rules. I
remember seeing his “bank”, a can of money in the corner of his room. He said, “he was tired for
being charged and ripped off by other banks, so fuck it, that's my bank now.” He taught me a thing or
two about living life how you want and on your terms. All I can take away from this is, well, sadness.
But, also, I want to live life with the energy he had. I want to approach everyday with his energy. Play
every show with his fury. I won't forget him, and I will do my best to keep his memory alive in how I
approach life. I love you Josh.  I really wish you could read this. 

Josh, offering perhaps the first ever guitar duet played on one guitar.  One of the best shows ever.

Rock Instructions

Kurt - April 5th 1994

So, I played a show tonight and totally forgot this day.  20 years ago Kurt took his own life.  I really remember this as I was a 13 year old at the time.  I actually had a small nirvana encounter not long before Kurt's death.  I didn't learn the full story until I stopped into a local guitar shop in Salem, Oregon.  I saw a picture of Kurt and a broken guitar neck in a case.  I asked the owner about it.  Turns out, the whole band use to stop by that shop often when passing through.  One such night they played the Salem Armory.  The stage manager got directions to my dad's shop to get a tattoo from him that day from that guitar shop owner.  That evening after my dad finished the tattoo, the stage manager offered my family back stage passes.  (From what I understand)  My dad of course said "no".  This is normal dad behavior.  I slowly died inside, but liked knowing they played my town.  The guitar shop owner told me it was actually a peaceful family friendly back stage and that my family would have had a good time there.  Not long after this show, Kurt took his life.  Such a flash in the pan.  Kind of one of those, "wish I could have seen that"  memories.  But, without my dad I probably wouldn't have had that run-in.  Anyways....Small world.  Wish the dude didn't go the way he did.  I think a lot of us have always missed him.  

My best Hokusai rip off.

 

New art.  Happy spring 2014 everyone.  

The Cheap Route to Amplifying your Acoustic Instrument

If you're like me, you might have quite a few acoustic instruments around that sound great on their own, but need some creative micing or aftermarket acoustic pickups to play any live events.   Even our acoustics need amplification when the venues get larger.   Cheap piezo pickups are a great way to amplify the natural sound of any acoustic instrument.  However, I don't have the heart to drill a new hole into my vintage acoustic guitars.

Strap-Pin-Jack-Plugs are a easy and great way to have a jack without defacing your guitar with a new hole. You will need to remove the strap pin that is on almost every guitar and in some cases, widen the hole to accommodate the new jack-pin. 

Next, we  need to prep the piezo pickups.  I like to glue a small amount of felt on the none wire side of the piezo.  This will help allow the piezo to vibrate more and it makes any removal down the road a little easier.  I wouldn't use any glues that are too strong; making this installment permanent. 

You'll probably want to add at least two piezos underneath the guitars bridge to get the full range of your guitars EQ and string vibration.   Most people like to install one piezo near the bass string side, and one near the treble side on the underside of the bridge.  I've added a 3rd piezo in the middle of the two other piezos and haven't noticed any volume loss due to resistance.  So feel free to experiment. 


The placement of the piezos on the underside of the guitar bridge should overhang off the bridge slightly.  This should allow the piezos to vibrate more freely.



From here, we have some options on how we wired the multiple piezo pickups.  I chose to wire mine in Parallel.  Making each pickup run independently.  You can however choose to wire the pickups in Series.  This will make the pickups function in conjunction of each other changing the sound and characteristics of the overall sound.   You may however run into resistance problems with this wiring.  The overall volume output may be slightly decreased. 

Other tips I've found useful in going this route in amplifying acoustic instruments.  You most likely will need to run an extra ground wire from the jack sleeve to the underside of the bridge and through a bridge-pin hole to make contact with a few strings behind the bridge saddle.  This will reduce any extra noise in the amplified signal. Using an EQ pedal or having the sound-person at the board roll off any frequencies that may be unpleasant, so you can customize your sound with the EQ.  I think one of the best resources for buy cheap piezos is the site:  cbgitty.com.  You can get a 12 pack for about $10 and start amplifying anything you want.  I've even used these pickups to plug in my acoustic foot stomp box drum.

Have fun, experiment, and try not to damage any of your vintage equipment. Here's a picture of a mandolin I recently did an installation on. 

Godzilla Snacks?

 

A free show from the good people at Gigi.  

Live Show in Kurosaki (黒崎)

Had a live show with a band dubbed AYA (Now "Godzilla Snacks).  A ragtag group of people without a band home.  I think we pulled it off.  Some originals we worked out.  I was really thankful people were so supportive and seemed to enjoy the music.  I had guitar difficulties all night.  Time to replace all of my 10+ year old cables probably.   I was impressed with this band Yogi.  https://yogishoegaze.wordpress.com/about/

Only a two piece this night, but some quality shoegaze music with some crazy electronic effects.  There will be another show with some of the same members soon.  Might have to use a different name for that show. 

New DIY Pedals and a Show

Finally finished up the Feedback Looper and Dying Battery simulator, and gave them a proper paint job.  I made this video as a demonstration of what the Dying Battery Simulator can do to analog pedals.  I got the idea from the great site http://beavisaudio.com and simply added an LED and on/off bypass switch.  The Feedback Looper video can be found in an earlier post. I hope to get a few more pedals built and tweaked very soon. I have a few wacky ideas, we'll see if I can make them work. 




Oh yeah, and there is this show coming up next month.  What started out as a solo project I was calling "Godzilla Snacks" has morphed into a few people wanting to play a few of those songs I wrote for that project along with a few other songs.  Should be a fun show.  Probably a few more shows next month with any luck.

Solo Show

A few songs before the camera freaked out

Random music stuff

Met a lot of new friends tonight.  After a lack of Facebook skills, I thought I would share the information here.  Some weird random solo music stuff. 

Solo Show

My first solo show ever in two weeks.  Don't expect a quiet acoustic evening.  Some old songs, and some new songs, along with a cover here and there. 

I know I keep saying it....Feedback Looper

Happy new year.  I'm coming back.  I really am.....  Well, my whole life I've felt like I've left before something special happened.  Portland feels like that to me.  So much good music has happened since I was there and since I've been gone.  I wish I could reclaim what I had in 2014, but if I can't, I will do what I can.  I constantly have to remember to pull myself away from this life.  Good money, safety, and good people.  I want back in the game.  Until then, I have 3 solo shows here in Japan..  This is good for me I'm sure.  Also, with the time down, I've been able to make a few effect pedals.  Enjoy.