Rigged: Ø L T E N

If you’re anything like me, then you live and breathe post-porn sludge from Switzerland. So when our pals at Hummus Records sent over the goods on Ø L T E N, I got a little giddy. The band play a slow-burn, live-feel, atmospheric branch of post-porn, replete with finely-cured lumberjack riffs, and which I’m sure you will all find to be a delicious meal.

The band also sent us one of the more interesting Rig reports that we’ve gotten in a while – complete with drawings! And yeah, these guys also have quite a collection of instruments, vintage gear, and boutique pedals. So enjoy the tunes from the freshly-hewn Mode and learn how the trees are chopped down below:

Christophe – Guitar

My main amp is an old Hi Watt Custom 100 from the 70’s. The second amp I use depends on my mood. It can be an old Traynor YGL3 or an old SUNN Model T. I work with clean and loud monocanal amps only, and I use Göllmer The Blues as a preamp. I have two Omega 6×12 custom cabs with Celestion speakers built by an awesome guy called Michael J Smith. He asks a lot of questions about your gear and your music before he starts to build them.

In studio I only used my two Electrical Guitar Company guitars. For the next tour I would like to restore an old Travis Bean with Kevin of Electrical guitar Company. I am working with my great friend Gilles Duvoisin of Duvoisin Guitars in Switzerland on two new guitars.

Right now I’m working on a new custom switcher with Guillaume and Vincent of Kraken Effects. These guys are awesome! They build the switcher I used in the studio. After a lot of tests with different pedals’ brands, my sound mostly comes from a Z.Vex Box of Rock, a Fuzzrocious Demon, an old Pog and a Pharaoh Fuzz of Black Arts Toneworks.

I have built my sound through four levels: the first one is a dark crunch. When I add the Pharaoh I have a muddy fuzz. With the Box of Rock I have a tight distortion. I use the Demon to add mids and fatness. I often use the secret weapon of the demon, the Boost Gate !!!!

Sebastien – Bass

I’m playing a Tokai Hardpuncher, which is a Japanese copy of a Precision Bass from 1977 or 1978. My second bass is a Greco Mercury, another Japanese copy of the PB. I really like vintage Japanese instruments.

On the album Mode, I used two amps. First, an old Fender Bassman plugged into a 8X10 Ampeg Fridge. Second, a Dan Armstrong amp (no photo, it’s still in the flightcase) plugged into a 4X10 Marshall guitar cab. Maybe for the next Ølten shows, I’ll try a set without the second amp. The Christophe’s Omega cabs fill the tourbus!

Two pedals are very important. My Göllmer The Blues (a gift of Christophe – I love you) and my Fuzzrocious Oh See Demon. These pedals are my two levels of drive. I use an AIB custom switcher for these pedals. My only custom stuff. I sometimes use a delay (Deluxe Memory Man but it’s not mine) and a reverb (Holy Grail). Now I’m trying a Z.Vex Box of Rock. I use it to sound a bit lo-fi.

Mode is out now on Hummus Records. Listen and buy here.