Guitar Geek Alert!

I just found out last night that Joel at Homebrew Electronics has decided to use my sound clip of his Uno Mos boost pedal on the HBE site. Click on the link to their page and you can hear me rocking out with my Tele, my old Fender Champ, and Joel's Uno Mos (well, it's 30 seconds of rock, but even a little rock is enough). If you go to their page, scroll down and click on the "Uno Mos (Fender Champ)" clip to listen.
I'm honored because I have been a fan of Joel's effects since I picked up his Germania booster last year. Also, as many of you know, I am a huge Journey fan, and the band's guitarist Neal Schon is one of Joel's featured artists on the HBE site (he uses one of Joel's overdrive pedals). So Short Punks and the dude from Journey are sharing some web space (Andy, I know you're out there digging that).
For our non-guitar geek readers, I should explain that the Uno Mos and the Germania are basically volume boosters; when you put one in between your guitar and your amp, and you flick the switch, you get a very sweet overdriven sound as the pedal increases the volume of your guitar's pick-ups and makes the tubes in your amp work a little harder. You know those sounds Clapton got early in his career with Mayall and Cream? Rory Gallagher's beautiful live sound? Tony Iommi's dark distortion on Sabbath's records? Brian May's guitar symphonies? The Edge's distinctive, bell-like tone? All of that comes from treble-boosters like the Germania or the Uno Mos. For those with sensitive ears, this also means you can get that classic, crunchy guitar sound without turning up your amp to nosebleed volumes.
I have two more of Joel's pedals...a Mock I delay (which gives you an echoey, slap-back, '50s sound; think old Elvis and Johnny Cash records) and a Tramp, which is a tremolo/pre-amp. What does that one do? It varies the volume of your guitar sound to give you the tone you've heard on tons of surf and late-'50s/'60s pop records...the best example? That pulsating sound Link Wray gets on "Rumble." In a few words...full-on-rock!
Joel's stuff is elegantly built, sturdy, and very affordable for gigging musicians. His pedals sound great no matter what kind of music you play. They not only record well, but they are some of the best effects I've ever used live. Some pedals sound great in the studio but sound muddy or overly artificial and indistinct on stage. Joel's stuff always sounds warm, organic, and present in a live setting.
Oh, and since he's using the clip on his site, I also won a free pedal! I won't say which one just yet, but I'm sure I will be using it on the new CD...thanks, Joel!