Unknown Mortal Orchestra
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\\u201cGear is meant to be destroyed in the line of duty,\\u201d laughs Ruban Nielson. \\u201cI realize I prefer to see my equipment all dinged up rather than sitting perfect in my basement\\u2014that\\u2019s a dorky thing to do.\\u201d
That doesn\\u2019t mean Nielson doesn\\u2019t care about his sound. He noted in a 2015 interview with PG that he spends countless hours in his basement tinkering on breadboard circuits and swapping out components, trying to maximize a pedal for his needs. \\u201cI like the idea that instead of buying your sound, you\\u2019re building your sound,\\u201d he said.
Over the course of 14 years, five albums, and thousands of touring miles, Nielsen has been custom-fabricating his guitar voice. But as we all know, the quest is never-ending, like trying to catch the horizon. After all, isn\\u2019t it the journey, not the destination, that matters?
\\u201cI used to be too much of a savage to care about a clean boost or headroom,\\u201d says Nielson. \\u201c\\u2018Just give me a distortion pedal already!\\u2019 But now I\\u2019m exploring the intricacies, subtleties, and nuances of guitar.\\u201d
Ahead of Unknown Mortal Orchestra\\u2019s headlining performance at Nashville\\u2019s Brooklyn Bowl, Ruban Nielson welcomed PG\\u2019s Chris Kies onstage to explore his current sonic lab. Nielson covers his two space-age guitars (and what inspired them), explains how he convinced Benson to put a Monarch inside a vintage solid-state Yamaha, and details the pedals\\u2014including a few of his own designs\\u2014that extract a kaleidoscope of moods.
Brought to you by D\'Addario.
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