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Tag Archive for: rockerverb 100 MKIII

Holy Death Trio by Rene Dominguez / @renphotogs

Hey John! What can you tell us about your band Holy Death Trio?
Holy Death Trio is a high-energy heavy rock creative force formed in Austin Texas in 2019. We are a fusion of everything that rocks and feels good to the soul. We pride ourselves in doing research and development on the current music industry and knowing our music history, from Liszt and Mozart to Motown and The Beatles, to the 60s,70s, 80s and why hair metal was destined to fail and Seattle would spark a no-shits-given revolution. We love to talk music history, so, if you’re reading this, debate with us!

You released your debut album Introducing during the pandemic, can you tell us a bit about it?
They say you have your entire life to record your first album and only a year to record your second, and this album felt like it had an entire lifetime of music on it, with songs I wrote back in 2013. That, mixed with things in life we were going through, like battling the ego and dealing with naysayers. This album was a labour of love and madness. We were determined to be different yet true to ourselves—we didn’t want to be another Sleep cover band.

That being said, we met a truly awesome and authentic dude named Charles Godfrey (Scary American) who worked at the legendary Sonic Ranch Studios for 10 years and recorded some amazing albums, plus he had a number-one Billboard-charting album that he engineered and produced himself! How many bands can say that they recorded with someone who’s made a number one album?  

We had the recipe for success: a talented band, a talented producer, and the drive to make a great album. We were determined to release it ourselves by funding our own press campaigns, and by doing that, we attracted Blasko (Ozzy Osbourne, Rob Zombie, Danzig etc.) to the party. He helped get us a record deal with Ripple Music. and that’s how Introducing came to be.

Holy Death Trio by Levi Guzman / @dreamthorp.

How did you end up signing with Ripple music, and how has it been working with them?
We were discovered by a good friend of ours named Bucky Brown. He saw a video of us playing a live version of our heavy blues hit The Killer and sent it over to Todd Severin from Ripple Music, but we were reluctant to sign with a label. No one will own our music! That’s what I’ve always said, but luckily Ripple is not in the business of screwing musicians over.

We played phone tag for a month or longer, and we knew that Ripple would be a great fit, so eventually the universe allowed the perfect phone call with Todd and the band on new year’s eve 2020, right after we finished recording the entire album. He insisted that we at least talk to Blasko, and if we still didn’t feel comfortable signing, then he said no worries and he would always be there to support us. 

But Blasko gave us an incredible deal and assured us that we would own 100% of our music and that he’d go above and beyond to make sure the presentation of the album (artwork, cover design, formats) was all taken care of.

Now that the world is opening up again, how does it feel like to finally be back out on the road?
It’s a curse and a blessing. Being a band in the underground stoner rock world doesn’t always have its big paydays. We try to play anywhere we can but with gas prices through the roof, it’s not a viable business decision to be on the road. Even the $1000 gigs can eat up more than $500 in gas.

We pick and choose our battles, of course, and have decided to go all in on Austin, Texas—there’s no need to go anywhere else unless it’s for festival dates. Let’s face it, people are just not going out to local shows anymore, so you might as well meet them in the middle, at a place where they are already at, like… Desertfest NYC.

We still have some more big ones to announce, and if you want us to play yours, hit us up at [email protected]

You’re playing Desertfest NYC in May. What are your thoughts and expectations for that? Were you familiar with the UK edition of the festival?
I’ve been a big fan of Desertfest for a while. My goal has always been to tour Europe, and get on Desertfest but playing the Desertfest here in America is an honour.  It will have the same amount of hype as the first Psycho Las Vegas except it’s held in the former rock’n’roll capital of the world, New York-Effin’-City! It’s going to be one for the record books!

What can the festival attendees expect from a HDT show?
You will get the Heavy Rock Experience. High-energy, full-throttle amplifier worship! Straight-up in-your-face rock’n’roll. You can expect to see three bad-ass dudes on stage giving it their all, playing like the world will end the next day! Blood, sweat, tears and fire!

If you’ve ever wondered what a Holy Death Trio show looks like, just watch our White Betty video:

What’s your current Orange set ups?
I currently use the Rockerverb 100 MKIII and a Dual Dark 50 with two PPC 4×12 all in Black. Go big or go home. 

How would your dream Orange rig look like?
I have my dream orange rig with the Rockerverb 100.  It’s everything I need in an amp, but if I could have a full stack wrapped in Purple on both sides of the stage, I might just cry a little bit.

You started playing at a very young age, what are some of your earliest memories revolving
music? 
小さい頃から弾き始めましたね、記憶にある最初の音楽は?
Orianthi:
 My earliest memory would have to be walking into the family living room and my
dad playing a Beatles record, and I just thought it was the coolest thing. I really wanted to
play along, so he started teaching me chords. I was 6.
覚えているのはお父さんが家でかけていたビートルズのレコードを初めて聞いた時ね。最高にか
っこいいと思ったわ。弾けるようになりたいとお父さんにギターコードを教わったの。6歳だったわ。


What would be the best advice you could give yourself as a young player?
もし若い頃の自分にアドバイスするとしたら?
Orianthi: 
Don’t sign anything except for photos and guitars, haha! 
写真とギター以外は絶対にサインしてはいけないってことかしら!

As a guitarist, who would you say are your main influences?
ギタリストとしては誰に影響を受けた?
Orianthi: 
It has to be B.B. king, Carlos Santana and Stevie Ray Vaughan
間違いなくB.B.キング、カルロス・サンタナ、スティービー・レイヴォーンね。

Would you care to share some of your ‘pinch me’ moments that stands out to you so far in
your career?
今までのキャリアの中で自分の夢が叶ったと思った瞬間はある?
Orianthi:
 Definitely being asked up onstage by Carlos Santana when I was 18, In front of
20,000 people. Playing the Kennedy honors / getting to work with Michael Jackson, having
a platinum record and touring the world! 
何と言っても18歳の時に2万人の前でカルロス・サンタナに呼ばれてステージに立った時ね。

What’s your history and experience with Orange?
今までのオレンジアンプとの関わり合いは?
Orianthi: I remember seeing Jimmy page playing one, Orange are such classic amps, they
have such gravity, presence and versatility.
ジミーペイジが使っているのを見て知っていたけど、オレンジは伝統のあるアンプでその音の重さ
、高音域、そして多様性に優れているわね。

What do you look for in an amp?
ギターアンプに求めるものは何ですか?
Orianthi:
 Clarity and presence, and for it to be able to sound super sweet, then as viscous
as a wild lion.
透明感と高音域、つまりとても甘いサウンドから危険な野生のライオンを表現出来るようなもの。

What’s your current set up?
今使っている機材は?
Orianthi:
 Orange rockerverb MKIII, Neck pedals and Cry Baby Wah with my signature PRS
Guitar custom 24.
オレンジ・ロッカーバーブMKIII,ネックペダル、クライベイビー、ギターは勿論私のシグネチャー
ポール・リード・スミス・カスタム24

If you could have any Orange gear, what would it be?
オレンジ製品で他に欲しいものは?
Orianthi: 
What I have, haha! The Rockerverb MKIII is awesome ! 
ロッカーバーブMKIIIだけで充分に素晴らしいわ。

What are you currently working on, or would be working on if it wasn’t for the pandemic?
現在、何か取り組んでいるものはありますか?もしもこのパンデミックが無かったらどんな事をしてましたか?
Orianthi: 
I just finished my new album in Nashville with Marti Frederiksen, and that will be out soon. It’s called ‘O’, and I would be playing shows pretty soon and traveling to promote
the album.
ナッシュビルで新しいアルバムをマーティ・フリードリクセンと完成させたばかり、 “O”というタイトル
発売になるの。そのプロモーションでライブショーとツアーを計画してます。

How does a day in the life of lockdown look like?
外出禁止令での生活はどんな感じですか?
Orianthi:
 Lots of coffee, 6-mile run, on the phone doing business, work in the studio and
then maybe a live stream, or a bunch of interviews and podcasts.
たくさんのコーヒー、6マイルのジョギング、電話での仕事、スタジオでの仕事、そしてライブストリ
ーム、インタビュー、ポッドキャスト。

If you could have a jam with anyone, dead or alive, who would it be, and why? 
もしも生きているかにかかわらず一緒に演奏できる人を選べるとしたら誰、そしてなぜ?
Orianthi: 
Definitely Jimi Hendrix and Stevie Ray Vaughan
それは絶対にジミ・ヘンドリックスとスティービー・レイヴォーン。

I’d like to know why my reverb in my Rockerverb MKIII stopped working.
Mikko: This could be caused by a number of things but the first and most obvious thing to check would be the reverb valve (12AT7). If this doesn’t solve the issue then it will most probably be a bad contact with the reverb cables, a faulty reverb tank or reverb transformer. In any case I recommend getting in touch with your local Orange Dealer or taking it to a local repair shop to get it looked at.

I think the HT fuse went in my OR15? Power amp tubes are very fresh. Any other reason why this could happen?
Mikko: Have you confirmed that it is the HT fuse that has gone or is this simply an assumption because you’re not getting any sound from the amp? If you’ve tested the HT fuse with a multimeter but it looks fine to the eye it could just be a bad fuse. You could try replacing the fuse with the correct type. If the fuse looks charred it has definitely blown due to a more serious fault in the amp. You say your output valves are new but unfortunately that doesn’t mean they haven’t failed yet. You could try bypassing the preamp entirely by plugging your guitar into the FX return to see if you’re getting any sound. This can help you narrow down the fault – if you’re getting sound from the FX Return you have a fault in the preamp (eg. a bad valve).

Why are your tubes connected straight on to the board…? Pretty much going to burn out the board due to this. Why wouldn’t you house them in a chassis then wired them to the board? For $2500 you would hope to have an amp that didn’t have short cuts/ cost cuts.
Mikko: With proper PCB design, a good layout, appropriate creepage clearances, correct voltages and the use of high quality materials and components this is really not a problem. The chassis’ on our amplifier heads are also mounted on the bottom of the sleeve meaning that all the heat will rise out of the chassis rather than into it. We have also made and still make hand wired amps such as the ‘Custom Shop 50’ where all the valve sockets are chassis mount and hand wired.. Of course this is always the preferred method but not everyone can afford a hand wired amp.

I’ve got a 1977 OR80 Overdrive Head (not the combo). It warms up and plays but is on the quiet side. If it turn the volume up to 50% I can talk louder than it….  I put in new matched tubes 1 week before this started happening. Any ideas?
Mikko: The OR80 is a very loud amp so it definitely sounds like you’re experiencing some faults here! Considering the age of the amplifier the first things to know before spunking any more money on tubes: has it been to a tech for an inspection and has it had the electrolytic capacitors replaced? From what you’re describing it does sound like a valve related issue to me. Even though your output valves are new it doesn’t mean they haven’t gone already. There could be an underlying issue in the poweramp or could be that you just received a duff pair of valves. When were the preamp valves replaced? One of these could have failed or worn out. The vintage Orange Amps are notorious for chewing through power valves quicker as they’ve got very high plate and screen voltages and no standby switch to protect the amp from huge inrush currents. I would definitely recommend taking it to a reputable technician who can inspect it, do the required repairs, replace the filter caps (if not done already) and get it biased properly. I would also recommend getting a standby switch installed. It can be installed on the SLAVE OUT on the back so there’s no need to drill new holes to the chassis.

I have a 90’s Overdrive 120 half-stack. (Also an OR15 that I love!) How close to the originals are the 90’s amps? I know some of the chassis, etc are original but is there any way to tell specifics?
Mikko:
For the most part they look pretty close to the originals. The preamp design looks very similar and even the PCB layout is nearly the same as on the 70’s models. Some of the component values are different, for example the capacitor values in the tonestack of the reissues were taken from the Overdrive Series Two circuit. The transformers on the reissues are of course from a different manufacturer. Those 90’s (pre ‘97) reissues were built in the U.K by Matamp and sold by Gibson as they had licensed the Orange name. I have never seen one of these amps or any circuit diagrams for them so I’m afraid I can’t be much more specific than that.

If someone can answer my questions it is probably you: Which Solid State amps can I use without a load? I have an OB1, can I use it without speakers? I was also thinking of getting a Little Bass Thing or a Terror Bass reissue, and that would be a decisive factor. There’s always contradictory information from people on the internet and even from the sales people at Orange. Thanks for your time!
Mikko: You’re fine to use any of those solid state amps without a load. With modern solid state amplifiers this is rarely an issue. This definitely comes in handy for silent recording at home!

Does the original Rocker 30 share a preamp stage with any of the modern heads? I heard the R32 has a different schematic. And is that because of the fx loop? Thanks! Love my Rocker.
Mikko: The Rocker 30 and the Rocker 32 share a very similar preamp stage, they’re nearly identical apart for a couple of components. A little bit of brightness was added to the Rocker 32 clean channel as people thought the Rocker 30 clean channel sounded a bit too warm. There were other design concepts implemented that made these amps very different. Such as: The ‘Rocker 30’ runs the preamp heaters at 5vAC rather than the typical 6.3vAC. The mains transformer used had a spare 5v winding for a rectifier valve (not used in the R30) and this tap was used for the preamp valves.. Very cool stuff! Also the cathode biased EL34 output stage sounds and feels very different.

My JR terror is extremely noisy at high gain… even with a quality noise gate… what could be the issue? P.S… I love your products!
Mikko: The Jim Root Terror is a 4 gain stage amplifier, so it will always have some noise to it at extremely high gain settings. But if you’re experiencing an offensive amount of noise it is very possible that you have a bad/noisy valve in your amp. I would try swapping out the first and second preamp valve one at a time to see if that does the trick. Also make sure you’re using your noise gate in the FX Loop! If you’re using a lot of gain there will always be some noise coming from the preamp so putting your noise gate in front of the amp isn’t going to do very much.

I have a 70’s OR80R combo. Turning up the reverb also adds high frequencies.
Mikko: ‘It will just do that’ is the short answer to this question. Some of the older Orange Amps, especially the rarer models with add-ons such as reverb, master volume, slave outs etc. can be a bit weird with some design quirks to say the least. The OR80R is a very rare amp and there weren’t many made in the first place so it wouldn’t surprise me if the reverb was implemented in some strange way. That said, I have never seen one of these amps in person and there aren’t even any original schematic diagrams left as far as I’m aware. A regular chassis with some rudimentary modifications was used to build these amps so even that shows it was more of a limited and experimental model. It looks like a separate PCB was used for the reverb components and no reverb transformer was used.

Reverb is out on my Rockerverb MKII 100 How do I know if it’s the fuse or spring?
Mikko: If your amp is working but your reverb isn’t, it won’t be a fuse. It will most likely be a dead reverb valve. The Rockerverb MKII uses two 12AT7 (ECC81) valves for the Reverb (positions V6 & V11) and if one of these is dead you won’t get any reverb. If that doesn’t solve the problem then we could be looking at faulty reverb leads, tank or even a faulty reverb transformer. I would recommend taking this to a reputable technician and it should be a fairly quick and inexpensive fault to fix.

My OR15 will turn on but won’t produce any sound. Worked fine the day before this happened. Have checked all fuses and tubes. Took to local shop, but they aren’t a certified Orange dealer, so they couldn’t really do much investigation. Any suggestions? Or do I need to have it sent in?
Mikko: When you checked the fuses did you do it by visual inspection only or did you test them with a multimeter as well? If it was only a visual inspection there is a possibility that your HT Fuse is just faulty (the filament could’ve come loose). You should plug your guitar directly into the FX Return of your OR15, this will bypass the preamp entirely and put your signal straight into the power amp. If this works it could tell there is a fault in the preamp (eg. a bad valve). You could also have a bad contact in your FX Loop jack sockets on the back of your amp. If one of these contacts has dirt or corrosion and something is not making contact it will cut your signal entirely. The FX Loop is a fully valve buffered loop running in a series configuration meaning the signal still goes through the valve and the switching jacks when unplugged. You should definitely try cleaning the FX Loop jack sockets, a simple way is to apply some contact cleaner (if you’ve got some) on a jack plug and inserting it into both sockets a dozen times. This should clear out any dirt and you’ll quickly find out if it was that! If any of the above doesn’t work or help you should definitely take it to a local amp technician/repair shop. They should all be capable of repairing the amp with or without being Orange Certified. Alternatively if you live in the U.K you’re more than welcome to send the amp in for us for a repair. If this is something you’d consider you can email us on [email protected].

Would my OR15 ever need a “tune up”? Also, how often do the tubes need changing? Thanks!!
Mikko:
Yes your OR15 will eventually need a tune up! Lucky for you these amps are very low maintenance and easy to keep running for years by yourself if you’re comfortable with the occasional valve change. I personally don’t really change my valves unless there is an issue or the amp is starting to sound dull but it is good practice to at least change the output valves every now and then. This really depends on how often you play: If you’re playing everyday and gigging every week you probably want to change them at least once a year. If you play at home once a week and play the occasional gig they’ll last you a lot longer. The OR15 uses 2x EL84 valves in a cathode biased configuration meaning you won’t need to get the bias adjusted when you replace them. You just need to purchase a matched pair of EL84’s (they must be matched) and install them in your amp. I recommend JJ’s as they seem to make one of the most reliable and good sounding EL84’s at the moment, they are widely available and won’t cost you a fortune.

Since this morning I have no more sound on my Orange Rocker 15, but yesterday I had sound. Have my tubes gotten out of service?
Mikko: Assuming the amp still powers on yes it is very likely that one of your valves has gone bad. But first I would check the HT Fuse, this might seem fine on a visual inspection but if tested with a multimeter it could just be a bad fuse with a loose filament. I would also try plugging the guitar straight into the FX Return on the back of the amp. This bypasses the preamp entirely and let’s you plug straight into the power amp so if you’re getting sound the fault must be in the preamp (eg. a bad valve). You should also try and clean the FX Loop jack sockets. The signal still passes through the switching jacks when disconnected so any issues here could cause it to cut out. Apply some contact cleaner (if you’ve got any) on a jack plug and plug it into both sockets a dozen times. This should clear out any dirt or corrosion and fix the problem. If none of the above works it is definitely time to take it to your local Orange Dealer or an amp repair technician.

Which valves should I put in my OTR120? Thanks!
Mikko: For this amp I would try to pick output valves that can handle the higher plate & screen voltages. If I wanted to stick with EL34’s I’d probably go with Svetlana Winged C’s. The KT77 would be an interesting option, they’re a direct drop in replacement but can take the higher screen voltages and I’ve heard them sound great in other amps. Valve choices largely depend on taste and budget but I would ask the dealer about EL34’s that can handle higher plate and screen voltages. For preamp valves I’d personally go with some nice NOS valves like Mullards for example. There aren’t many preamp valves in it (1 preamp valve and 1 phase inverter) so it won’t cost you much, and they’ll last you a lot longer so you won’t be swearing everytime you blow an output valve.

So my OR100 just seems like it loses its balls about 30 minutes into playing. Worn out tubes?
Mikko: This will most probably be old and worn out tubes. If you’ve had these in your amp for a while it’s probably time for a visit to the tech for an inspection, a revalve and a bias!

My RV50MK3 is making an angry kinda grumble/buzz, I’ve taken the back off and tapped all the tubes with a pencil but that didn’t make any noise, where do I go from here? Love your amps.
Mikko: Is this only affecting one of the channels or both of your channels? Is this affected at all by the controls and tone controls of your amp including the reverb? The input jack is on a switching jack so when you unplug it it mutes the preamp. Does it shut up when you unplug your instrument lead from the amp? If the answer is yes to all or some of those questions the fault is most probably in the preamp. If it’s on both channels and none of the controls do anything to it then it’s most probably a power amp issue. It does sound like a valve related problem to me so it might be time to contact your local Orange Dealer or an amp repair technician about a service, new output valves and a proper bias adjustment. If your amp is still under warranty then take it back to your dealer and they will take care of this for you.

What do you use to clean pots that make scratchy noise from dust???
Mikko: Contact cleaner lubricant. They come from many brands but it must be the lubricated type. And don’t use too much! If the pot is still scratchy and didn’t improve at all after the first application the pot might be worn out or you might have a bad preamp valve that is putting DC on the pot.

So I don’t currently own an Orange but I figured you guys could help me out… I recently got a 1969 Marshall Super Lead (my first amp ever) it was serviced right after I bought it, got a new set of power tubes (matched quad) and got it biased. Just yesterday I bought a cab for it (a 1960BV model from 2003), I also bought a THD Hot Plate 16ohm Attenuator so I can use it at home. The problem is my amp gets WAYYY TOO HOOOOT!! After using it for a little over an hour my whole house smelled like a mix of burnt wood, metal and wires, and that smell didn’t go away for like 5 hours after I turned off the amp. I use my attenuator close to the right knob on the front and I was using my amp with the volume all the way up on both channels. I was looking up some information online and apparently people have issues with their Super Leads when they attenuate it too much? Have you guys ever experienced anything like this? Could over attenuation be the cause of the heat and the smell?
Mikko: You are playing your 100W amp at full tilt, things are going to get hot! The amp doesn’t know it’s got an attenuator after it which is kinda the entire point of the attenuator. It lets the amp work at maximum power, cooking the valves and pulling loads of current through the mains transformer and power supply. The transformers are going to get hot, the valves are going to get shit hot and don’t forget about the attenuator which is there to dissipate the excess power into heat before reaching your speakers. Of course things can get a bit too mental and you might blow some valves or worse one of your transformers.. I’ve seen this before.

Traynor YBA1 late 60s. What mods would you do? 
Mikko: First I would make sure the death cap has been removed and a proper 3 prong cord has been installed. If I had to mod it I’d probably mod one of the channels into a plexi style thing as we’re not a million miles off.

Do you guys pack an electrical print with the Amps?
Mikko: If you’re talking about a schematic diagram no we don’t send these out with our amps. We do supply these to service technicians around the world upon request.

What’s a good way to get into amp building?
Mikko: ‘I love the smell of solder in the morning’. Let’s start with the obvious – you need to be very interested in AMPS.. if not obsessed! If schematics, wires, old dusty valves and capacitors remind you of some kind of robotic pornography you might have what it takes! I knew for years that I wanted to build valve amps and work with vintage audio equipment but I just had no idea how to get into it. It was very frustrating because I was completely alone and I didn’t know anyone else who was interested in it so I didn’t have anyone to discuss the topic with. So the hardest thing is to find the information and resources to get started learning and initially you’ll have to do this all by yourself. Be prepared to spend many lonely nights in front of the computer with a cheap bottle of wine building amps in your imagination. The next most important thing is to get out there and meet other people who are into this stuff. That’s easier said than done as most techs are reclusive mad bastards but once you’ve made some friends who work in the industry you’ll be amazed at what you’ll start learning!

Your first project: Are you going to repair, restore/rebuild or scratch build an amp? I know you want to build amps but is this really the most sensible first project? Building amps from scratch costs a lot of money. It’s your first amp so you’re going to make some mistakes, buy some wrong parts etc. and there are no guarantees it will even work. So a more sensible first project could be a restoration. Yes vintage amps cost money too but if you choose wisely and do the work right you’ll at least make your money back or even turn a profit when you resell.. or end up with something really cool?! You will learn a lot more this way and after some success you will have the confidence to build your first amp. There are plenty of amazing books and resources out there, to name a few: The Tube Amp Book by Aspen Pitman, RCA Radio Designer’s Handbook by Langford Smith, Valve Wizard…

Did the overdrive 120‘s used different transformers thru the mid to end 70‘s?
Mikko: Yes Orange used a variety of different transformer manufacturers throughout the 70’s. I’ve seen Partridge in the very early ones, Parmeko towards the mid 70’s and the latest example from 1978 had Ladbroke transformers in it. 

Outside of broken input jacks, what is the most common failure for the amps you see?
Mikko: ‘User has been a twat’ or crap fuses seem to be the most common. You’d be surprised how many people put a pint in their amp!

Where is a good place to get replacement fuses for my Orange amp?
Mikko: If you’re in the U.K you should look on RS Components! They do free next day delivery so I get them from there. If you’re abroad you should try any other electronics/component supplier. The fuse size you’re looking for is 5x20mm and they’re really cheap.

Does the bell bottoms make the amp sounds better?
Mikko: They make everything better! Unless the flare’s too big and I can’t tell which pedal I’m treading on.

Where can I find bell bottoms as dope as these?
Mikko: The ladies section at ‘Council Thrift Shops’ in the corner of North Fairfax Avenue & Oakwood Avenue in Los Angeles, CA. Also there’s no changing room so you’ve got to strip on the shop floor. $8

What kind of oranges do you guys use to get those amps to sound so badass?
Mikko: The Orange Sunshine kind!

Yo, its Tyler from Tyler Bryant and the Shakedown and I play Orange Amps.

So I heard the music of Elvis Presley when i was in first grade and that was that pivotal moment where I became obsessed with music. When I was eleven I went into a guitar shop and I heard this guy called Roosevelt Twitty playing and he asked me if I liked the blues and I said “what’s the blues?”. He said; “it’s what I’m playing” and I said; “well then I love the blues!” I ran into him again and again, long story short, I put a dirtbike that I had on layaway and got an electric guitar and it’s been downhill ever since!

Blues lead me to guys like Johnny Winter and Jimi Hendrix, which lead me to the Black Crowes and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. So the blues led me to Rock n Roll which inspired me to get out of high school when I was seventeen and move to Nashville. There I started focusing on songwriting and forming a band, and I ended up with a band called the Shakedown. That’s kind of how it all played out.

I was actually riding around Nashville, with Graham Whitford who is also in the Shakedown and he said i’m going to stop into the Orange amps office and try some amps. So I said I will go with you and plugged into a Rockerverb. I wanted something I could get a lot of sustain out of and I tried the Rockerverb and got one, I loved it so much. I just use one channel on the Rockerverb, the clean channel and I drive it hard and I use the attenuator to set the volume and its as simple as that. I just love how much sustain I can get out of that amp. I just happened to rolling around with Graham in Nashville and played one and here we are.

So I always want an amp that has a good clean channel but also sounds big, if I don’t have a pedal on. But I don’t want an amp that is so distorted that I can’t have some control at my pedal board. So it’s this fine balance of an amp that’s big and full and that’s almost on the edge of being crunchy but still clean and precise. I like to hear, it’s hard to explain, I want the amp to sound glassy, like I want to hear the tubes and feel that play between the guitar and the amp.

 

 

It’s been 30 years since you joined Sepultura in 1987, can you tell us a bit about how the music and your sound has developed over the years?
It’s developed together with everything else, like all of us growing up as people and traveling the world. We started out at a very young age, looking for pedals and gear that was nearly impossible to find in Brazil, and I started out using Mesa/Boogie, which I used for many years. Then this rep from Orange approached me, just at the time where a lot of heavier bands were embracing Orange, and as I was becoming a bit sick of my Mesa/Boogie sound I was ready to try something different, and I mean, you can watch Black Sabbath’s ‘Paranoid’ video where both Iommi and Geezer Butler are using Orange, so when I was given the opportunity to try it for myself I took it straight away – Orange always just had that ‘aura of the masters’. Orange offered more of an organic sound then what I was used to, because what I really love is when I’m able to just plug in and play. There is a lot of demand for distortion and heaviness with Sepultura, and I was very surprised that the Rockerverb II had all of that. A warm, and heavy guitar sound that kind of seemed to expand a bit more. In the studio I use a few different amps depending on what I need, but live the Rockerverb is absolutely fantastic, and on this tour I’m playing through both a Rockerverb 100 MKII and a Rockerverb 100 MKIII, and I could not be happier with all the support from Orange!

You mention Black Sabbath’s Tony Iommi and Geezer Butler as some of the masters, was there anyone else in particular that got you into playing when you were younger?
Mainly KISS and Queen, they were my two main bands. Queen came to Brazil in 1981, but my mum wouldn’t let me go because I was too young. Then KISS came in 1983, and that was my first ever show. Being able to go see them live at their Creatures of The Night tour, was insane, that changed my life. That’s why I’m here! Seeing that, in my home town, at my football team’s stadium.. As I said, it changed everything. When I first started playing, my goal was to play ‘Stairway to Heaven’, so that’s what I told my teacher. She gave me the basics and a good ground to learn on, gradually. It started out with acoustic Brazilian music, before moving onto other things. Slowly I’d expand my music taste as well, and start listening to bands such as Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, Jimi Hendrix and Cream, all of those incredible vintage sounding bands and artists. I’m also inspired by Brazilian music, and as I’ve become older and developed my taste I’ve picked up on a lot of the older Brazilian music, which has been a huge inspiration to Sepultura. That’s played a huge part in finding our sound, using Brazilian percussion and other bits from our more traditional music.

Correct me if I’m wrong, but you’ve also got a radio show?
Yeah, I’ve got a show with my 19 year old son Yohan, it’s great to have him involved and see how he’s developed over the years of the show, he himself is a musician as well, although more into the progressive side of rock, which you have to be an incredibly good musician to be able to play. We’ve been doing the show for five years now, and it’s really great, it’s so hard to get played on the radio, so I’ve been lucky enough to be able to open up doors for a lot of younger Brazilian bands. There’s one band called Claustrofobia, a group of young kids playing trash who also mix some of the Brazilian percussion into their music. They released an album called ‘Download Hatred’ at the end of the last year and it’s just brilliant, so check it out if you can, it’s fantastic. Besides that we have fun, and total freedom to play whatever we want, which of course is a lot of heavy and metal, but also Beatles, Stones and other bands like that too, as well as Napalm Death and Slipknot. All the extremes, and everything in between.

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