Tyrannovox Gear Secrets, Part 1

Ken here, with the inside scoop on the guitars and gear that Mike and I have used throughout the career of Tyrannovox.

When we first convened in early 2008, Mike and I had pretty similar set-ups: humbucker-equipped guitars, Digitech floor processors (GNX3 for me, GNX3000 for Mike), and solid state combo amplifiers.

AMPS, EARLY ON

My amp at the time was a Rogue RG120R--a hideous little piece of work, but it had two speakers and could struggle its way up to practice volume. Mike's amp was an Ibanez Toneblaster of some sort (the 150R, I think), which obliterated the Rogue in both volume and clarity. He eventually switched to a Fender solid state combo with similar features to the Ibanez.

GUITARS, EARLY ON

My guitar back then was a Kramer plywood guitar--a black and orange Focus 111S that I was always tinkering with. It eventually ended up with a single Seymour Duncan Hot Rails pickup running to a single volume knob, which was the combination it had by the time I was in Tyrannovox. It also had very nice locking Schaller tuning heads. I had another Kramer Focus, a black one, that I never really did anything with.

Mike had a worn cherry Gibson SG. Aside from accidentally snapping off the headstock, I don't think he ever made any special modifications to it. He also had a great-sounding yellow Strat that he built as a project guitar, dubbed the "Mike-o-caster." I'm not sure he's ever played outside of the practice room.

TONES

To get his sounds, Mike switches between presets on the GNX3000. He uses the "PHISHY" setting for clean tones, the "DOVER" setting for distorted tones, and a weird one--I think it's called "PDLSLIDE"--for the thing in the middle of "China Glass." He has tried playing a few times just using the amp's footswitch, but he always ends up going back to the GNX3000 to keep his tones consistent.

For my part, I don't like to switch between settings, so I set up one sound and leave it alone. I dial in a Van Halen-type sound on the GNX3, usually with a touch of big arena reverb and analog delay. I have the gain up most of the way, and use the volume knob on the guitar to suck out the distortion for clean parts.

I also have a Marshall Guv'nor Plus distortion pedal, which I didn't use with the dreadful Rogue amp. When I got a different amp (more on that next time), I went back to the Guv'nor and made good use of it. It's a great pedal if you're searching for a budget-minded alternative to the classic Marshall sound.

More gear secrets in the next update!

Shows!

Ken here, with an update to our concert schedule.

This Friday (October 1), we will be appearing at Morelands' Motocross Park in Stanton, MI. You can find their information on the event here. Aside from us, there will be other bands, volleyball, and an RV sewage dump. All right!

We will also be at Mac's Bar in Lansing on Sunday, October 10. It'll be five bucks for us and a couple other bands, so it sounds like a great time to me.

As usual, we'll be foisting CDs upon unsuspecting audience members after each show ($3 per, so bring enough cash!), so look out for that as well. And if you're lucky, we might be playing some new material.

To recap:

Morelands' (10/1/2010)
5235 E Pakes Rd
Stanton, MI 48888
(989) 330-2826

Mac's Bar (10/10/10) <--Aw, gee, wouldja lookit that?
2700 E Michigan Ave
Lansing, MI 48917
(517) 484-6795

In the studio again.

Tyrannovox -1 @ Oade's (8/13/2010).
Souls stolen by David "Shang Tsung" Loomis.

And by "studio," I mean "Raymond's basement." Ken here.

We apologize that Adam couldn't make it to our Friday the 13th show, but we did our best to deal without him. I think it went relatively well. Hopefully everybody enjoyed themselves.

The latest news: we're recording again! We're working on songs right now. Some of them you may have heard if you've been to our recent shows. Some, we've had for a while and just haven't committed to tape* yet. And some are brand new, unfinished, and never heard before. It's all awesome, and before long, it'll all be in your ears.

(*Tape? Yeah right.)

Our current set of recordings is available on our first disc, titled Guano Loco. You have to come to our shows if you want a copy! Or, you can be a cheapskate and listen to the songs here on the site. Your call.

As far as shows go, there's nothing definite yet, but we're working on a date at Mac's Bar in October. Keep it here for the details on that.

More Oade's info.

Can you spot what's wrong with this picture?

Ken here, with a few additions/corrections to the previous post.

• The price will be five dollars at the door. The original figure of six dollars (both in the post and pictured in the flier) is incorrect.
• Ladies get in free from 9PM to 10:30.
• The show will probably start at around 10PM.
• We are probably going on second or third, meaning you can expect us to go on at sometime around 11PM or midnight.

We've got a couple of new tunes ready to go, plus a couple of choice covers, so it should be an awesome night. Bring friends and buy drinks!

Once again, you can find Oade's at:
1210 S Washington Ave
Lansing, MI 48901

Oade's again!

Tyrannovox @ The Loft (7/28/2010). Generously
immortalized in shiny purple lights by David Loomis.

Ken here.

The show at The Loft was pretty thrilling. Kudos to all the friends, family members, and strangers who came out and made it a good time.

For the fans who are dying to know when the next show will be (I'm sure there's at least one), we're planning on another show at Oade's on Friday, August 13. That's right: Friday the 13th. Don't worry--the scariest thing at Oade's will be the Sphincter Beast, glaring down upon us all.

When will we play? I'm not sure. Be there by 10PM, though, or maybe even 9:30! Order plenty of drinks while you're at it. Cover is six bucks. You must be at least 21, unless you're in the band. Which you're not. Band members don't have to read their own website to know what's going on.

In case you forgot, here's where you can find Oade's:
1210 S Washington Ave
Lansing, MI 48901

"What kind of music do you play?"

Tyrannovox @ Crane Farm (7/24/2010). Photo by David Loomis. Undeniable charisma by Raymond Crane.


Hello, there. Ken here.

I don't know about the other guys in the band, but there's one question I get asked a lot: "What kind of music do you play?"*

It's very hard for us to describe our own music. I know it's a stereotype, and you've probably heard it before. Ask a musician what he plays, and he'll go into a long, stammering speech about the 46 different genres he incorporates into his playing. The short explanation is that it's just not something that we've thought about very hard. But it's also something that we shouldn't think about very hard.

Allow me to explain. When Raymond, Mike, and I first convened a long time ago, we didn't know what kind of music we were going to make. We each brought our own skills and tastes with us, and we tried to keep an ear out for what was meshing and what wasn't. Our earliest music was born of that process. We never gave it a name, and we didn't set out to make music that fit within a certain category. We just tried to let it happen.

I think it's for the best that we can't easily describe what we do. If we had set out to make music with a certain genre in mind, then we might have rejected some very good material. Genres separate the stuff that fits in from the stuff that doesn't. For us, whatever fits in is whatever sounds good to us. If we were to decide what our music is (and what it isn't), then we might lose that freedom. We might start accepting and rejecting stuff based on whether or not it "fits in" with the category we're striving for, rather than using our own sense of what's good and what isn't.

For that reason, I just call it "rock." It's broad, but it seems to cover the most common ground. If you want a more elaborate answer, you can listen to our songs on the left side of this page.

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Don't forget about our show at The Loft this Wednesday. Check out the details in this post.

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*It's right up there with "You're the one in that Tyrannosaurus band, right?"

We're not worthy!

Alice Cooper, holding the disembodied head of Mike Loomis. Photo taken by Mike's decapitated body.


Hey, folks. Ken here.

Latest update on the contest to open for Kiss: we are currently in 54th place, just a scant 1,772 votes behind the contest leader. It's in the bag, baby!

Congratulations to Mike for his chance run-in with Alice Cooper just a few days ago. Alice rocked Lansing at Common Ground last Friday, and spent the following morning at the golf course where Mike works. Alice chipped a ball out of the rough onto the green, then chopped Mike's head off in celebration.

Hopefully Mike will be okay for the farm show on Saturday the 24th. Check the deets at this post.

We also have another upcoming date at The Loft, where we'll be playing on Wednesday the 28th. Music Manor is sponsoring the evening's entertainment, so it looks like it's going to be a big one. The cover is $7 for ages 18-20 and $5 for ages 21+. Doors open at 8PM.

The Loft is located above the Harem Urban Lounge at:
414 E Michigan Ave
Lansing, MI 48933

Here's the flier for the show: