In this week’s podcast, I’ll discuss the Rush Pepbox, one of the earliest fuzz pedals made. Pepe Rush started making the Pepbox in 1966 in London. The tone is reminiscent of the Maestro FZ-1 but with a few variations.

Those of you who are into fuzz know we’ve been missing fuzz in this family. The Maestro isn’t being made anymore, and although there are a few copies of the Fuzzrite (another Maestro variant), they don’t sound quite right to my ears.

Well, it turns out that Pepe’s daughter, Lucy, is still making the Pepbox, and it’s the real deal time machine fuzz. But don’t be fooled into thinking it only does psychedelic fuzz.

I’ll discuss composition techniques and play examples using various guitars, amps, and effects combinations with the Pepbox. Context is crucial when choosing the right fuzz pedal. For me, that leads back to composition, production, and orchestration.

In these examples, I’ll also use a new microphone I’m excited about- the Tul G12, designed just for guitar amps. The Tul G12 allows you to record guitar amps in the center of the cone without the fizziness often associated with this position.

I'm available for private composition, guitar, and music theory lessons.

Other gear used in this podcast:

FSC 59’ Pickups

Gemini Lipstick Pickups

Teese Picture Wah

Earth Drive

Headstrong Lil’ King Reverb

Chase Bliss CXM-1978

Marshall SV20H

Purple Audio MC77