GUITARGRABBAG
STOP PEDAL DANCING : One-Button Simplicity in the Age of Big Pedalboards
News Flash : There are elements of leading worship that have little or nothing to do with actually making music ! Yes - it ’ s true ! I believe the role of a worship leader can be summed up like this : You ’ re an usher , with the job of limiting distractions , and showing people where to go . So whether you ’ re the person “ up front ” leading the charge on a Sunday , or you ’ re the sideman filling the “ Band : Electric Guitar ” slot on Planning Center , it ’ s your job to point people to God and help them get there with as few distractions as possible .
With that in mind , I ’ ve worked hard and spent way too much money to make sure that I have very few distractions for myself ( don ’ t all musicians have some form of ADD anyway ? Oh look , SHINY ! Yay ! wait .. back to the article !). This attention to detail and programming and time means that , in the moment , I ’ m not lost in thought about how I ’ m going to get all these pedals turned on for this one ambient tone , or how I ’ m going to make this turnaround with one pedal , then back to the chorus with these other two ! It allows for inspirational levels of tone without compromising because you don ’ t have an extra foot or three .
Those of you familiar with Line 6 , AxeFX , Kemper - frankly , any all-in-one guitar tone solution - know this all too well . If you want an arena-rocking Journey tone on one song and a pawnshop prize tone on the next one , all it takes is one press of a button and you ’ re there . My time working with Line 6 HD ’ s taught me how valuable that was for a worship leader . Yes , it takes time on the front end , but when I can focus on leading the people instead of working the pedals , I can be better at the thing I ’ m really there to do : LEAD .
So if you ’ re curious about how to stop doing the Pedalboard Pirouette , here are some simple steps to get you started .
CENTRALIZE CONTROL I have a Custom Audio Electronics RST-LS
Pedalboard switching system , built by Bob Bradshaw . ( He ’ s famous for designing and building custom guitar rigs for people like The Edge , U2 , Prince ( along with many others .) It is a self-contained , 10-loop , Midi-capable controller that sits on my pedalboard and everything runs through it . I have several analog stomp boxes , plus a couple of Midi-controlled devices as well , an Eventide H9 and a Line 6 M9 . The RST gives me direct control for on-thefly choices , but most often , is used to program tones for individual songs or parts of songs . This is Central Command , the way I access everything I need to create tones . It switches on or off stomp boxes , and changes programs on the H9 and M9 for me . So when I start a song , one button press and I ’ m ready ! Going to a solo ? One button . Need an ambient pad for prayer ? Yep , you guessed it - one button !
The RST is not the only game in town , though it is a stellar choice . Boss has released the ES-8 ( and ES-5 for smaller boards ), RJM has the Mastermind PBC and Decibel Eleven has the Switch Dr ., just to name a few ! All of these attempt to reign in the pedal dance and give you the freedom to recall a tone with the touch of a button .
FIND THE TIME Once you ’ ve decided what you need to corral the pedals on your board , set aside some time ! It always takes a little time to get used to something new , so make sure you ’ ve planned ahead to have time with your new controller before you have to go use it . It won ’ t do what you want it to without spending some time
to make it work . Most of the options I listed above have so much power under the hood , it will take a little while to get used to the basic functions , let alone what capabilities it might have underneath the surface . Take the time to learn all the facets of it . Check out Youtube tutorials and learn what it ’ s capable of .
GET SERIOUS
The professional guitar player works on his craft long before you ever see them hit the stage . They know their tones inside and out , and what it took to get there . But the end result of all that work leaves them free to play , free to interact with bandmates , and free to engage the audience . And the end result of putting a rig together like this leaves you with that same opportunity . It affords you the chance to really lean into leading worship , not just playing songs . Playing guitar , not playing with your pedalboard . Finding freedom in worship that ultimately helps you AND your congregation to connect with the Creator !
JEFFREY B . SCOTT Lives in Atlanta , GA with his wife & 3 kids and is deadset on delivering his best for God ’ s glory . Guitarist , vocalist , producer & songwriter . Check out his EP Highest Heights on iTunes . @ JeffreyBScott
12 Jan � Feb 2017 WorshipMusician . com