THE GEAR
GT: What did you use for the recording of Liquid Quartet Live?
ML: I used a Fender Custom Shop Strat that has two Lollar Imperial humbuckers (standard wind). The main amp was a Dumble Slidewinder, which is similar to a four-input style Bassman amp with two 6L6s. The cabinet is a Kerry Wright 4x12 open back with vintage Celestion G12-65s. The second amp (used for the wet pedal board) was a Fender Hot Rod Deville ML 212.
GT: What dictates you using single coils or humbuckers?
ML: Several years ago, when I started to tour in Europe a lot, I started using a Strat with humbuckers because I couldn’t deal with the single-coil hum at the clubs I was playing. I use a lot of gain from my overdrive pedals and at times the hum was way too overbearing. I love both humbuckers and single-coils though, it just really depends on the venue and my mood. Single-coils sound and feel more immediate to me when I play with my fingers instead of a pick. It feels like there’s nothing between my fingers and the speaker if you know what I mean; the sound coming out of the amp is instant. Because of some of the frequency cancellation that naturally occurs with a humbucking pickup, humbuckers have a ‘lazier’ feel to me, and sound more ‘cloudy’ on the top end; they have a looser feel than a single-coil, but obviously humbuckers have a round, crunchy sounding midrange. Both pickups serve their purpose very well.
GT: Do you prefer overdrive pedals to amp overdrive?
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