New (Boots and) Pedals!

OK, there's a lot to be said for finding a good musical equipment shop - especially one that's really close to your house. Hence why this post is going to be full of gushing admiration for Gig Sounds of Streatham. A good shop, staffed by friendly, helpful staff who are knowledgeable but also actually genuinely enthusiastic about the gear they are selling.

Now, normally I find going to musical equipment shops a cross between a wet dream and a nightmare. A wet dream, because of the profusion of stuff on offer, but a nightmare because it's almost impossible to get the arrogant, self important staff to pay attention to you - ESPECIALLY if you are female. I swear to god, this makes you invisible in most major music outlets, on both sides of the Atlantic. To the point where I've been tempted to shoplift, because I swear the staff would just see a guitar floating out the door under its own volition.

Gig Sounds, however - I didn't even have to go on the hunt - a young man actually interrupted his phone call to help me. Although they didn't have exactly what I wanted, he suggested an alternative, and not only ordered the desired pedal but then set one aside and ACTUALLY CALLED ME to let me know that it had come in.

When I dropped by to pick it up, he enquired as to my other pedal needs. Not in a "ooh, let me push more stuff on you" sort of way, but in a "Hey! You mentioned Electroharmonics last time - our entire range is 30% off this week!" Unfortunately, they didn't have anything I didn't already have (heh) but we got to talking about envelope filters (Moogerfoogers in specific) and he was all "Ooh, have you heard the Boss V-Wah?"

He wouldn't let me leave the store without trying it - set it up and oh my god, I fell in love at first listen. It's a wah modelling pedal which you can program to emulate anything from a Vox to a Crybaby to even a Talkbox. It does Cream style WOCKA-WOCKA, it does Virgin Prunes "make your guitar sound like a sitar" it does that My Bloody Valentine "Ssssshhhhh-grrrrrrrrr-ssshhhhhhhh" and even Stooges/Dino Jr "WEEEEOOOOOOWWWW-WUBBA-WUBBA-WEEEEEEEE".

I was in love. I had to have it.

And then the bit I hate - the bargaining. You never know if you're supposed to haggle, or if they'll be insulted, or what. I just kind of hemmed and hawed about my mortgage and he just said "Fuck it, I'll work out the deal" and that was that. (Very nice, too!) And then... as I was asking about power supplies (these things can always knock on another £20 onto your pedal purchases) he actually told me something I didn't know - about daisy chaining Boss pedals together, so you only need to buy one adaptor for all of them - which actually saved me money. Ker-CHING!

So I've got me some brand new toys to play with, and Dan at Gig Sounds, you have got yourself a customer for life. WUBWUBWUBWUBWUBWUBWUBWUBWUBWUB