The Steel Guitar Forum

Anybody else looping with your lap steel?

I've become particularly addicted to running my Industrial Guitars Baritone Lap Steel through my Boss RC-50 to build up textures. An example demo is available or my myspace page at http://www.myspace.com/lorenclaypool - the piece is "The Empty Place". While you're there, the drone on "Fire Dancing on Frozen Tundra" is a lap steel, too - heavily manipulated!

Good stuff, Loren. I sent a friend request.

I've done a fair bit of ambient music over the years, though the material I have on MySpace at the moment is from about a year ago, mostly solo bottleneck resonator material. I did some solo recordings with no effects as a kind of challenge, to show I can play "normal" guitar. Sort of.

I'm a rank beginner on lap steel, but my intention is to integrate it into the sort of arty music that I've always done. So, anything from ambient to post-rock. Though I intend to learn the lap steel properly, if I can, which means getting to grips with the classic stuff.

I've only listened to "The Empty Place" so far, but I like it a lot. Really good textures and layers, very inspiring for me. I've been experimenting with synths recently, but the purchase of a lap steel has put my keyboard into storage for the time being.

I loop with my Boss DD-20, nothing fancy, I use it to hear what a lead will sound like over a particular rythm instead of recording. For that reason I don't have any of that stuff recorded.

Loren, we exchanged email a few months back after I stumbled on your site. Just wanted to reiterate that I really like what you are doing with your music and the lap steel.

I haven't experimented with looping and lap steel in quite a while, but I'm a big fan of the Frippertronics styled sound of "The Empty Place". Thanks for sharing!

Really interesting stuff, Loren -- I love the textures. I haven't tried looping yet (still working on finding the more popular notes), but Kaki King has done some really cool things live, just with lap steel and looping device.

Here's a YouTub link:
http://youtube.com/watch?v=69qNYYhUom0

Yup:

http://www.myspace.com/8nakedbuddhas

I've been looping for about 20 years, starting off with a 2 second boss delay pedal, then a digitech 8 second rack delay, then a Lexicon JamMan and now I use a Line 6 DL4. I am giving serious thought to picking up the new Eventide delay.

I haven't used my PSG for any looping, only the lap because I frankly find it more loop friendly.

Loren, Twayn, very nice indeed.

I use a Gibson (Oberheim) Echoplex.

A lonely little example cooked up earlier this year on a Ric B6, fretless bass and bowed upright can be heard Here

Very nice, Pat. Always good to hear you.

Pat, right back at ya!

Pat, I pre-ordered Glaciation and have been digging it since its arrival. I've been "texturing" with lap steel and lap steel loops for a while and sometimes throw in harmonics as you did in this piece, a little sprinkle on top. I make use of the reversinator, too. Wonderful stuff! And thanks for your kind words.

Haven't tried it myself but you can get some interesting textures.

Loren Claypool wrote:Pat, I pre-ordered Glaciation and have been digging it since its arrival. I've been "texturing" with lap steel and lap steel loops for a while and sometimes throw in harmonics as you did in this piece, a little sprinkle on top. I make use of the reversinator, too. Wonderful stuff! And thanks for your kind words.

What is Glaciation and who makes it?

Glaciation is the latest CD from Patrick O'Hearn. http://www.patrickohearn.com/ for info and samples.

I enjoyed your MySpace page tremendously, Loren; I think you are on my friend list. Very much my taste in experimental. I am trying to stack up $$ for a Boomerang looper but it is a little while down the road. I have a piece already in mind for it when I have it. That bass, by the way, makes me smile!

Keith, thank you much. We are indeed friended on MySpace. For what it's worth, I'm currently using a Boss RC-50; I like the fact that I can have three sync'ed or unsynd'ec independent loops with the ability to reverse each loop independently in real time.

Re: the bass, that's my trusty Warr Artist 10-string. I use it or my Austin Douglas 8-string for almost all of my bass tracks. Occasionally I'll use my fretless guitar through a Boss PS-5 or my Godin xtSA or Frankenstrat to drive a GR-33 or a softsynth through a GI-20 for bass. Descriptions and pictures of these and other instruments are available at my website, www.lorenclaypool.com.

I'm actually on the site as we speak. Great gear, I am using the third neck of a Fender '55 Stringmaster quad. 8 strings closer to heaven! Lost a lot of gear this year but I am gearing back up and moving to Austin in June- hoping to find more folks that like this kind of stuff so I can start playing regularly again. I am quite impressed and inspired by your site and others like it and am glad to see you guys on the forum!

BTW it escaped me completely that we had Pat reply on here, I am also a big fan; I spent a couple of days in the late 90's talking to Terry Bozzio while working for Guitar Center during one of his clinic tours. He spoke fondly of him and I began hunting down some of the music afterward, though I don't have the newer stuff. Gives me another thing to get after the Boomerang.