Scott Henderson Discussion

[dizzy]

The new album is fantastic Scott!
The writing, playing and tones.

Your improvising just keeps evolving too.
The harmonic ideas are really unique and the rhythms are super inventive.

Amazing!

The bass playing and drumming are great too.
Even though it’s a dense mix there is a lot of room for the bass too speak.

[Scott Henderson]

Thanks Dan, much appreciated! I'm too close to it to comment on the music - I hope I've improved but one can only hope...

However the sound of this album is superior to anything I've ever done, mostly thanks to Alan Hertz's mix and Scott Kinsey's mastering. This time Archie played his own kit so it's a better drum sound than People Mover, and we added a bit of 50Hz to the bass instead of 100, which gets into the guitar territory, so everything sounds clearer and more separated.

Thanks again!

[dizzy]

Yeah—-the bass is super clear and at the same time you can hear the guitars really well. That 50hz obviously works!

Also—listening more, it’s really cool how even the basic solo tones are different for each song. You tailored the basic core tones to individually express each song—not sure if that makes sense.

[Scott Henderson]

Thanks for noticing that - it's something I've been trying to do more on my later albums. It feels great to find melody and solo tones which fit the song, but searching for them drives me crazy sometimes because it can be time consuming.

I have a bunch of Ritchie Blackmore isolated tracks, and I'm sure this could be said about other great rock guitarists like Jeff Beck and Jimmy Page - their tone is very different for each song. Some of Ritchie's tones sound pretty weird, but mixed with the band they sound amazing and perfect for the song.

I also learned that Ritchie did a lot of layering on the Deep Purple albums - it's not as noticeable as Led Zeppelin because the organ takes up space in the mix, but he's got five tracks going on in a lot of those tunes, often doubling parts with a midrange heavy tone on one side of the stereo mix and a very scooped tone on the other. It's a lot of fun to listen to the whole guitar mix without the band, and that's what I hope people will enjoy about the play along version of my albums. On Karnevel! there are more separated guitar stems so it's easier to hear the layers.

Sorry, I went off on a rant...

[magicaldog]

Please tell us why the spelling is with a C and e and why the exclamation sign ?

[Scott Henderson]

Sometimes there are no scientific explanations for things. Shit just happens.

[Thanasis]

Hi Scott!

Congratulations on the album. It is really amazing.

Everything I've always liked about your writing, layering, playing etc got even better and it is more you than ever!

Congrats to the guys Romaine and Archie and everyone else involved for putting this together.

I listen to it everyday and there is a lot to take in but I know I'll come up with a million reasons to like it even more as the days go by.

[magicaldog]

[Thumberstrummer]

Dunno why this post is called the wrong way, as your album title is Karnevel!
In any case: Scott I can't find the words to espress all of my admiration for such a great album! I've been waiting for sooo long something new from you, as any of your albums has always been a fresh source of inspiration to me... and it seems I became an addicted to that through the years
Every single aspect of your musical vein seems on steroids on Karnevel!.
The guitar layering work is on steroids, the compositions are on steroids, the tones are otherwordly, the phrasing, the arrangment... not mentioning your stellar skills as a horn arranger, since it seems you've packet the whole Tower Of Power horn section (including "Doc" Kupka and his tenor sax...) into Covid Vaccination... lol
I've watched an interview on YT where you dig deep into the soundtoys you've used to get certain tones. But what I'm more curious about is - that crispy, familiar, complex crunchy tone of yours where does come from? What pedal do you use for the "ordinary" parts? Is your double deck RC booster or what?
Last but not least - Scott seems time has come to launch that 'wchich is which' quiz about the tracks played through a real cab, or those through your signature YA IR's... lol
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Germino Club 40 plexi replica + EJ Strat w Suhr ML st. pups. I'm not asking for more so far (but... who knows...?)

[Scott Henderson]

Thanks for the kind words - I'm happy you like the album!

The main melodies and solos are mostly played with the white one-channel RC Booster into my '71 Marshall. I like it more than the two-channel version for recording, but still use the two-channel on my board. The higher gain solos are the Klon Centaur.

Most of the chords are played with the LA Sound Design Buffer/ Boost, into a ChaseTone Secret Preamp. The Buffer/ Boost has more bass than the RC and not as much gain, and the Secret Preamp adds a nice warm 3D type sound - hard to explain in words. It's basically the circuit from a 70's Echoplex.

[Thumberstrummer]

Many many thanks Scott.
Very much appreciated!
I'll never be enough thankful to you for being so available to unveil your tone secrets.
Watching your interview on youtube, where you speak about the Secret Preamp, I soon had the feeling that the unprecedented matter (to me at least) you introduced there is 'putting a preamp / booster AFTER a booster'. Never tried before. So I got back to my trusty EP Booster by Xotic (one of the many pedals available, reproducing the preamp side of an old Echoplex), put it after my Klon clone (occasionally set as a booster, with the gain at 0 and the volume maxed) and got it. Great idea, even though it works better in front of my JTM45 than in my Fender Bassman, that at the moment is my first amp choice as a clean platform for pedals. Normally I put the EP before dirt pedals, to push them into heavier gain territories. Many thanks for such smart advice!
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Germino Club 40 plexi replica + EJ Strat w Suhr ML st. pups. I'm not asking for more so far (but... who knows...?)

[Thumberstrummer]

Scott I have to say that Karnevel has gradually climbed the hill of your vaste discography, becoming my preferred album.
I also have to say that Puerto Madero is my preferred tune. That solo on the outro is pure guitar heaven! Period
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Germino Club 40 plexi replica + EJ Strat w Suhr ML st. pups. I'm not asking for more so far (but... who knows...?)