Mojotone has been “that place that has everything” for decades—but how did a parts house become an OEM powerhouse? Blake talks with Mojotone’s Andy Turner and Michael McWhorter about the wild ride from surplus pallets and a borrowed warehouse to building cabinets and amps for the biggest names in guitar.
We dig into the early Mojotone years, why turning on an old 1-800 number suddenly flooded them with Fender calls, the ZZ Top/Billy Gibbons stage builds (banana-leaf wraps, anyone?), and how amp kits evolved from one-off requests into a full product line.
The guys trace their OEM leap (hello, Gibson Goldtone era), the pickup journey from undercover “Custom Wound” to Quiet Coil noiseless singles, and the three-year quest to make a soundhole acoustic pickup that doesn’t, well, suck—plus the low-mid notch that changes everything.
Also on deck: tubes vs. modeling, why passion beats spreadsheets in the musical-instrument (MI) world, and the classic Tone Mob lightning round... Boss favorites and pizza opinions included.
Check them out on their website HERE https://mojotone.com/
Support The Show And Connect!
The Text Chat is back! Hit me up at (503) 751-8577
You can also help out with your gear buying habits by purchasing stuff from Tonemob.com/reverb Tonemob.com/sweetwater or grabbing your guitar/bass strings from Tonemob.com/stringjoy
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1:04:39
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1:04:39
How Parrotdice Guitars Became Portland’s Favorite Weird-Gear Hang
Some kids take apart toys. Jay Sasseen popped the backplate on a red Squier and never looked back.
That curiosity turned into Parottdice Guitars, a Multnomah Village spotwhere weird gear and rad people hang out.
We talk about the "gear flipping hustle" that became a real-deal guitar shop with a simple creed that actually works: fix things well, price things fair, remember names.
Then we go treasure hunting. Melody Makers that sing, MIJ Fenders that convert haters, Firebrand oddballs, 80s Gibsons that rip, a Hondo rifle-shaped contraption with a trigger pickup selector, and Blake’s rat-rod EB-0 turned Bass VI that should not work but does.
This is a very fun episode and there is something for everyone who loves the guitar, the MI industry, and weird dudes shooting the breeze.
Check them out on their website HERE https://www.parrotdiceguitars.com/
Support The Show And Connect!
The Text Chat is back! Hit me up at (503) 751-8577
You can also help out with your gear buying habits by purchasing stuff from Tonemob.com/reverb Tonemob.com/sweetwater or grabbing your guitar/bass strings from Tonemob.com/stringjoy
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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1:22:41
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1:22:41
Matt Parker vs. The Bass VI: Strings, Mods, and Mayhem
Matt Parker plays bass like a guy who read the manual and then set it on fire for warmth. We talk the strange magic of the Bass VI: why the new Squier Classic Vibe fixes the old headaches, and which mods turn wobble into weapon.
Matt rolls through rigs like a responsible maniac: Ashdown heads into a 6x10 for moving air, the LB-30 with built-in load for civilised neighbors, and a Valeton GP-200 LT fly rig that costs less than a boutique patch cable yet somehow slaps. We rant about in-ears and keeping your hearing, praise vintage instruments for having the good kind of problems, reminisce about the Metal Zone, and argue whether the Hofner looks classy or like a violin cosplaying as a lunchbox. There is also pizza. Of course there is pizza.
Bass VI as desert island instrument, studio Swiss Army knife, and riff enabler. Come for the bass. Stay for the sustain.
You are gonna love this one!
Give Matt a follow HERE https://www.instagram.com/mattparkerbass
Support The Show And Connect!
The Text Chat is back! Hit me up at (503) 751-8577
You can also help out with your gear buying habits by purchasing stuff from Tonemob.com/reverb Tonemob.com/sweetwater or grabbing your guitar/bass strings from Tonemob.com/stringjoy
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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1:32:01
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1:32:01
From Dead Radios to Living Tone: The Origin of R2R Electric
Chris Vincent (a.k.a. DJLavalamp) joins the podcast to tell the story of how a punk kid with a busted guitar wound up building some of the most coveted point-to-point, vintage style guitar pedals on the planet.
We get into the weird alchemy of germanium transistors (spoiler: they melt if you look at them sideways), scavenging tubes out of dead reel-to-reels, and why boutique pedals sometimes feel more like contraband than consumer goods.
Chris also gets into on the pedal community’s kindness, how running your own business is equal parts dream job and nervous breakdown, and why chasing tones is like chasing the world’s best slice of pizza—you’ll never stop, and that’s the point.
Check out his stuff on his website HERE https://www.r2relectric.com/
Support The Show And Connect!
The Text Chat is back! Hit me up at (503) 751-8577
You can also help out with your gear buying habits by purchasing stuff from Tonemob.com/reverb Tonemob.com/sweetwater or grabbing your guitar/bass strings from Tonemob.com/stringjoy
Release your music via DistroKid and save 30% by going to Tonemob.com/distrokid
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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1:07:01
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1:07:01
$36, Some Guitars, and a Federal Investigation (Mike Mitchell of The Kingsmen)
This week we’re dusting off a true gem from the Tone Mob archives!
My 2019 conversation with Mike Mitchell of The Kingsmen. Recorded live in a Portland cigar bar, this one dives into the chaotic birth of garage rock and the most famous three chords in history: Louie Louie.
Mike tells the story of how the band cut the track in a one-hour, $36 recording session — and then somehow wound up under FBI investigation because nobody could understand the freakin' lyrics. (Imagine J. Edgar Hoover, in a suit and sensible heels, spending taxpayer money trying to figure out if a bunch of teenagers were singing about naughty, naughty things. You can’t make this stuff up.)
We also get into the invention of Sunn Amps, how their pants-blowing stage volume influenced Hendrix, The Who, and the Stones, and why some folks consider The Kingsmen the accidental godfathers of punk.
The Kingsmen's FBI story has been making the rounds on the internet lately, and I thought it fitting to have folks hear it from the man himself. It’s a reminder that rock ’n’ roll has always been loud, messy, a little stupid, and that’s exactly why it’s beautiful.
So crank this one up, blow your hair back, and enjoy some history from the loudest living room in America.
RIP Mike Mitchell.
Support The Show And Connect!
The Text Chat is back! Hit me up at (503) 751-8577
You can also help out with your gear buying habits by purchasing stuff from Tonemob.com/reverb Tonemob.com/sweetwater or grabbing your guitar/bass strings from Tonemob.com/stringjoy
Release your music via DistroKid and save 30% by going to Tonemob.com/distrokid
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The year was 2015. Show host Blake Wyland intended to start a podcast where he took a deep dive with his guests from the guitar world to explain their rigs. What happened was that, but also a whole lot more. The show quickly evolved into discussions about people's lives. Guitars, pedals, amps, etc. are the central hub of the show, but it really is more about the PEOPLE behind all of it. Both the musicians who use the gear, and the folks that create these magical tools of expression. You can expect chats about songwriting, favorite bands, family, loss, addiction, conspiracy theories, philosophy, and most of all....... food. This podcast goes all over the place. Come take a ride.
New Zealand