Ground Floor Guitar Newsletter, vol. 2
Welcome to our second newsletter. This has been a busy summer for us at the shop. You may have heard that we had an unfortunate incident in late June. A group of people came in with the intent to steal from our shop and did just that. Two shop favorite guitars, owned by longtime customers, were taken along with some personal effects that made life a little more difficult. We are working with the Omaha Police Department to apprehend the thieves and find the instruments. The support we received from the community has kept us going while we revitalize the shop and catch up on repair work as we were closed for several days to work with authorities and evaluate the next steps for GFG. Other than that setback, we’ve been keeping busy with repairs and events in and around our home in the Blackstone District. Read on to see what else we have been up to.
Two guitars that were stolen from Ground Floor Guitar. 1979 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe Goldtop (left) and 1972 Fender Telecaster Thinline (left).
Punk Rock Music Market is a Huge Success!
On July 13th we partnered with the Omaha Punk Rock Flea Market to host our first ever Punk Rock Music Market. The event was held just across the street from the shop at Scriptown Brewing Company. While Scriptown poured their delightful brews, our good friends at Lazy Buffalo BBQ served up some delicious food for our excited crowd.
We brought plenty of goodies from the shop, including a new batch of t-shirts, pedals, accessories, and hardware. Aside from our booth, patrons were able to visit Vexed Brain, who brought a full demo pedalboard to hear firsthand his extreme effects pedals. Our buddy Adam Roberts had a great assortment of studio gear and goodies, in/ex Audio showed big up with their high quality handmade cables, and Sean Cox had plenty of Nomoonlaser guitar bodies ready for a build. Several other booths sold effects pedals, handmade microphones, and the entire second room housed hundreds of vinyl records for all the nerds (guilty) to flip through.
The event was capped off with performances from two of our favorite Omaha bands. The Wagon Blasters started off with their high energy Tractor Punk that made us ready to jump and sing along with legendary frontman, Gary Dean Davis. The event ended with Lightning Stills and his band of country misfits. It isn’t a GFG event if Lightning Stills isn’t there to sing his songs.
Overall, this event was a great success. We received nothing but positive feedback and cannot wait to host another one. If you’re interested in being a vendor, send us a message and we will keep you in mind for our next Music Market.
Lightning Stills at Scriptown Brewing, July 13.
A Few of our Favorite Things: Fuzz
Fuzz pedals emerged in the late 1960s as a groundbreaking innovation in the world of electric guitar effects. The roots of fuzz can be traced back to the accidental distortion produced by faulty amplifiers and tape machines, which caught the attention of musicians looking to explore new sonic textures. One of the earliest and most iconic fuzz pedals, the Maestro Fuzz-Tone, was introduced in 1962, gaining significant popularity after being featured on the Rolling Stones' "Satisfaction." The distinct, gritty sound provided by these pedals quickly became synonymous with the rock music of the era, and numerous brands began developing their own versions. Over the years, fuzz pedals have evolved through various designs and circuits, but their fundamental purpose remains the same: to create a rich, saturated distortion that has become an essential element of modern guitar music.
Your friends at Ground Floor Guitar absolutely love collecting fuzz pedals and want to share a few of our favorites with you.
Electro Harmonix Green Russian Big Muff (Tall Font) - In the 1990s, this pedal brought EHX back into prominence. Built in Russia, possibly using metal from Soviet-era tanks, the Green Russian brings that high-gain fuzz tone with a noticeable low end. The vintage versions can be found at a premium, but there are many boutique builders like Wren and Cuff, that make a near identical clone that is more affordable.
Behringer SF300 Super Fuzz - Why are we including a $25 fuzz pedal on this list? Because it rules! This is a total sleeper pedal that is spot on if you’re looking for that Electric Wizard tone. This pedal has three distinct tones that you can switch between: Fuzz 1 is a classic 60s/70s fuzz, Fuzz 2 is dubbed a Grunge Fuzz, and Boost is great for dialing up a killer fuzz solo.
JPTR FX Warlow - This Fuzz Monstrosity from Germany captures the raw, wild sound of the Seattle music scene. The JPTR FX Warlow is a premium-quality OP Amp Big Muff pedal that has been painstakingly rebuilt to deliver an even bigger, wider sound with more gain and volume.
What sets the Warlow apart from other Big Muff pedals is its unique filter section, which combines both classic and Proco Rat filters for a truly versatile and dynamic sound.
Services
Be sure to stop into the shop to take advantage of our repair services. While summer is a busy time of year, we are still available to restring a guitar on the spot, do a full setup, install pickups, or build a guitar if you source the parts. We hope to see you at the shop soon!