Marshall Law #1 Artwork

Photo : Chris Gill
U.K. Artist News U.K. Artist News
Welcome to the first U.K. Artist news pages in this the re-born
Marshall Law. Here we aim to give you a brief overview of the
Marshall wielding bands / guitarists currently in the news in dear ol’
Blighty, both established and, just as importantly up and coming.
Since Marshall Amplification began in 1962, we have always
had a great relationship with guitar players. In the sixties it
was quite usual to find the likes of the then relatively unknown
Jimmy Page, Eric Clapton, Ritchie Blackmore, Jeff Beck, Pete
Townshend etc. hanging out in the Marshall shop on a Saturday.
It was this relationship which was fundamental in leading such
guitarists to continue using Marshall later in their careers.
To this day we still pay a great deal of attention to the up and
coming guitarist as it is with such artists that our future lies. So,
although you may be unfamiliar with some of the following artists,
you can rest assured that they are all proud members of the
Marshall army and are destined to become household names.
★ The Brit Scene ★
The music scene in England has undertaken a number of interesting
turns since the mid 1980s. It is no longer the norm to find guitar heroes
stalking stages of 4x12 cabs stacked to the rafters, playing never ending
guitar solos. The guitarist of 1996 is an altogether different animal, where
the song is more important than the solo. One thing that has remained
constant though, is the familiar Marshall logo behind the guitarist.
With the advent of Brit Pop and Brit Rock, a host of new bands are now
being powered by the mighty Marshall. Here are just a few of the bands
flying the Brit Pop banner that we have supplied with gear - Pulp with
6100s and a JTM60 combo, Blur with 1959SLPs, PB100, cabs and MS-2s,
The Boo Radleys with 4100s and DBS gear, Marion with 8280s, Echobelly
with 1959SLP’s, a 1962 Bluesbreaker combo, an 8100 and various cabs,
The Bluetones with a 6100LM and 4x12 cabs and Ash with 6100s and a
JTM60 combo.
Under the Brit Rock banner things are also looking rosy. We
have supplied Terrorvision with 4100s and cabs, Skin with
4100s, 6100s and cabs and also Paradise Lost with numerous
pieces of rack equipment and cabs. We have also keenly
watched the progress of The Wildhearts another great
Marshall band.
Last, but by no means least, England’s finest, the
almighty Oasis are very vocal regarding their use of and
admiration for Marshall Amplification in the music press. In
fact, the bands bass player, Paul Guigsy McGuigan recently
visited the Marshall factory to check out our DBS range. He
was so impressed that he promptly placed an order for a DBS
rig, consisting of a 7400 head, 7412 4x12 cab and a 7215 2x15
cab to be sent straight to the Oasis rehearsal rooms.
With the aforementioned groups sounding like a list of Britain’s
most popular guitar orientated bands, Marshall’s health is ruder than
ever.
★ There and Beck ★
British guitar ace Jeff Beck recently completed his
U.S. tour sharing the bill with another guitar great,
Carlos Santana.
Jeff had been auditioning a number of
different amps for use in his backline which
resulted in him becoming more firmly
attached to his own original 1970s 50 Watt
Marshall Super Lead head. After an urgent
phone call from Andy Roberts, Jeff’s tech, we
shipped a brand new 1987x Super Lead head
to Beck’s rehearsal studio.
The result, Beck’s guitar backline is now exclusively powered by
two Marshall 50 Watt Super Lead heads, one original and one
re-issue. Plus, of course, Marshall 4x12s.
★ Babylon Zoo ★
The first single from Babylon Zoo’s debut album, The
Boy With The X-Ray Eyes, became an instant no.1 in the
charts both in England and in 12 other countries at the
last count. The single, titled Spaceman, which was also
used for a recent Levis 501 advert, featured Bowie-esque
vocals, dance beats and a super charged driving guitar.
To reproduce the killer guitar tone live, Babylon Zoo rely on
Valvestate 8100s and Marshall 4x12 cabs.
★ Tim Renwick ★
Long time second guitar player for Pink Floyd, Tim Renwick, has
recently joined the Marshall ranks. Tim, also widely known for a string of
other sessions such as Mike and The Mechanics and various T.V. shows
has become the proud owner of a JMP-1, JFX-1, 9200 and two 1936
cabinets.
Tim finds that this rig easily supplies the wide array of sounds and tones
required by the modern day session player. What’s more, this set-up is
incredibly easy to use.
★ The Boo Radleys ★
Fresh from the success of 1995’s Wake Up, the Boo Radleys have just
completed recording their fifth album. As with each of their previous
albums, the latest promises to follow a different direction.
One thing that will remain constant though is the bands
use of Marshall equipment. The Boo’s used a selection
of different Marshalls while in the studio, including
various Dual Reverb models, DRP-1s and DBS
bass gear.
★ Apes, Pigs & Spacemen ★
One of England’s finest and most promising new rock
bands, Apes, Pigs and Spacemen, have recently returned
home from a triumphant support tour with American rock
giants, Skid Row. This trek definitely enhanced the
success of their debut album, Transfusion, which was
produced by Simon Efemy [fresh from working with such
luminaries as Pantera and Helmet].
Apes, Pigs and Spacemen’s guitarist Kettle is currently
in the process of re-organising his guitar rig and has been
using a Marshall JMP-1 and 9200 power amp for the
band’s recent live outings. Kettle is looking to move
permanently to this Marshall rack set-up in the near future.
Godfathers Of Grunge?
Killing Joke have enjoyed a resurgence
of interest over the past few years for two
reasons. 1. The similarity between Killing
Joke’s track Eighties and the later released
Nirvana song Come As You Are, along with
the resulting public battle between the two
bands. 2. A stripping down of the bands
sound resulting in an unbelievably slamming
guitar fest courtesy of macho fret mangler
Geordie Walker [Right].
Geordie’s JMP-1 and 9200
powered killer guitar sound can
be heard to great effect
throughout Killing Joke’s latest
album Democracy. The recording of which
blew all of Geordie’s non-Marshall guitar cabs
soon to be replaced by, yes you guessed it,
the only cabs man enough for the job, trusty Marshall 4x12s.
★ Ash ★
Formed in late ’92, the story
behind pop-punk sensation Ash
reads like every school boys
dream. Three lads form a band
playing music reminiscent of
the Undertones and the
Buzzcocks through to Husker
Du and the Pixies; go on tour
with the likes of Elastica,
supporting Ride and Babes in
Toyland and get no less than four
NME Brat Award nominations. All while
still at school!
The lads finally left school in June ’95 and their
infuriatingly catchy single, Girl From Mars, entered the national charts in
England just over a month later at no.11. 1996 looks set to carry on in just
the same way with the single Goldfinger recently going into the English
charts at an astounding no.5. Throughout this time Ash have relied on
Marshall Amplification for their guitar backline, currently consisting of
6100LM heads and a JTM60 combo.
★ Ocean Colour Scene ★
★ Killing Joke ★
Currently taking the British charts by storm are the Birmingham based
band Ocean Colour Scene. At the forefront of the happening Mod scene in
England, OCS produce a sound that is fresh and exciting whilst being
classic and timeless.
Drawing on influences such as The Small Faces and The
Beatles, Ocean Colour Scene’s guitar sound is powered by a
mixture of different Marshall amps through 1960AX and 1960BX
cabinets. The resulting tone is a publicly cited favourite of the
likes of Noel Gallagher of Oasis fame and also Paul Weller.
In fact, Paul Weller is such a fan that around the time of the
Wild Wood sessions, Steve Craddock, guitarist extraordinaire
with OCS was invited to fill the position of guitarist with Paul
Weller. A position that he has filled admirably for the last two
years in addition to his role as guitarist in OCS.
★ Pulp ★
After 16 years of trying to make
it, Pulp are definitely there. Their
last album, Different Class, included
the massive hit singles Common
People and, complete with raucous
power chords, the stunning Disco
2000.
The amps that Pulp choose to
record and gig with? Marshall
6100LM heads and a JTM60 combo.
★ Skin ★
In just under two years Skin have become the British standard bearers
of traditional good time hard rock. During a time when bands playing this
type of music are definitely not the media darlings
they once were, Skin have been incredibly
successful.
Having already played Donnington,
supported Bon Jovi and had a debut
album go straight into the British charts
at No. 9, Skin look set to continue onto
great things.
Myke Gray, the guitar wunderkind
with Skin used to rely on a 9001/9005
set-up and a 4100. He now chooses
6100LMs to deliver his Marshall powered
guitar sound.
Photo : Guido Karp
Photo : Kevin Westenburg
★ Terrorvision ★
1994 saw the release of Terrorvision’s second
album, How To Make Friends And Influence
People. This instant ‘must have’ addition to any
record collection spawned no less than five hit
singles in the U.K. Their recently released third
LP, Regular Urban Survivors, looks set to carry
on the same way having already produced two top
10 singles, Perseverance at no.5 and Celebrity
Hit List at no.10. With the band already booked
to play England’s infamous Phoenix and Reading
festivals this summer, the future couldn’t look
brighter for them.
At the heart of Terrorvision’s loveable fusing of rock and pop is Mark
Yates’s guitar. For both live and studio work, Mark opts for a classic, backto-basics
guitar rig consisting of a Les Paul, a wah-wah and two mighty
Marshall 4100s to deliver his crunching guitar sound.
★ Echobelly ★
Echobelly’s lead guitarist Glen was recently
speaking to Paul Weller, a long time user of Marshall
Bluesbreaker combos, who suggested to Glen that he
really ought to check them out.
Glen, himself a staunch Marshall devotee who
usually plays through a 1959SLP, 1960AX, 1960BX
and a Bluesbreaker pedal, has ordered a Bluesbreaker
combo for his current recording session and for
Echobelly’s support with David Bowie.
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By Simon Alexander The Best of British