I made this video a few years ago about a neat and easy way for a guitar player to run some good sounding pads while playing, but I’m going to talk about swells and ambient stuff on the guitar more now. You could go buy all the same gear I have or run the pedals the same way, but that’s not being true to yourself and it’s not the only way (and definitely not the best way) to do it. So this post is not going to be about settings and certain pedals, but how to get swells and ambient stuff in general.

When doing swells, the biggest parts are being able to swell the volume smoothly and having the note or notes carry over while you swell in the next note. Volume pedals are obviously the easiest way to swell, but you can definitely use a volume knob with a lot of practice. Be sensitive to the volume so that you don’t overpower who is speaking or praying over it. I typically turn off drives, but will sometimes have a little boost on if needed.

From an effects standpoint, it’s important that you get a long tail on that note or notes that you play. Most of the time, you may want a few delays on for this. I find that an analog delay with a long repeat and some modulation gets a great swell sound. I use my Memory Man for this, but I really like the Echo Park sounds as well. I also have a great analog setting on the DD-20 that has a long repeat I’ll use with the Memory Man. If you put the feedback or repeat up right before it gets crazy and doesn’t stop repeating, that typically sounds pretty good. There’s also this cool reverse setting on the DD-5 you can use where you put the effect in just a little, repeats pretty long and the time can fluctuate.

I typically will also have some reverb on there. I stick to the modulation setting on the RV-5. You don’t want it repeating forever so that all your notes get muddy, but you want it to transition smoothly between the notes, without any dead space. I also occasionally like to add some octaves (not too crazy but helps with a fuller and sometimes organ sound), or a slow tremolo with not too much depth. If you use a wah pedal, you can also sweep the frequency and it sounds pretty cool, but that’s obviously very hard to do while use the volume pedal too. Which brings me to my next point…

I really hope someday, some company makes a swell pedal. All it needs to do is swell…and be small…and cheap. The Line 6 DL4 has an awesome auto-volume delay patch that makes an amazing pad sound when you dial it in right and combine it with some other effects. What this does is eliminate the need for swelling the volume pedal or knob and it swells automatically. The thing you have to watch out for with this is how it can be sort of choppy and the transitions between chords and notes aren’t smooth. When I had my POG2, I had a preset that did a swell setting really well too, but it didn’t have any tail at all. I honestly liked the POG2 more for ambient stuff and swells than for octaves. There was another setting on that pedal that would keep my dry signal coming through but add a shimmery octave and verbed out sound behind it. All this to say, if you have something swelling for you, it makes it easier to use the wah pedal like I mentioned earlier…and it’s not as much for you to have to do. I’m sure there are lots of great patches in many other units as well. Feel free to share those in a comment on this post.

But you don’t have to have these pedals to play ambient stuff. One trick for doing some ambient stuff is to turn on a few delays and/or a reverb and turn the tone knob back all the way until it’s really dark sounding. You can pick through some partial chords and let the feedback carry it to make some ambient stuff. The DD-5 reverse setting does well with this for me. Try switching the pickups some too…that always seems to give a different, but nice sound.

I’m not pro at this and my ways and tips aren’t the best or the only way to do it, but I hope this helps spring you to discover some new things and share them back here.

I got down to verse 9 and found the familiar term in Christian circles of “stumbling block”. Here’s the passage:

⁹ Be careful, however, that the exercise of your freedom does not become a stumbling block to the weak. ¹⁰ For if anyone with a weak conscience sees you who have this knowledge eating in an idol’s temple, won’t he be emboldened to eat what has been sacrificed to idols? ¹¹ So this weak brother, for whom Christ died, is destroyed by your knowledge. ¹²When you sin against your brothers in this way and wound their weak conscience, you sin against Christ. ¹³ Therefore, if what I eat causes my brother to fall into sin, I will never eat meat again, so that I will not cause him to fall.

I love this passage. He talks about how a guy can go and eat food sacrificed to idols. This would’ve been a bad thing to do because it was “defiled”. However, Paul says earlier in this passage that food doesn’t necessarily bring us closer to God or further from him. So this guy can technically eat food sacrificed to idols and in the new covenant, it’s not really that big of a deal. UNLESS, someone sees you eating that food and has a weaker conscience (which isn’t a problem). This weaker conscience guy is now led to believe it’s ok to do, but his conscience betrays him and consequently, he has stumbled. Paul says that when we cause them to stumble and sin against other believers in this way, we’ve sinned against Christ. If what we eat causes a brother (or sister) to stumble, don’t eat it so he won’t fall!

I think this applies to so much more too. We can put a couple of blanks in that last sentence and apply it to just about anything in the Christian walk.

If what I _____________ causes a believer to stumble, don’t ____________ it so he won’t fall!

This has been a big passage for me and I hope you can find some practical application for it as well!

MUSIC

• Mylo Xyloto – Coldplay
• Augustana – Augustana
• Bon Iver – Bon Iver
• Ashes & Fire – Ryan Adams
• Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds - Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds
• Barton Hollow – The Civil Wars
• Economy – John Mark McMillan
• Helplessness Blues – Fleet Foxes

I haven’t been able to blog much between Christmas events and then getting ready for Passion 2012, while still trying to enjoy my two week vacation. However, I wanted to throw this last one in…just because.

It’s easy for us to get caught up in how quick things go by. Or even sometimes how slowly things go by. One thing I’m trying to do more is living in the moment and enjoying where I’m at. It’s easy for me to forget seasons of life, looking forward to the next season. We’re all at different points and seasons, and I hope we’re able to slow down and enjoy that. Maybe you’re at a transitional stage or at a time where you’re really struggling, but I’d encourage you to just enjoy where you’re at. I love being married and my new job, but I’m very glad I enjoyed being single and getting to play guitar and travel whenever I wanted to during that season of my life as well.

So no matter where you’re at now and what 2011 brought you, let’s slow down and enjoy the little moments that make 2012 and the season we’re personally in so special! Much love to you guys! Happy 2012!

• Stephen Kendrick
• Will Goodwin
• Todd Graham

These are three guys who majorly invested in my life throughout middle school and high school on a consistent basis. I could name many others who really poured into me over the years as well, but these three stood out and stuck with me, even when situations didn’t always keep us around or in the same town.

My guess is none of those guys will read this, and it’s not even really about them. Without those guys, I could’ve made it fine in life, but I’m better because of them and what I learned through them. Because of them, I want to invest in the lives of students today. What a great opportunity we have in life to do this!

Who are you investing in? It doesn’t always take a lot of time and will change a life. So who’s life are you changing my stepping in and pushing them to grow? Make a difference.

I had heard of Nash guitars from a few friends. Daniel and Matt both have one, and my friend, Cody, just got one too. I’ve been playing a little bass in Passion Kids at church and had to borrow a bass. Jesse loaned me his Nash jazz bass. The neck and the whole bass felt amazing and I started plotting how I could get a Nash myself. After a little time, the exact kind of I was looking for popped up on Craigslist. Turns out it was a guy who played up at NewSpring Church.

I told myself I would never sell my Tele because it was such a classic guitar, but I think selling a Tele to get another is ok, right? I love this guitar and am super excited to have it! Check out Nash guitars.

Not sure when we’ll be able to download the songs, but check out Dallas’ YouTube channel, Band Camp page, Twitter and Facebook and buy the songs when they are released for download!

In honor of this post and his new band, check out Taylor Johnson’s updated gear for the band on his Gear Talk post here!