This doesn’t qualify as any kind of NAMM report. I was imprisoned behind the desk at my Gore Pedals booth, relieved only for bathroom breaks and a couple of visits with old friends. Even so, I saw some lovely and inspiring things, especially the visionary instruments at the Boutique Guitar Showcase and the ravishing stompbox visuals from Greece’s JAM Pedals. (JAM pedals sound great too.) Plus a few old friends dropped by. It was so fun, I went minutes at a time without thinking about the inauguration.
A modernist vision from luthier Pete Malinoski.
Pancake-thin perfection from Venice, Italy's Di Donato Guitars.
Japan-born, California-based luthier Michihiro Matsuda devises seriously radical acoustic guitar designs.
Spalt's Frankenstein Music Machine, a genuine show-stopper.
Whimsy unchained from Vienna-based luthier Michael Spalt.
Serge Michaels of Belgium's TAO Guitars shows off his magnificent Phaeton model.
Like its name promises, the One-Piece Master from Sauvage is carved entirely from a single block of wood.
The Antikythera Mechanism of stompboxes from JAM Pedals. Yes, the gears work.
Fillmore poster meets multi-effect board — a lovely thing from JAM Pedals
Jannis Anastasakis, brilliant builder behind Greece's JAM Pedals.
![My NorCal crew [L-R]: Xander Soren, the mastermind in charge of music apps at Apple (and a fine player); Talking Head and producer extraordinaire Jerry Harrison; some schnook; engineer, producer, producer, and cool guy Travis Kasperbauer.](https://tonefiend.com/wp-content/uploads/13.-Smart-Guys-1.jpg)
My NorCal crew [L-R]: Xander Soren, the mastermind in charge of music apps at Apple (and a fine player); Talking Head and producer extraordinaire Jerry Harrison; some schnook; engineer, producer, producer, and cool guy Travis Kasperbauer.
It was awesome to meet the guys behind those ever-inventive Earthquaker pedals.
So nice to run into the brilliant Mike Keneally.
Eleven JAM effect in a single integrated pedalboard.
Curves galore from TAO Guitars.
A metallic duo from McSwain Guitars.
A metallic duo from McSwain Guitars.
Jannis Anastasakis of JAM Pedals was kind enough to loan me one of the eye-popping pedalboards from his display (the last image in the slideshow). I’ll be posting a demo here soon!