Just last week Keelan Callaghan gifted us his new single The Only One, a mesmerising little jam that pricked up our ears on the first listen. After chatting some, Callaghan revealed he did the majority of his recording on a pretty rad home setup – our ears were pricked again!
We asked Callaghan to run us through five of the staples of said setup. Here’s what he sent through.
Classic synths and the wackiest pedals on the market: Keelan Callaghan runs us through the gear behind his newest single Only One.
Yamaha Dx7
The first synth I bought off gumtree was a microKORG from a guy named Jeremy Neale. On the drive home from purchasing the synth I thought back to the number of times I had seen Velociraptor hurl an unknown slab of keys around the stage during their shows. However the synth was in great condition and hasn’t failed me yet…
The Yamaha DX7 was another score off gumtree. It’s not the easiest for dialling in tones or learning synthesis, however I think it sounds incredible and that’s why I pretty much use it for every song I write. Plus I believe it’s all over Thriller and if it’s good enough for MJ, it’s good enough for me.
Seppuku Tape Warp
This is probably the craziest sounding pedal I own. Another sweet eBay find. It’s hand built and I guess it kind of reminds me of a Roland Space Echo but in pedal form. You can achieve some pretty sickly sounds that dip in and out of tune. I sometimes run the synth through it and record it parallel.
I’d love to own everything Seppuku makes however they would definitely chew up productivity with all the weirdness.
$200 Parts Caster
This is my go to axe. Its an Indian-made Squire Tele that I got from a guy who was selling it to become a DJ. I thought $200 was a deal and I sunk another $250 into it to upgrade the 4-way selector/single coil pickups and bridge.
The intonation is average at best but it’s definitely a privilege to have a guitar where you don’t have to worry about dropping it or leaving scuff marks.
Fuzz-Munchkin
Yes I admit I don’t technically own this pedal but one of my amazing friends has been lending it to me for the past three years and I’m in no rush to give it back. It’s a J Mascis (Dinosaur Jr) fuzz clone built by renown Brissy pedal nerd at Tym Guitars. I use it on the majority of my lead breaks.
There is a little known ‘sweet spot’ when turning up the sustain from zero where the signal just begins to break up. Sitting in this space gives a very expressive almost Hendrix-esque tone which I think is very cool.
Custom DIY Wood Crate
Last but not least, the one piece of gear that keeps my desk semi-functional. I needed something that would hold the weight of the tape machine and the slim profile of my interface in one.
I bought the crate from a recycled materials store, cut one side out and nailed it in halfway, resulting in a little shelf when the crate was flipped over. I don’t really consider myself a handyman but I got to say I was pretty proud of this one.
Listen to Keelan Callaghan’s new single Only One below.
