Only the Dead… is the latest jaw-dropping stompbox from Gone Fishing Effects – the brainchild of guitar tech to the stars Richard ‘Churd’ Pratt
(Image credit: Gone Fishing Effects)
UK pedal company Gone Fishing Effects has unveiled its latest fuzz pedal – and it’s a literal work of art.
Only the Dead… features a hand-painted illustration from artist Chris Dorning, which is cleverly spread across a highly limited run of 36 pedals. Anyone who buys one will get to choose which section of the artwork they get – could be a skull, an electrocuted dog skeleton or a soaring fireball. It’s all cool. And just look at that LED placement!
Sonically, the pedal promises to take no prisoners: Gone Fishing founder Richard ‘Churd’ Pratt describes its tones as “angry, aggressive, loud and brutal”.
Those sounds come courtesy of “carefully selected” germanium transistors, which means that while full-bore settings occupy doomier territory, backing off on your guitar’s volume control should clean it up nicely.
It sounds pretty punishing on bass, too, as evidenced in the pedal’s demo by Empire State Bastard bassist Naomi Macleod.
The Only the Dead… circuit has previously appeared in a similarly adventurous Gone Fishing pedal design, The Rage of the Tsar, which was introduced back in May 2021.
Gone Fishing Effects was founded by guitar tech Pratt – who has worked with Biffy Clyro, Kasabian, The Prodigy, The Script, Editors, Helmet and Oceansize – in 2020.
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Mike is Editor-in-Chief of GuitarWorld.com, in addition to being an offset fiend and recovering pedal addict. He has a master's degree in journalism from Cardiff University, and over a decade's experience writing and editing for guitar publications including MusicRadar, Total Guitar and Guitarist, as well as 20 years of recording and live experience in original and function bands. During his career, he has interviewed the likes of John Frusciante, Chris Cornell, Tom Morello, Matt Bellamy, Kirk Hammett, Jerry Cantrell, Joe Satriani, Tom DeLonge, Ed O'Brien, Polyphia, Tosin Abasi, Yvette Young and many more. In his free time, you'll find him making progressive instrumental rock under the nom de plume Maebe.