Biffy Clyro's Simon Neil and Gone Fishing Effects announce the Booooom/Blast 2.0

A little over a year ago, Simon Neil, frontman of Scottish rock giants Biffy Clyro, announced the Booooom/Blast, a new distortion/fuzz pedal and his first-ever signature stompbox, designed in collaboration with his guitar tech and Gone Fishing Effects founder, Richard “Churd” Pratt. 

That pedal was limited to only 200 units and sold out in just two hours, so Gone Fishing have created another 200, this time sporting an updated peach-colored enclosure and under the banner Booooom/Blast 2.0.

Boasting the same design and specifications as the original – a trio of Stink, Jaggy and Bang dials on the Booooom (drive) side of the pedal, which control gain, tone and volume, respectively, and Syrup (gain) and Stress (volume) controls on the Blast (fuzz) side – each of the 200 Booooom/Blast 2.0s are once again hand-built by Pratt.

They're also personally signed and hand painted by Simon Neil, and include a hand-written thank you note from the Biffy frontman.

In addition, each pedal comes with a booklet complete with introductory notes from Neil and Pratt, a hardcase box from Gone Fishing Effects and two exclusive guitar pick designs.

Regarding the stompbox's design, Neil explains: “It's the pedal that I've been looking for most of my life. We've taken our time to ensure that it's everything it can be. It's been a real labor of love.”

Pratt adds: “The aim was to capture Simon’s sound in a box, so anyone can play guitar and sound like him. It was much easier said than done! It’s one of the most transparent loud overdrive pedals on the market. With so many distortion pedals you get loads of fuzz and saturation, but with this the guitar still breathes. You still hear all the notes but with the extra weight and overdrive.”

Following the release of the original pedal, and with the reintroduction of live music after a series of Covid-imposed lockdowns, Simon Neil used the Booooom/Blast at some of the band's recent dates, including at their headline sets at Reading and Leeds festivals, and during their Fingers Crossed tour earlier this year.

The Booooom/Blast 2.0 will be available to preorder from November 30, and is expected to ship by January 28, 2022. Its price is not yet disclosed, but the pedal's first iteration sold at £299 (approx $400), so that should be a good indication.