the blog of
guitarist
Todd Ciske

entry 012 [12.28.11]

Wow! it has been almost forever since I've given you an update! How could you keep it together all this time without one? LOL! Long enough that it's time for a look back at 2011...

Again, what an AMAZING year this has been both personally, and of course, with FST. Coming up on our 31st show (30th with me), and our 17th for 2011 -- it's all been about playing the songs we love for the people we love even more. A huge, monster of a thanks & hug to all of you who came out & supported our band this last year!!! THANK-YOU.

And what a year it's been -- marked by a ton of activity and production, and most of all FUN.

We recorded and released our EP "Beautiful Harm" with GiGaNtiC props to Sam Farrar (engineering & production), Renee Ciske (graphic design), and Brittainy Dale/Blind Eye Studios (photography) -- thanks to all of you for helping us make something we're all extremely proud of!

More highlights: The Brady Street Festival show, the Steel Bridge Songfest 2011 shows, picking-up our new bass player Matt Fegaly, winning Round 1 of the Battle of the Bands @ the Up & Under Pub for a major slot at Summerfest & playing the Finals, moving into our new jam space, learning how to play guitar with an E-Bow, working on many, many guitar projects in my shop, and formally launching my solo FB site as 3 Ring Binder!

It was also a year of change. Our uber-bassist Zach Butler left the band to pursue a career in his home state Alabama, and actually was flown-in like a rockstar for our Brady St. Fest show. A show made even more memorable because my vintage '64 Fender Bassman amp lent for the show started on fire (blue smoke!) during the sound check!

The year was made great by all the tremendous support and love shown by our biggest fans Renee C, Rick C, Sarah D, and of course John Hawkins- who's videoed the many, many shows he's attended solo or with the family units in tow. Thank-you John!

And finally, off-the-scale props & love to my bandmates. It's an honor and a privilege to share the stage with you each and every time! Thanks and thank-you all for a great year -- & super-looking forward to 2012 -- the year of the Triangle!

entry 011 [07.11.11]

A few weeks ago FST had the great fortune to play the Steel Bridge Songwriter's Festival (SBSF), and I must say we are still buzzing from the entire scene there! I heard someone say that you don't go to SBSF to "hear" music -- you go to "feel" it. Can't agree more. We met and "felt" music performed by dozens of artists and bands, got
autographs from most of these folks on a Les Paul Jr. guitar body, and made a pile of new friends & fans.

We had the chance to play 2 shows (originally scheduled for just one -- thanks MelanieJane!) -- Waterfront Mary's & The Nautical -- both packed houses! This would have to qualify as FST's first official "tour" since we all crammed ourselves and all of our equipment into a minivan (!), drove 100's of miles and played two shows. Yeah! It also coincided with our one year anniversary of FST's first gig (June 11th, 2010 @ Club Garibaldi in Milwaukee). What a great way to celebrate this!

Speaking of Garibaldi's -- our official CD release of our EP (titled "Beautiful Harm") will be launched there on July 15th at a show featuring The Locals and Wamsley. I really dig both of these bands & you should too! I say "official" CD release because we've had advance copies floating about with minimal packaging for about a month (prep'd for the SBSF) and this will have full-on artwork & pics from our photo shoot last April.
C'mon out for a great line-up and check out our CD!

Another great show coming up will be the Brady Street Festival in Milwaukee -- we're scheduled to play July 30th at 4PM -- and significant because it's my one year anniversary show w/the band (hard to believe!!) AND it's Zach's last show with the band (!!?!) Yep. He's landed a job in his home state of Alabama, and I am really REALLY going to miss him personally and musically. Of course we can hope for reunion shows in the future or help with a swing tour though the South this winter :)

So c'mon out with 50,000 of your closest friends July 30th and give Zach a proper send-off!

entry 010 [05.26.11]

Can this get any crazier? Of course, but not by much! Sooo much has happened since my last blog entry -- but let's begin by shouting: Sam Farrar is producing our EP! This is a major win for the band, and some of the preliminary mixdowns are amazing. Sam's produced the latest LP for multi-Grammy winning MAROON 5, among many others. We could not be more psyched.

Our goal is to have everything wrapped-up and CD's in-hand in time for our gig at the Steel Bridge Song Festival where we've been chosen to play! We hit the stage Friday, June 10th, 9PM and are really looking forward to an entire weekend of gigging, jamming, checking-out & hanging with a ton of other bands from around the country & the world!

Speaking of gigs -- you may have heard something about our efforts to play the Big Gig at Summerfest via the Battle of the Bands (ha!) -- well...while we won the semi-finals to make it to the final round (with only 1 week in-between to promote/get out the vote) -- we took the "bronze medal." While we're disappointed in not going all the way, we are incredibly proud of our performance (best ever IMHO!) and wildly thankful to all of our friends and fans who came out to support us. Mad props!!

Shout out to Bobby Tanzilo from OnMilwaukee.com who wrote about us in his Blog, and Jon Adler from
102.1 for promoting the gig!

On the subject of articles -- Check out the waaaay cool Shepherd Express piece written about your favorite (shape) band!! Huge thanks to Jeffery Worman for penning this. Look out evil King Zarkon!

Gig score: just learned that we've been picked to play the Brady St. Festival, July 30th, at around 3PM! Hope to see you there, or at any of our upcoming gigs!!

entry 009 [04.08.11]

OK...we're rolling! That's the phrase of the day recently in the world of FST. We've begun recording our EP -- provisionally titled "FSTEP" and after many hours of set-up and the unavoidable loop of getting the drums sounding "right" -- some great alpha session tracks are in the 'save' state. We were also interviewed for an upcoming SHEPHERD EXPRESS feature article -- tentatively scheduled for a late-May 2011 publishing. Verrry cool! Aaron just booked our 25th show, a huge milestone for us considering the whole band has been together less than nine months (!) Also -- a HUGE gig with big implications is on the horizon -- a May 6th date (8:00PM) at the UP & UNDER PUB that is a Battle
of the Bands with the winner playing SUMMERFEST -- a Big Stage/Weekend/Early Evening gig! Mark your calendar now & hit the club...winner is picked entirely by attendance/on-site votes. We've got a great chance of going all the way, but only with
your support!

entry 008 [03.27.11]

One gig down, seven more to go! Felt great to finally hit the stage again after our
self-imposed 3 month live-show hiatus.

We took that time to both write new songs and bring to the stage songs from the self-titled "Favorite Shape Triangle" CD (2007), and the latest "Against Time" (2009).

Time well spent indeed, because the 3/12/11 Highbury show was all-ours with no opening band, so the pressure was on. And as in most deadline situations there was a spike in prac scheduled in the week leading up to the show. We now have 21 songs in our pocket and IMHO not a dog in the bunch.

A couple of big highlights include a song written entirely by Zach -- "The Wrong Time," which is chock full of dynamics, texture, and is of course a platform for his virtuoso bass playing. Another is our first cover song: "Discipline" by Nine
Inch Nails as suggested by Jacob -- which BTW, we DOMINATED at the Highbury! Plus -- a surprise smash out of the park song "Thief" from "Against Time" which features again Zach, but this time with a slap-funk-bass breakdown to die for.

Check out some video clips here, see if you don't agree...

Oh, and it wouldn't be a Todd's Corner without SOME mention of gear -- I debuted my new (used) amp -- a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe -- retiring my vintage Airline amp (for now). LOVE the Hot Rod Deluxe & it's the first amp I've ever owned with real reverb. Why have I denied myself this simple pleasure for soooo long?? See you at the gigs!!

entry 007 [02.11.11]

Time once again for a Favorite Shape Triangle
blog update. This is shaping up to be a very busy year for the band. Aaron is setting us up for 3 weeks on, one off as far as scheduling gigs, and the new gigs are at new venues. I’m a numbers guy, and so we’ve either played or will be playing at 13 different venues in about an 8 month time span. Any way you slice it -- that’s gettin’ around! There’s also a Midwestern Tour that’s in the
works that were all really looking forward to as well.

A couple of exciting developments I’d like to share is that we’re learning a bunch of new songs to be able to do two full sets for our return at the Highbury (3/12), and that we’re taking the month of April to record our 5-song EP
tentatively titled “FSTEP”. I believe the focus will be on songs not currently on the 2 FST albums, and those we’ve collaborated on.

Another great item is we’ve moved our practice space about 15 feet south (basically to the “real room” next door), which may seem small, but has had a huge impact on how we sound. It’s also a much more “live-able” space and conducive to improved karmic management. I’m sure you’ll see pics & videos from this space posted in the very near future.

That’s all for now...see you at the gigs!

entry 006 [12.14.10]

A look back...

what an incredible year it’s been! A new band, a bunch of new music to learn and tour with, and even better -- a whole bunch of new friends to connect long-time friends with.

It also was a hugely productive year for my
guitar studio/shop with some very difficult and challenging projects being tackled and completed. Gallons of nitrocellulose lacquer and reams of sandpaper later wrought the 6 to 12-string
Dot/335 conversion, an Epi Dot rescue (or 2), the birth of the ‘335 Blondie. It also brought a ’52 Danelectro amp back from the dead, and new
purpose for the Airline amp I tour with. The “Black Beauty” came into my life as well.

A few huge highlights in FST for me was the fact that I played 12 shows in 9 different venues, one of them Chicago (Cal’s -- a first for me), and another being live on the radio (WMSE-FM Fall
Fund Drive). This last feat an absolute high
water mark for all of us, and something to be hugely proud of -- not even considering the fact that this band is only about 9 months old!!

Personally, I’ll never forget the Live On North show (9/17/10) for several reasons -- it was the place we debuted “Geneva Spur” (ambitious), made some new friends and re-connected with some old, and it also was the first time ever that when I stepped on the stage I felt like a real, professional musician...impossible to describe, but it was a sense of confidence and pride -– sharing the stage with Zach, Jacob, and of course Aaron. Thanks to you guys -- and all of you
who’ve come out & supported the band live, and of course just as importantly, in the e-world.

Cheers!

entry 005 [11.23.10]

I've talked quite a bit about my gear, I'd like
to say a few words about the music. Specifically, the twin guitar attack that's a feature of FST.

While Aaron plays on roughly half of our songs, our approaches (and tones) could not be more different from each other. I am much more of a
"horizontal" player (no -- not laying down on the job!), meaning I approach the melody and key across the fretboard within the same fret utilizing a bunch o' strings. Aaron is more of a "vertical" player, and has the habit of staying
on the same string (or two) and playing the
melody up and down the neck/fretboard. These two methods yield very distinctive tones that can really compliment each other.

And speaking of tone, another major difference is evident in the gear and how those choices provide the sonic texture you've grown to love. Aaron's 25.5" scale Ibanez solid body guitar run through his Line 6 guitar pod/effects box provides a metallic wall of distorted wail (at times). I've been (mostly) playing Gibson's semi-hollow ES-335's with the 24.75" scale through analog stomp boxes driven through my vintage tube amp. When
straight through, it gives us a warm fat tone
that is always on the verge of feeding back (due to the semi-hollow body). Oops! There I go on about gear again!

entry 004 [11.02.10]

Another guitar I’ve started featuring at our
shows is a sunburst 12-string Epiphone Dot
(ES-335 style).

“Hey! They’ve never made these!” you say...and you’re right! More on that later.

It’s got a huge, chiming, and at times ferocious sound that can be a bit tricky to play from the point of keeping the modulation even and tame
when it needs to be. Twelve strings = twice as loud? Well, almost. With more strings slicing through the pickup’s magnetic fields -- there is more signal going to the amp no doubt.

Of course, this particular guitar has a story. I’ve always wanted a ‘335-style 12-string, but Gibson stopped making them long ago in the
1970’s -- and a vintage example is north of $3k!

I then took a hard look at the Epiphone Dot’s headstock (disproportionately large in my book) and took some measurements and realized I could tastefully fit 12 Mini-Grover tuners there. However -- it would take a complete re-layout of the tuner holes, not just drilling 6 new ones. A snap!

So I went to work on a project “husk” body (eBay)
-- stripping the neck and headstock, filling the factory tuner holes, positioning and drilling-out 12 new holes, and re-finishing the back of the neck (sunburst) and the front of the headstock (including a new Epiphone label). Adding the new tuners, 12-string nut, bridge, tailpiece, and throwing on the rest of the hardware was easy.

A “snap” in guitar-shop time = about 3 months total time! The shot attached is the before/after. I’d be more than pleased to have you check it out at one of our shows!

entry 003 [11.01.10]

“I didn't want to get attached to one guitar; I didn't want to have an instrument that was irreplaceable.” -Robin Trower

That’s as good as an excuse as any to have more than one guitar, and probably a good introduction for the one highlighted in this entry.

While I’ve been a ‘casual’ player most of my life, I’ve only gotten serious (meaning regular practicing) in the last 2 years. Taking a serious interest naturally leads one to really listen to what’s being played, and by definition, the tone.

I am a tone junkie. There I said it, and no
guitar I own (and trust me I have more than one) has more tone and personality than a Gibson ES-335. Yes, I do own Fenders, and I love them
dearly -- but my Gibson’s own me. An Epiphone Dot started out as an inexpensive acquisition a few years back and grew into a real appreciation for this type of guitar, which led me to get a ‘real’ Gibson ES-335 (vintage 1979 CRS) that had the coil-tap feature.

Soon I realized this was too rare to gig with as well as they are prone to neck/headstock breakage. That’s what led me to something similar with coil-tap but not as rare, and ended up with the 1982 ES-347 (“Black Beauty”) attached in this episode. It’s basically an upscale ‘335.

I bought it from Adam Mackintosh, and she’s been heavily gigged -- lots of neck finish wear,
buckle rash, and a re-fret many years ago. He’s buddies with & also lent it to Blackbyrd McKnight and Eric Mcfadden who’ve played it at some shared
gigs over the years (I’ve seen pics that support this). Apparently I’m the first non-“Mc-“somebody to play this guitar!

entry 002 [10.28.10]

While I’ve played a different guitar at almost every one of our Favorite Shape Triangle shows, one thing has stayed the same and always draws
the most attention -- my amplifier.

The most common question is ‘what the heck is that’, and ‘is it really vintage, or something
new made to look that way’? I can tell you it’s a 1961 Airline model 9005 all-tube 2x12" combo featuring upgraded Fender Special Design Eminence speakers.

Airline was the in-house brand name for the Montgomery Wards retail chain, and was designed and built by the Valco company. It has two channels with a vibrato that is controlled with the original wooden block footswitch (although I don’t use this feature- I have a Seymour Duncan SFX-07 Shape Shifter Tap Tremolo pedal for that job). The amp is a dual 6L6 tube design that puts out 40 or 50 fat & warm watts that I never have
to turn much past ¼ volume to fill the club!

I just started to use this amp when I joined FST
& I’m blown away by it’s tone each and every time I fire it up. I was extremely lucky to have found this at a rummage sale (not kidding!) about 5 years ago (embarrassed to tell you for how much!). I tested it to see that it basically worked, but realized it sounded horrible, so it sat for years...

Recently, I took a deeper interest in playing “normal” (not bass/baritone) guitar (another
story altogether) and decided to troubleshoot it. All the tubes & components were fine -- the original speakers were blown. A few clicks on
eBay fixed that & now you can enjoy the sound
like I do at each of our shows!

entry 001 [10.22.10]