Swervedriver make their long-awaited return to Australia in September to play their debut album 'Raise' in its entirety, as well as an extended set of classics.
The band was formed in Oxford, UK, in 1989 by Adam Franklin and Jimmy Hartridge. They have carved their own pathway in the shoegaze genre using some interesting pieces of gear. With ever-changing rigs – the band frequently swaps pedals and gear with each other – it’s hard to pin down definitive equipment used during the recording and touring of Raise. Here’s what Adam and Jimmy have used throughout the years.
Check out more of our gear rundowns here.
Adam Franklin
Fender Jazzmaster
Like most alternative/shoegaze guitarists, the Fender Jazzmaster is Adam’s guitar of choice. Before settling on his 1962 Jazzmaster, Franklin used a Fender Jaguar and a Shergold Nu Meteor for Swervedriver’s first couple of recordings, but felt they didn’t have the right crunch with his pedal setup. He has described the Jazzmaster as a “bigger guitar with a bigger sound.”
Boss RV-2 Digital Reverb
Adam has stated that the Boss RV-2 plate reverb setting is all over Raise and that he’s tried switching to fancier reverbs, but always returns to the Boss RV-2. Franklin typically splits his guitar signal: one side has its own effects chain consisting of a Boss tremolo, Boss DF-2 Super Feedbacker/Distortion, Electro-Harmonix Small Stone Phase Shifter and Boss Compressor going into a Vox AC30, with the other running straight into a Marshall 50W JCM800.
Boss DF-2 Super Feedbacker/Distortion
This is one of Franklin’s favourite pedals because of its unique sound. The story goes that one unit started malfunctioning – instead of creating pure feedback, it produced a siren sound. Since then, the band has modified a couple of units to recreate that wild oscillation alongside their normal function.
Amps
Franklin is synonymous with two amps: the Vox AC30 and Marshall JCM800 50W, paired with either a matching Marshall cabinet or Mesa/Boogie Rectifier Series 2×12. He uses the JCM800 for grit and the AC30 for chime.
Jimmy Hartridge
Information on Hartridge’s guitars, effects and amps is scarce, with interviews and websites offering little detail. Here’s what can be deduced from available sources.
Guitars
Throughout Swervedriver’s entire span, Hartridge’s main guitar has been a silver-burst Gibson Les Paul Custom, though he’s been seen using various offset and Telecaster-style guitars, including a Squier Jazzmaster and a custom-built offset by David Ayers for different tunings.
Effect pedals
Details of Hartridge’s pedalboard are difficult to pin down. Based on live footage and interviews, here’s what can be identified:
- Boss SD-1 Super Overdrive
- Boss DF-2 Super Feedbacker/Distortion
- Boss RE-20 Space Echo
- Boss CS-3 Compression Sustainer
- Boss GE-7 Equalizer
- Catalinbread Octapussy
- Dunlop Cry Baby Wah
- DigiTech Whammy (original)
- Catalinbread Echorec
- Electro-Harmonix Little Big Muff Pi
- Boss RV-2 Digital Reverb
- Boss PN-2 Tremolo/Pan
Amps
Based on available sources, Hartridge tends to use either a Fender Reverb (standard or quad) or a Marshall half stack, depending on what’s available or the size of the venue.
