lead guitar from “when you sleep” by my bloody valentine | ToneDB
when you sleep
my bloody valentine
lead guitar
Tone Profile
The lead guitar sound is characterized by its heavily layered, distorted, and modulated texture, creating a dreamy and ethereal shoegaze atmosphere. It's a blend of overdrive, fuzz, and chorus effects, resulting in a thick, swirling, and almost vocal-like quality.
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The Story
The lead guitar on "When You Sleep" was crafted by Kevin Shields using a Fender Jazzmaster through a Vox AC30 amp, utilizing his signature combination of a ProCo RAT for distortion, Yamaha SPX90 for modulation, and Roland Dimension D for spatial thickening. The sound was recorded at Eastcote Studios with Alan Moulder engineering, using multiple layered guitar tracks with slightly different effect settings to create the characteristic thick, swirling shoegaze texture. Shields employed his distinctive tremolo picking technique while experimenting with unconventional effect combinations and heavy layering to achieve the dreamy, saturated lead tone.
Production Credits
Producer: Kevin Shields
Engineer: Alan Moulder
Recorded at: Eastcote Studios, London
Signal Chain
Instrument: Fender JazzmasterShop on Reverb
Microphone: Shure SM57Shop on Reverb
Processing: ProCo RATShop on Reverb, Yamaha SPX90Shop on Reverb, Roland Dimension DShop on Reverb
Recreation Tips
- Start with a clean Fender Jazzmaster or similar guitar with single-coil pickups.
- Use a ProCo RAT for heavy distortion or fuzz, dialing in a moderate amount of gain.
- Add chorus and reverb using a Yamaha SPX90 or similar multi-effects unit.
- Experiment with different chorus settings and blend multiple takes to achieve a thick, swirling sound.
- Use a Roland Dimension D for subtle stereo widening and thickening of the sound.
- Record multiple guitar tracks, each with slightly different settings on the effects, and pan them in the stereo field to create a sense of width and depth.
- Experiment with different microphone placements and amplifier settings to find the sweet spot for your setup.
Original Gear
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Substitutions & Recommendations
Alternative to: Fender Jazzmaster
Provides the offset body shape and single-coil pickups essential for that bright, articulate tone that cuts through heavy effects processing
Alternative to: Vox AC30
Delivers the chimey, compressed tube saturation of the AC30 at more manageable volumes while maintaining the EL84 tube character
Alternative to: ProCo RAT
Current production version of the exact same circuit Shields used, providing that characteristic fuzzy-yet-cutting distortion
Alternative to: Yamaha SPX90
Delivers lush analog chorus modulation similar to the SPX90's chorus algorithms, crucial for the swirling shoegaze texture
Alternative to: Roland Dimension D
Authentic recreation of the original Dimension D circuit that provides the subtle stereo width and thickening effect
Alternative to: Full signal chain
Contains high-quality amp modeling and chorus/dimension effects that can approximate the layered shoegaze sound in a DAW environment
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