In Episode 21 of Show Us Your Junk!, we are given an all-access tour of El Studio by, the one and only, Phil Manley. You may know of Phil from his far-out bands Trans Am and Life Coach; but what you may not know is that this guy is also the owner of a historic diamond in the rough recording studio located in San Francisco, California. Built in the 1980’s, and certainly retaining that vibe, El Studio has been a session home to REM, Melvins, and Christian Death. It’s cork lined walls emanate a raunchy vibe and there is no shortage of cool audio engineering paraphernalia to make bands sound rad. Huey Lewis’ ½” demo tape machine? Got it. Ampex MM1200 16 track that was acquired for FREE?! Got it. Woah man, that’s gotta sound awesome. As a touring musician of more than 25 years, Manley has gathered a nice collection of very LOUD music gear - not what you usually see at recording studios - but maybe this isn’t your average dude. Maybe this isn’t your average studio. Maybe he knows something we don’t. He definitely knows how to push that Champ into an Ebow/Arpanoid freakout. Take a look behind the scenes at El Studio’s potent stash of oddball effects pedals and more. Crack open a cold one with Phil and enjoy a peek at some really cool junk.

Video: Chris Tran

Music: Octolope, Ultrasphinx, Lisa Bella Donna

http://www.elstudiosf.com

DEVICES MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE