The Five: Empress Effects’ Steve Bragg
Canada-based Empress Effects came onto the boutique stomp scene in mid-2006 with the launch of its Tap Tremolo stomp. Earlier this year, the group released the Superdelay – a pedal I had the opportunity to spend some time with recently… and I approve! Empress is the brain-child of Steve Bragg, who formally launched the brand in 2005 looking to build quality, creative tools for guitarists at reasonable prices. WTDP? struck up an e-mail conversation with Steve recently and asked if he’d be willing to answer our five little questions. He was good with that. See his heartfelt, honest waxings after the jump!
WTDP?: When and why did you start making effects pedals?
Steve: When I saw that people were selling fuzz pedals for $500.
WTDP?: At what point did you realize ‘Hey, I might be able to make a little money doing this.’?
Steve: About two days before I realized ‘Hey, I’m an idiot for ever thinking I might be able to make a little money doing this’.
WTDP?: Is there a stomp out there you wish you had made?
SB: The Lightfoot Labs Goatkeeper. That thing is mad! Austin’s a genius.
WTDP?: What’s on your workbench right now?
Steve: My planner, tons of invoices, a REAL ICE, half empty bottle of Bohemian, some fruit, unopened mail, broken prototypes, a label maker, firewire cables, CDRs, empty coffee mugs, my Casio FX-991MS, cell phone, stapler, computer screen, big power supply, bigger oscilloscope, smaller non-functioning function generator, a prototype of the VCF I’m working on and a prototype of the parametric EQ Jason is working on.
WTDP?: You’ve got free reign to assemble your dream trio. If you’re on guitar, who’s playing bass and drums (alive or dead)?
SB: I’d put Scarlet Johanson on bass and Natalie Portman on drums. I’d prefer them alive.
Amen to that! Thanks Steve!
