Riff Tone

Backwater

Meat Puppets

Guitarrock1990s

Original Gear

Guitar1981 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe (modded with DiMarzio X2N in bridge, Super Distortion in neck)

AmpMarshall 100-watt head (likely JCM800 or JMP, era-appropriate, used in studio and live at the time)

PickupsDiMarzio X2N (bridge), DiMarzio Super Distortion (neck)

Amp Settings

gain5.5

bass6

mid7

treble6.5

reverb2

presence5.5

Effects & Signal Chain

No effects used for this tone

Notes

Studio recording, 1993-1994. Curt Kirkwood is documented using his '81 Les Paul Deluxe with high-output DiMarzio pickups and Marshall 100-watt heads for this era. No direct evidence of pedals or effects for the studio recording of 'Backwater' riff, but live he used Big Muff, Fulltone OCD, Boss DS-1, Chandler Tube Driver. For the studio, likely straight into Marshall with minimal effects.

Tone Character(10)

fuzzy and saturatedmid-heavy drivepunchy attackfull-bodied rhythmBritish crunchslightly compressednot super high-gaingritty and rawarticulate chord definitionclassic 90s alt-rock fuzz

Difficulty

The riff requires tight timing, palm muting, and a strong attack to maintain clarity through the fuzz, but does not involve advanced techniques or fast tempo.

Sources

Meat Puppets: The Flesh of It - Premier Guitar Curt Kirkwood - Equipboard Meat Puppets - Backwater (Official Music Video) I had forgotten ...In 1994 The Meat Puppets went grunge with this classic - Reddit

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