Riff Tone

Song for the Dead

Queens of the Stone Age

Guitarrock2000s

Original Gear

GuitarGretsch G6134 Spectra Sonic

AmpAmpeg V4

PickupsTV Jones Power'Tron humbuckers

Amp Settings

gain7.5

bass7

mid7

treble6.5

reverb0

presence6

Effects & Signal Chain

boostZVEX ZVEX Super Hard On

distortionStone Deaf Stone Deaf PDF-1 Parametric Distortion Filter

overdriveBoss Boss SD-1 Super OverDrive

fuzzUnivox Univox Super-Fuzz

Notes

Studio recording, 2002. Gear confirmed for Songs for the Deaf album sessions. Josh Homme used the Gretsch Spectra Sonic through an Ampeg V4 for the main riff sections. Pedals confirmed for this song/album include ZVEX Super Hard On, Stone Deaf PDF-1, Boss SD-1, and Univox Super-Fuzz. No evidence of time-based or modulation effects in the riff section.

Tone Character(10)

fuzzed-out and saturatedmid-forward and aggressivetight and percussiveharmonically richthick distortioncutting and punchyslightly scooped low-midsdynamic responsedry, no ambient effectsarticulate under heavy gain

Difficulty

The main riff requires fast, tight picking and palm muting under heavy fuzz/distortion, with syncopated rhythms and precise muting to keep the riff articulate and punchy.

Sources

Josh Homme's Guitar Gear, Pedalboard & Amps | Equipboard Song for the dead guitar tone? : r/qotsa - Reddit Does anyone know what pedal Josh/Troy used for Song for the Dead?

This tone has been researched 8 times by the community

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