James Bowman
Gainesville, Florida
Against Me!
http://www.againstme.net
https://bowmanaudioendeavors.com/
How long have you been a musician? How did you get into it in the first place?
I started playing when I was 15, kind of a late start. I’ve been touring and recording since 1998. I grew up in South Florida. There wasn’t much of a music scene, so I would sit at home and play along to CD’s. I moved up to St. Petersburg, FL and I eventually placed an ad in Focus magazine (a local music/events weekly) advertising that I was looking for people to play with. I met some people in the area and would go to shows on the weekends. I convinced a local band The Scams that they needed a second guitar player! I played with them until I convinced Laura to take me on tour to play guitar in Against Me!. I offered to buy all the guitar strings just so I could tag along, I did, and the rest is history!
Who have been some of your major musical influences, past or present?
I love all types of music. My youngest music memory is sitting on the kitchen counter and listening to Willie Nelson while my Grandma made breakfast. She was a pivotal person in my life who not only taught me about cooking but exposed me to “Old Country,” such as: Willie, Johnny Cash, Merle, Roger Miller, and her absolute favorite, Elvis. Then, my teenage years lead me to Punk Rock (The Clash, CRASS, Ramones, The Damned, Stooges, Misfits, etc.)
After moving to Gainesville in the late ’90s, it was hard to escape the “Tom Petty is from here” thing, and started to listen to him and The Heartbreakers more frequently. You would hear the radio hits often, but hearing “Wildflowers” for the first time really made me pay attention. It isn’t easy to narrow down influences because there are so many; I could easily make this a multiple page answer!
What drew you to using pedals initially? Have you been using them throughout your playing career? How have pedals helped to shape your sound, or influence the style that you’ve created?
I was initially drawn to them as a way to tinker with my sound. You know what your guitar sounds like through whatever amp you have. Then you see a pedal, and you wonder what it sounds like. You listen to records and wonder, “ how did they make that sound?” And once you start down that path, the next thing you know, you have 100’s of them! I started using them in Against Me! to create texture and explore new ways that the guitar could make crazy cool noises.
What led you to start your own pedal company, Bowman Audio Endeavors? What pedals are in the current lineup? Anything in particular you’re looking forward to creating?
Over the years, I tinkered continuously with kits and breadboards, but I was unable to invest the time needed to dig into the practice due to touring. Then, COVID hit, and Against Me! was grounded. I freaked out, and as a coping strategy, I started to build pedals to keep busy. I found the practice soothing because it was like creating an audio puzzle which kept me busy for hours.
I made some early versions of a boost design I called the “Hot Potato!” which I would build, then raffle off for various charitable organizations—still trying to do that with other one-off pedal clones when possible. I’m currently tweaking the Hot Potato! and hope to have a full-on release in the next couple of months. As well as some other builds and a few surprises in the near future.
What’s your current setup look like? Take us through your pedal rig (feel free to include amps and instruments as well if you’d like):
Well, I’ll start with my touring rig from the past couple years. My main guitar is a 2005 R7 Goldtop that I’ve played everyday since the day I got it. Every show except one that I can remember for the past 15 years I have played that guitar. I love it! My pedal board is in our bands storage in Chicago, I haven’t seen it in months! But it has the following in no particular order… Strymon Timeline, Ibanez AD-9, MXR EVH Phase 90, EQD Afterneath, EQD Ghost Echo, Smart People Factory Cali Quake Tremolo, SPF Red Threat, SPF Ego Boost, Ceriatone Centura, and Ernie Ball Volume pedal. Amps are 6l6 Bogner Shiva head, Marshall 1959 SPL with the “ Dookie” mod. Both amps run into their own 70’s Marshall 2034 8×10 cabinets.
Favorite type of pedal (drive, delay, fuzz, etc. – more than one answer is always acceptable!):
I love a good boost pedal. Just getting a little grit and more db’s added to your signal. So good!
You’re stranded on a desert island – name three of each of the following you’d want to be there with you:
Instruments: My Goldtop, 1959 CS Tele, and a J45
Amps: There is power on this island?!? Bogner Shiva, Fender Deluxe, Matchless HC30
Pedals: Green Russian Big Muff, SPF Ego Boost, And maybe something fun like the EQD Bit Commander.
What’s up next for you/your band(s)?
Not really sure? Laura just released a rad solo album via Polyvinyl, Atom is recording drums for a project with John Reis, and Andrew is deep in the world of shooting videos. We are all keeping busy until the world rights itself again. What I hope for, is to get back on tour at some point and pick back up where we left off before the lockdown. Fingers crossed there are independent venues left to return to.
The Klon hype: Love it or Hate it?
I hate to love it, but it does sound really good. The prices they are fetching these days is insane!
Thanks so much to James for taking the time to answer some questions! Make sure to go check out http://www.againstme.net and https://bowmanaudioendeavors.com/ for all the latest band and effects pedal updates! Cheers!
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