Song Rig
How Soon Is Now?
Johnny Marr · Meat Is Murder · 1985
Tone Overview
What Makes This Sound Unique
How Soon Is Now? is an engineering marvel — the shimmering, tremolo-pulsing guitar sound was created by Marr running four Fender Twin Reverbs simultaneously, all with their onboard tremolo units set to slightly different rates. The resulting beating frequency between the four slightly offset tremolo patterns creates the undulating, hypnotic quality that cannot be recreated with a single amp's tremolo. A Gibson ES-355 provided the warmer, more sustaining guitar tone.
Signal Chain
- 1Gibson ES-355 (Marr's own, 1965)
- 2Four Fender Twin Reverb amplifiers (tremolo units)
- 3Slide played with bottleneck on one guitar track
Amp Settings
The tremolo settings on each Twin Reverb were set at slightly different rates — roughly 3-5 Hz — to create the beating pattern between units. This is impossible to replicate with a single amp's tremolo.
Technique
How to Play It
The slide guitar that occasionally appears in the mix adds a mournful, sliding quality to the texture. Marr used a bottleneck slide — an unusual technique for a guitarist otherwise known for precise chord work.
Budget Alternative
Achievable With
An ES-335 or semi-hollow guitar into an amp with tremolo. For the full effect, use two separate amps with tremolo set to slightly different rates (e.g. 3.2Hz and 3.8Hz) panned in stereo. A single tremolo pedal with a sine wave will approximate the character.
Your Gear
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