Joe Gore

I felt like I’d been indoctrinated into some weird germanium cult. So when I developed my own take on those circuits, I named it Cult.

"Duh isn’t as stupid as it looks." Joe Gore, as explained on his website.

"It’s easy to spend 20 minutes dicking around with the dials without nailing the perfect tone. I’ve always wished for a wild, highly variable fuzz that was a bit more “curated,” with easier access to the tones you’re likeliest to use. That’s what inspired the Filth Fuzz." Joe Gore, as quoted from Joe's inspiration behind the Filth on his website.

"With its labeled and detented selector knobs, you can call up favorite settings onstage. But for me, Gross’s forte is as a studio tool. It’s great for “texturizing” guitar overdubs—just spin the dials till you find a tone that sits perfectly in the track. It’s especially useful for doubling." Joe Gore, describing using the Gross Distortion in various situations.

Processed guitar and MIDI sounds exit the computer via the UA Twin, feeding a hardware Boomerang III looper, and then the house system and/or a pair of Fishman Loudbox amps.

According to an article by Joe Gore on tonefiend.com, the Systech Harmonic Energizer was used on his guitar tracks for Tom Waits's "All Stripped Down" and on "Jets" by Action Plus.