Michael James

Michael James has a history constantly playing different coloured Ibanez Talman guitars. He has a blue, black, and sunburst coloured Talman.

On August of 2016, Michael as well as other members of Explosions in the Sky were interviewed on a Rig Tour by MusicRadar. When asked about the Talman guitar, Michael had this to say regarding the sound:

“Because I play into a bass cabinet, those lipstick tube pickups give a thin sound, but it’s also very clean, so I can put that through the bass cabinet, and it really thickens it up."

In August of 2016, Explosions in the Sky had a Rig Tour with MusicRadar to discuss their equipment. Regarding his amplifiers, Michael James had this to say:

"I play this through an Ampeg bass cabinet. I’ve honed the sound over the years so I can plug both bass and guitar in, and they both sound good."

On his most recent pedalboard.

Taken from a user from the Harmony Central Forums, Michael's signal chain can be seen here starting with a Morley ABY Footswitch.

The first picture shows Michael's rig. The dual pedal next to that yellow boss pedal is a Boss loop station.

From a Rig Tour by Music Radar with Explosions in the Sky.

“The sound of the RV-3… it’s cloudy enough to mask the digital-ness of it. As the models went along, they just got cleaner and clearer - which is fine if that’s what you’re looking for, but you can also hear the digital sound of that reverb much clearer. Whereas the RV-3 puts this little sheen over everything that makes it sound beautiful and angelic, without sounding really digital.”

From a Rig Tour by Music Radar with Explosions in the Sky.

“When we first started writing this record I got that, and it was just the sound of a couple of songs - I couldn’t play them without it. I use about two per cent of the functionality on it right now, but the two per cent I use is amazing!”

From a Rig Tour by Music Radar with Explosions in the Sky.

“I got that because the Talman is just a very quiet guitar. Those lipstick tube pickups, they don’t have a lot of punch, so nobody could ever really hear me. So finally, our sound guy, Jeff Bird, recommended this… and everyone can hear me all of a sudden!”

Back in 2008, a year after the release of the studio album All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone, Michael was seen by a member of Harmony Central Forums using a Line 6 DL4.

From a Rig Tour by Music Radar with Explosions in the Sky as of August of 2016.

“It’s a classic, man - but talk about unreliable! We go through about three a year! But I love that pedal, and we’ve been using them since the beginning. Mark and I generally use the same settings in different ways - the stereo delays mainly. Even though we don’t send it out stereo, it still gives it a very interesting bounce to it.”

From a Rig Tour by Music Radar with Explosions in the Sky.

“This is amazing. We used it in the studio to get some more unique and interesting sounds, and then we realised that we had to find these sounds on the road as well. But it can sound like a circus organ if you’re not careful!”

Members of Explosions in the Sky were interviewed my MusicRadar for a Rig Tour. When questioned about his amplifiers, Michael James said he played through a Fender Dual Showman into an Ampeg bass cabinet that helps to keep a tone that's friendly to both bass and guitar.

The MusicRadar feature "In pictures: 68 pro guitarists' pedalboards" showcases Michael James using the Voodoo Lab Pedal Power 2 PLUS on his pedalboard. This highlights its role in powering his effects setup.