One of my favorite ways to kill valuable time these days is by watching JHS Pedals Show videos on YouTube. They’re informative, wildly entertaining, and they provide a level of guitar geekery that is seldom seen in normal circles.
Most episodes on their popular YouTube channel are run by Josh Scott, founder and head tinkerer of JHS Pedals, a boutique (although even he would ask, “what does that even mean?“) guitar pedal manufacturing company based in Kansas City.
I’ve known of JHS Pedals for a few years, in part because my mom, who also lives in KC, will occasionally forward me news items about the company she finds in KC news outlets.
Until a few months ago, though, I really didn’t know much about Josh or JHS pedals, a fact that I now relegate to the category of “I wish I’d looked into this much sooner.”
In short, the JHS Pedals Show is awesome. Not only does Josh make pedals, there is probably nobody else on planet Earth who knows more about guitar pedals. He’s an incredible MC, historian and storyteller, he’s an avid (read: totally obsessed) collector who no doubt has one of, if not the most impressive collection of guitar pedals known to any man, woman or musician.
He’s funny, with a wit drier than a kitchen counter that’s been wiped clean by a sheet of Bounty, he’s humble; most of his episodes revolve around his obsession about other companies’ pedals, and he’s a great guitarist, who often demos pedals with short jams of original music along with a bass player and drummer right there in their filming studio.
Simply put, Josh Scott is a wonderful ambassador to the world of guitar. And he’s got some really cool t-shirts. His show is so worth watching, and you’ll quickly become hooked, but be warned, it might will undoubtedly tempt you to go buy a bunch of new pedals.
Since watching my first JHS Pedal Show Episode a few months ago, I have completely revamped my board with 7 new pedals, including 2 JHS devices, which I bought mostly to support him and his efforts. Well… they do sound awesome, so there’s that.
If you’re a guitar player, pedal geek/hoarder, or if you just have a passing/endless infatuation with all things guitar, then definitely subscribe to the JHS Pedals Show and be prepared to burn though your bandwidth at a record pace. You’re welcome.
Finally, you can listen to Josh’s jams at their Bandlab page. It’s actually great stuff and worth your auditory attention.
