Brian Spragg
Morgantown, WV
Bookworm Effects
facebook.com/bookwormeffects
How long have you been a musician? How did you get into it in the first place?
I grew up with my whole family listening to music, and I just liked what they liked, never really having a music preference myself. My mom loved the Beatles, my dad loved progressive rock, and my sister liked a lot of the early to mid 90’s rock. It wasn’t until I was 12 when I started hearing bands and getting into music that no one was showing me. So the Christmas after my 13th birthday, I got a guitar. I started playing in a lame hardcore band when I was 17 or so, and it went from there.
Who have been some of your major musical influences, past or present?
Biggest record that got me into everything was Radiohead’s OK Computer, because that had come out at that time I was finally noticing more. While I loved Radiohead, I then had this terrible interest in Pop Punk, so I wanted to play faster and not worry about lead parts or extra stuff. Honestly playing along to Green Day albums helped me establish any sense of rhythm and it taught me to sing and play at the same time. Even though it can be kinda lame, I owe a lot to that. I got into hardcore and metal eventually, but nowadays, I love everything. I play music in bands that is heavily influenced by King Crimson, Yes, Faraquet, and Jawbox, but I like to throw in other things when I can.
What led to the start of Bookworm Effects? How long have you been in business? How big is your operation/how many employees do you have?
I started because I was tired of buying overdrives and distortions that I was disappointed in. So I caught the bug and started building tons of projects and kits, learning as I go. Bookworm Effects I guess technically started in Summer of 2015 when I launched a Kickstarter, though I was making pedals for about a year before that. Operation is still just me, so no employees, but hopefully eventually!
Did you have formal schooling, or are you self-taught? Take us through that story:
I was working a part time job at a book store, so I had tons of free time and I’d just read a ton and watch youtube tutorials. I did a lot of research before deciding on my first pedal to build. If you search somewhere like instructables, it can be a little intimidating, so I started with a few simple circuits on DIY Guitar Pedals in Australia. His videos and circuits are a great place to start! From there, I dug further into circuit design and the snowball got bigger, so here I am.
What drives you as far as new pedal creation is concerned? How long does it typically take for an idea to come full circle and become a demo pedal? What’s the process behind new gear, and the eventual release of it to the public?
I have a ton of ideas, and some finalize quicker into final ideas. The reverb pedal took me about 6 months and that’ll be coming out very soon. I had been working on a Tremolo for a little over a year and now have something I’m happy with! The process is a bit lengthy after the circuit is complete just because I think a lot about what to call it, finding a WV artist to the do the enclosure design, and eventually order some enclosures to be printed. That process is two to three months, and that’s not including all the circuit design, prototype board fab, mail time for parts, etc.
What are some of the biggest concerns facing your profession today?
Anyone can build pedals! I mean, if I can do it, anyone can. There a ton of builders starting every day so it’s gonna come down to offering something interesting/unique to keep afloat.
Where do you see pedal building going in the future?
Holograms! Actually, I don’t know. There are some builders doing new and amazing things (like every Chass Bliss pedal), so I think we’re getting there.
Eventually we’ll have pedals that can make a recyclable Keurig cup of coffee, you can check in on Facebook, and the tone will sound better or worse depending on how many retweets you got that day. That would be terrible, I hope that joke doesn’t come true.
Who are some of your favorite builders in the industry right now?
Tomkat Pedals, EarthQuaker Devices, Function f(x), Chase Bliss Audio, American Wizard Toneworks, Dr. Scientist, Caroline, Old Blood Noise.
Name the last 5 records you listened to:
1. St Vincent – Strange Mercy
2. Michael Jackson – Off The Wall
3. Lush – Split
4. Converge – All We Love We Leave Behind
5. Ghost – Infestissumam
Klon hype: Love it or Hate it?
Kind of hate it. Definitely sounds great, but not worth the hype.
Any last comments, or anything you’d like to talk about?
Thanks for interviewing me! I’m releasing the Malta Kano Distorted Reverb in the next couple months! As soon as they’re available, I’ll be posting about it on facebook/bookwormeffects and Instagram @bookwormeffects and in my shop on reverb.com/shop/bookwormeffects!
Thanks so much to Brian for taking the time to answer some questions!
Make sure to go check out http://facebook.com/bookwormeffects, cheers!
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