Transcribed by Brandon Milner
Brandon's comments: Don't know if y'all saw this. By the way, I still stand by my reports of what gear Dave uses based on what I saw him playing at the show regardless of what this article says. For example, there is no mention of his quadraverb which you could see as clear as day in his rack. This stuff progably refers to his recording set-ups mostly.
"The moment I treasure most is when a song first comes up," says Sundays guitarist Dave Gauverin. "It's so fresh, you're hearing it like it's a new record by somebody else. Making it into a finished song is still enjoyable, but it's more work."
For Gauverin, 34, much of the work involves weaving elaborate guitar tapestries around the song's airy melodies without overpowering them. The Londoner excels at layering simple parts that converge into silvery textures around Harriet Wheeler's gentle vocals. On the quartet's third album, Static & Silence [Geffen], Gauverin's overdubbed guitars alternatively sparkle and chime or merge into soft, wistful choirs.
"The process always involves a lot of trial and error," he says. "But this time around I felt clearer about my decisions. I could say, 'It will be this Telecaster's bass pickup through this amp.' I've got five or six nice, very distinct-sounding guitars which helps a lot." Gauverin's favorites are two 60's models: a tobacco-sunburst Gibson ES-335 and a Fender Telecaster. He runs them through a reissue Fender Deluxe and a Vox AC30, and freely layers electric tones alongside acoustic tracks from a Martin D-41 and a Lowden 12-String. His pedals include a Cry-Baby, a Boss Super Overdrive, an old coloursound wah and an Ibanex Modern Fusion. "I haven't seen anybody else using the Ibanez, which probably means it's useless," he laughs. "It's got one of those grandiose names, but I like the way it gives you just a minor amount of amp-like distortion."
Gauverin has no regrets about allowing five years to pass since the group's previous album, Blind, during which he and Wheeler had a child and built the home studio where they tracked most of Static & Silence. "Often it seems that bands allow themselves to be caught up in marketing schedules and concerns about their profile, when they should really just think about the music. When it's right, put it out."
Copyright: Laurelei Dawson