Zephyr Avalon on Touring with Zach Bryan, Bass Gear & Surviving the Grind
This week on The Tone Mob, Blake hangs with bassist Zephyr Avalon—a man whose musical journey started with jazz camp and ended up on stadium stages... with a few detours through punk bands, upright bass trauma, and a destroyed childhood guitar along the way.
They cover Zephyr’s early years surrounded by classical music, gigging through college, touring with Haley Reinhart, and stumbling into the rocket ship that is Zach Bryan’s rise. There's gear talk (OC-2 forever), rig rundowns, custom basses, and why upright bass and stage monitors are natural enemies.
Also: pizza philosophies, Instagram hustle, and why the music industry is a lot like bad sushi—if you’re drowning it in sauce, something’s probably wrong.
🎧 Plug in and prepare to nod, laugh, and maybe question your pedalboard choices. Lets go!
Support The Show And Connect!
The Text Chat is back! Hit me up at (503) 751-8577
You can also help out with your gear buying habits by purchasing stuff from Tonemob.com/reverb Tonemob.com/sweetwater or grabbing your guitar/bass strings from Tonemob.com/stringjoy
Release your music via DistroKid and save 30% by going to Tonemob.com/distrokid
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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1:28:18
Oneder Boy Forever: Nick Diener on Pedals, Punk, and Parenting
Blake is joined once again by Nick Diener—founder of Oneder Effects and guitarist/vocalist for The Swellers—for a wide-ranging chat that hits everything from vintage SGs and Freebird lore to dad life, Discord burnout, and the existential dread of messy workspaces.
Nick shares stories of playing Gary Rossington’s actual guitars, visiting Ocean Way Studios in Nashville, building pedals in cluttered chaos, and trying to stay creative in a post-pandemic industry hit hard by tariffs and uncertainty. They also dive into martial arts, musician mental health, content fatigue, the pros and cons of podcast video, and why dog-related GoFundMes might just bankrupt us all.
Whether you're here for the gear, the laughs, or some philosophical dad-core, this episode’s got a little something for everybody—especially disorganized pedal nerds with too many unfinished projects.
Check out Nick's work HERE https://www.onedereffects.com/
Support The Show And Connect!
The Text Chat is back! Hit me up at (503) 751-8577
You can also help out with your gear buying habits by purchasing stuff from Tonemob.com/reverb Tonemob.com/sweetwater or grabbing your guitar/bass strings from Tonemob.com/stringjoy
Release your music via DistroKid and save 30% by going to Tonemob.com/distrokid
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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1:16:30
He Was Supposed to Be a Welder. Now He’s Onstage. (Amico Demuzio)
In this episode of The Tone Mob Podcast, Blake Wyland is joined by Amico Demuzio—pedal steel guitarist and multi-instrumentalist for Charles Wesley Godwin’s band. They dive into Amico’s unexpected journey from welding school dropout to full-time touring musician, fueled by a love for lap steel, vintage Peavey amps, and weird-sounding pedals.
If you’re a gearhead, there’s plenty to sink your teeth into: Boss Slicers, Jerry Garcia tones, Kernum pedals, amp plugins that sound freakishly real, and why the pedal steel might be the most emotionally charged instrument in modern music. They also explore the joys of analog gear, silent stages, DIY tone shaping, and whether or not Peavey amps deserve their crusty-but-beautiful comeback.
Plus: cold pizza, mushroom foraging (the sober kind), and a few tips for getting started on pedal steel without throwing your back out—or your wallet.
Whether you're into country, indie, Americana, or just love a good underdog story, this episode delivers music talk, gear insights, and laughs in equal measure.
Give Amico a follow HERE https://www.instagram.com/amicodemuzio
Support The Show And Connect!
The Text Chat is back! Hit me up at (503) 751-8577
You can also help out with your gear buying habits by purchasing stuff from Tonemob.com/reverb Tonemob.com/sweetwater or grabbing your guitar/bass strings from Tonemob.com/stringjoy
Release your music via DistroKid and save 30% by going to Tonemob.com/distrokid
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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1:06:41
Ghost Jams & "Fake" Bands: Inside the World of TopHouse
On this episode of the Tone Mob Podcast, Blake is joined by Jesse and William of Top House for a conversation that starts with a ghost in the machine and ends somewhere between band mythologies and pizza philosophies. They unpack the chaotic beauty of songwriting, the grimy reality of touring (spoiler: pee when you can), and why having a fake country band called “Cornfield Boys” might just be the secret to creative freedom.
The trio riffs on everything from the dark arts of social media algorithms to the metaphysics of string tension, with stops at Nashville pizza joints and an unsolicited tribute to the Boss tuner pedal. It’s part gear talk, part life advice, part fever dream—with enough practical nuggets and absurd detours to keep both your left and right brain happy.
Whether you’re a musician, a fan, or just someone who appreciates that fine line between genius and nonsense, this episode delivers.
Check out the band on their website HERE https://tophousetheband.com/
Support The Show And Connect!
The Text Chat is back! Hit me up at (503) 751-8577
You can also help out with your gear buying habits by purchasing stuff from Tonemob.com/reverb Tonemob.com/sweetwater or grabbing your guitar/bass strings from Tonemob.com/stringjoy
Release your music via DistroKid and save 30% by going to Tonemob.com/distrokid
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
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1:10:03
Steve Cobucci of Wolves at the Gate: Chasing Tone, & Fighting Egos
This week on The Tone Mob Podcast, Blake Wyland sits down with Steve Cobucci — guitarist, gear junkie, and founding member of Wolves at the Gate — to talk about the beautiful mess that is making music for a living.
Steve kicks things off with the story of his first guitar: a classical hand-me-down from his mom, followed by a hard-earned Gibson Les Paul — because if you're gonna make noise, you might as well do it right. From his beloved B-52 tube amp to his first Tube Screamer, Steve proves that chasing tone starts early and never really stops.
Blake and Steve rip into the realities of starting a band in college, the rollercoaster of recording in a real studio, and why having a good drummer is like finding a unicorn. They don’t shy away from the sticky stuff either — managing egos, screwing up communication, and how growing up (just a little) changes everything you thought you knew about music and life.
They swap war stories about live shows, argue the merits of production quality, and marvel at how revisiting old albums can hit you harder the second time around. Plus, Steve drops some hard-earned wisdom about why you should find your own sound, keep it loose, and remember: if you’re not having fun, you’re probably doing it wrong.
Whether you’re a guitarist, a music nerd, or just someone trying to make a little magic without losing your mind, this episode’s got something for you.
Check out the band on their website HERE https://www.wolvesatthegate.com/
Support The Show And Connect!
The Text Chat is back! Hit me up at (503) 751-8577
You can also help out with your gear buying habits by purchasing stuff from Tonemob.com/reverb Tonemob.com/sweetwater or grabbing your guitar/bass strings from Tonemob.com/stringjoy
Release your music via DistroKid and save 30% by going to Tonemob.com/distrokid
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
The year was 2015. Show host Blake Wyland intended to start a podcast where he took a deep dive with his guests from the guitar world to explain their rigs. What happened was that, but also a whole lot more. The show quickly evolved into discussions about people's lives. Guitars, pedals, amps, etc. are the central hub of the show, but it really is more about the PEOPLE behind all of it. Both the musicians who use the gear, and the folks that create these magical tools of expression. You can expect chats about songwriting, favorite bands, family, loss, addiction, conspiracy theories, philosophy, and most of all....... food. This podcast goes all over the place. Come take a ride.
Canada - english