clear tones that are great for probing the wide-open spaces the Boomerang inevitably unveils.
In Serial mode, I was able to play rhythm
and lead guitarist for the duration of a whole
song by dedicating verse, chorus, and bridge
parts to each of the three loops, activating
them with a tap of their respective switch,
and then soloing or playing melodic hooks
over each. It’s remarkable how well this
mode can supplement practice and improvised jam sessions if you’re in a band. I was
able to create the basic structures for two
songs that my own ensemble has been tinkering with in the studio and work through
dozens of potential melodies and lead sections. If you’re a songwriter, the Serial mode
alone makes the Boomerang a creative tool
that’s potentially worth its weight in gold.
Stacking additional parts on loops is
exceptionally easy. Just hold the yellow
Bonus button for 1/2 second and you’re
stacking. Hold it for 1/2 second to turn
stacking off. I created an arpeggio loop on
Loop 1 with two taps of the footswitch,
then hit the yellow Bonus button to play
a second sequence of volume swells that
lay over the top. And from that simple,
two-layer loop, I must have practiced scales
and various lead phrases for a solid hour. If
you ever find yourself in a situation where
practice feels ordinary, this pedal can, quite
literally, create a whole new environment to
inspire you.
Assigning functions like the Reverse and
Octave functions is a breeze too. You just
hold the Bonus Assign button until the
green light in the center of the Clock display glows green. At that point twisting the
Hold and Tap knobs will illuminate a bright
or dim light next to the function you’ve
selected to activate with a hold or tap.
For the purposes of my test, I assigned
the Reverse function to a tap of the Green
Bonus button and an octave drop to a Hold
of the Green Bonus button, while keeping the Yellow Bonus button dedicated to
Stack and Erase functions. Again, a simple
arpeggiated chord pattern became a whole
galaxy of textures that challenged my lead
vocabulary as I switched between swirling,
psychedelic reverse passages and half-time,
dropped-octave sections that invited lyrical slow-bend techniques, and then back
to standard looped mode. If you gravitate
toward the simplest song structures, you
might find these functions (and the ease
Selecting Modes
To assign modes like Octave, Fade,
and Stack, hold the yellow or
green Bonus Assign button
until the light in the center
of the Clock display
glows yellow or green.
Then twist the associ-
ated Hold and Tap
knobs until a bright
or dim light appears
next to the function
you wish to activate.
with which you can program and switch
between them) less inspiring than I did.
But if you’re a soloist or songwriter that’s
prompted by unusual textures and twists,
the Boomerang III’s deeper functions and
effects can lead you into very interesting
territory with very little effort.
The Verdict
Even for an experienced looper familiar
with say, a Jam Man or Boss Loop Station,
the Boomerang III demands a little bit of
study in order to operate it seamlessly and
unearth its unique features. It also takes a
good bit of practice—and timing—to put
some of the more complex functions into
practice. But the Boomerang III is deep in
functionality and will reward the time you
devote to unlocking its secrets. You can really expand the possibilities of a small group
in live situations. And as a compositional
tool, the Boomerang III can take the place
of hours of jamming with bandmates when
you’re looking for a lead hook to go over an
established chord progression. Sturdy, built
to last, and brimming with surprises, the
Boomerang III is a pedal that’s likely to pay
for itself dozens of times over and has the
potential to inspire more real creation than
all your other pedals combined—if you’re
willing to do a little homework.
Rating:
Buy If...
you’re thrilled by the notion of new
paths to practice and song creation
and aren’t technology averse.
Skip If...
the footswitch on your overdrive is
already one switch too many.
Boomerang Musical
Products
Street $469
boomerangmusic.com
or use a mobile device to read
this QR code to download audio
clips of the pedal at
CLICKHere…
