Meet the Mansquatch
As you are walking down a dark, wooded path in the forest, a tall, shadowy figure emerges from the mist and strides toward you. Your pulse quickens. Your breaths become fast and shallow. Though your life doesn't flash before your eyes, the projectionist is warming up the reel. This is the end. The shadowy figure is far too tall and its limbs are too long to be fully human--a Mansquatch, perhaps. It has a weapon of some sort slung over its shoulder, and despite your terror, you cannot help but notice its pleasing contours. As the Mansquatch steps out into the moonlight in a clearing, you can make out the sound of...chicken picking? And his weapon is...a Greg Koch Signature Gristle 90 from Reverend Guitars?
You step on a twig, and the Mansquatch looks up from his thunder staff, startled. You have broken his virtuosic reverie. He breaks into a smile. "Why hello there, traveler! I see you've caught a glimpse of my new signature Reverend. I have one important question for you," he says, his voice turning grave. "Can...you dig it?" You give Greg a solemn nod, and the Mansquatch removes his weapon and beckons for you to take it for a spin.
Ten Pounds of Gristle in a Five-Pound Bag
When you first glimpse the Gristle 90, it is as if some eldritch dark magic compels your eyes to fix themselves on the small button between the volume and tone knobs. Do not resist, for this button is the secret to the Gristle 90's immense power. It's part of Gristle 90 Fishman Fluence pickups, and it allows the Gristle 90 to cover a wide swath of tonal territory.
If you're not familiar, Fishman's Fluence pickups use an innovative design that promotes versatility, fixes a few annoying problems, and generally makes for an ideal playing experience. Basically, the coils are printed on a circuit board rather than wound around a bobbin. Forty-eight of these circuit boards form one Fluence Core, and each pickup has two Cores. This new-fangled design is sure to delight you when you plug in. There's almost no hum, and the guitar responds to your touch just a hair faster.
But, most importantly, the Fluence core design allows you to have TWO tones in one pickup. That's where the aforementioned eldritch button comes in. It allows you to toggle between Reverend’s classic P-90 sound (full-bodied with lots of overtones and chime) and a more midrange-forward, woody, punchy P-90 sounds with lots of bark and bite. Both settings are quite articulate and dynamic. With these two tones on tap, you can pillage entire cities and set them on fire with rock and roll power!
A Different Flavor of Gristle
The Gristle 90’s brother, the Gristlemaster, is one of the most popular guitar models in Wildwood history. While the two share many characteristics, the Gristle 90 is not the same guitar with different pickups. In fact, it presents a totally new flavor of Gristlicious tone. For starters, it has a set neck, which increases resonance and sustain. Said set neck is home to an ebony fretboard, which imparts a lovely percussive articulation to the attack (and looks quite stylish). The neck also has a 24.75” scale, which means less tension on the strings for easier bending and slinkier handfeel. Finally, it has a Bigsby tailpiece, which allows for expressive vibrato and gives each note a bit of extra chime and growl. All in all, the tonal tweaks give the Gristle 90 a feel and sound entirely its own, and it is sure to inspire anyone seeking sonic Valhalla.
Built for Six-String Savages
Next, the Gristle 90's incredible build quality will jump out at you. When you sit down with The Gristle 90, Reverend's impeccable craftsmanship and attention to detail are immediately apparent. A guitarist like Greg Koch needs a guitar with righteous build quality to withstand the onslaught of fretboard savagery that spills forth from his mighty hands, and the Gristle 90 is up to the task. Reverend's outfitted our the Gristle 90s with a comfy medium oval neck profile, and it is as comfortable as your favorite pair of old sweatpants, and the fretboard has a 12” radius to allow for low setups and easy bending. And, with its pin-lock tuners and Boneite nut, changing strings on the Gristle 90 is a breeze, and its tuning stability is top-notch.
All of the above are tactile features that you can feel, but there is more than meets the eye (and the hand!) to the Gristle 90. There is a veritable plethora of enhanced components that make for an otherworldly playing experience beneath the hood. For instance, most jacks have one contact point, but the Pure Tone jack has two for better audio quality, reliability, and grip.
Also, you can find a treble bleed circuit in the volume knob, which keeps your highs present when you roll off the volume--crucial for pedal steel tricks and other Kochian volume knob tomfoolery.
Speaking of knobs, both the pots and caps in this beast are boutique quality. Where most caps and pots have a +-20% rating, Reverend's have +-10% ratings. They're built to tighter specifications, and that means more consistent sound quality.
All of these myriad rough-and-ready appointments add up to a ridiculously dependable instrument that can perform at the highest level in any situation: three-hour gigs, marathon recording sessions, naval battles, day-long practices, medieval siege warfare, the list goes on and on.
The Birth of a 'Squatch
Back in the woods, you get lost playing the Mansquatch's Gristle 90 and exploring its many features. You sit on a log playing until the sun peeks over the distant treetops. When you finally come to and look around, you realize that The Greg has wandered off into the woods, leaving you alone with the guitar. You look down at the Gristle 90. It is sturdy enough to suit a Viking warlord with a name like Skorsgard the Skullcrusher, but it is full of inspiring sounds. It almost seems unfair that a guitar should be so dependable AND have such killer tones on tap.
As you contemplate the magnificence of the guitar, you notice that the hair on your arms is growing. You are growing. As you become taller and more muscular, you realize that the Gristle 90 is enchanted. Your chicken-picking prowess grows, as does your harmonic vocabulary. As a long mane of dark hair sprouts from your head, you realize that the Mansquatch has conferred some of his powers upon you by giving you his weapon. You are becoming a Mansquatch, too. As the transformation ends, you raise your Gristle 90 to the sky and let the Mansquatch's traditional war cry ring out across the hilltops and wooded glens:
"CAAAAAAN YOUUUUUUUUU DIIIIIIIG IT?!?"
There is no answer, because it's a rhetorical question, albeit a loud one. All woodland critters and guitar pickers can dig the Greg Koch Signature Gristle 90. Wildwood Guitars invites you to take one for a spin and be transformed.
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