EarthQuaker Devices Chelsea Low End Fuzz Driver Effect Pedal

There’s not only beauty in imperfection, but a sheen and a swagger and that’s exactly why we have the EarthQuaker Devices Chelsea Low End Fuzz Driver. Chelsea, a fuzz pedal designed in collaboration with James Murphy of dance punk band LCD Soundsystem, is a recreation of a longstanding vintage fuzz circuit used by the band across their twenty-year-plus tenure.

This unique collaboration model from EQD and New York City’s resident dance punks celebrates the punk in imperfection, the spunk in imperfection, and the funk in imperfection. EQD’s Chelsea lays things out relatively simply with three familiar control dials and a two-way tone switch. Tonally, Chelsea is a recreation of James Murphy’s go-to fuzz circuit as heard on many LCD guitar and bass tracks. This particular vintage fuzz has a unique character not too heavy, not too light, not too dark, not too bright. Capable of playing with focus and articulation as well as a devil-may-care spirit, Chelsea offers plenty spanning its Level, Sustain, and Tone ranges on bass or guitar.

Where EQD’s Chelsea strays from the beaten fuzz path is with its two-way tone switch. This dedicated tone switch does quite a bit to move tonal mountains, eliminating the Tone control from the equation altogether. The removal of the Tone control results in the fuzz leaving inhibitions at the door and leaving all responsibilities in the hands of the Sustain control. Chelsea’s vintage, fragile, tired character truly comes out to play at this juncture, where the replicated aged circuits show their lived-in and punched-up character. Reel it all back and play with great, touch-responsive grit or push it to the limit and play with wild, punchy dirt sure to start a few parties.

Any way you slice it, Chelsea is a dirty, distorted, road-ready, and road-weary fuzz perfect for all the glitz and grime dance punk’s biggest stages can afford you with all the thrills of house party fist fight.

• Fuzz effect designed in collaboration with LCD Soundsystem’s James Murphy
• Replicated vintage fuzz circuit tone
• Level, Tone and Sustain controls
• Two-way Tone on/off switch with mids-focused sound
• Analog design with true bypass switching
• Standard nine volt DC center negative power operation
• Handmade in Akron, Ohio