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Artist Spotlight :: Eric Giribaldi

Bio

Eric Giribaldi

Eric Giribaldi has been making the rounds in the Greater Boston area and beyond for over a decade. Having studied Music Performance at the University of Massachusetts at Lowell, he went on to do freelance work for solo original artists, local cover bands, and community theatre productions. Along with teaching private lessons, he can often be found playing acoustic guitar alongside some of New England's emerging artists. Besides all 6 New England states, the guitar has brought Giribaldi to places like Nashville and the stage at Carnegie Hall...twice.

What/Who inspired you to pick up your instrument?

The summer between 8th grade and Freshman year of high school, my friend Craig came over to my house one afternoon and had with him an old Sammick SG copy and was telling me about how he started taking guitar lessons. He played a little bit of "Iron Man," and I wanted to start playing that very day. It wasn't until around Christmas time later that same year that I was gifted a Squier Strat and started taking lessons a few weeks later. I have fond memories of my time with my first teacher, who really showed me so many things that I still value and appreciate to this day.

As far as players go, I'm a big fan of Hendrix, Mayer, Johnny Marr, Andy Summers, Jeff Buckley, and so many others.

What piece of musical advice would you give yourself if you could go back in time to the beginning of your musical journey?

Oh boy.....

There are probably a few things, but one would definitely be to work on finding the perfect blend between being a good player but also a good person to work with. The gigging world can be a crazy one, but if you focus on what you were asked to do and be as accommodating as you can be, that is what people remember about you. Your willingness to be a team player will carry you all the way, and you'll most likely end up meeting some pretty incredible people and making lifelong friends.

What keeps you excited about playing?

Honestly......the social aspect. Getting the chance to play with people I consider my friends and meeting new people to play with in whatever capacity. I continue to be introduced to new faces thanks to the relationships I've made with old ones, and that is what I find so great about doing what I do.

Also overdrive pedals

Desert Island 3 pedal pedalboard (not including tuner)

What!? 3!?!? Ummm...

An overdrive, probably a dual channel one, to get two different sounds that can work together or on their own. I think I'll go with the Browne Protein. The low-gain side reminds me of all of my favorite drive sounds that I tend to lean towards for everything I play, and the green side can offer more gain and a different character to the drive sound.

A Source Audio Nemesis delay, mostly because it has different styles of delay to choose from, but I also happen to think they all sound really good. It has a very nice Tape delay sound that I use quite a lot. Also, the tweak ability is hard to beat.

Lastly, I'll go with a newer favorite of mine that I wish I picked up sooner than I did, and that's a Strymon Deco. I think the Deco is completely unique and offers up a different way of looking at how we can use effects. Arguably it's a pretty subtle effect, but I use the saturation side as an always-on. The way it changes the signal to this nice compressed but still articulate sound is so musical to me. The Doubletracker side has many uses, too, it can be your mod pedal, or you can keep it very mild and use it to just thicken up your clean sound.

When you find yourself in a musical rut, what techniques do you do to break out of it?

I find myself in ruts quite often, and when that happens, I always tend to work on fingerstyle guitar playing. Everything from old folk music to pieces from the classical rep. I really enjoy fingerstyle guitar but don't get a chance to perform it very often; it's more of a self-fulfillment thing. Also, it makes for a fun parlor trick when the mood hits!

Who is your favorite artist/band today? And who was your favorite artist/band ten years ago?

One of my favorite artists of recent is probably Hozier. I think his use of RnB, soul and even jazz elements laced into a pop outfit makes him stand out a bit more for me. He's also a great guitar player and an interesting songwriter. It reminds me of all the reasons I like older artists like Jeff Buckley and older folk artists; the palate is just a little more refined.

Ten years ago......and further than that......and still now, probably Dashboard Confessional. I'm an emo/indie kid at heart and have always loved how Dashboard wrote songs and incorporated acoustic guitar into them.

When you find yourself in a music store - what is your go-to riff when test drive gear?

Electric guitar probably "This Charming Man ."If I grab an acoustic, there's a 4-chord phrase in a piece from a musical called "The Last Five Years" that I really like.

What is your most prized/cherished piece of gear? And why?

Monetarily probably my King of Tone, because they're getting harder and harder to get a hold of one.

Sentimentally would probably be my Martin OM18. It was a guitar that I got when my professional career was beginning to gain momentum, and I was all of a sudden playing out quite a lot with a few different artists at the time. The guitar has been.....and is still going....through a lot. There are a lot of hours on that thing.

What is the next big musical purchase you're hoping to save for?

I am currently for an Equitz Rayburn; it should be done in a few months!

Gear Breakdown

Eric Giribaldi Gear

I use two instrument cables for my electric setup, a Sage weave from the guitar to the board and a plain black from the board to the amp. I love the ruggedness of the cables, and they never get twisted up a whole lot, and they are flexible while still maintaining their integrity. Also, what's big with me is they don't move all over the place, they're not heavy by any means, but they do have some weight to them, which allows them to stay put if you want them to.

For my acoustic gigs, I've been using the same blue weave cable for several years now. It's even gone in for a repair and is still going! I love that cable, and I'd like to believe that the feeling is mutual!

I also use Rattlesnake XLR cables for my vocal mic.



Bands / Projects

April Renzella
Chris Moreno
Lexi Jordan




Social Links




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Reviews on Google

John Toppings
John Toppings
11/5/2021
Once again Rattlesnake Cable Company delivers the best. I just received 2 15' Oxblood guitar cables. Awesome color combined with the best cable materials out there. If you want dependable, quality products, this is the clear choice.
Jason Graves
Jason Graves
8/5/2021
I first heard about Rattlesnake cables through an acoustic Facebook group I'm in. I needed a couple of cables so I decided to check them out. I liked the products I saw, and many of the folks in the group had good things to say about the company, so I jumped on two 15' standard cables. I looked over... Read
Stew Guernsey
Stew Guernsey
9/7/2020
Rattlesnake are the best cables out there! Built to last and they look great. They build, test and ship quickly and have excellent customer service. Highly recommend!
Stew Guernsey
John Toppings
11/5/2021
Once again Rattlesnake Cable Company delivers the best. I just received 2 15' Oxblood guitar cables. Awesome color combined with the best cable materials out there. If you want dependable, quality products, this is the clear choice.
Close
Stew Guernsey
Jason Graves
8/5/2021
I first heard about Rattlesnake cables through an acoustic Facebook group I'm in. I needed a couple of cables so I decided to check them out. I liked the products I saw, and many of the folks in the group had good things to say about the company, so I jumped on two 15' standard cables. I looked over the website and saw that they're a small company, and just figured I'd hear from them in about a week or so. To my huge surprise, that evening I got an email from Hank at Rattlesnake who said he was beginning on my order. The next morning, I got a very nice VIDEO message from Hank thanking me for the order, and saying it was shipping THAT DAY. Wow! It arrived within a few days, and was perfect for my needs. The cables are solidly built and I expect I'll get many years of good use from them. I liked them so much I even bought another - and had the same fantastic experience with the purchase... quick response, and fast delivery to my home. Thank you, Rattlesnake Cables! I will most definitely be returning!
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Stew Guernsey
Stew Guernsey
9/7/2020
Rattlesnake are the best cables out there! Built to last and they look great. They build, test and ship quickly and have excellent customer service. Highly recommend!
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