Artist Spotlight :: Steven Murphy

Bio

My name is Steven Murphy, I'm the guitarist for Christian rock band Fire Escape . I've been playing guitar for a decade, but have been heavily involved in music all my life. I played saxophone all throughout elementary, middle, and high school, while primarily playing guitar at church. In 2019 we formed Fire Escape. Since then we've gotten to play on television twice, play local festivals, and have gained multiple artist endorsements.
-Rattlesnake Cable Company
-SIT Strings
-WB Gear

What/Who inspired you to pick up your instrument?

My Uncle Buck definitely got me interested in play guitar. I grew up watch him and my dad play in a band together. I always loved his guitar tone and the way his guitar looked. I actually own his guitar now, and will be using it for a few things we have coming up this year in December. I truly fell in love when I started using PRS guitars in 2015, they just felt good compared to what I was using. Playing felt easier and I liked having 24 frets.

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

I would tell myself to spend more time learning things outside my comfort zone/preferred style. It my not be easy but will be worth it.

What keeps you excited about playing?

Just spending the time with my band, the rush you get when hearing the applause, and seeing the band and ministry grow as we gain more opportunities to play.

Desert Island 3 pedal pedalboard (not including tuner)

I'd have to choose my Revv G3 pedal because it's super versatile and it inspires we when I'm in the writing process. My Westminister Chick-Del-a delay pedal because I'm just a sucker for a good delay pedal, and this is hands down the best delay I've ever used. Finally I would have to take my MXR Custom Badass Modified O. D. because I love using it for for writing as well. Plus, it has some cool features like a low and mid bump button and a boost/cut 100hz knob.

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

I usually have to put down my guitar for a bit, and listen to some music or watch some knew guitar videos on YouTube. I find something that I'd like to learn and spend time learning how to do it and applying it in a song that I'm writing or just use it over backing tracking in my room.

Who is your favorite artist/band today? And who was your favorite artist/band 10 years ago?

Picking a favorite band is super hard, I like listening to a lot of different music. I enjoy bands like Spoke's Beard, Neal Morse, and Rush for that prog style and cool instrumental parts. Then on the other hand I like bands like ROAM, Eidola, and Of Mice & Men just for the fact of appreciating the range of talent you can find in any genre.

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

Go to riffs in a music store now are things that I've written for the band. I'm testing gear to see how it feels and sounds for the music we play. I want to make sure it meets my needs for on stage. I enjoy doing the breakdown in our song Escape, running through some of the guitar solos in our songs like Vessel, Enthroned, and October Nights.

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

My most prized/ cherished piece of gear is probably my purple burst PRS. It was a limited run color in the UK, I paid to have it shipped to me in Pennsylvania. Then I changed out all the chrome and cream hardware for all black hardware. I put Hipshot locking tuners on it, a Wudtone bridge, got custom blacked out Planet Tone Afterburner pickups, and some generic black speed knobs. I also love that it has a roasted maple neck. It just plays great and looks amazing.

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

Right now I'm saving up for a Revv G8 pedal which they just announced. I don't really have anything else I'm saving up for at the moment. I just bought a Revv 4x12, a Revv 1x12, and a Revv Generator 100 MKI. I just think Revv makes very good quality gear and love that I can help support their business.

Gear Breakdown

When looking at routing my gear I wanted to get the most tonal variety as possible from my set up. Everything is set on Temple Audio Design pedal board (TRIO28 with quick release mounting plates and Temple Audio 4X mod) and lowered by a Walrus Audio Phoenix 15 isolated power supply. My Current rig is ran in this order:

My guitars through a Shure GLXD16 wireless system > 4X Mod > Poly Tune2 (tc electronics) > Mini Mimiq (tc electronics) > JP Wah (Jim Dunlop) > Keeley Compressor > Revv G4 Distortion > Revv G3 Distortion > Spark Booster (tc electronics) > MXR Custom Badass Modified O.D. > Revv G2 Overdrive > Ernie Ball Volume Pedal > MXR Analog Chorus > MXR EVH Phase 90 > Mosaic 12- String Effect ( Digitech) > Chick-Del-A (delay pedal by Westminster Audio) > Polara Reverb (Digitech) > MXR Smart Gate > 4X Mod > using my Rattlesnake guitar cable I plug into my Revv 100 MK1 (clean channel) > using my Rattlesnake speaker cable I plug into a Revv 4x12 with 2 G30 and 2 Creamback speakers in an X formation.

The booster is positioned here to give more volume to the G3 and G4 for solos, but give more distortion and gain to the MXR Custom Badass Modified O.D. and G2. The volume pedal is placed before my time based effects to allow the delay and reverb to continue 'sustaining' the sound when the volume pedal is cut off. I mainly use PRS SE guitars, Couch Guitar Straps, 52-10 Power Steel SIT Strings, and Planet Tone Afterburner Pickups. I use Rattlesnake XLR cables in my rig for my my mics as well, I have a Sennheiser e609 for my cab and a sE Electronics V7 mic for vocals. I like that fact that I can get the Neutrik gold ends on my instrument cables for better conductivity and Neutrik XLR black shells. Between their durability, the customizations option, the quality of the cable, and the sound I get from them, Rattlesnake Cables are a no brainer for any musician.

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