WALRUS AUDIO
CONTRABAND
REVIEW BY SAM HILL
STREET PRICE $149.00
When it comes to fuzz
pedals, there are plenty to
choose from. Like grains of
sand on a beach, there is
no shortage when it comes
to fuzz and dirt pedals in
general. With this in mind,
it behooves us to find the
pedals that best fit our
personalities and playing
styles. Given the sheer
number of choices, this
is no easy task. But some
truly stand out, making it
less difficult to find a fuzzy,
woolly friend. The Walrus
Audio Contraband is one
such pedal. What’s that,
you say? You love a good
fuzz, but a plethora of
knobs make you nervous?
You want a gnarly tone, but
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you’re afraid you won’t be
able to man the controls?
You’re in luck, because the
Contraband is a cinch to
use. With one knob and one
switch, it’s impossible to
screw up—this is an instantgratification pedal.
The Contraband’s single
knob controls output. The
amount of fuzz is preset, and it is glorious. To
my ears, it doesn’t copy
any specific fuzz, but is
an amalgamation of many
classics. Walrus Audio
describes it as “metallic,”
but to me, this is inaccurate.
To my surprise, it has decent
clarity with chords, and you
can roll back your volume
knob for some cleanliness,
Walrus Audio Contraband
then bring it back up to
rock the house. A toggle
switch selects between thin
and thick modes, which
adjusts the bass response
of the pedal. This is useful
if you want to tame your
humbuckers or beef up your
single coils, although I left
it on thick most of the time
regardless of pickups and it
was a blast. With a Gibson
Firebird loaded with Firebird
mini-humbuckers, a touch of
chorus, and the Contraband,
I was instantly transported
into John Frusciante-land.
In fact, I gave this pedal the
nickname “Frusciante Fuzz.”
That’s not to say that it can’t
do more than that, but fans
of RHCP would do well to