Rock harpist Mikaela Davis and psychedelic disco instrumentalists Circles Around The Sun recently went on tour together, and we were stoked for the opportunity to catch up with them while they were in Chicago. We got to run through all of their go-to gear in each of the band members' touring rigs, checking out a lot of 1970s-inspired gear, analog warmth, and modern pedalboards.
We kicked off our video with Mikaela, who is touring with a new-to-her harp—an electro-acoustic Camac harp, made in France, which features a magnetic pickup on each string. Because the harp is capable of such unique sounds already, Mikaela's pedalboard is more delay-heavy than anything else. John, meanwhile, has a stacked pedalboard filled with modulation pedals, wahs, and so much more.
"My idea for my voice in this band has kinda become equal parts David Gilmour, Nile Rodgers, and The Edge. Put those three in a blender—that's kinda what I go for," John told us, while showing off the guitar most special to him right now that's similar to what all of those greats have played: a 2017 Fender Custom Shop '69 Stratocaster.
Even outside of the guitar realm, Circles Around The Sun is still inspired by the '70s. Adam was up next, and showed off the synths and keyboards that he takes on the road, including a 1971 Moog Model D, a modded 1970s Rhodes (with no speaker for more flexibility), Sequential Prophet-5 reissue, and Crumar Orchestrator.
Be sure to check out the video above to get the full behind the scenes touring rig rundown from each of the band members, and then watch their Audiotree Live Session on YouTube.