I have been an amateur woodworker my whole life, always using carpentry as a means to channel negative feelings towards a positive outcome. I recently found myself in need of a new pedal board, a position a lot of us pedal addicts find ourselves in frequently. I built myself a new board, and at the same time built a couple others for a few friends who were in need as well. I did it to their specifications, figuring out what they needed for their rigs and it was a lovely time. They turned out great; solid and sturdy, beautiful, and very importantly they were incredibly cost effective. With this I got the idea to start cult boards, which serves a very specific purpose.
The music gear world is filled with abrasive white cis-men who condescend to any marginalized person if their knowledge of gear isn’t of the same ilk. I detest this. It makes it incredibly hard for persons of colour, women, trans-persons, queer people, and a plethora of others to learn about gear and feel comfortable going to a store and buying what is right for them, or going to meet some weird dude off craigslist who loves stained and digs **chix who play muzik.** Furthermore, a lot of gear that is worthwhile is priced so exceedingly high that it is financially out of reach, and the cheap alternatives need to be replaced so often that you end up spending more. Basically; music is a nightmare.
cult boards exists to offer custom, professional quality pedal boards on a sliding scale donations based system with a priority on marginalized persons. I am happy to build you the board you want at an affordable rate without all the weird hyper-masculinity and pretension. Need a tiny board to fit a tuner and your overdrive on so you don’t always have to set it up? No problem. Want it raised so you can mount a power strip or power supply under it? Sounds rad. Need a 3foot x 5foot monster so your queer as fuck psych prog outfit can jam? I am more than happy to help! I can make anything from the simplest of bare-bone structures to a board with built in inputs, top mounted handles and a tie up for your cables. The world is your oyster.
Pricing works as follows: You shoot me an e-mail and we discuss what you need. I let you know exactly what the shipping cost & material cost is (wood, fraction of a pack of screws, handles, etc.) and you paypal, money order, mail cash or write a cheque. Whatever works. I build the board and send it your way (builds can take as little as 1 day and as many as 6), and once you receive it you can send a suggested donation of $15-$80, depending on what you can afford and feel is reasonable. That is it!
Why am I doing this other than the aforementioned bro-scape that is music? I love building as an outlet, it keeps me happy and helps my mental health stay in check. As well, I am an intersexed queer male who, despite a torrid time growing up, has all the privilege of being white skinned & being deemed “passable” by normal society ever since I had surgery. I have an ability to give back to a community that has given me a lot, and use the knowledge I have gained to hopefully help facilitate a less shitty environment in music.
I am excited about this endeavor, and hope to hear from ya soon if you need a board! If not, feel free to spread this around just in case someone in your friend group or internet-circle needs one! More gear for all! xoxo kw cult boards : [email protected] vile creature : http://vilecreature.bandcamp.com
