The God City Instruments GCI Brutalist is a high-gain distortion pedal accompanied by a boost-only active Baxandall EQ, designed in collaboration with Electronic Audio Experiments. God City Instruments is the brainchild of Kurt Ballou, and while the Brutalist is not his debut pedal, Delicious Audio describes it as the first creation that has undergone over a decade of craftsmanship before its release1.
How it shapes your sound
The Brutalist's character comes from what Delicious Audio calls the dynamic duo of band-pass and all-pass filters, working together to shape distortion textures. The maker's described range is broad: everything from colossal, scooped brick walls of fuzz to sultry cocked-wah lofi lead tones, and even near-saw-like bass tones1.
The two filters do different jobs:
- Band-pass filter (B): sits at the beginning of the circuit and makes it possible to dial in cocked wah or aggressive chainsaw voicings. Its wide frequency range is also what allows the Brutalist to suit bassists1.
- All-pass filter (A): sits at the output and acts somewhat like a parked phaser, giving extreme scooped sounds plus unexpected synth textures that interact with the band-pass settings1.
Both filters are engaged with the left footswitch, which runs the distortion through the band-pass filter at the start of the circuit and the all-pass filter at the output1.
The EQ and power
The active two-band Baxandall EQ is boost only, so flat settings for Bass and Treble are actually counterclockwise rather than centered. The EQ is fine-tuned to be subtle, so it agrees with both clean and dirty amps1.
The pedal runs from a standard 9V power supply but carries 18V of internal headroom, which Delicious Audio credits with excellent dynamics. It draws a minimum of 150mA1.
With a 150mA minimum current draw, the Brutalist needs a power supply that can deliver that much on its output; a low-current daisy-chain output may not be enough.
For related reading, see the site's pages on distortion pedals, filter pedals, and boost pedals.
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Questions
Who designed the GCI Brutalist?
The Brutalist was designed in collaboration with Electronic Audio Experiments and is made by God City Instruments, the company founded by Kurt Ballou. According to Delicious Audio, while it is not Kurt Ballou's debut pedal, it is the first creation that has undergone over a decade of craftsmanship before release.
Can the GCI Brutalist be used with bass?
Yes. Delicious Audio notes that the Brutalist's band-pass filter has a wide frequency range that suits bassists, and the pedal can produce near-saw-like bass tones alongside its guitar voicings, from scooped fuzz walls to cocked-wah lead sounds.
What does the band-pass filter do on the Brutalist?
The band-pass filter sits at the beginning of the circuit and makes it possible to dial in cocked wah or aggressive chainsaw voicings. Its wide frequency range is also what allows the Brutalist to work for bass players. It works hand in hand with the all-pass filter at the output to shape distortion textures.
What do the Bass and Treble knobs do on the GCI Brutalist?
The Bass and Treble controls are part of an active two-band Baxandall EQ that is boost only. Flat settings for both knobs are actually counterclockwise rather than at noon, and the EQ is fine-tuned to be subtle so it agrees with both clean and dirty amps.
Sources (1)
- New Pedal: CGI Brutalist Distortion, Delicious Audio, 2024-02-09