The Life Is Unfair Awkward Breed Fuzz is a fuzz pedal from the Welsh builder Life Is Unfair, hand soldered and screen printed in Wales1. Pedal of the Day called it "a unique fuzz" and found that "this pedal takes fuzz to the next level," praising how much character it gets from just two knobs1.
What it does
The Awkward Breed has only Volume and Gain knobs, and the reviewer noted there is "not a ton to figure out here," but the way the knobs interact with each other, with the player's dynamics and with the instrument's own controls is where the pedal comes alive1.
Its response follows your guitar's output. With high output pickups the reviewer found long sustain and a thicker tone, while lower output pickups give a sputtery, random-type fuzz. Rolling back your guitar's Volume knob gets you into that sputtery territory as well1. The reviewer added that "you can even get into cool dying battery-type space if you want," referring to the sagging, starved sound of a fuzz running on a nearly dead battery1.
How it compares
Life Is Unfair's other fuzz covered by Pedal of the Day, the Dream Left Behind Fuzz, was reviewed alongside the Awkward Breed, and the reviewer described both as "super-affordable"1. The company has since gone on to other fuzz designs, including the Bad Machine and the Violet Oscillation. For where the Awkward Breed sits among fuzz designs generally, see Fuzz Pedals.
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Questions
How many controls does the Awkward Breed Fuzz have?
Just two: Volume and Gain. The reviewer at Pedal of the Day noted that there is not a lot to figure out, but that the way the knobs interact with each other, with your playing dynamics and with your instrument's own controls is where the pedal opens up. Rolling back your guitar's Volume is a big part of getting its sputterier sounds.
Where is the Awkward Breed Fuzz made?
Pedal of the Day reports that the pedal is hand soldered and screen printed in Wales, where Life Is Unfair is based. The reviewer also described it, alongside the Dream Left Behind, as super-affordable.
Sources (2)
- Life Is Unfair Awkward Breed Fuzz, Pedal of the Day, 2017-06-05
- Life Is Unfair Dream Left Behind Fuzz, Pedal of the Day, 2017-04-12
