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'Offensive' And 'Sexist' Guitar Pedal Effect


MacDaddy

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http://www.blabbermouth.net/news/steel-panthers-satchel-and-tc-electronic-face-backlash-over-offensive-and-sexist-guitar-pedal-effect/

On the one hand it's Steel Panther, so what do you expect? On the other hand, just because it's Steel Panther, should they be able to get away with it?

Satchel's reply to the complaining tweet did make me laugh though :whoopass:

 

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We've already done this in Off Topic

There are plenty of other pedals with sexually suggestive names (in fact it seems almost to be a prerequisite for any "boutique" pedal maker to have at least one in their range) so are the complainants going after those too? Or are those manufacturers  too obscure to be worth the publicity to the bands in question?

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Quote

I’m working overtime with TC Electronics to re-release the “meow meow melter” tone print under the less offensive, more politically correct name of the “Butthole Burner”.  Don’t worry- it will still melt your meow meow, ladies.

😂

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The complainants didn't complain about the "Viagra Substitute" one though.

 

Steel Panther are a comedy act. This is part of it.

TC should not have removed it over a petition with fewer than a 1000 signatories. It wasn't offensive. It was puerile and juvenile but that's about it.

 

The complainants should also read about the Streisand Effect. 

 

Spectre Media Group / Glenn Fricker have started a petition the other way! https://www.change.org/p/rad-people-reinstate-the-meow meow-melter-preset-on-tc-electronic-effects?recruiter=21779915&utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=facebook&utm_campaign=psf_combo_share_initial&utm_term=psf_combo_share_abi 

 

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Probably the most/best publicity TC have had in a long while, put them back on the radar I`d reckon.

And @0175westwood29 fully agree, some of the lyrical content I`ve heard in rap when it`s on at work - the younglings seem to like it - would deserve better attention from those getting the hump about the name of an effects pedal.

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It’s not up to any of you or anyone else to tell another person what they can and cannot be offended by.

Plenty of people have attacked the lyrics or hip hop and metal. This is why the parental advisory  label exists. 

It’s sexist and misogynist to cry foul when someone else is offended by something that is sexist. 

Also, TC clearly is doing good business, they put out new gear constantly and are sold in virtually every shop. Finally, Glenn Fricker is an donkey. Talented, lots of great credits, but it’s all gone to over inflate his already large ego.

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On 15/07/2018 at 20:20, 0175westwood29 said:

its not offensive at all its a bit of fun, no one is having a go at the Cioks meow meow power.....................

however as above tho is not for me to decide however id be more interested in why ppl focus on this as oppose to the blatant sexism in current rap music say. 

Total whataboutism. It’s perfectly possible to have concerns about more than one thing, although perhaps that’s too many for you...

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On 13/07/2018 at 11:05, MacDaddy said:

http://www.blabbermouth.net/news/steel-panthers-satchel-and-tc-electronic-face-backlash-over-offensive-and-sexist-guitar-pedal-effect/

On the one hand it's Steel Panther, so what do you expect? On the other hand, just because it's Steel Panther, should they be able to get away with it?

 

 

Get away with what? It made me laugh but im guessing thats not it.

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I suppose it's largely dependent on whether you know that Steel Panther are a spoof/comedy act. I have no idea who they are so, to me, the name for the pedal initially seemed a bit dumb. On finding out who Steel Panther are, it still seems dumb (although I'm not offended).

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I think part of the issue that is that some people find it difficult to see the subtle but important difference between 'P*ssy Power' & 'P*ssy Melter', therein lies an issue of a wider understanding of gender issues. It's worth highlighting that it's almost certainly not the word 'P*ssy' that is 'offensive' to people, it's the aggressive nature of the full name (backed up by the tone prints description).

Now, of course, Steel Panther are a complete parody, they very much subscribe to the South Park/Team America ethos of 'as long as you take the pee out of everyone equally, you're fine', which actually I'm fine with.....they're fully aware that they come across as sad, washed up old rockers with outdated views on women....that's the point, it's a commentary on the 80's & 90's rock scene......just so happens they can shred too. Without knowing any numbers, I suspect SP have as many female fans as they do male fans, because everyone understands the parody, and they like the comedic music. If there is a lack of understanding as to what the band is exactly, again, that's a damning indictment of a wider lack of education around gender issues. Again, it's important to re-iterate that SP are characters, when Satchell responded about the TC thing, that was Satchell typing from his account, not Russ Parrish, the married 47yr old dad who plays the character.

However, take Steel Panther's approach out of context, take it away from the show and the fans and the bands self-effacing ridiculousness, and it starts to hit a little bit close to home for a lot of women's everyday experiences. Parody is a fine line, and it requires a fair amount of set-up and context in order to work, which is why I suspect TC took it down......should someone at TC have figured this out before they posted it like 2 years ago? Probably, how many females are working in their marketing department I wonder, let alone their engineering team?! (Women in engineering is a whole other discussion). 

But as this, and the few other examples of mildly misogynistic names highlights, the gear industry has had some catching up to do. Fortunately, the prevalence of things like 'booth girls' at NAMM and other such shows being something that has (thankfully) decreased as manufacturers realise that they are simply alienating potential customers (Fender cite that 50% of their new customers are female: https://www.forbes.com/sites/petercarbonara/2018/03/28/for-fender-guitars-the-future-is-digital-and-female/#1f1f3d7e4a37). Names of products I feel are simply on the company, if they want to alienate and exclude certain potential customers, fine, if they wish to attract the wrong type of male customer who misunderstand the 'joke', let them, it's their livelihood. Again, I suspect that's why TC took it down, not because they felt the need to censor after a petition forced their hand, but because they feel they made a mistake about something and would prefer not to lose customers over it.

As to why people have picked up on this as opposed to focussing on sexism in rap music? I suspect it's because for female guitarist who's onto rock music, this is in their back-yard and one that has been difficult enough to get accepted by as it is. If they have no interest in rap, they're probably not going to jump in on issues within a world they don't understand, especially if they're white. However, if something becomes important to them within the world that they reside (the guitar gear world), they're going to jump on it as something they're directly involved with.

It's a massive discussion, and clearly goes much further than just women who play guitar, but with this forum being overwhelmingly made up of what I suspect is to be white men, it's worth us checking our understanding and approach before crying 'the worlds gone mad' (not aimed at anyone, just a general statement).

Si

 

 

Edited by Sibob
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6 minutes ago, fleabag said:

I'm going to build a pedal and name it the Kock Shredder and see how many men complain

I suspect you will prove Male privilege beyond doubt. So it's probably worth doing as an exercise in the complete obvious thing that we pretend doesn't exist.

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