Bulls on Parade
A heavy half-step-down riff and a solo that imitates a DJ scratching a record, made with the pickup switch.
What is the Bulls on Parade guitar tone?
The Bulls on Parade guitar tone is a heavy half-step-down riff and a solo that imitates a DJ scratching a record, made with the pickup switch, heard on Rage Against the Machine's 1990s rap metal recording. It is a distorted riff tone, and Rage Against the Machine reportedly tracked it with Tom Morello's Marshall JCM800 2205 50-watt head and 1987 Peavey 4x12 cabinet with Celestion G12K-85 speakers, bought in a hurry after his gear was stolen in the 1980s, whose knob positions he marked after a long rehearsal in 1988 or 1989 and says he has used at every show and on every record since; the song is in F minor with the guitar and bass tuned down to E-flat, and the solo's record-scratch sound comes from turning one of the guitar's two pickups to full and the other off, so the pickup selector works as a kill switch, while rubbing the strings over the pickups and flipping the switch, a move Guitar World traces to his solo spots on the 1993 tour, which he played on Arm the Homeless, his Frankensteined superstrat with EMG pickups and an Ibanez Edge bridge; which guitar is on the studio take is not documented; Morello says he wanted a menacing, Geto Boys sort of sound, and the song came out on 1 April 1996 as the first single from Evil Empire. This is a Marshall-style crunch pushed hard and left dry, with the pedals doing the dramatic work rather than the amp.
You do not need that exact gear to land in the same place. What carries this sound is the gain structure, the EQ curve, the pickup choice and the order of the effects, and all four can be rebuilt on equipment that costs a fraction of the original. The numbers change from amp to amp, because a high-gain head and a small practice amp reach the same voicing from different knob positions. That translation is what Tonelify works out for the rig you actually own.
Bulls on Parade amp settings: a starting point
On a generic five-knob amp, start at Gain 7, Bass 5, Middle 6, Treble 6, Presence 6, Reverb 0, with the bridge pickup.
- Gain 7
- Bass 5
- Middle 6
- Treble 6
- Presence 6
- Reverb 0
- Signal chain
- Pickup selector as a kill switch on the solo → Marshall JCM800 2205 distortion
- The control that matters most
- The pickup selector. The solo's scratch is a technique, not a pedal: set one pickup's volume to full and the other to zero so the selector switches the sound on and off, then rub the strings over the pickups while flipping it. Under it, keep a hard-pushed Marshall-style crunch with the mids up, and tune down a half step as on the record.
These positions are free and they are a starting point. A Katana, a Spark and a valve head reach this voicing from different knob positions, so Tonelify rewrites every value above for the amp and guitar you own. Your first match is free with an account, and needs no card.
Adapt these to my amp- Pickup
- Bridge pickup
These are positions on a generic five-knob amp with gain, bass, middle, treble and presence, each running 0 to 10. They are a starting point, not the settings used on the record, and they will not transfer unchanged to an amp with a different gain structure or EQ voicing. If you tell Tonelify which amp you own, it rewrites every value above for the controls that amp actually has.
What gear did Rage Against the Machine use on Bulls on Parade?
Tom Morello's Marshall JCM800 2205 50-watt head and 1987 Peavey 4x12 cabinet with Celestion G12K-85 speakers, bought in a hurry after his gear was stolen in the 1980s, whose knob positions he marked after a long rehearsal in 1988 or 1989 and says he has used at every show and on every record since; the song is in F minor with the guitar and bass tuned down to E-flat, and the solo's record-scratch sound comes from turning one of the guitar's two pickups to full and the other off, so the pickup selector works as a kill switch, while rubbing the strings over the pickups and flipping the switch, a move Guitar World traces to his solo spots on the 1993 tour, which he played on Arm the Homeless, his Frankensteined superstrat with EMG pickups and an Ibanez Edge bridge; which guitar is on the studio take is not documented; Morello says he wanted a menacing, Geto Boys sort of sound, and the song came out on 1 April 1996 as the first single from Evil Empire.
Sources: Wikipedia: Bulls on Parade, Premier Guitar: Rig Rundown, Tom Morello, Ground Guitar: Tom Morello's Marshall JCM800 2205, Guitar World: Tom Morello's greatest guitar solo wasn't on any studio album
Tonelify reads that chain and translates it to the amp and guitar you already own, returning gain, bass, mids, treble and presence values along with a pickup position.
How do you get the Bulls on Parade tone on your own amp?
Tell us your guitar, amp, and pedals
AI researches the original tone of Bulls on Parade
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Bulls on Parade tone questions
What amp settings do you need for Bulls on Parade?
On a generic five-knob amp, start at Gain 7, Bass 5, Middle 6, Treble 6, Presence 6, Reverb 0, with the bridge pickup. These are positions on a generic five-knob amp with gain, bass, middle, treble and presence, each running 0 to 10. They are a starting point, not the settings used on the record, and they will not transfer unchanged to an amp with a different gain structure or EQ voicing. Tonelify rewrites the same values for the specific amp and guitar you own, because a high-gain head and a small solid-state combo reach the same heavy half-step-down riff and a solo that imitates a DJ scratching a record, made with the pickup switch from different positions.
What is the most important control for the Bulls on Parade tone?
The pickup selector. The solo's scratch is a technique, not a pedal: set one pickup's volume to full and the other to zero so the selector switches the sound on and off, then rub the strings over the pickups while flipping it. Under it, keep a hard-pushed Marshall-style crunch with the mids up, and tune down a half step as on the record.
Can you get the Bulls on Parade tone without the original gear?
Yes. The original was tracked with Tom Morello's Marshall JCM800 2205 50-watt head and 1987 Peavey 4x12 cabinet with Celestion G12K-85 speakers, bought in a hurry after his gear was stolen in the 1980s, whose knob positions he marked after a long rehearsal in 1988 or 1989 and says he has used at every show and on every record since; the song is in F minor with the guitar and bass tuned down to E-flat, and the solo's record-scratch sound comes from turning one of the guitar's two pickups to full and the other off, so the pickup selector works as a kill switch, while rubbing the strings over the pickups and flipping the switch, a move Guitar World traces to his solo spots on the 1993 tour, which he played on Arm the Homeless, his Frankensteined superstrat with EMG pickups and an Ibanez Edge bridge; which guitar is on the studio take is not documented; Morello says he wanted a menacing, Geto Boys sort of sound, and the song came out on 1 April 1996 as the first single from Evil Empire, but the parts that define the sound are the gain structure, the EQ curve, the pickup position and the effects order. Those translate to other equipment, which is what the adaptation step does.
Is Bulls on Parade a rhythm or a lead tone?
It is a riff part with a distorted character, from Rage Against the Machine's 1990s rap metal catalogue.
Does Tonelify cost anything to try?
Your first match for your own gear is free with an account, and needs no card. After that both plans start with a 7-day free trial: Stage is $6.99 a month for 20 matches, Headliner is $10.99 a month for unlimited matching within a fair use limit of 150 new matches a day, and yearly billing works out cheaper on both. Reading this page and the rest of the library costs nothing and needs no account.
