Steel Panther's Satchel & TC Electronic slammed for ‘sexist and offensive’ guitar pedal effect
Audio equipment company TC Electronic has removed a guitar pedal effect they made with Steel Panther’s Satchel from sale following a backlash.
TC Electronic unveiled their ‘Pussy Melter TonePrint’ recently that had been created in collaboration with Satchel – aka Russ Parrish.
The promotional blurb on their official website read: “When we met up with Steel Panther’s oh-so-humble guitarist, he had only one condition: that the tone be as wet as the ladies on the front row.”
It added: “So if glam rock guitar solos and wet floor signs are your idea of a good time, then ‘Pussy Melter’ for Flashback Delay is definitely the TonePrint for you!”
Los Angeles based musician Jessica Fennelly soon launched a petition for it to be removed from sale calling the marketing behind the product ‘vulgar’, ‘offensive’ and ‘obviously sexist’.
She wrote: “As a female guitarist, I'm shocked by the poor marketing decisions found on TC Electronic’s website.
“I can't imagine why a well-known company such as TC Electronic would feel that it’s okay to use such an offensive, obviously sexist, and outdated marketing technique to sell a product.”
Raphaelle Standell-Preston from Canadian art-rock band Braids also signed the petition and took to Twitter to slam the product.
> What f*cking year is this ???
> Pls sign my friends petition to EDIT/REMOVE @tcelectronic disgusting write up for their “pussy melter” guitar effect pedal. As a female guitarist and just a female in general this makes me super disappointed ! https://t.co/LK2YZJt70d pic.twitter.com/EILfX9lQhh
>
> — Braids (@braidsmusic) July 9, 2018
In response to the backlash, last night TC Electronic issued a statement apologising and confirmed they have removed it from sale.
They told Music Radar: "It’s become clear that a number of people have been offended by the title and description of a delay TonePrint that we created over a year ago with Steel Panther’s Satchel.
"Steel Panther is an American comedic glam metal band from Los Angeles, California, mostly known for their profane and humorous lyrics, as well as their exaggerated on-stage personae that reenact the stereotypical 1980s "glam metal" lifestyle (from Wikipedia).
"It has never been our intention to offend anyone but simply to provide fans of Steel Panther with guitar presets made by Satchel. We recognize that the material was inappropriate and we have removed the TonePrint in question from the app and we will take it down from our website as soon as possible. We sincerely apologise."
Satchel has since taken to Twitter to post a response to events:
> I’m working overtime with TC Electronics to re-release the “pussy melter” tone print under the less offensive, more politically correct name of the “Butthole Burner”. Don’t worry- it will still melt your pussy, ladies. > > — Satchel (@Satchel666) July 11, 2018