From Ramones to Green Day to Blink-182, the sound of Punk music is as distinct as Country or Jazz.
While each of these bands have their own unique sound, the core of that sound is still a raw punchiness that has this perfect balance of dirt and clarity.
Top 3 - Punk Distortion Pedals
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The cornerstone of that raw sound is the distortion pedal. But which distortion pedal is right for the Punk sound? These are a few of my favorites!
5 Best Distortion Pedals for Punk & Pop Punk
1. Wampler Ratsbane
What the Wampler Ratsbane has to offer is really right there in the name. It’s Wampler’s take on the classic Pro Co RAT circuitry with a few modern features added on top.
The Ratsbane impressed me right out of the box before I even started playing around with the different gain and voice settings. On the center or “stock” gain setting, I was already getting this big, punchy distortion from the pedal.
It’s also a very vibrant, lively distortion. Few things put me off faster than distortion pedals that sound flat and characterless.
Then there are the two gain boosts which is where the fun really starts. The left is almost a straightforward gain boost for when you want to push the distortion further. To my ears, it thickens up the distortion quite nicely.
Right, on the other hand, starts pushing the distortion into fuzz territory. For a Punk sound, I like adding a bit of fuzz to dirty up the sound a bit. I feel a bit of dirt just adds to the attitude of the Punk sound.
The gain settings can then also be shaped further by the two voice settings. The left is a bit more old-school, slightly scooped sound. The right is a bit more modern, slightly compressed.
The way I like to picture the two voicings is left for old-school Punk like Bad Religion, NOFX, The Offspring, and right for modern-day Blink 182, Green Day, and Sum 41.
I am most impressed by the level of control on offer with the Ratsbane, and the fact that all of this comes in such a small package. Honestly, I can’t really find anything wrong with this incredible little pedal.
Maybe the only issue I can see anyone having with this pedal is the fact that it doesn’t take batteries. You will have to make sure you always have a power connector if you’re going to make it a part of your pedalboard.
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2. JHS 3 Series Distortion
JHS’s new budget range 3 Series of pedals offers a solution to almost any pedal needs you might have. One of those solutions is the distortion pedal in the 3 Series range.
Like the other pedals in the series, the Distortion is a zero thrills pedal. Even with its fairly basic setup, I think the 3 Series Distortion is a fantastic pedal.
It has your standard Volume, Filter, and Distortion knobs, but my main focus is going to be the gain switch. There are two positions on the gain switch: up and down.
Down, the gain is a bit quieter but with a very nicely compressed and saturated sound. I like this type of distortion for palm-muted power chords because it adds a nice punchiness to their sound.
Up, the gain was almost the opposite for me. In the up position, the gain is much more open and loud with a decent crunch. I would switch to the up position whenever I played a chorus part. It just gives it that presence and volume that makes a chorus stand out.
The Volume, Filter, and Distortion give a good amount of control and I was able to really dial in my sound until it was just right.
Something about the way this pedal looks, and all the 3 Series pedals, bothers me. They are all very plain-looking. I have pedals that are just plain black or white, I don’t need all my pedals to have artwork, but the 3 Series looks like it’s still in the prototype phase.
Apart from the pedal type written at the top, they all look identical at a glance. I wouldn’t put two 3 Series next to each other on a pedalboard because you will get confused and turn the wrong one on in the middle of a song.
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3. TC Electronic Dark Matter
The TC Electronic Dark Matter is another pedal that delivers quite a lot compared to its relatively small size and simplistic controls. What you’re getting with the Dark Matter is a Gain, Level, Bass, and Treble controls along with a voice switch that shapes the midrange of your tone.
The Gain control is the main attraction with the Dark Matter in my opinion. Most gain controls tend to just adjust the amount of gain, but I feel like the gain on the Dark Matter is actually shaping the sound.
At lower levels, I got a nice bluesy drive, with it becoming a bit more crunchy closer to 12 o’clock. Past 12, it became more saturated and I was firmly in Punk territory.
At very high gain I do feel like the Dark Matter starts to become a bit noisy and even starts to lose a bit of character. I think it shines between 9 and 3, at least this was where I had the most fun with the Dark Matter.
The Bass and Treble controls are also nice and responsive. I usually don’t use the Eqs on my pedals that much, but the ones on the Dark Matter seem to actually make enough of a difference, so I play around with them a bit.
The voice switch only changes the mids and I actually think it’s a bit too subtle. It could be very easy for someone with less sensitive ears to notven notice the difference and feel like they have been cheated.
Unlike the Ratsbane and the 3 Series, the Dark Matter has the option to be battery-powered. This isn’t a game-changer for me personally, but it does make the Dark Matter a bit more travel-friendly since you don’t need to always carry an external power supply with you.
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4. Boss DS-1 Distortion
The beauty of simplicity is one of the main pillars of punk’s philosophy. Yes, simple chords, catchy melodies, and a non-negotiable attitude can be thought of as the foundations of the movement.
Well, this distortion pedal embodies everything that punk means for most of us. All you get is three knobs and pure grinding, nasty beauty.
But that’s not all, because I’ve had one too many Boss pedals and they are all built like tanks. You will very likely won’t have any problems with them for a lifetime. In the case that you do, no matter where in the world you are, you can get an inexpensive replacement in any music store. Don’t just take my word for it, Boss surpassed the 10,000,000 units sold.
But what happened when I plugged this pedal on? Well, what I expected, a gnarly, barky, full, and very harsh distortion appeared. Yes, let me tell you that for a subtle effect, you have to go from orange to yellow and get an OD-3.
This is a distortion pedal and that’s what it does: It adds lots of dirt to the signal.
First off, I tried making this noise machine work with my humbucker-equipped Fender Stratocaster, and all that Fender-approved edge became a chainsaw ready to cut through the mix. I was happy playing classics like “Come Out and Play” and “The Kids Aren’t Alright”. Also, more modern songs like “All the Small Things” and “Linoleum” sounded great.
For a different flavor, I went for my P-90-equipped SG Jr. and the result was a biting tone that was great for classic punk tunes like those of Social Distortion and some Ramones as well. Songs like “Story of My Life” and “Sheena is a Punk” sounded full and tight.
Finally, I was missing some single-coil madness so I grabbed my Telecaster and went for some Clash-approved punk tones and this is where I found this pedal lacking. You can’t make a halfway-distorted sound because it’s a noisy unit and you can’t disguise it when the gain knob is on a low setting.
The Boss DS-1 is the perfect punk pedal for a low-budget player looking for reliability and a great sound.
5. ProCo RAT 2
Three knobs are all it took to make this pedal a timeless classic and the best-kept secret among punk rockers around the world. For example, Nels Cline, Rivers Cuomo, Frank Black, Kurt Cobain, and Graham Coxon built huge sonic empires based on this tone beast.
ProCo RAT 2 as part of my pedalboard.
Also, it’s one of those pedals that has many tributes and versions made by other top-notch pedal brands. That’s, perhaps, the biggest indicator that we have an iconic pedal in our hands.
But, how does this pedal sound? Let me illustrate with a little anecdote. I was playing in a loud punk band and it wasn’t me, the Rat pedal owner, but the other guitarist in the band. The moment he brought it to the rehearsal room, my guitar sound suddenly disappeared from the mix.
It was as close to a punk rock nightmare as it gets.
This was because the RAT is a gnarly pedal with a heavy bump in the mids, therefore, it cuts through the mix with a razor blade. I had to change my approach to be able to add to that gnarly sound and help the band with a bass-infused tone.
But old stories apart, what’s amazing about the RAT is that the moment you plug it in, it’s an instant sound that’s effortless to dial. That, for some people, is a con because it means this pedal is closer to a one-trick pony than to a versatile unit. Yet, what it does, it does very well and you’re in instant punk heaven.
I played all my Nirvana classics and some Green Day and it was all a blast. This is a built-like-a-tank unit that's an instant punk rock machine.
Choosing the Right Punk Distortion Pedal
When I think of what I want my distortion to do when I play Punk, there are probably two things that come to mind.
I want the pedal to be as punchy as possible. I want this because palm muting and Punk music go together like Blues and the pentatonic scale.
A punchier distortion is going to give palm-muted power chords the attack they need to really stand out. Of course, you can set your EQ to get that attack, but having a naturally punchy pedal makes life so much easier.
The next thing I look for in a pedal is one that can add some dirt without treading into muddy territory. You want to find that perfect balance of dirt while still keeping your sound clear and articulate.
I mentioned that I think a slightly dirty sound adds to the Punk attitude. Fuzz pedals or pedals with a bit of fuzz like the Ratsbane usually give me the perfect amount of dirt.
Distortion, Simplicity, and Midrange
Punk Rock is all about having fun playing simple songs with catchy melodies. Also, it can be about social protest and meaningful lyrics. Although punk rock songs can be about topics this far apart, the guitar tone remains similar.
It needs to be distorted to the point in which the guitar sounds like a big wall of sound and you can do the chugging thing with your palm muting the strings. But how do you take away the muddy factor? Moreover, how do you keep the chords sounding clear and powerful with all that dirt in the signal?
The answer to all of that is midrange. Yes, the midrange is punk rock’s best-kept secret. How so? You might ask as you scratch the top of your head with a pick. Well, the midrange is what can make the guitar cut through the mix. This is something you might have heard of as a “chainsaw” sound.
I have to say that, at this point, I’m about to reveal a secret that has given me many good times in 300+ punk rock shows. You can add an overdrive or EQ pedal that enhances the midrange before your distortion pedal.
In my case, I love a good Tube Screamer (TS-9) with the Drive knob in 0 and the Level knob in 5 (at noon).
That has always given my guitar the right amount of mids to cut through the mix. A lesson I learned after hearing the RAT pedal for the first time and trying to make my guitar appear in the mix in that scenario.
I’ve had many distortion pedals in my life. Many died in duty, others just fell into oblivion, and others I got tired of. What has always remained on my board is that always-on TS-9 that’s never quitted on me despite the beer absorbed, the stomps received, and the nights shared.
So, there you go, you need the right amount of dirt to create a wall of sound, but don’t let that get in the way of your guitar’s clarity. Boost that midrange and just punk it up.
Closing Thoughts
Whatever you choose to go with, I think it’s important to remember that Punk as a genre has always been defined by its simplicity - both in its playing and in its sound.
You don’t need complex pedals to achieve the Punk sound, and I personally think that less is always more when it comes to Punk. And I believe these three pedals represent some of the best distortion pedals for Punk out there today.
