A lot of options
The Ato Driver was a last-minute addition to the Oto Driver project. The Ato Driver was designed to provide a ton of different gain options in case the Oto Driver came off as a little ‘too hot’ in the output department.
The central switch toggles through some hard/soft clipping options, and the switch under the gain knob controls different output options for the gain circuit. The range can be anywhere from an almost-transparent volume boost, to a near fuzz-like distortion. The options can be a little overwhelming.
Turns out, the Oto Driver was popular with Yoyoyoshie, and so the Ato Driver was gifted to Megan Nisbet. Megan is one third of South Korea’s Drinking Boys and Girls Choir (DBGC). DBGC happened to be the touring openner for all of Otoboke Beaver’s 2024 North American tour. The circumstances for this were quite serendipitous. I discovered this band around the same time as Otoboke Beaver and they were already well within my radar for sonic inspirations. It seems more than fitting that the ‘sister pedal’ ended up with the ‘sister band’.
Megan used this pedal frequently during the 2024 tour, and when DBGC came back to Toronto for their independent North American tour later that same year, I got to meet Megan personally and get their opinions on the pedal. This band is definitely worth catching anytime they are in town – and who knows, you might even catch the Ato Driver.
Pedal Features:
– Presence Filter
– Bass Control
– Treble Control
– Volume Control
– Clipping Mode Toggle
– Gain Control
– Gain Toggle
Drinking Boys and Girls Choir links:
Bandcamp: https://band-dbgc.bandcamp.com
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/drinking_boys_and_girls_choir/
The Oto (left) and Ato (right) Drivers side-by-side
Ato Driver Pedal from Megan’s Instagram
