Thrown’s Brutal Guitar Tone: Buster Odeholm’s Studio Techniques

Ever cranked a Thrown track and felt your face melt from the sheer aggression of those guitars? Buster Odeholm, the mastermind behind their sound (and also known for his work with Humanity’s Last Breath and as the drummer for Vildhjarta), has a knack for dialing in some of the angriest guitar tones in modern metal. Lucky for us, he recently peeled back the curtain on his process, and we’re here to break down the key ingredients so you can inject some of that brutality into your own productions. This isn’t just about gain differenza; it’s about smart layering, surgical EQ, and creative use of modern plugins.

If you’re serious about leveling up your metal mixing game, exploring how pros like Buster craft these tones is invaluable. Nail The Mix offers you a front-row seat to see these techniques in action, with full multitrack sessions and in-depth tutorials.

Sculpting the Core: Pre-Distortion Shaping and Amp Choice

The foundation of any killer guitar tone starts before you even hit the main distortion. Buster emphasizes getting the initial signal right.

The “Nameless” Amp and Initial EQ Punch

At the heart of Buster’s Thrown tone is the Fortin Nameless amp model from Neural DSP. This amp, he notes, naturally brings out a lot of that “really stringy stuff” – perfect for an aggressive, articulate sound. He uses a setting he calls “gate grind,” suggesting a tight noise gate paired with some initial drive.

Before this amp, a crucial EQ move takes place. This isn’t about broad strokes; it’s specific:

• Boosting some of that “scratchy stringy noise” to emphasize pick attack and texture.
• Filtering out the super high, fizzy stuff that can make distorted guitars harsh.

This pre-distortion EQ strategy is vital, shaping what the amp has to work with and ensuring the aggression is controlled and focused. He pairs this with a specific cab emulation that complements the Nameless.

Layering Destruction: Parallel Processing Power

A single amp tone is rarely enough for the colossal sound Buster achieves. Parallel processing plays a huge role in adding depth, weight, and character.

The Classic HM-2 Chainsaw Bite

You can’t talk angry metal tones without mentioning the Boss HM-2 (or a quality emulation). Buster incorporates this iconic pedal, but with a twist:

• It’s blended in at only 20%. This adds the characteristic chainsaw grind without completely overtaking the core tone.
• The HM-2 is set with a “little low-end bump,” further enhancing its contribution to the overall weight.

The “Fatso” Octave Trick with Archetype: Gojira

Here’s a killer technique Buster shared, utilizing the Neural DSP Archetype: Gojira plugin. He calls it the “Fatso” trick:

1. Engage only the pitch function and the EQ within the Gojira plugin.
2. Set the pitch to create an octave down effect.
3. Use the plugin’s EQ to filter out all frequencies except the very low end from this pitched signal.
4. Blend this filtered octave signal back in with the main guitar tone.

The result? It makes your guitars sound significantly lower-tuned than they actually are, adding immense depth and sub-frequency power. It’s essentially a carefully controlled low-end octave layer.

Sharpening the Attack with a Transient Designer

To ensure the guitars cut through with maximum impact, especially during palm-muted sections, Buster employs a Transient Designer. This is a go-to move for enhancing the initial pick attack, making each chug hit harder without just adding more distortion or volume.

Polishing the Aggression: Bus Processing Breakdown

Once the individual tracks and their parallel layers are gelling, Buster applies processing to the main guitar bus to glue everything together and finalize the tonal character.

Strategic EQ on the Guitar Bus

The guitar bus sees another round of EQ adjustments with specific goals:

• A mid-boost designed to help the guitars pop out more on smaller, mono-based playback systems like Bluetooth speakers. This isn’t necessarily about what sounds best in the studio, but what translates well.
• Addressing some missing mid-range frequencies he identified in his chosen cab emulation, bringing them back to add fullness.
• Another pass at taming super high frequencies to keep fizz under control.
  
  He mentions that some of these EQ decisions were informed by a tone match of his Humanity’s Last Breath guitar sound, showcasing how experience from one project can inform another.

The Unsung Hero: Slate Digital VTM

The Slate Digital Virtual Tape Machine (VTM) gets a special shoutout. Buster notes that he had stopped using it on guitars for a while, but upon bringing it back, he was reminded of why it’s so good. The VTM adds a certain “heft,” particularly in the low-end and midrange, making everything feel fuller and more robust. While he initially might turn it off for sections where he wants maximum low-end clarity in chugs, its overall contribution to the tone’s body is undeniable.

Dynamic Control: Bus Compression

To keep the guitars tight and consistent, a compressor is applied to the bus. Buster usually aims for around 3dB of gain reduction, though in the session he was demonstrating, it was hitting closer to 6dB. This helps smooth out the dynamics and adds a bit more punch. For more on how to effectively use compression in metal, it’s a critical skill to develop.

The Mysterious “Shuffler”

Buster also mentions a “shuffler thing” on the bus. While not detailed, this could be anything from a stereo widener to a specific type of spatial or modulation effect that adds a final touch of character or width.

Adding Special Sauce: Whammy and Lead Textures

Beyond the main rhythm guitars, Thrown’s sound incorporates unique textures and lead elements that contribute to the overall menacing vibe.

The “Kick Tucker” Whammy Track

A distinct layer in the Thrown sound comes from a track recorded using an “old school” DigiTech Whammy pedal (specifically the Whammy 4, not the DT version). This track, affectionately nicknamed the “Kick Tucker,” has its own chain:

• It starts with a similar EQ curve to the main guitars.
• It also features the HM-2 (though without the Gojira octave trick).
• The “Grind pedal” and “Nameless” amp model are used here as well, with the same cab.
• Crucially, it’s filtered to make it sound “more radio-ish,” likely meaning a band-pass EQ to help it sit in a specific frequency range.
• A doubler is then used to widen this whammy layer.

Crafting Menacing Leads and Sound Design

For lead parts and atmospheric effects, Buster gets creative:

• Subtle pitch shifting is used, often automated for specific moments.
• A lead-style delay provides space and trails.
• He layers in a “distorted thing” – a specific distorted sound running through the same amp (Nameless) and cab as his main tones, which he also used on the Humanity’s Last Breath record. He notes this layer significantly enhances the lead sound.
• In a brilliant bit of sound design, he even took the sound of his guitar cable hitting the floor, pitched it up, and ran it through his lead processing chain, automating it in as a unique textural element.

Want to Master Tones Like Buster Odeholm?

Buster Odeholm’s approach to Thrown’s guitar tone is a masterclass in blending raw power with meticulous control. From pre-distortion EQ to complex parallel processing and creative sound design, every step is deliberate. You can grab the full multitracks and watch Buster mix Thrown’s “Guilt” from scratch over at Nail The Mix.

Imagine dissecting these very techniques, watching producers like Buster build these sounds layer by layer, and then trying them on actual session files. That’s what Nail The Mix is all about. Each month, you get access to real multitracks from massive metal songs and watch the original producers mix them, explaining every decision. It’s your chance to Unlock Your Sound: Mixing Modern Metal Beyond Presets and truly understand how these incredible tones are achieved.

Ready to dive deeper and learn directly from the pros who are shaping the sound of modern metal? Check out the Thrown NTM session with Buster Odeholm and elevate your productions.