Bruce Bouillet
Published on
May 28, 2024 at 4:25:55 PM PDT May 28, 2024 at 4:25:55 PM PDTth, May 28, 2024 at 4:25:55 PM PDT
Bruce Bouillet
BIO
Bruce picked up the guitar at thirteen and in two short years was playing gigs in his first band. Playing mainly classic rock covers and a few originals, the band gained a solid following around the Midwest, allowing Bruce to grow as a performer. Around this time Bruce took note of the local blues scene and started jamming with the local blues musicians. Bruce says, “I ended up jamming a lot of blues, which gave me the feel and phrasing side of my playing.”
At nineteen, Bruce moved to Los Angeles to attend GIT. As fate would have it, on his first day there he met Paul Gilbert leading to an audition and joining Racer X. Racer X was a great opportunity as everyone in the lineup was individually an accomplished musician. Remarks Bruce, “up to that point I was influenced by the rock and blues players of the day, such as Van Halen, Johnny Winter, Randy Rhoads, Angus and Malcom Young, MSG, Tommy Iommi, Tipton/Downing, Gibbons, Beck, Clapton, Page, Hendrix etc., but I was equally influenced by Paul Gilbert. He was really pushing the limits on the guitar in Racer X. His conviction in his playing and writing was crushing…..and still is.”
After Racer X, Bruce formed The Scream with John Corabi and former Racer X bandmates John Alderete and Scott Travis. The Scream released one album and toured extensively but disbanded after their first tour.
Bruce picked up the guitar at thirteen and in two short years was playing gigs in his first band. Playing mainly classic rock covers and a few originals, the band gained a solid following around the Midwest, allowing Bruce to grow as a performer. Around this time Bruce took note of the local blues scene and started jamming with the local blues musicians. Bruce says, “I ended up jamming a lot of blues, which gave me the feel and phrasing side of my playing.”
At nineteen, Bruce moved to Los Angeles to attend GIT. As fate would have it, on his first day there he met Paul Gilbert leading to an audition and joining Racer X. Racer X was a great opportunity as everyone in the lineup was individually an accomplished musician. Remarks Bruce, “up to that point I was influenced by the rock and blues players of the day, such as Van Halen, Johnny Winter, Randy Rhoads, Angus and Malcom Young, MSG, Tommy Iommi, Tipton/Downing, Gibbons, Beck, Clapton, Page, Hendrix etc., but I was equally influenced by Paul Gilbert. He was really pushing the limits on the guitar in Racer X. His conviction in his playing and writing was crushing…..and still is.”
After Racer X, Bruce formed The Scream with John Corabi and former Racer X bandmates John Alderete and Scott Travis. The Scream released one album and toured extensively but disbanded after their first tour.
Bruce's Gear
"I think the Dexter MK-2 is the best octave pedal on the market."
In the mid 90’s Bruce connected with the underground music scene in L.A. This was an exciting time for Bruce as he discovered indie and punk music. One project during this time was DC-10 which included Billy Fogarty, Juan Alderete, and Abe Laboriel Jr. While not widely available, the band’s music is a departure from Racer X and The Scream, adding more soul and groove elements to the songs. Check out “In My Condition” for a taste of the band’s sound.
In 2001 Bruce formed the band Epidemic and released the band’s first album in June of 2002. Epidemic The single off that album, “Walk Away” appeared on Madden NFL 2003. Again, Bruce swerves back to more guitar oriented rock, but with a harder edge and grittier vibe.
In 2005, Bruce won a Grammy for his work on for his work with Bob Kulick on the production, recording, and mixing of Motörhead's cover of Metallica's "Whiplash.” This has been Bruce’s peek accomplishment working on the other side of the recording desk.
From 2005 to 2007, Bruce worked with the Bottom Dwellerz, another foray into new territory. This time a creative and engaging blend of alternative hip hop, rap, but fronted by Bruce’s brilliant guitar work.
In 2007 Bruce reunited with his friend Paul Gilbert for a tour of Japan and a much coveted spot on the U.S / Canada G3 tour with Joe Satriani, and John Pettrucci . In between all the touring he wrote and recorded his first solo instrumental album "Unspoken" in 2007. In 2008, Bruce released his second solo instrumental album "Interventions" which brought him back to Japan for guitar clinics in Tokyo, and shows in Los Angeles, New York.
In 2013 he completed 12 tracks for his third solo album " The Order of Control” and signed to the prestigious Mascot Record Group. His heaviest and most progressive album to date, featuring Dave Foreman, was released Jan. 2014 to rave reviews. The album is a tour de force of inspired playing by Bruce. From the title track to Giving Up the Ghost, Bruce delivers a melodic ride worth taking.
Currently, Bruce is collaborating on an amplifier with amp modifier/designer Jens Kruse, called the Kruse Ultrasonic. It’s all point to point hand wired in the US using the highest grade components, and comes stock with a built in Variac, compressor sustainer, and five way gain stages. The amp can also be ordered with any variation of two channels, two vintage, two modern, or a vintage and modern.
Welcome aboard, Bruce!
Follow Bruce on Instagram.
We also had a lot of great players come to the studio and test the amp while taking notes and recording everything. It was great, and it gave me a lot of confidence in the amp knowing how well it performed and sounded with the other top amps. It’s all point to point hand wired in the US using the highest grade components, and comes stock with with a built in variac, compressor sustainer, and five way gain stages, it can also be ordered with any variation of two channels, two vintage, two modern, or a vintage and modern. All the information can be found at the Kruse website. www.kruseamplification.com
I’ve also released a guitar line with Guilford Guitars called the RX88. These are custom order through the website. They are all hand made by John Guilford in the US. They come with a nitros finish, direct mount pickups, stainless steel frets, two carbon rods along with a truss rod in the neck. You can choose hardtail or tremolo, flame top or solid finish, types of wood, tuners and pickups. The all black one (pictured) that I own is unreal. Being a hardtail it’s intonation and resonance is fantastic, every note on the neck is even. It has become one of my favorite recording guitars due to it’s stability, clarity, sustain, and overall tone.
Now that those projects are in production, I’m currently looking for some people to form a new band, or join something already established. I still write a lot of music and besides guitar I also play bass, and any mpc or sample based keyboard. I can always be reached through my Instagram account. https://www.instagram.com/brucebouillet/ or my website www.brucebouillet.com
At nineteen I moved to Los Angeles to attend GIT. On my first day there I met Paul Gilbert. This led to an audition and eventually joining his band Racer X. To be that close to that level of talent in one band was amazing, as everyone in the line up was great. Up until that point I was influenced by the rock and blues players of the day, such as Van Halen, Johnny Winter, Randy Rhoads, Angus/Malcome, MSG, Iommi, Tipton/Downing, Gibbons, Beck, Clapton, Page, Hendrix ect…..I was equally influenced by Paul Gilbert. He was really pushing some limits on the guitar when I played in a band with him. His conviction in his playing and writing was crushing…..and still is.
Around 1993 to the early 2000’s I really connected a lot with the underground music scene in L.A.. This was an exciting time for me as I was discovering all the indie and punk music that I had missed early on. During this time I was also getting into electronic music, recording, producing, mixing as well as building a few recording studios in Van Nuys Ca. I was again very fortunate to record a lot big names and great players in the music industry. This allowed me to experience various top musicians up close in a recording environment.
I met guitarist/producer Dave Foreman (Boys2Men, DJ Quick, Anthony Hamilton,ect…) when he and his crew rented a studio next to mine in North Hollywood. He also had a big influence on my playing. He’s one of those musicians thats well versed in all forms of music and knows how to fit in the mix with any given situation. Also due to his working with top names live and in the studio, he is incredibly fast and accurate in the studio with a super sense of melody and rhythm. All this coupled with some incredible writing skills. We worked on hundreds of tracks for tv and film. So just being around him on the daily stepped up my game considerably.
Also being part of Paul Gilbert’s band on the 2007 G3, I got see Joe Satriani soundcheck, warm up, and play every night. This taught me a lot about being consistent, and how much detail could go into being consistent every show. Plus Joe and his crew run a classy operation on the road, defiantly a fun tour that left me feeling inspired.
I’m always trying to keep in touch with new bands and releases as much as possible. Lot’s of great new and old music, which isn’t always easy to find , but it’s there and it’s worth the time to find it.
In 2001 Bruce formed the band Epidemic and released the band’s first album in June of 2002. Epidemic The single off that album, “Walk Away” appeared on Madden NFL 2003. Again, Bruce swerves back to more guitar oriented rock, but with a harder edge and grittier vibe.
In 2005, Bruce won a Grammy for his work on for his work with Bob Kulick on the production, recording, and mixing of Motörhead's cover of Metallica's "Whiplash.” This has been Bruce’s peek accomplishment working on the other side of the recording desk.
From 2005 to 2007, Bruce worked with the Bottom Dwellerz, another foray into new territory. This time a creative and engaging blend of alternative hip hop, rap, but fronted by Bruce’s brilliant guitar work.
In 2007 Bruce reunited with his friend Paul Gilbert for a tour of Japan and a much coveted spot on the U.S / Canada G3 tour with Joe Satriani, and John Pettrucci . In between all the touring he wrote and recorded his first solo instrumental album "Unspoken" in 2007. In 2008, Bruce released his second solo instrumental album "Interventions" which brought him back to Japan for guitar clinics in Tokyo, and shows in Los Angeles, New York.
In 2013 he completed 12 tracks for his third solo album " The Order of Control” and signed to the prestigious Mascot Record Group. His heaviest and most progressive album to date, featuring Dave Foreman, was released Jan. 2014 to rave reviews. The album is a tour de force of inspired playing by Bruce. From the title track to Giving Up the Ghost, Bruce delivers a melodic ride worth taking.
Currently, Bruce is collaborating on an amplifier with amp modifier/designer Jens Kruse, called the Kruse Ultrasonic. It’s all point to point hand wired in the US using the highest grade components, and comes stock with a built in Variac, compressor sustainer, and five way gain stages. The amp can also be ordered with any variation of two channels, two vintage, two modern, or a vintage and modern.
Welcome aboard, Bruce!
Follow Bruce on Instagram.
Exclusive Interview
1) What are you working on now?
Well I’ve just finished collaborating on an amplifier with amp modifier/designer Jens Kruse, it’s called the Kruse Ultrasonic. We started with an amazing prototype he had been working on and revised it over the course of a year. During this time we had some intense amp shootouts pitting the Ultrasonic against the biggest names in modern amps as well as some serious vintage amps.We also had a lot of great players come to the studio and test the amp while taking notes and recording everything. It was great, and it gave me a lot of confidence in the amp knowing how well it performed and sounded with the other top amps. It’s all point to point hand wired in the US using the highest grade components, and comes stock with with a built in variac, compressor sustainer, and five way gain stages, it can also be ordered with any variation of two channels, two vintage, two modern, or a vintage and modern. All the information can be found at the Kruse website. www.kruseamplification.com
I’ve also released a guitar line with Guilford Guitars called the RX88. These are custom order through the website. They are all hand made by John Guilford in the US. They come with a nitros finish, direct mount pickups, stainless steel frets, two carbon rods along with a truss rod in the neck. You can choose hardtail or tremolo, flame top or solid finish, types of wood, tuners and pickups. The all black one (pictured) that I own is unreal. Being a hardtail it’s intonation and resonance is fantastic, every note on the neck is even. It has become one of my favorite recording guitars due to it’s stability, clarity, sustain, and overall tone.
Now that those projects are in production, I’m currently looking for some people to form a new band, or join something already established. I still write a lot of music and besides guitar I also play bass, and any mpc or sample based keyboard. I can always be reached through my Instagram account. https://www.instagram.com/brucebouillet/ or my website www.brucebouillet.com
2) What is your musical background and influences?
I started playing guitar at thirteen, within a couple years I was in a band with my friends playing mostly covers of classic rock and top 40 with a few originals. We gained a solid following playing bars around the midwest, which allowed me to grow as a live player doing 3 sets a night 4 nights a week. During this time I met some other players around town a few years older than me. They were more into playing blues. So I ended up also jamming a lot of blues by default, which gave me the feel and phrasing side of my playing.At nineteen I moved to Los Angeles to attend GIT. On my first day there I met Paul Gilbert. This led to an audition and eventually joining his band Racer X. To be that close to that level of talent in one band was amazing, as everyone in the line up was great. Up until that point I was influenced by the rock and blues players of the day, such as Van Halen, Johnny Winter, Randy Rhoads, Angus/Malcome, MSG, Iommi, Tipton/Downing, Gibbons, Beck, Clapton, Page, Hendrix ect…..I was equally influenced by Paul Gilbert. He was really pushing some limits on the guitar when I played in a band with him. His conviction in his playing and writing was crushing…..and still is.
Around 1993 to the early 2000’s I really connected a lot with the underground music scene in L.A.. This was an exciting time for me as I was discovering all the indie and punk music that I had missed early on. During this time I was also getting into electronic music, recording, producing, mixing as well as building a few recording studios in Van Nuys Ca. I was again very fortunate to record a lot big names and great players in the music industry. This allowed me to experience various top musicians up close in a recording environment.
I met guitarist/producer Dave Foreman (Boys2Men, DJ Quick, Anthony Hamilton,ect…) when he and his crew rented a studio next to mine in North Hollywood. He also had a big influence on my playing. He’s one of those musicians thats well versed in all forms of music and knows how to fit in the mix with any given situation. Also due to his working with top names live and in the studio, he is incredibly fast and accurate in the studio with a super sense of melody and rhythm. All this coupled with some incredible writing skills. We worked on hundreds of tracks for tv and film. So just being around him on the daily stepped up my game considerably.
Also being part of Paul Gilbert’s band on the 2007 G3, I got see Joe Satriani soundcheck, warm up, and play every night. This taught me a lot about being consistent, and how much detail could go into being consistent every show. Plus Joe and his crew run a classy operation on the road, defiantly a fun tour that left me feeling inspired.
I’m always trying to keep in touch with new bands and releases as much as possible. Lot’s of great new and old music, which isn’t always easy to find , but it’s there and it’s worth the time to find it.