The ScrubBoard: Scratch Live In Real Time

You may or may not be interested in scratching, but you have to love the ingenuity of Jeremy Bell. In the video below you’ll see how he built a really unique tape-based scratching machine he calls the ScrubBoard pretty much from (excuse the unintended pun) scratch.

The ScrubBoard is comprised of a fully functioning home-made tape transport that’s operated by a foot pedal so that it can go either forward or backward. The tape loop is then played by a tape head “scrubber.”

This is different over traditional record scratching in that there’s actually two motion paths – the tape and the scrubber, so you can get all sorts of effects that a turntablist can’t get. Plus, there are also 2 stereo tracks on the tape, so with a rocker switch you can go back and forth between the two.

Even if you’re not into something like this, it’s worth a watch just because it’s so inventive. Go to Jeremy’s page to find out more, and to see some of the other cool things he’s come up with.