“I’m checking my sources, but it’s possible that we snapped here”: Vulfpeck guitarist Cory Wong joins anarchic electronic artist Marc Rebillet for a surprise frenzied funk guitar jam
Electronic artist and multi-instrumentalist Marc Rebillet treated fans to an onstage collaboration with Vulfpeck guitarist Cory Wong and saxophonist Joey Dosik on July 14 at the Montreux Jazz Festival.
Funk band Vulfpeck also performed a separate set at the festival. However, the collaboration was as unexpected as Rebillet's sets usually are, as the artist is known for largely improvising his set, with a little help from his loop station.
In the funk-inspired frenzied jam, Wong took over rhythm duties, holding down Rebillet's synth and loop work, and Dosik's extended saxophone solo.
“The collab we’ve all been waiting for. Marc Rebillet’s set got even more epic when Vulfpeck’s Cory Wong and Joey Dosik joined the party,” posted Montreux Jazz Festival on their official social media accounts. Rebillet commented, “I’m checking my sources, but it’s possible that we snapped here.”
As fitting for the occasion, Wong brandished his sapphire blue signature Fender Stratocaster. In a 2021 interview with Guitar World, Wong described working with Fender on his first-ever signature guitar as a “dream come true.”
When speaking about the Strat's quirk, a push/pull switch on Tone 2 that bypasses the pickup selector and defaults to position 4, Wong said: “When I play, I have quite a wide sweep with my picking hand. That’s my technique – sweeping wide and using my wrist flexibility. And I end up hitting the pickup selector and surprising myself, so I got this fourth position panic button. Wherever the pickup selector is, this button makes sure I stay in fourth position.
“It was a fun idea. When you are lucky enough to be designing a signature guitar with Fender, you want to make it more unique, so it stands out against all the other Stratocasters. Before, I would use gaffer tape to make it stay in fourth!”
Get The Pick Newsletter
All the latest guitar news, interviews, lessons, reviews, deals and more, direct to your inbox!
Rebillet is currently on tour in Europe and will begin his US tour in September, which includes a residency at New York's Blue Note Jazz Club from September 26 to September 29.
Vulfpeck are currently in the midst of festival appearances in Europe, before kicking off back-to-back shows at The UC Theater in Berkeley, California, which will also double as live recording sessions for an upcoming album.
Janelle is a staff writer at GuitarWorld.com. After a long stint in classical music, Janelle discovered the joys of playing guitar in dingy venues at the age of 13 and has never looked back. Janelle has written extensively about the intersection of music and technology, and how this is shaping the future of the music industry. She also had the pleasure of interviewing Dream Wife, K.Flay, Yīn Yīn, and Black Honey, among others. When she's not writing, you'll find her creating layers of delicious audio lasagna with her art-rock/psych-punk band ĠENN.
