Geared Up: Prisoner’s Marco Cioffi Discusses His PRS SE Custom 22 and BC Rich Warlock Guitars

As a musical act, Prisoner is more old school than new school. Their sound harkens back to the days when hard rock and heavy metal were fairly indistinguishable. However you want to classify them, they try to keep things intense. You can hear it in their latest record, Kill The King. The album is powerful and very direct. The band is proud of what they are, and that shows through on this new album. Of all of the albums they have ever released, this one is the most unified and well-composed. Each member of the band was just as involved in its creation, with everyone equally pulling their weight. From start to finish, they wrote and recorded it in only five months. Kill The King is the most balanced representation of Prisoner as a band.

The quartet hails from Calgary, Alberta, a place with a nice rock n’ roll culture. They formed in 2020 with the goal of paying tribute to the artists who made them want to become musicians. They are fronted by lead singer Murray Emery, accompanied by guitarist Marco Cioffi, bassist Trevor Macdonald, and drummer Karl Pflug. They strive to write hard-hitting riffs and memorable grooves in the same way that their heroes did. Prisoner is just pleased to be doing their own thing, writing songs that remind you of the good old days of classic rock and metal.

Today, we are joined by Cioffi for a Geared Up interview, focusing on the two guitars that he wrote many of the riffs for Kill the King on.

First things first: What’s your current setup?

Marco Cioffi: “My current setup is honestly pretty simple. I stick with two guitars: a PRS SE Custom 22 and a BC Rich Warlock. I play both of them live and only swap for tuning changes, and I make sure to break out the Warlock for the heavier drop-tuned stuff.

“In terms of my amp setup, I run an ENGL Powerball V1 into a modded Marshall 1960A cab. I took out the stock speakers and put in some Celestion Vintage 30s, and I couldn’t be happier with how it sounds. Murray and I also re-tolexed the cab to be black and white snakeskin with a brown/gold grille.

“My pedalboard is super simple. I got my Shure DLX16 wireless system (that doubles as a tuner), a BOSS Digital Delay, a Holy Grail reverb, a Tube Screamer, and an MXR noise gate. I use the Tube Screamer as a boost for lead lines and the delay/reverb for some of our cleaner songs, but I usually just let the Powerball speak for itself for the most part.”

Prisoner’s Marco Cioffi – guitars

What one piece of gear do you use to obtain your signature sound?

“I’d honestly say that the most important part of my rig is the Vintage 30s in my cab. Not only do they sound absolutely incredible for heavier music on their own, but they also fit really well with the band’s sound. Murray’s speakers have some really nice low end to them, which gives me a lot of room to operate in the mid/high-mid range, and our tones combine really well live.”

What was your first ever instrument?

“I actually played drums for a few years before I eventually picked up the guitar, so my first real instrument was an electronic Yamaha kit (I can’t remember the exact specs, but I do remember beating the hell out of them every day after school). When I decided to switch to guitar, I bought a black HSS Squier Strat from a guy I went to school with. I still have it and will pick it up from time to time, and honestly, for a 100 dollar guitar, it plays great!”

What’s your favourite piece of equipment you’ve ever owned?

“It has to be my PRS SE Custom 22. I tried it out for the first time at a Long & McQuade in Calgary when I was still in high school, and I immediately fell in love with it. It has a push/pull tone knob for coil split whenever I need to, so it’s super versatile and I can play basically any style of music on it. It’s also the most comfortable guitar I’ve ever played, and I can’t see myself retiring it anytime soon.”

What’s your dream instrument?

“I feel like my answer to this changes weekly, but as of right now, I’d love to pick up an Adam Jones Les Paul Standard. I’ll admit I’m a huge Tool fan, but the guitar itself seems awesome. I like having versatile gear, and the Adam Jones sig has two different types of humbuckers, and I’d love the chance to test them out through my rig and see if there are some cool tones I can discover. Also, the thing just looks sweet.”

What was the first rig you ever bought that felt like you had “arrived” as a musician?

“In hindsight, the gear itself wasn’t actually as good as I thought it was, but I still remember the excitement of getting my first Marshall half-stack. I bought it used and both the amp and head were in pretty bad condition (handle on the head was broken and the cab had rips in the grill cloth which translated to a hole in one of the speakers), but I still remember feeling like I had finally ‘made it’ seeing a Marshall half-stack sitting in my basement. I ended up retiring the DSL100H head, but I repaired the cab and still use it live.”

Prisoner’s Marco Cioffi – amp

What’s a brand or bit of gear that everyone else seems to love that you can’t stand?

“I’m not exactly sure why, but whenever I hear a talk box in a song, I’m immediately turned off (sorry Peter Frampton). It’s totally a matter of personal preference, but I just think the effect is a little corny, and most songs that feature them would be better off without them. I’m also not a huge fan of wah pedals, but I’ll admit some tasteful wah here and there isn’t the worst thing in the world.”

Best gear goes wrong story?

“I’ve been fairly lucky with my gear so far, and I haven’t had any major issues that were difficult to fix, but I’ve definitely had some gear malfunctions that caused a bit of a panic. Like all guitar players, I’ve had my fair share of straps falling off mid-show, which is never fun. Also, literally two minutes before our first show on the ‘Kill the King Tour,’ the DC jack on my wireless pedal broke as I was setting up my board, and I ended up having to play the first few shows without it. It’s a total first-world problem, but it definitely caused some panic right at the start of our tour.”

Prisoner ‘Kill The King’ album artwork