Just ahead of the release of their second full-length record, Soft, the British trio Bones UK tore through the U.S. on a summer tour. PG’s John Bohlinger caught up with lead guitarist Carmen Vandenberg before their Nashville gig to see how she covers the band’s slick, aggressive sonic territory.
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Tele and Duesenberg
Vandenberg splits time between her treasured 1963 Fender Telecaster and a newly acquired Duesenberg Julia. She scored the ’63 Tele when she was around 20 years old. A friend lent her the money to snag it from No. Tom Guitars in London, and shortly after, she used it on a session gig and earned the money back. She’s not taking chances with this guitar—there’s an AirTag in the case to keep close track of it while traveling.
The Duesenberg Julia is a more recent addition. While on tour with Queens of the Stone Age in Germany, it seemed like Vandenberg’s guitars were delayed in transit. Some Duesenberg workers drove four of their guitars to Hamburg to save the day, and Vandenberg was so impressed by the Julia that she asked to keep it.
Both guitars run Ernie Ball Regular Slinky strings.
Signature Sound
Vandenberg plays through a pair of her signature Blackstar CV30s, which she designed over a couple of years with the British amp makers. One of the combos is set to deliver more top end, and the other is set for low-end power. Together, they produce a full, hard-hitting sound.
Vandenberg’s Pedals
Vandenberg covers a lot of ground with her Bones UK guitar sounds, and she’s got a carefully curated collection of stomps to span the territory. Her guitar first hits an Ernie Ball Cry Baby before running through the rest of the pedals: a Boss TU-3, Fulltone OCD, Supro Drive, Pigtronix Octava, EHX Micro POG, Supro Chorus, Blackstar Dept. 10 Boost, EarthQuaker Devices Dispatch Master, MXR Carbon Copy Deluxe, Catalinbread Belle Epoch, and Boss NS-2. A Live Wire Solutions ABY manages the signals on their way to the Blackstars.
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