FINNEAS, known for his Grammy Award-winning collaborations with Billie Eilish, collaborates with Fender on his signature Acoustasonic.
Having picked up his first guitar at the age of 12, FINNEAS' guitar-playing journey has been a key element in his career. Known for his ability to seamlessly blend acoustic and electronic elements, his music resonates with authenticity and emotional depth. In March 2019, he garnered widespread acclaim for his Grammy-winning contributions to Billie Eilish's breakthrough album When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?. FINNEAS then stepped into the spotlight with his own debut, the Blood Harmony EP in 2019, followed by his debut full-length album, Optimist, in 2021. His latest collaboration with Billie Eilish on her album HIT ME HARD AND SOFT continues to push musical boundaries and has garnered critical acclaim, further solidifying their impact on the music industry. Together, they have captivated a global audience, inspiring a new generation of artists to explore and embrace authenticity and vulnerability in their music. Their dynamic partnership has become a beacon for those seeking to innovate and express genuine emotion through their art.
Exploring the Finneas Acoustasonic Collection | Fender Artist Signature | Fender - YouTube
“The most important thing to me about a guitar is versatility,” said FINNEAS. “I was first introduced to the Acoustasonic guitar in 2019 when I was on tour with Billie, and I played it at every show that year. When we started conversations about my signature model, I knew this guitar was great in a live setting, and I wanted to find ways to take it into the studio and make it a versatile, expressive studio instrument. This is the result of that. ”
In addition to the release of his first-ever signature guitar, FINNEAS has just released his latest single, “For Cryin’ Out Loud!”, now available on all major streaming platforms. This track is a precursor to his much-anticipated sophomore album, For Cryin’ Out Loud!, which is set to be released on October 4.
The FINNEAS Acoustasonic Player Telecaster and the Limited Edition FINNEAS Acoustasonic Telecaster guitars mark Fender’s first-ever Acoustasonic artist signature guitars. Distinguished by custom electronics curated by FINNEAS, these models combine a magnetic Acoustasonic Shawbucker pickup and a Fishman undersaddle transducer to deliver clean electric, small-body acoustic, and dreadnought acoustic tones. Additionally, both models feature an onboard chorus effect selected by FINNEAS, seamlessly integrating added sonic characters.
The key differences lie in their finishes and places of manufacture: the standard model boasts a modern Cappuccino Fade satin finish on its solid spruce top, while the LE features an all-Arctic White satin finish for a premium aesthetic. Both guitars share a Modern Deep “C”-shape neck for a confident yet comfortable feel and a Shawbucker magnetic pickup known for its tonal charm and noiseless performance, ideal for studio use. The standard model is made at Fender’s Ensenada facility in Mexico, whereas the limited edition is crafted at Fender’s historic facility in Corona, California.
“We are incredibly proud to collaborate with FINNEAS on his first signature guitar,” said Justin Norvell, Justin Norvell, EVP of Product at FMIC. “The FINNEAS Acoustasonic Player Telecaster and LE FINNEAS Acoustasonic Telecaster capture the unique blend of acoustic, electric and onboard effected tones that characterize his music. This guitar is more than an instrument; it's a versatile tool meant to inspire the next generation of producers and artists to explore new sonic landscapes and push their creative boundaries. FINNEAS's innovative spirit and dedication to authenticity shine through in every detail of these signature models.”
FINNEAS Acoustasonic Player Telecaster ($1,399.99) Purposefully streamlined and equally versatile, the Fender Acoustasonic intuitively transitions from acoustic to electric thanks to revolutionary magnetic and under saddle piezo electronics with 3-way switching co-designed with Fishman to deliver an unmatched acoustic experience. This evolution of the Acoustasonic Player Telecaster offers a set of six voices chosen by FINNEAS to range from clean electric to small-body and dreadnought acoustic, and includes a hand-selected onboard chorus effect in two positions for a versatile array of studio-worthy sounds. Built with uncompromising tonewoods including a braced solid spruce top, mahogany body and neck, and a rosewood fingerboard and bridge, this Acoustasonic is crafted to deliver the organic sonic nuance that is sure to resonate. Other personalizations include a Cappuccino Fade satin finish and an engraved FINNEAS signature on the back of the headstock. A deluxe padded gig bag is also included to provide premium protection and portability.
Limited Edition FINNEAS Acoustasonic Telecaster ($2,499.99) This limited edition American Acoustasonic Telecaster offers a set of ten voices chosen by FINNEAS to range from clean electric to various flavors of acoustic and includes a hand-selected onboard chorus effect in two positions for a versatile array of high-fidelity studio-worthy sounds. Built with premium tonewoods including a braced solid spruce top, mahogany body and neck, and an ebony fingerboard and bridge, this Acoustasonic is crafted to deliver organic sonic nuance that is sure to resonate. Other personalizations include an all-Arctic White satin finish and a FINNEAS signature on the back of the headstock. A deluxe molded hardshell case is also included to provide premium protection and security while traveling.
For more information, please visit fender.com.
Fender Finneas Signature Acoustasonic Player Telecaster - Cappuccino Fade
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The Mick Ronson Cry Baby Wah taps into the vibrant, melodic character of one of rock ’n’ roll’s most gifted songwriters. Few guitar players have been able to combine a keen musical instinct with a profound grasp of how to bring a composition together like Mick Ronson. Laden with expressive resonance, his arrangements layered deliberately chosen tones and textures to build exquisite melodies and powerful riffs. The Cry Baby Wah, set in a fixed position to serve as a filter, was key to the tone-shaping vision that Ronson used to transform the face of popular music through his work with David Bowie and many others as both an artist and a producer.
We wanted to make that incredible Cry Baby Wah sound available to all players, and legendary producer Bob Rock—a friend and collaborator of Ronson’s—was there to help. He generously loaned us Ronson’s own Cry Baby Wah pedal, an early Italian-made model whose vintage components imbue it with a truly singular sound. Ronson recorded many tracks with this pedal, and Rock would go on to use it when recording numerous other artists. With matched specs, tightened tolerances, and a custom inductor, our engineers have recreated this truly special sound.
“You place the wah, and leave it there, and that's the tone,” Rock says. “It's all over every record he ever made, and I’ve used it on every record since I got it. Dunlop’s engineers spent the time and sent me the prototypes, and we nailed that sound.”
Mick Ronson Cry Baby Wah highlights:
- Tailor-made for Ronson’s signature fixed-wah tones• Carefully spec’d from his own wah pedal
- Custom inductor replicates higher frequency response and subtler peak
- Fast initial sweep with Instant reactivity
- Distinctive EQ curve from period-accurate components
- Special finish inspired by Ronson’s monumental work
The Mick Ronson Cry Baby Wah is available now at $249.99 street from your favorite retailer.
For more information, please visit jimdunlop.com.
Over the decades with Hüsker Dü, Sugar, and solo, Bob Mould has earned a reputation for visceral performances.
Mould’s album landed in a world of cloistered listeners, so he never knew how it impacted people. For a musician from punk and hardcore scenes, it was a disquieting experience. So when he got back out on the road in 2023 and 2024, playing solo electric sets, the former Hüsker Dü and Sugar frontman was determined to reconnect with his listeners. After each show, he’d hang out at the merch table and talk. Some people wanted their records or shirts signed, some wanted a picture. Others shared dark stories and secret experiences connected to Mould’s work. It humbled and moved him. “I’m grateful for all of it,” he says.
These are the in-person viscera of a group of people connecting on shared interests, versus, says Mould, “‘I gotta clean the house today, so I’m going to put on my clean the house playlist that a computer designed for me.” “Everything has become so digitized,” he laments. “I grew up where music was religion, it was life, it was essential. When people come to shows, and there’s an atmosphere, there’s volume, there’s spilled drinks and sweat–that’s what music ritual is supposed to be.”
His experiences on tour after the pandemic heartened Mould, but they also gave him traction on new ideas and direction for a new record. He returned to the simple, dirty guitar-pop music that spiked his heart rate when he was young: the Ramones’ stupid-simple pop-punk ecstasy, New York Dolls’ sharp-edged playfulness, Pete Townshend’s epic, chest-rattling guitar theatrics. In other words, the sort of snotty, poppy, wide-open rock we heard and loved on Hüsker Dü’s Flip Your Wig and Candy Apple Grey.
Mould’s time on the road playing solo in 2023 sparked the idea for Here We Go Crazy.
Photo by Ryan Bakerink
Mould started writing new songs in the vein of his original childhood heroes, working them into those electric solo sets in 2023 and 2024. Working with those restraints—guitar chords and vocal melodies—put Mould on track to make Here We Go Crazy, his new, 15th solo record.
Lead single and opener “Here We Go Crazy” is a scene-setting piece of fuzzy ’90s alt-rock, bookended by the fierce pounding of “Neanderthal.” “When Your Heart is Broken” is a standout, with its bubblegum chorus melody and rumbling, tense, Who-style holding pattern before one of the album’s only solos. Ditto “Sharp Little Pieces,” with perhaps the record’s chewiest, darkest guitar sounds.
“It’s a very familiar-sounding record,” he continues. “I think when people hear it, they will go, ‘Oh my god, this is so Bob Mould,’ and a lot of that was [influenced by] spending time with the audience again, putting new stuff into the set alongside the songbook material, going out to the table after the show and getting reactions from people. That sort of steered me towards a very simple, energetic, guitar-driven pop record.”
Of his new album, Mould says, “I think when people hear it, they will go, ‘Oh my god, this is so Bob Mould.’”
Mould recorded the LP in Chicago with longtime bandmates Jason Narducy and Jon Wurster at the late, great Steve Albini’s Electrical Audio. Then Mould retreated to San Francisco to finish the record, chipping away at vocals and extra guitar pieces. He mostly resisted the pull of “non-guitar ornamentation”: “It’s a rhythm guitar record with a couple leads and a Minimoog,” he says. “It’s sort of cool to not have a 64-crayon set every time.”
Mould relied on his favorite, now-signature late-’80s Fender Strat Plus, which sat out on a runway at O’Hare in 20-below cold for three hours and needed a few days to get back in fighting shape. In the studio, he ran the Strat into his signature Tym Guitars Sky Patch, a take on the MXR Distortion+, then onto a Radial JD7. The Radial split his signal and sent it to three combo amps: a Fender Hot Rod DeVille, a Fender ’68 Custom Deluxe Reverb reissue, and a Blackstar Artisan 30, each with a mic on it. The result is a brighter record that Mould says leaves more room for the bass and kick drum. “If you listen to this record against Patch the Sky, for instance, it’s night and day,” he says. “It’s snug.”
Mould explains that the record unfolds over three acts. Tracks one through five comprise the first episode, crackling with uncertainty and conflict. The second, spread over songs six to eight, contrasts feelings of openness with tight, claustrophobic tension. Here, there are dead ends, addictions, and frigid realities. But after “Sharp Little Pieces,” the album turns its corner, barreling toward the home stretch in a fury of optimism and determination. “These last three [songs] should give us more hope,” says Mould. “They should talk about unconditional love.”
The record closes on the ballad “Your Side,” which starts gentle and ends in a rush of smashed chords and cymbals, undoubtedly one of the most invigorating segments. “The world is going down in flames, I wanna be by your side/We can find a quiet place, it doesn’t need to be the Albert Hall,” Mould starts. It’s a beautiful portrait of love, aging, and the passage of time.
Bob Mould's Gear
Mould paired his trusty Fender Strat Plus with a trio of smaller combo amps to carve out a more mid-focused rhythm-guitar sound in the studio.
Photo by Mike White
Guitars
- Late 1980s Fender American Standard Strat Plus (multiple)
Amps
- Fender Hot Rod DeVille
- Blackstar Artisan Series amps
- Fender '68 Custom Deluxe Reverb
Effects
- Tym Guitars Sky Patch
- TC Electronic Flashback
- Electro-Harmonix Freeze
- Wampler Ego
- Universal Audio 1176
- Radial JD7
Strings, Picks, & Power Supply
- D'Addario NYXLs (.011-.046)
- Dunlop .46 mm and .60 mm picks
- Voodoo Labs power supply
And though the record ends on this palette of tenderness and connection, the cycle is likely to start all over again. Mould understands this; even though he knows he’s basking in act three at the moment, acts one and two will come along again, and again. Thankfully, he’s figured out how to weather the changes.
“When things are good, enjoy them,” he says. “When things are tough, do the work and get out of it, somehow.”
- YouTube
Many of the tracks on Here We Go Crazy were road-tested by Mould during solo sets. Here, accompanied only by his trusty Fender Strat, he belts “Breathing Room.”
Reader: Federico Novelli
Hometown: Genoa, Italy
Guitar: The Italian Hybrid
Reader Federico Novelli constructed this hybrid guitar from three layers of pine, courtesy of some old shelves he had laying around.
A few years ago, at the beginning of Covid, an idea for a new guitar flashed through my mind. It was a semi-acoustic model with both magnetic and piezo pickups that were mounted on a soundboard that could resonate. It was a nice idea, but I also had to think about how to make it in my tiny cellar without many power tools and using old solid-wood shelves I had available.
I have been playing guitar for 50 years, and I also dabble in luthiery for fun. I have owned a classical guitar, an acoustic guitar, and a Stratocaster, but a jazz guitar was missing from the list. I wanted something that would have more versatility, so the idea of a hybrid semi-acoustic guitar was born.
I started to sketch something on computer-aided design (CAD) software, thinking of a hollowbody design without a center block or sides that needed to be hot-worked with a bending machine. I thought of a construction made of three layers of solid pine wood, individually worked and then glued together in layers, with a single-cutaway body and a glued-in neck.
For the soundboard and back, I used a piece of ash and hand-cut it with a Japanese saw to the proper thickness, so I had two sheets to fit together. Next, I sanded the soundboard and bottom using two striker profiles as sleds and an aluminum box covered in sandpaper to achieve a uniform 3 mm thickness. A huge amount of work, but it didn't cost anything.
“It was a nice idea, but I also had to think about how to make it in my tiny cellar without many electric tools and out of old solid-wood shelves I had available.”
The soundboard has simplified X-bracing, a soundhole with a rosewood edge profile, and an acoustic-style rosewood bridge. For the neck, I used a piece of old furniture with straight grain, shaped it to a Les Paul profile, and added a single-action truss rod. The only new purchase: a cheap Chinese rosewood fretboard.
Then, there was lots of sanding. I worked up to 400-grit, added filler, primer, and transparent nitro varnish, worked the sandpaper up to 1,500-grit, and finally polished.
Our reader and his “Italian job.”
For electronics, I used a Tonerider alnico 2 humbucker pickup and a piezo undersaddle pickup, combined with a modified Shadow preamp that also includes a magnetic pickup input, so you can mix the two sources on a single output. I also installed a bypass switch for power on/off and a direct passive output.
I have to say that I am proud and moderately satisfied both aesthetically and with the sounds it produces, which range from jazz to acoustic and even gypsy jazz. However, I think I will replace the electronics and piezo with Fishman hardware in the future.
