j mascis

The author’s 1961 Fender Jazzmaster, “Pancake,” features a pair of Curtis Novak pickups—a JM-Fat in the bridge position, and an Historic ’61 in the neck.

From vintage to modern, single-coil to humbucker, wide range to gold-foil, and just about anything else you can dream up, the world of JM-style pickups just keeps getting bigger.

If you’re into modding guitars, there has never been a better time in terms of options for hardware, electronic components, and, of course, pickups––especially for fans of Fender offsets, where one quick Google search calls up an embarrassment of riches.

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Dinosaur Jr. frontman J Mascis may be rock's foremost ambassador of the Fender Jazzmaster, but a beloved 1958 Telecaster has long been his go-to instrument for tracking solos. The new signature Fender J Mascis Telecaster he's sporting here was inspired by that instrument in both features and aesthetics.

There's a perfectly good reason why the famous offset's most high-profile ambassador has a new signature Telecaster—andthe silver-maned fuzz lord also turned to a number of other surprising choices for Dinosaur Jr.'s wonderfully varied new Sweep It Into Space.

Dinosaur Jr. has long had a home with fans of fuzzy indie rock, but they've also never sounded quite like any other band. The sour/sweet juxtaposition of J Mascis' gentle, reedy vocal textures against his hallmark wall of swirling, violently massive guitars isn't without precedent, yet in the context of Dinosaur Jr.'s music it's always stood out as something unique and genuine—and it's had a major influence on the hordes of contemporary artists chasing the alt-rock glory of the '90s.

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Fender Musical Instruments Corporation (FMIC) today announces the global launch of the J Mascis Telecaster, Mascis's second Fender Artist Signature guitar, joining his Signature Squier Jazzmaster. Sticking to his unique style, Fender worked closely with Mascis to recreate his infamous original 1958 top-Loader Tele guitar, the main axe he used in the mid-90s when he wrote some of his most iconic songs and lead work throughout his career.

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