Finding therapy with a soldering iron and power chords
Produced by RYAN RUMBOLT
Since I started playing guitar at 16, I have been obsessed with tearing my guitars apart and putting them back together. For me, it is a therapeutic hobby – something that helps me connect physically with the artistic side of song writing and music.
And so, my favorite place in the city is the garage where I do my electric guitar repairs, affectionately referred to as the Car Hold. It is also where my band, DangerFloyd, practices every week.
In the video, I am attempting to fix the input jack on a hot-rodded copy of a Gibson Les Paul – a model of guitar made famous by the likes of Jimmy Page and Slash. I built this guitar from a kit and swapped out the generic parts to try and make it a little more reliable, but it still gives me issues from time to time.
Tinkering with guitars is a bit of an addiction, but one I happily give in to. My dad is a musician, so I grew up with guitars and pianos all over the house. I learned from an early age how to both care for and maintain my instruments – from my dad, and also from Frankenstein-ing my guitars.
I guess some things run in the family, because there are just as many half-finished guitars lying around the garage as playable ones.