Matthew Caws

"Because fingerpicking on a 12-string is a sloppier affair, and I’m really not much of a fingerpicker. I used a 1991 Gibson J-200, and the Nashville tuning was on a big, blonde Guild F-50 jumbo."

"Because fingerpicking on a 12-string is a sloppier affair, and I’m really not much of a fingerpicker. I used a 1991 Gibson J-200, and the Nashville tuning was on a big, blonde Guild F-50 jumbo."

"And I really only have two main guitars in the studio: One is a ’68 Les Paul Custom Black Beauty, and then I have a ’69 Tele that’s really light. I tend to always be on the bridge pickup—I’d rather have the guitar always sound bright, and then just dial the treble back on the amp."

"And I really only have two main guitars in the studio: One is a ’68 Les Paul Custom Black Beauty, and then I have a ’69 Tele that’s really light. I tend to always be on the bridge pickup—I’d rather have the guitar always sound bright, and then just dial the treble back on the amp."

"I only take Les Pauls on the road. I have a 1960 Les Paul reissue from 1996, and I also have an Edwards, which is an incredible Japanese knock-off made by ESP."

"I have a 1960 Les Paul reissue from 1996, and I also have an Edwards, which is an incredible Japanese knock-off made by ESP. They can’t export them here—they call them lawsuit guitars because they’re so perfect. They cost about a grand, they’re light as a feather, and they sound incredible. I actually may have played that more than my Black Beauty on this record."

According to the Premier Guitar interview with Caws, he uses the 1971 Yamaha FG-180 with "Nippon Gakki" label.

According to the Premier Guitar interview with Caws, he uses the 1975 Gibson Les Paul Standard.

According to the Premier Guitar interview with Caws, he uses the Fender Jaguar Baritone.

Caws runs a reissue Fender Deluxe Reverb with a Jensen 12² speaker. The Deluxe runs with a THD Hot Plate in line to tame its savage volume.

Along with the Deluxe, Caws runs a 50-watt Marshall JCM800 with a Marshall 2x12 cabinet. Not surprisingly, the Marshall also gets the Hot Plate treatment.

Along with the Deluxe, Caws runs a 50-watt Marshall JCM800 with a Marshall 2x12 cabinet. Not surprisingly, the Marshall also gets the Hot Plate treatment.

"With an AC30 it’s impossible to get the right tone without blowing everybody off the stage—you really have to crank it."

"My go-to heavy sound is from a Marshall JCM800 50-watt head that I’ve had for years. Live, I always run two Fender-type amps—or Vox-type or Orange or Silvertone—flanking a JCM800. On this last tour in Europe, I had an AC30 on one side and a Deluxe Reverb on the other."

"I usually use a THD Hot Plate, too, to tame it down so I can really listen to what it sounds like without it hurting—because I do like a pretty hyped-up Fender sound."

"Live, I always run two Fender-type amps—or Vox-type or Orange or Silvertone—flanking a JCM800. On this last tour in Europe, I had an AC30 on one side and a Deluxe Reverb on the other."

A rather modest pedalboard sits at Caws’ feet and contains a Boss TU-3 Chromatic Tuner, Fulltone OCD, and a DLS Effects RotoSIM. The homemade pedal is a Klon clone that was built by John Bednar of Clifton, New Jersey.

A rather modest pedalboard sits at Caws’ feet and contains a Boss TU-3 Chromatic Tuner, Fulltone OCD, and a DLS Effects RotoSIM. The homemade pedal is a Klon clone that was built by John Bednar of Clifton, New Jersey.

A rather modest pedalboard sits at Caws’ feet and contains a Boss TU-3 Chromatic Tuner, Fulltone OCD, and a DLS Effects RotoSIM. The homemade pedal is a Klon clone that was built by John Bednar of Clifton, New Jersey.

According to the Premier Guitar interview with Caws, he uses the Electro-Harmonix POG pedal.

According to Premier Guitar interview, Caws uses the Hughes and Kettner Rotosphere pedal.

According to Premier Guitar interview, Caws uses the MXR Dyna Comp pedal.

In this photo, which was taken during Nada Surf's performance on KEXP, one of the pedals that can be seen in Caws' pedalboard is the Boss GE-7 equalizer pedal.

In this photo, which was taken during Nada Surf's performance on KEXP, one of the pedals that can be seen in Caws' pedalboard is the Boss TU-2 tuner.

In this photo, which was taken during Nada Surf's performance on KEXP, one of the pedals that can be seen in Caws' pedalboard is the Diamond TRM-1 tremolo pedal.

In this photo, which was taken during Nada Surf's performance on KEXP, one of the pedals that can be seen in Caws' pedalboard is the Wampler Euphoria overdrive pedal.

In this photo, which was taken during Nada Surf's performance on KEXP, one of the pedals that can be seen in Caws' pedalboard is the Earthquaker Ghost Echo.