With a signature look, a love of unusual instruments and an ear for detail, Troy Van Leeuwen brings his Custom Shop-inspired 12-string Tele to Squier.
There are guitarists who seem to approach their instruments as tools, and then there are those who understand that every part of the package contributes to the overall picture. Troy Van Leeuwen has always struck me as belonging to the second family. Whether adding layers of texture to the likes of Queens Of The Stone Age and A Perfect Circle or stepping out onstage in one of his characteristically sharp outfits, there’s a sense that every detail has been considered: the songs, the sounds, the instruments, the outfits, they’re all in service of a creative statement.
That attention to aesthetics was something I wanted to explore when I spoke with Van Leeuwen about his new Squier Paranormal Telecaster XII. Van Leeuwen’s signature guitars have a visual identity of their own, refined yet flashy. I was curious where that sense of style came from, and his answer revealed something about the way he approaches the whole business of being a musician.
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“You know, I always appreciated the classiness of a musician performing in a suit,” Van Leeuwen said. “I like to dress nicely. You’ve heard the story about Albert Einstein keeping a closet full of identical outfits? He knew what worked for him and then he made it so he didn’t have to think about it again.” The appeal, as Van Leeuwen explained it, is practical as much as aesthetic: settle on a look, take that decision off the table, and free up your attention for other things.
It’s a philosophy that carries over to a signature instrument. A guitar should have its own personality, certainly, but it should also make sense as something you can pick up, plug in and get on with the business of making music.
The Squier Troy Van Leeuwen Paranormal Telecaster XII takes its inspiration from Van Leeuwen’s Fender Custom Shop Masterbuilt 12-string Jazzmaster crafted by senior master builder Paul Waller. “I asked the Custom Shop to build me a double-neck guitar but it was going to take a long time to get it finished. So in the meantime, Paul Waller made this beautiful 12-string Telecaster as like an interim solution, so I’d have something to play in the meantime.” That guitar became much more than a temporary stopgap until the double-neck was completed: it quickly earned its place as an idea worth pursuing on its own. In light of popular Squier signature models like the J. Mascis Jazzmaster, it seemed like the perfect idea.
I asked Van Leeuwen whether designing a signature model for Squier rather than Fender meant having to compromise on his original vision. “Not at all,” he said. “I didn’t have to limit my ideas in any way. We were able to put this together from the ground up and I’m really happy with it.”
The Squier pairs a Nyatoh body with a maple neck, a laurel fingerboard and two Fender Designed Alnico single-coil pickups. Its 25.5-inch scale and familiar Telecaster shape keep it connected to the platform’s roots, while the custom Telecaster XII headstock and distinctive Copper Age finish make it unmistakably Troy’s guitar, and yet accessible to everyone. “The pickups sound great,” Van Leeuwen says. “They’re not too hot because that’s not what this guitar is about. And the bridge intonates perfectly which is especially important for a 12-string!”
As for amplification, Van Leeuwen didn’t describe needing a separate, radically different setup to make the instrument work. His existing rig is already designed to accommodate that sort of versatility, so he can simply plug in and play. That’s an important distinction: the guitar becomes another colour in an established palette, rather than an excuse to rebuild the whole rig around it.
And that, ultimately, is what makes the Paranormal Telecaster XII feel like a Van Leeuwen instrument. It has the visual confidence, the unusual character and the practical thinking you’d expect from a guitarist who values both presentation and function. Most importantly, it takes a distinctive Custom Shop idea and makes it available to players who might never otherwise have considered a 12-string Telecaster. “I can’t wait to hear what people play on this guitar,” Van Leeuwen says. “It’s always interesting seeing my guitars go out into the world and tell their own stories.”
Learn more about QOTSA’s upcoming Australian tour here
Learn more about the Squier Paranormal Telecaster XII here
