Over the last year or so, the alt music world has watched in awe as Mark Jacob Lenderman makes his ascent from alt-country sideman to the undisputed hottest name in indie rock.
Since the release of his excellent LP Manning Fireworks in September of 2024, MJ Lenderman has been the name on everybody’s lips and for very good reason. Between his blistering, shoegaze inspired guitar work, sharp, witty songwriting and irresistibly laid back vocal stylings, MJ Lenderman is the singer-songwriter that both alt-country and slacker rock fans have been waiting for. As the neotraditional country explosion of recent years fades away and hipsters the world over begin hanging up their cowboy boots, MJ Lenderman’s more casual approach is keeping the flame alive for people who enjoy the sound of pedal steel despite not necessarily knowing what they are.
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So, like millennials did a decade ago in Mac Demarco, Gen Z have found their cutie pie slacker songbird and equilibrium has been restored to the galaxy. However, behind Lenderman’s sardonic lyrics and his curly mop of hair also lies a gear nerd and a bonafide tone connoisseur, and it is that side of the beloved golden boy that we shall be exploring today.
Fender Jazzmaster
In his previous band Wednesday, MJ Lenderman notably favoured the Fender Jazzmaster for its effectiveness as a noise maker and its suitability for the more shoegazey side of his playing. As playing ‘behind the bridge’ is so crucial to the shoegaze style, Lenderman stuck with Jazzmasters exclusively for Wednesday material and owns both a 2008 model as well as a J Mascis signature. Lenderman puts his love of Jazzmasters down to his admiration for both Mascis and Sonic Youth’s Thurston Moore, citing both players as important influences on his playing style.
1979 Gibson: “The SG” Firebrand SG
Since focusing on his solo career however, Lenderman has favoured his 1979 Gibson ‘The SG’, finding it more appropriate for playing straight rhythm parts and admiring the guitar’s iconic look. ‘The SG’, otherwise known as a ‘Firebrand’ SG, is a rare model conceived by Nashville plant manager Whitey Morrison in 1979 to fill the gap in the budget end of the SG lineup. It is constructed with Walnut rather than the more common Gibson tonewood Mahogany and has a distinctively large ‘open book’ headstock.
Fender American Vintage II 1977 Reissue Telecaster
However as the SG sometimes struggles with Lenderman’s preferred tuning of D Standard (one whole step down from standard tuning), he also tours with a Fender American Vintage II 1977 Reissue Telecaster which he favours for songs that call for a cleaner tone. Lenderman’s Jazzmasters are still getting some love on the road though, with the Mascis model in particular being used for the song “You Are Every Girl To Me” which calls for the unusual tuning of CGDGGE.
Vox AC30
In terms of amps, Lenderman keeps it clean and simple. When touring with Wednesday, Lenderman used a two-amp setup consisting of a Vox AC30 and a Fender Blues Deluxe. For his own work, Lenderman has recently swapped the combos out for a single Hiwatt Custom 50, which he favours for its more well rounded tone and extended bottom end. Lenderman currently uses the Hiwatt in conjunction with a stock 4×12 cabinet containing Celestion speakers.
Guitar pedals
Lenderman’s pedalboard is surprisingly sparse. His current touring board consists of a Death By Audio Interstellar Overdriver Deluxe, a Dunlop Wah, a TC Electronic Flashback 2 and a D’Addario tuner. Whilst very minimal, this small collection makes for a powerful combination and has some serious noise making capabilities. The Interstellar Overdriver Deluxe contains some very gnarly fuzz tones that Lenderman puts to great use and the Flashback is a great tool for creating spacey oscillating delay effects with endless repeats. Lenderman mostly uses his wah as a filter, using it to accentuate certain harmonics and frequencies and to exaggerate the effects of his other pedals.
An excellent lesson in the power of simplicity, Lenderman’s board is a well needed reminder that even in shoegaze influenced music, less can be more. The amount of different sounds and effects one can get out of simply a fuzz, a delay, a wah and of course the right guitar are almost endless and minimal setups like Lenderman’s are a godsend on the road for players and techs alike.
Ernie Ball Beefy Slinky strings
To accommodate for his lower tuning, Lenderman favours Ernie Ball Beefy Slinky strings, which have a reasonably heavy gauge of .011, .015, .022p, .030, .042 and .054. For those unaware, heavier gauges are favoured by most players who tune down in an effort to compensate for the lost tension. In my experience, a set of 11s is likely to feel more like 10s if tuned a down whole step as Lenderman is, and going up a gauge for every step you tune down from there is a decent rule of thumb for players wanting to maintain a relatively ‘normal’ amount of tension on their guitar— depending on what normal means to you, of course.
So for those of you playing at home who want to sound like your newest countrygaze indie rock hero, remember that simplicity is the name of the game. A Jazzmaster will get you half the way there particularly if you appreciate Lenderman’s noisier side and apart from that, a clean amp with plenty of headroom, a high quality fuzz box, a decent delay and a stock standard wah are about all you need.
Of course, that doesn’t account for Lenderman’s unique and extremely impressive style of playing. As reminiscent of Neil Young, Wilco and Drive By Truckers as he is of his heroes J Mascis and Thurston Moore, Lenderman draws as much from classic rock and country as he does from shoegaze and will prove to be highly influential in the coming years. Most importantly, he doesn’t overdo it. Both Lenderman’s playing and his choices of tone always and exclusively serve the song at hand and that is what makes him so good. I’m sure he has many excellent records to come and a lot more cool gear to collect along the way.
Keep up with MJ Lenderman here.
