Podcast 348: Duncan Price

For the last two years of this podcast, we've shared the stories of several musicians who have made the most of their COVID lockdown: Daniel Romano's wildly prolific recording streak; Mason Stoops' pivot to the visual arts; and Tristan Scroggins doing his best to tame the often-maligned tenor banjo. Today, we meet Duncan Price, a tireless guitar experimenter. Price lives on the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, where he does setup and repair work for a mom-and-pop guitar store called Good Times Music. But during his off-hours, he's crafting some truly unique electric guitar experiments that blend single-string pickups, fretless necks, under-pickguard piezo pickups and more. Despite not having anything to sell or even a brand name, his Instagram posts have captured the attention of musicians-in-the-know on Instagram, who geek out on his posts, his music, and his latest tinkerings. One of those followers happens to be guitarist/producer Blake Mills, who ended up reaching out to Price and is now playing one of his early prototypes (and making some truly gorgeous music on it). On today's podcast, we hear about Price's background, the influence El Rayo-X's Bernie Larson had on him starting out, the quest he's on to make a great fretless-necked, infinite sustain guitar and more. Price also has been inspired by our Truth About Vintage Amps Podcast and talks about some of his recent amplifier builds, as well. This interview may be the first time you've heard about Price and his guitar creations, but it definitely won't be the last. I hope you enjoy getting to know him. Follow Duncan Price on Instagram and see what exactly we're talking about here.

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This episode is sponsored by Izotope (use the discount code FRET10 to save 10% on their amazing software) and Retrofret Vintage Guitars.

Don't forget, beyond the magazine, the FJ now has an entire network of podcasts, about everything from lutherie to home recording (and tube amps!): Luthier on Luthier; The Truth About Vintage Amps; The Truth About Recording & Mixing; Acoustic Voices; and Sweep the Floor.