Lex Luthier

Tangential to my interests as a DIY musician and recording artist, I also like to buy cheap guitars and fix them up with the intent of making them comparable to instruments that cost far more. Personally, I have never played a $2100 instrument that sounded seven times better than one that cost $300, as I tend to think the cost-to-sound ratio plateaus at a certain point. 

 

I paid $83 for this instrument on eBay, new. It even came with a gig bag and a patch cord. Granted, the seller did give me a discount because the listing had incorrectly stated that it was a baritone. When I got it, the nut was terrible, such that anything on the first few frets was not intonated correctly. It also wouldn't stay in tune worth a damn, and the pickups sounded muffled. However, the body, neck and fretboard were decent, so I kept it. I then replaced the nut, the bridge, the tuners, and the pickups, all with off-brand parts at a total cost of about $60. I also used a jewelry file to smooth out the sharp frets. It now plays and sounds approximately as well as my actual Fender Telecaster for a fraction of the price. 

 

My point is that you don't need to spend a lot on a guitar to have yourself a decent instrument. Sometimes it just takes a little bit of work.

 

 

Tiny Desk Songs

I decided to submit an entry to NPR's Tiny Desk Contest again this year. 

 

While I had the camera set up, I recorded seven songs in total, all acoustic and unplugged. I present them here (and below) for your listening enjoyment:

 

Pablo Fiasco (official 2026 entry)

 

 

 

Begin

 

 

Better Days

 

 

Haunted

 

 

Dandelion Wine (If Only...)

 

 

Gravel Roads

 

 

Goodbye

 

 

 

Once my entry goes live, you can find it here, along with all of the other submissions for this year's Tiny Desk Contest.

 

Thank you for listening and for supporting independent art. 

 

 

 

 

Protest Music

Here are some more songs that I wrote and recorded during the fascist fuckwit's first term. Sadly, they have only become more relevant in the time since:

 

Panic Attack

 

 

Weather Patterns

 

 

Gravity

 

 

 

There are more of us than there are of them. Find strength and hope in unity. 

 

Resist fascism.

 

 

 

After Dark

Here are a few more songs that I recorded live in my living room in December 2025:

 

Begin

 

 

Turn the Page

 

 

Better Days

 

 

Thank you for listening.

 

 

 

Welcome to the Future

2025 was a record year for this site. Over the past twelve months, it has received about 72,000 page views -- which is almost equal to the seven years prior combined. 

 

As a completely independent one-man-band whose only form of self-promotion is this blog, I am amazed that so many people have tuned in to what I am doing. 

 

Listeners from the US, Brazil, Mexico, Germany, Vietnam, Netherlands, Singapore, and dozens of other countries around the world have come here to learn more about my music. 

 

I am humbled by your support. Thank you. 

 

To all of my fans, casual listeners, and people who randomly stumbled upon this site: I hope that the new year will be the best of your life so far. 

 

 

  

Thank you for your continued support of independent art.

 

Happy New Year!