“I strongly believe that if you give a guitar to five different players – same guitar, same amp – each one of them is going to sound different”: Alex Lifeson takes us behind the scenes at Lerxst to talk gear, tone and the possibility of new music
If, somewhere out in the cosmos, there exists a master list of guitarists with the most coveted tones in rock history, it’s safe to say that Rush’s Alex Lifeson ranks near the top.
His sound – crisp and articulate, and characterized by lightly chorused arpeggios, shimmering, glassy chords and smoothly overdriven lead lines – has powered some of the greatest radio anthems of the last half-century and is instantly recognizable to generations of listeners.
Lifeson has, unsurprisingly, collaborated with various manufacturers on signature pieces of gear over the years – but never to the extent that he is at this moment in time. Though Rush ceased activity in 2015 (and, with the tragic passing of drummer Neil Peart in 2020, are unlikely to restart in the future) the guitarist, now 70, is still deeply engaged in his tone journey.
To that end, he recently unveiled a newly designed line of high-end guitar amplifiers under the brand name Lerxst (Lifeson’s longtime nickname), conceived and constructed in partnership with celebrated North Carolina-based manufacturer Mojotone. The flagship design, the Omega, is based on a custom model Mojotone built for Lifeson during the run for Rush’s final studio album, 2012’s Clockwork Angels.
The new Omega, a British-voiced head with footswitch-able clean and lead channels, a shared three-band EQ, a switchable 50/25-watt power section and a high-quality serial effects loop, homes in on some of the key aspects of Lifeson’s sound and brings them to the public in a handsome (dig the “Starman” power indicator light on the front panel, for one eye-catching feature), hand-built package.
“It’s a great amp,” Lifeson tells Guitar World, “and I just thought, now’s the time to share it.”
Lifeson is apparently in a very sharing mood these days. In addition to the Omega (also offered in a special-edition hand-wired version), the Lerxst range includes the Chi amplifier, a more compact 30-watt design available in smallbox head and 1×12 combo formats, as well as a variety of 1×12, 2×12 and 4×12 speaker cabinets.
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There’s also a Lerxst pedal, the By-Tor Signature Overdrive, which squeezes the sound and presence of the Omega into an even smaller enclosure – this one a ’board-friendly (note the top-mounted jacks) stompbox with discrete boost and drive sections that can be engaged separately or in tandem.
I was a little apprehensive that it wouldn’t come out the way I expected. But they nailed it
But that’s not all. Not long after announcing the joint venture with Mojotone, Lifeson unveiled one more collaboration: the Lerxst Limelight guitar, designed in conjunction with Canadian builder Godin.
The first entry in a proposed line of six-strings, the model draws inspiration from one of Lifeson’s most iconic and idiosyncratic instruments – the heavily modded guitar known as the Hentor Sportscaster, which Lifeson first used on Rush’s smash 1981 album Moving Pictures (it’s featured on the solo for Limelight, among other tracks), and employed significantly on the follow-ups, Signals and Grace Under Pressure.
The Hentor began life as a ’70s-era Fender Stratocaster, which Lifeson modified to meet his specific tonal and playability needs, eventually adding a Bill Lawrence L500 humbucker in the bridge position to access heavier sounds, a more comfortable aftermarket neck from a Canadian company named Shark, a Floyd Rose tremolo and a Gibson-style three-way toggle selector on the lower horn, among other features.
The new Limelight guitar pays tribute to the Hentor with an S-type swamp ash body, customized maple neck, Lerxst Limelight pickups in an HSS configuration, a three-way toggle switch, the option of either a Vega or Floyd Rose tremolo and more.
(Image credit: Richard Sibbald)
“I was a little apprehensive that it wouldn’t come out the way I expected,” Lifeson says of attempting to capture the magic of such a unique instrument. “But they nailed it.”
He laughs. “I mean, I’m biased, but it’s really great.”
Lifeson recently sat down with Guitar World to discuss his deep dive into signature gear. But he also assured us that he still enjoys making music with that gear as well.
“I’m writing and recording all the time, I’m working on a lot of different acts, I’m very, very happy being at home and working on that stuff,” he says. As for whether any of the “stuff” he’s working on might one day include Rush bassist and singer Geddy Lee? “We talk about it,” Lifeson acknowledges. “But he’s got a busy life. I’m doing things. So we’ll see how it goes over the next little while.”
(Image credit: Richard Sibbald)
Until then, there’s plenty of new guitars, guitar amps and pedals to attend to. “Oh, there’s lots of different things going on,” Lifeson says. “It’s all been in the works for a couple of years, and now it’s finally arrived. And it’s so fun to get to this point.”
What led you to begin working with Mojotone on the Omega roughly a decade ago?
There’s lots of different things going on. It’s all been in the works for a couple of years, and now it’s finally arrived. And it’s so fun to get to this point.”
“The inspiration for it was a Marshall Silver Jubilee that I used on Clockwork Angels. After that, I couldn’t find another one. I had leads on a few, but every time I approached someone they didn’t want to sell it. So I spoke to Michael McWhorter at Mojotone about actually building an amp based on that platform, but then changing the bias, warming it up a little bit and making some other adjustments to my taste.
“The Omega has been in production ever since, but as a sort of limited boutique amp. More recently, we felt it made sense to update it. So now we’ve got a great amp with different configurations and colors, and we have the Chi, which is the smaller, lower-watt version, and we have the cabinets. We started to look at a number of things – the amps, the pedals, the guitar line, the whole guitar-oriented package – to see what we could do.”
(Image credit: Richard Sibbald)
What are some of the particular features of the Omega that make it ideal for your tonal needs?
“I really wanted a strong clean section, which the Omega has. My experience with a lot of multi-channel amps is the clean sound never quite had the body that I heard in my head. But I think we got it with this amp. And then the more overdriven section is not too overdriven. It’s not crazy overdriven, which has never been my thing.
“The way I’ve approached it has always been to pull the volume back on my guitar for rhythm parts and then turn it up for solos – more the old-style boost. So I wanted a good, chunky, distorted section, but not too overdriven, and with a nice, smooth boost for soloing.”
I was quite happy when Mojotone delivered those first Omega amps, and I used them onstage for two or three Rush tours. So it fit everything that I wanted
In the period between developing the original Omega and these new models, did your taste in tone change at all?
“I don’t think so. I was quite happy when Mojotone delivered those first Omega amps, and I used them onstage for two or three Rush tours. So it fit everything that I wanted for that period of time. With the new ones we haven’t made any major changes, although there is also a hand-wired version now, which I actually haven’t heard. I should probably check one of those out if I can. [Laughs] I think they’re all gone already, but I’ll get in line.”
(Image credit: Richard Sibbald)
They might bump you up to the front.
“Maybe. I’m not so sure!”
Have you also used the Chi?
“I have. Actually, I did a gig just before Christmas, the Andy Kim Christmas special, which is a cool event for charity that, for the last few years, they’ve done at Massey Hall here in Toronto. Typically, I would get their production to supply an amp for me, just for convenience.
“But this time I took the Chi combo with me, and I loved it. It’s a lightweight amp with a nice, tight quality, and it was loud enough for the room, certainly. I like the convenience of that combo, and it does sound really great.”
You’ve also developed a pedal with Mojotone, the By-Tor Signature Overdrive.
“We talked about doing a whole line of pedals. And when we were discussing the idea, I said I thought it’d be kind of cool to have a By-Tor pedal. If you go back to that song, By-Tor and the Snow Dog [from 1975’s Fly by Night] the By-Tor pedal has all of those growly characteristics.
What Michael likes to say is that we really tried to build the Omega into a small little box, so that you get the drive and the quality of the distortion similar to the amp
“So it’s an overdrive, and it’s also a boost. What Michael likes to say is that we really tried to build the Omega into a small little box, so that you get the drive and the quality of the distortion similar to the amp. That was their target with it, and they got it.
“Over the years I’ve tried a bunch of other pedals that do sort of the same thing, but I like this one because it’s a little smoother. It’s not so aggressive and over the top. When I try out a lot of pedals, I find that they seem to be extreme in whatever it is they’re doing. And then you can dial it back, of course.
“But with the By-Tor, it’s just really nice and smooth. I’m being kind of selfish with how I approach it, because I’m thinking about myself first. [Laughs] But the tone is great. I’ve actually used it on some sessions.”
Last but certainly not least, you recently unveiled a new signature guitar, the Lerxst Limelight, which is based on your famous Hentor Sportscaster modded Strat from the early ’80s. What was the inspiration behind that guitar?
“Well, back then I had a Strat, but I’m more of a Gibson guy. And I’ve always been a humbucker guy. So I dropped a humbucker into the Strat. And then I really liked those Fender pickups for the cleaner stuff. I wanted the combination of the two. So I made a few of those guitars.
“This one was the one I used for the solo for Limelight, on Moving Pictures, so we called the new model the Limelight. It’s basically a reissue of the Hentor, with a humbucker similar to the Bill Lawrence pickup in the original, the same kind of Floyd Rose, all the same attributes that the original had.”
Essentially you were looking to create a superstrat, similar to what Eddie Van Halen was doing at the time, where you’re trying to cross a Fender with a Gibson.
“Yes. Basically it’s the same idea. And with the Floyd Rose, too. So now you’ve got a consistent vibrato system that stays in tune. And we’re going to offer two different versions – one with the [locking] Floyd Rose and then one that’s just a straight-through. It’s not a lockdown. Because not everybody goes crazy with that thing.
“I actually like to use the arm pretty subtly – more as a vibrato instead of to do big dive bombs and things like that. And sometimes it’s a little cumbersome with the locking nut. So we thought we would just make that an option available to people.
“But the guitar sounds great, and it’s really playable. The neck feels really, really good on it, too. You know, I took all the finish off the neck and made it really personal to what I like, and Godin really did it right.”
(Image credit: Richard Sibbald)
Over the years you’ve collaborated with various manufacturers on signature guitars and amplifiers. In the past, artists would generally stay with one company, but nowadays it seems like there’s less of an issue with collaborating with multiple brands. Is this something that has ever been a problem for you?
“It hasn’t been an issue. For the guitar, we approached Godin, a Canadian company, and I liked that. I like to keep stuff at home if I can. They were very enthusiastic, and we spent a lot of time going back and forth on exactly what the design is, if there’s any compromises we had to make on the design for considerations of copyright and all of that. They were really into the project and they continue to be. So at the end of the day, it all worked and everybody’s fine with it.”
For longtime Rush fans, one of the most exciting aspects of all this new gear is the possibility of getting closer to achieving the Alex Lifeson-like tones that they’ve loved all these years. In your opinion, what is that Alex Lifeson tone?
“Wow, that’s hard for me to answer. I don’t know how people hear my sound or my tone. I strongly believe that if you give a guitar to five different players – same guitar, same amp – each one of them is going to sound different, just because of the way they play. The attack, how their fingers move, all of that. A lot of it is your own personal mojo that goes into your playing.
“To try and be a little objective. I guess when people think of my tone, they think of clean arpeggios, so that needs to be addressed. And they think of a solid, crunchy sound. I’m not overly heavy, not metal-y in that sense.
“I like to have definition and clarity in whatever it is I’m doing, whether it’s a heavy, dirty sound or it’s a clean sound with body. And I want the gear I’m using to respond and speak well to that. Those are maybe the types of things people hear when they listen to my playing.”
Speaking of your playing, is there any possibility you might put all this great new gear to work alongside Geddy?
“Um… Don’t know. [Laughs] Really, there’s so much stuff in the airwaves these days about Geddy and I getting back together and doing something. And I think it’s partly because of the way things went nine years ago, when we finished touring. We were at a high point, and we were playing really well.
I mean, we toured for 40 years. I’m not interested in going back out on tour. I don’t wanna sit in a hotel room for hours and hours and hours to work for a couple of hours. Been there, done it, loved it. But that’s in the past
“The show looked great. I think a lot of our fans felt, you know, why now? But we broke up the band basically for Neil. And he had valid reasons. He was tired. He couldn’t play at the level he demanded from himself. So he felt it was time. But I think that for a lot of Rush fans there wasn’t a feeling of closure. So there’s a hope that we’d get back together.
“I will say that doing this book tour with Geddy [for Lee’s 2023 memoir, My Effin’ Life], I did a few of the stops with him, and it’s kind of reignited interest in us getting out and playing. And the shows that we did last year for Taylor Hawkins [at the 2022 Taylor Hawkins Tribute Concerts] were inspiring, too. So for a little while I thought, you know, it’d be kind of good to get back out. And then I thought… nah, not really. [Laughs]
“I mean, we toured for 40 years. I’m not interested in going back out on tour. I don’t wanna sit in a hotel room for hours and hours and hours to work for a couple of hours. Been there, done it, loved it. But that’s in the past. So whether Ged and I get back together again and write or do anything, we’ll see. Until then, there’s plenty to work on, you know?”
For all the details on what Lifeson is cooking up with Mojotone, head over to Lerxst.
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Rich is the co-author of the best-selling Nöthin’ But a Good Time: The Uncensored History of the ’80s Hard Rock Explosion. He is also a recording and performing musician, and a former editor of Guitar World magazine and executive editor of Guitar Aficionado magazine. He has authored several additional books, among them Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck, the companion to the documentary of the same name.
