Airbourne frontman Joel O’Keeffe has a not-so-secret penchant for classic gear. SGs, vintage Ibanez Tube Screamers, and, of course, his wall of trusty Marshall stacks are just a few of the gear choices inspired by the golden era of rock.
However, as O’Keeffe himself admits in a new interview with Guitar World, the Gibson Explorer trumps them all.
“It’s just the most extreme rock and roll guitar there is, and when you strap one on, it’s like putting on like a Superman cape or something,” he says. “It’s just… a switch goes off.”
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You’ll never find O’Keeffe wielding an Explorer at home, though. “I’m more SGs and Les Pauls and sort of 335-y kind of stuff,” he explains. “Couch guitars.”
As for the stage, that’s a different story altogether. “At the end of the set, I’ll always throw the guitar up like that, and I’ll give it a flip,” he says, demonstrating his onstage stunt of swinging his guitar of choice above his head.
But if you’re thinking of doing the same thing with your Explorer, well, think again. O’Keeffe is clear that, like any other pointy guitar, T&Cs apply.
“With an Explorer, I’ve gone and knocked myself out almost, and [you] just hit your head with the thing,” he cautions. “You’ve got to be careful with the Explorer. Should come with a warning label that says, ‘Might cause physical harm,’ but they sound so great!”
O’Keeffe cannot help but wax lyrical about the Explorer’s unique tone, describing it as a “kind of mix of Les Paul and SG sort of vibe.”
Or, as he sums it up, “They’re a pointy guitar, but it’s not like an Ibanez-y, ’80s sort of thing.”
