NGD: St. Vincent Stealth!!

First off, thanks to Pete at Dubaldo’s Music for this beauty! It arrived on Monday, but I’ve been so busy to do a write up. Pete is so very very cool to do business with, even from across the sea. Second, sorry for the crappy photos. They don’t do this guitar justice!

I haven’t had a NGD in a while now, but it’s mostly because I’ve been happy with the axes I already have. I’ve been thinking about the St. Vincent ever since it debuted but never had a chance to play one in person until recently. I haven’t seen a lot of knuckleheads with a St. Vincent either… not sure if I’m the first with a stealth here or not?

The guitar is an optical illusion of sorts. It feels a little odd when you first play it… almost as if the neck is in a different place or the guitar is a different scale than standard 25 1/2″. The body sort of feels like it wraps around you. I believe the difference is in where the tummy cut is made compared to a two horned “S” style guitar. Because the St. Vincent has no horns, and the body is longer, the tummy cut is placed further back than on say, an Albert Lee or Cutlass.

I’ve never had a guitar with mini humbuckers so I don’t have anything to compare it to. I don’t even know what they are supposed to sound like, but I like what I hear so far. I’m still getting used to the interesting setup on the 5 position switch. No batteries on this guitar and no hum either.

A matte black guitar is also a first for me. This was actually one of my biggest concerns before getting the guitar. I really didn’t know if I would like the matte finish, especially on the neck, But that concern was fleeting once I picked it up. While I love EBMM gunstock oil finishes, the matte finish feels great and looks great too. The ebony fretboard is the icing on the cake for me. Jury is still out on the matte black bridge and trem arm. I’m just hoping it doesn’t wear through. At least the saddles are a different semi-gloss finish than the rest of the bridge.

My only niggle with the guitar so far is upper fret access. Almost anyone playing this will need to change their technique to play in the upper range. It’s kinda like playing a Les Paul but not exactly. It doesn’t bother me that much because I suck at playing guitar LOL

Not everyone likes the way this guitar looks, but that shouldn’t stop you from checking it out! It’s a very different guitar and if you’ve thought that it’s not your thing, maybe give it a chance… it may grow on you. I can’t wait to try the 2019 HH version when it arrives.

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