What Kind of Guitar You Should Buy if You Are an Indie Artist
If you're thinking of purchasing a guitar, I help you make the best choice for your budget.

As with all instruments, artists must use a guitar that is comfortable for them. For example, when Johnny Marr played with The Smiths, he used his famous Fender Jaguar which will be discussed later. And even at the beginning of his career, Johnny played a Fender Telecaster to record "The Queen is Dead (1986)".

If you are an indie artist, choosing the right guitar can be a confusing process in some cases, nowadays there are so many models with different functions that it can be a little overwhelming to decide on a specific one. If you are an indie guitarist and artist, stay tuned and read this article because today I will help you choose the perfect guitar for your needs.

The Best Guitars To Buy For Musicians

First of all, do you have any notion of the models that exist? Does one, in particular, catch your attention?

If the answer is no, don't worry. I'll start talking about the most basic model:

Fender Stratocaster

With this guitar, you can play practically anything you want, from indie rock, jazz, progressive rock, or soul. It's a very versatile guitar that many artists love because of how comfortable it is. For example, John Frusciante has used a Stratocaster in almost all of his musical career with Red Hot Chili Peppers!

The Stratocaster is probably the most commercial and famous model of the brand. It was created by Leo Fender in 1954.

Source: Fender Custom Shop

Many brands usually replicate this model because it is a product with a lot of demand in the musical instruments market, but I recommend you to buy a Fender (or maybe a Squier if you have a small budget) since replicas of this model are not usually of good quality. But if you buy a Fender, I assure you that you will make the best purchase of your life!

Danelectro 59 DC

The Danelectro brand has been very famous throughout history,  especially for this model, which was among the best guitars in the 60s and 70s. Aesthetically it is a beautiful guitar, but perhaps in terms of quality is not the top of the range, however, it is still very good. You can find this model at affordable prices.

Source: Equipboard

But if you just want to play indie rock, this guitar is perfect for you!

Fender Telecaster

The Telecaster and Stratocaster are probably the most influential guitars in music history. The Telecaster model was also designed by Leo Fender in 1950, so it's a bit older than the Stratocaster. This guitar made a before and after in the music industry because by that time, no brand had managed to create a guitar that was good enough to bring it to the market.

Source: Fender Guitars

Although the Telecaster is a little brighter than the Stratocaster, it is still versatile. If you're an artist looking to play various genres of music such as indie pop, noise pop, math rock, or lo-fi... this guitar is all you need!

Japanese Teisco 1960s

Teisco guitars are absolutely beautiful. I had the opportunity to play some of them, and believe me…these guitars despite their cheap price have a wonderful vintage sound.

Source: Drowning in Guitars

As you can see, aesthetically they are guitars that attract a lot of attention, their models vary and they are not heavy at all! The only detail is that they are not easy to find… a lot of people don't know them.

If you are interested, you can look for videos of Mac Demarco using a similar model in one of his concerts!

Harmony Juno

If you're looking for a light, small and beautiful guitar... the Harmony Juno is definitely what you're looking for. This small-body guitar has been very famous in the last months as Clairo has been using it in several of her concerts.

Source: Harmony Guitars

According to Harmony's official website, "this guitar features hand-wound P90s that offer a balance of sophisticated warmth and punchy tone across all frets". You can also use this guitar for practice since it's really simple!

Offset Guitars

Before I go any further, I'll briefly explain what offset guitars are. The term offset refers to the shape of the body. They are not symmetrical, because their waists have different measurements.

Now, since a few years ago, offset guitars have been the favorite models of indie artists. And these are the most popular ones:

Fender Jazzmaster

Source: Fender Guitars

Fender Jaguar

Source: Fender Guitars

Fender Mustang

Source: Fender Guitars

All of these models offer sounds that perhaps the other guitars mentioned above cannot have. As you can see, they have single coils and humbuckers of very good quality. If you want to add some dirt or fuzz to your music, these guitars are perfect for you. But I recommend that you use them only if you have some experience playing guitar. Since many people warn that they are a little difficult to play at first.

Acoustic Guitars

To finish off, these are two acoustic guitars that you might be interested in if you are an indie artist more focused on songwriting with just an acoustic guitar in the background. Martin and Taylor are probably the best acoustic guitar brands (of course there are more).

Martin 000-15M

Source: Acoustic Guitar Forum

Taylor GS Mini

Source: Coda Music

With these guitars, you can play all the songs you want, as they are extremely comfortable and not heavy at all!

Now that you know the different models of guitars to make indie music, you have the opportunity to choose the one you like the most! Remember to choose a guitar that makes you feel inspired, and after that, you’ll create a deep connection with the instrument.

Note: All these models can be found at musical instrument stores such as Reverb, Sweetwater, or Guitar Center. Depending on the day you may find offers, sales, or discounts... so take advantage and start looking!

If you liked this article, feel free to share it with your friends or other guitar players who might be interested! The world of guitars is getting bigger and bigger, so every day there are new things to learn.