“In the studio, you just grab whatever sounds good . . . like this reverb, it’s so simple, but so, so great,” says Cold War Kids guitarist Nathan Willet, pointing to his Ghost Echo.

We caught up with Willet before Cold War Kids’ set at EXPRESS LIVE! in Columbus, Ohio to learn how he dials in the tight, dry Telecaster sound that blends so well with the group’s piano-driven, arena-ready rock ‘n soul. A modest pedalboard is home to a Ghost Echo reverb, which Willet uses to lend his single-coil sound some weight, without muddying the signal or adding unnecessary gain to his already chewy clean tone.

The rest of his setup leans heavily on delay and/or reverb: two MXR Carbon Copy delays are set to different lengths, and a Boss RV-5 comes into play in the song “First.” When he needs fuzz, Willet stomps on the Walrus Audio Jupiter. Rounding out his rig are a Boss TR-2 Tremolo, AC-2 Acoustic Simulator, and an MXR Micro Amp.

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