“I always try to get her to play as much as she’s willing to… I really like her sensibilities”: Billie Eilish goes electric with a Fender Telecaster at tour debut, following guitar lessons from brother FINNEAS

Billie Eilish has officially gone electric as she picked up a Fender Telecaster for her Hit Me Hard and Soft tour opener in Quebec on September 29.

The singer-songwriter is often accompanied by an acoustic guitar during her performances, but Sunday’s show found her playing an American Pro II Telecaster in a distinctive Dark Night finish.

Eilish played the electric guitar during a grungy rendition of Happier Than Ever, the title track from her second studio album, released in 2021 – and there’s a loud cheer when she’s handed the Telecaster partway through the song. Fan footage shows Eilish starting with some distorted lead bends, before hammering some heavy open chords while surrounded by pyro.

The switch comes after FINNEAS revealed to Guitar World that he has been teaching Eilish their collaborations using Fender’s Acoustasonic series – of which FINNEAS received a signature version earlier this year.

“It’s much closer to an electric guitar’s action than an acoustic action,” he says. “Billie has spent less time than me playing guitar. I often teach her how to play our songs on the Acoustasonic because it’s easier for her to get the chord shapes down and practice on it.

“I always try to get her to play as much as she’s willing to on our records because, even though she feels like she’s less experienced, I really like her sensibilities.”

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FINNEAS himself was absent from the show and will not appear at several other forthcoming dates due to his own tour for second solo effort, For Cryin’ Out Loud!

Both Eilish and FINNEAS have been tight with Fender for some time. Back in 2020, Eilish secured a signature ukulele with the brand, while her brother showcased a similarly customized Thinline Telecaster back in 2020.