Fulgencio plays and sings in the hard rock, power trio Strange Day (based in NYC). And a funny thing happened at the music store. He didn't buy a Les Paul. He says that even though the band plays a lot of hard music -- Tool-esque stuff -- he gravitated toward the Gretsch 6128 Duo Jet -- a solid body Gretsch he picked up in 2004.

He even laughs when I say that when I think of Gretsch, I immediately envision someone with a pompadour.

"I was shopping around and I saw the Gretsch. It was like seeing a pretty girl," he says. "Then I plugged it in, and it had a great, fat tone. It sounded great, and it is my 'go-to' guitar when I am playing rhythms."

And while he does move away from the Gretsch when he is playing shreddy stuff that gets into all the whammy bar rock-god arena, he does note that the Duo Jet is used on every single track on the band's record Face the Change.

"It has a great clear tone for recording. I have plugged it in directly," he says. "But it works perfect for heavy stuff too."

As mentioned he doesn't use it when he is channeling his inner Herman Li, but he does use it on other sorts of leads -- when he is doing more blues oriented playing, for instance.

"For the real metal solos, I switch, but for blues-influenced or country influence it is perfect." he says.

Part of the reason you can get such clarity with these guitars (which cost in the low $2,000 range) is the pick up system they use.

"They use Filtertron High Sensitivity pickups -- they are really good for noise reduction, for when I am playing with a pedal." he says.

But it isn't all about crystal clear tones. There is a dichotomy here.

"It is just so full -- that's where you cannot go wrong with the Gretsch," he says. "I grew up in Wisconsin, listening to country and southern rock. Most of those Gretschs WERE hollow."

I asked if this was a guitar to appeal more to the Gibson or the Fender sort of player, and he didn't hesitate in his answer. It is a Les Paul sort of instrument but it is not a knock-off. It has its own sound; its own niche.

"It's got that Les Paul shape. But everyone's got a Les Paul," he says. "I was attracted to doing something different. It definitely has a Gibson feel; it has a great intonation. It stays in tune, and I bang the hell out of it. I bet Slash would like this guitar."

Although he tend to keep it simple, Fulgencio says the Duo Jet sounds good through a number of pedals he uses (Ubermetal pedal, Ibanez 89 Analog Delay, Hendrix Wah).

He has used a number of different amps with the Duo Jet -- Mesas, Orange, Marshall stacks.

"It sounds great with the Mesa -- that is what I did the album with." says Fulgencio.

Live, however, he turns to his Traynor.

A Gretsch? Through a Traynor? In a band many would call progressive metal?

"It is a very unconventional metal sound" he laughs.

You can see Strange Day videos on Youtube..