A testament to both reeves Gabrels’ and Reverend’s ongoing quest for refinement is the fact the team has partnered up for three signature guitars—the Reeves Gabrels Signature, the...
A testament to both reeves Gabrels’ and Reverend’s ongoing quest for refinement is the fact the team has partnered up for three signature guitars—the Reeves Gabrels Signature, the Spacehawk, and, now, the Dirtbike. In fact, only Pete Anderson—who has outdone all comers with six Reverend signature models—is currently honored with more machines than Gabrels. Okay, it’s not a competition, but there must be something in the Gabrels mojo that continues to drive viable instruments.
Perhaps a little background is in order, here. Michael Ross reviewed the Signature in the February 2011 issue, and he liked its resonant tone, excellent playability, and versatility within rock styles. I took on the Spacehawk in December 2014, and I gave it an Editors’ Pick Award for its killer Bigsby (with specially selected springs), tonal power, craftsmanship, and comfy playability.
The Dirtbike is Gabrels’ first single-pickup signature model—which corresponds with his desire for “freedom in the form of speed and power stripped down to its essentials”—and it also has a cool backstory of being inspired by his 1966 Schwinn Stingray and ’71 Honda dirt bike. I should note that when Reverend debuted the Dirtbike at Summer NAMM 2017, Gabrels somewhat exasperated the convention-center staff by riding a bona fide blue Stingray through the halls. That’s what you call “hybrid marketing.”
As a tonal engine, the Dirtbike doesn’t give up much to its dual-pickup stablemates, and I didn’t miss having a neck pickup at all. The Joe Naylor-designed Railhammer Gabrels signature pickup is aggressively articulate with a pleasing midrange attack that’s not shrill or too thin. The Master Tone is voiced to produce warm vocal-esque timbres when you tamp it down—though it’s certainly not as sensual as the low-end frequencies you’d get from a dedicated neck pickup—and the fabulously magical Bass Contour can dial in some