“Sacrilege”: Look Mum No Computer put a MIDI keyboard in a Gibson Les Paul

How do you improve on the design of Gibson’s classic Les Paul? If you’re super-modder Look Mum No Computer, the answer is that you stick a MIDI keyboard inside it.

This unique guitar was created about 10 years ago, when LMNC was in a band that required him to play both guitar and keyboard. Rather than take two instruments to gigs, he figured, why not simply do everything with one?

This was one of LMNC’s first electronic projects and, while Les Paul purists might wince at his unconventional modification, he reasoned that, although it’s “sacrilege”, if you’re going to make a hybrid instrument for performing with, why not base it on a decent guitar?

The instrument looks pretty messy and beaten up these days - it was used extensively at gigs to the point that the neck actually snapped at one point - but it’s still usable.

Find out more and check out the guitar in action in the video above. We can’t say for definite that Gibson won’t be inviting LMNC to join its Authorised Partnership Program, but we’re guessing maybe not...

Ben Rogerson

I’m the Deputy Editor of MusicRadar, having worked on the site since its launch in 2007. I previously spent eight years working on our sister magazine, Computer Music. I’ve been playing the piano, gigging in bands and failing to finish tracks at home for more than 30 years, 24 of which I’ve also spent writing about music and the ever-changing technology used to make it. 

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