Joel Sefton Kosche is probably best known for his time spent as lead guitarist for the platinum-selling rock band Collective Soul (2001-2013) but maybe not so well known is that in addition to his passion for making music, Joel has another passion… and that is for building guitars. When not on tour or in the studio, Joel, a self-professed “gearhead” and “tinkerer,” builds high-end, custom instruments completely by hand in his small shop about thirty minutes south of Atlanta, GA.

“I started learning to play guitar at age thirteen and almost immediately I began modifying, repairing and building my own instruments and gear. The quest for better tone and a better performing guitar became just as important to me as learning to become a better player. My musical journey broadened, expanded and became intertwined with my desire to find where the creative and the technical sides meet. Like two of my favorite players, Eddie Van Halen and Brian May, I too was looking for an instrument that was unique and with a different voice – something that you simply can’t buy in a music store. Musical expression starts as an emotion from deep within you and your heart. At the speed of light, in some mystical part of your brain, that emotion changes form into an electrical signal that’s passed through nerve cells eventually connecting to the muscles in your fingers and then ultimately to be translated by the guitar and the amplifier to the listener. As long as I’ve played guitar I was always looking for a way to narrow the gap between the tone I was hearing in my head and the tone that was being produced by my instrument. Building my own Sefton brand guitars and amplifiers have brought me as close as I’ve ever been.”

”For me, building guitars is truly a labor of love and something I take great pride in. The name “Sefton” is a family name that has been passed down from my mother’s side. It is my middle name and it is my son’s first name. When my son was born, I was inspired to create this line of guitars and so now after many generations, the name “Sefton” is represented in the form of a musical instrument which makes me very happy. My beautiful daughter Elise came to join our family not too long after my boy and so it’s only fitting that I would name my second design after her. Just as my children continue to inspire me, I believe these instruments will continue to inspire you and will serve as the ultimate vessel for your musical expression.”
-Joel Sefton Kosche