RUSH guitarist Alex Lifeson has teamed with Mojotone for the Lerxst By-Tor Drive signature guitar pedal.
Lifeson originally began working with Mojotone in 2012 during the album cycle for RUSH’s Clockwork Angels, developing a custom tube amp head that featured the sonic characteristics that have come to define Lifeson’s tone and style throughout his lengthy career. The resulting amp, the Lerxst OMEGA, was only limited to 100 and is long-since sold out.
Thankfully, Lifeson and Mojotone are working on a full production run of the Lerxst OMEGA heads, along with matching cabinets and other head/combo amp options/gear. That includes the Lerxst By-Tor Drive, which harnesses the 50-watt Lerxst OMEGA amp into compact pedal form.
Described as a “pedalboard-friendly version of the OMEGA,” the box replicates the intensity and growl of the tube amp and is capable of jumping from light/crunchy drive to tube-like overdrive via the various knobs and “drive” and “boost” switches. Its drive section features typical controls: drive (for setting the amount of desired distortion), tone (for adjusting top-end sparkle and treble), and level (for adjusting output).
There’s been plenty of news surrounding RUSH as of late, mostly thanks to singer-bassist Geddy Lee’s book tour and Paramount+ docu-series. The singer-bassist has been openly discussing the possibility of a RUSH reunion. Touring aside, the two remaining RUSH members still appear eager to collaborate on new music together.
The Alex Lifeson Lerxst By-Tor Drive guitar pedal is available via Reverb for $295. Below you can see a promo video featuring Lifeson and a close-up image of the pedal and its controls.