“This Guy Is Going To Be Perfect For Nevermore” Jeff Loomis & Jack Cattoi on Their New Guitar Partnership - Bloodstock 2026

Nevermore guitarists Jeff Loomis and Jack Cattoi join Guitar Interactive’s Hayley Leggs backstage at Bloodstock Festival 2026 to talk about the return of Nevermore, their crushing live guitar tones, Jackson guitars and the incredible story of how they became bandmates. Jack reveals that Jeff was his biggest guitar influence before the pair met while Jack was working at Seymour Duncan. Jeff recalls handing Jack his guitar without even knowing he was a player — only to turn around, hear him play and immediately realise he had found someone special. Soon afterwards, Jack became the first new addition to what Jeff calls “Nevermore 2.0.” The pair also break down their surprisingly simple Quad Cortex rigs, the Neural DSP Gojira amp sound they use live, their favourite Jackson guitars and why they still believe that “tone is in the fingers.” Finally, Jeff and Jack discuss the explosion of phenomenal young guitarists, how YouTube has transformed the way players learn, and the very different experience of figuring out Eddie Van Halen solos by slowing down vinyl records.

Hello, I’m Hayley Leggs, here at Bloodstock Festival 2026 for Guitar Interactive. I’m here with Jeff and Jack from Nevermore. Hi, guys.

Jeff Loomis: Hello.

Jack Cattoi: Hello.

You played a wonderful set today. We very much enjoyed it. You are clearly still at the top of your game and still enjoying Jackson guitars. What is it about Jackson that you love?

Jack Cattoi: The shapes. They have some of the best shapes, as well as the best headstock in the game. I also love their rich history in guitar, from Randy Rhoads right through to today. I just love the company.

Jeff Loomis: I love them too. In the Custom Shop, they can do anything, which is cool. Nothing gets in their way. If you want something in particular, they will tailor it to you and say, “Yes, we can do that.” I’m very happy with my signature models, which I’ve had for a couple of years. The playability, the action, and the sound are razor-sharp. That is what we need for Nevermore, and those instruments deliver in every single way.

Can you talk us through the live rig you were using today?

Jeff Loomis: Jack and I are using pretty much the same thing. We are using the Quad Cortex by Neural DSP and the Shure wireless system to the right of it. It is a very simple setup. Personally, I use a rhythm channel, a solo channel, and a clean channel. That is really it. There are a few effects in the clean sounds, such as chorus, reverb, and delay, but that is about it. It is very simple. Jack, do you want to explain yours?

Jack Cattoi: Mine is pretty much the same. We EQ our tones individually to suit ourselves a little more, but we are using the same thing, and it sounds incredible.

Jeff is something of a mentor to you. Is he a major influence?

Jack Cattoi: Yes. Jeff is my biggest influence as a guitarist.

How convenient.

Jeff Loomis: Do you want to hear the story of how I met Jack? It is very interesting.

I do.

Jeff Loomis: Jack worked at Seymour Duncan Pickups in Santa Barbara, California. I use Seymour Duncan as well, so I was down there filming content for a new pickup I have called the Noumenon Passive Pickup. Jack happened to be there that day as an assistant, helping with the filming.

I needed to get something out of my duffle bag, so I handed Jack my guitar, not knowing he was a guitarist. He sat down and started playing. I took off my glasses, looked back, and just freaked out. He was amazing.

It was like a movie moment.

Jeff Loomis: Yeah, it was a movie moment, exactly. I wondered what this guy was going to do with his future. I sat down with him and asked, “What’s going on, man? What have you got planned for the next few years?”. A light bulb went off in my head: “This guy is going to be perfect for Nevermore.” I asked him that day, or perhaps the next day, whether he would be interested in being in the band.

No way.

Jeff Loomis: He was the first addition to the new Nevermore 2.0, even before Berzan and Semir, the other members.

What a dream come true. Congratulations to you.

Jeff Loomis: Thank you. He is only 23. He is experiencing all this amazing stuff, and I think it is awesome.

Fantastic. We have some questions from our readers. Is there an amp profiler or modeler that you particularly like to use, and why?

Jack Cattoi: I use the Gojira amp simulation in the Quad Cortex rather than a regular EVH 5150. There is something different in the EQ and the sound. It is a little more modern, and I think it cuts through the mix better.

Nice.

Jeff Loomis: We are basically using the same thing. Our tones are really quite similar, so both sides of the PA are filled with this pummelling distortion, chunkiness, and tightness. The Gojira model works very well for us, so that is what we are using. We are also thinking about profiling a Bogner Mk II that I have at home when we have some spare time, because that sounds really killer as well. We just want to experiment and see what we can do to improve the tones. But, for now, it is very simple, and that is how we like to keep it.

Are you a believer in the old idiom that the tone is in the fingers?

Jeff Loomis: Oh, yes. You can see players like that everywhere. I saw a video of somebody playing through Eddie Van Halen’s rig, for example, and it just did not sound the same. It is all in the fingers: the tone, the way you bend the strings, the way you attack the strings, even the kind of pick you use. It makes your signature sound. I could not play through Randy Rhoads’s rig, Eddie Van Halen’s rig, or Brian May’s rig and sound like them. Every player has a certain touch and an element of their own, and it all comes from the hands. I truly believe that.

Which guitar is your number one, and what do you love about it?

Jack Cattoi: My number one is my Ferrari Red Jackson WR7. I love it because it is my favourite colour and my favourite shape. It has almost every specification I would have ordered from the Custom Shop, except that it is a production model. I love the Warrior shape because it provides easy access to the 24th fret. It also sits farther to the left than a Strat would, which I like because my arm is not hitting the side of my body when I am soloing. I always find that Strats sit a little too far that way, so this makes it easier. That guitar is just awesome.

Jeff Loomis: Nice. My go-to guitar for Nevermore is my Jackson SL7. It looks amazing. It is a very metal-looking guitar, with white binding all around it. The finish is called sandblasted ash, so it looks like scorched earth, with the white binding bringing it all together around the neck and headstock. It is also really cool because of the Jackson logo. It is not a decal.

Jack Cattoi: It is a raised emblem.

Jeff Loomis: Exactly. It is raised above the headstock, almost like a fridge magnet, and it looks really killer. Peter Wichers, who works in research and development at Jackson Guitars, helped with it. We put our heads together and designed the guitar. It has passive Seymour Duncan Noumenon pickups, a Floyd Rose, and titanium blocks, which I use to make the hardware last longer because I sweat a lot when I play.

You are human, sorry.

Jeff Loomis: Exactly. It has killer action and killer playability. I have used Strat shapes my whole life, so it fits right into my body. That is what I love about it.

It works.

Jeff Loomis: It works.

Last question: who is exciting you in the guitar world right now?

Jeff Loomis: There are so many. I really love Nick Johnston, the guitarist who is playing in Mastodon right now. He was also a solo artist for a very long time. He has a very unique style, and the way he plays feels like he is speaking lovely sentences through the guitar. He is an absolute killer player. I really love him. Nick Johnston—check him out.

Jack Cattoi: Jeff. Jeff Loomis.

Jeff Loomis!

Jack Cattoi: It is hard to pin it down for me because I scroll on Instagram and see so many incredible guitar players.

Jeff Loomis: They are everywhere.

It is like a whole thing.

Jack Cattoi: They are everywhere. It is booming. It is crazy seeing all these incredible guitar players.

Jeff Loomis: There is a young guitarist whose name sounds like “Renga Ringos”—I may be saying it wrong—but Jack and I were checking him out today. He has so much feel and emotion, which is crazy for someone so young, because that usually develops at a much later stage. It seems like he has all those capabilities already. Maybe it is because YouTube has so many videos now that you can start studying things at a young age and learn so much more. Back in the 1980s, I was spinning vinyl very slowly so that I could hear particular notes, like those in Eddie Van Halen’s “Eruption.”

Playing it backwards to see whether the satanic message came through.

Jeff Loomis: I was doing that too. There are so many incredible kids out there now.

Thank you so much, guys. It has been a real pleasure. Enjoy the rest of your Bloodstock.

Jeff Loomis: Thank you very much.

Jack Cattoi: Thank you.