Some guitars choose you years before you actually have them—this is the story of one that did. Jimmy Leslie catches up with Kenneth Pattengale, one half of the folk duo The Milk Carton Kids, who joins from his North Hollywood studio, surrounded by decades of vintage Martin collecting. They trace the story of his main guitar—a 1954 Martin 0-15 he first laid eyes on in a museum case, spent two and a half years hunting down, and eventually built his entire signature Martin model around. Kenneth walks through the philosophy behind his playing—how a duo forces you to "collide" two guitars into one sound, why he's drawn to instruments that are "real" rather than "pretty," and the surprising, almost accidental story behind how Martin turned a pile of rejected guitar wood into his affordable signature model. Along the way, he shares memories of Patti Smith, Emmylou Harris, and Stephen Stills, and reflects on what 2,500 shows with The Milk Carton Kids has taught him about connection over perfection. If this made you think differently about what "perfect" even means, pass it along to someone who needs the reminder. Follow Milk Carton Kids:
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