Forget vintage Strats, Les Pauls or SGs – Squier’s Hello Kitty Stratocaster is one of 2023’s most sought after collector’s items. Okay, maybe it’s not quite at that level, but the affordable beginner electric guitar – which is one of the internet’s most recognizable meme instruments – has seen its prices skyrocket in recent years in the face of soaring demand.
As reported last November, the price of Hello Kitty Strats has more than doubled since 2019, rising from an average of $275 to $700 last year. According to Reverb’s Price Guide, that trend has continued this year: one mint condition Hello Kitty six-string sold for $1,300.
It’s an initially baffling phenomenon, one that can be loosely traced back to YouTuber TheDooo – a guitarist who plays the Strat to strangers on chat site Omegle – and that has given birth to new online movements.
Last year, an Instagram account dedicated to playing Eric Johnson’s Cliffs of Dover in just about every style under the sun was established, with the owner wielding that sought-after six-string.
Despite the guitar’s internet popularity, it’s become a meme that, according to guitar customizer Zakk Farkas, has quite simply gone too far – and one that must be stopped.
Enter the Hell Kitty, the Squier Hello Kitty Strat’s evil twin, which Farkas created to serve one purpose, and one purpose only: “to destroy a meme that I believe has gone too far”.
With a Fender Bullet Stratocaster core and a litter of impressive appointments, the Hell Kitty is the most metal version of the meme guitar to ever exist, flashing a grisly paint job that has been seemingly ripped from a nightmarish parallel universe.
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The execution of Farkas’s build is second to none, but what first set him down this path of Hello Kitty destruction, and what was it that inspired him to create arguably one of 2023’s gnarliest home builds? A Reddit post, of course.
“The post was about how much money the original Hello Kitty guitars were going for nowadays and I couldn't believe what I was reading,” Farkas tells Guitar World. “First off, these guitars are novelty items at best.
“I suppose they'd be okay for a beginner but with an average cost of a used one being $850 today, I thought that was absolutely ridiculous,” he goes on. “I think it started off as a joke and just became a piece of pop culture.”
A beat-up Bullet Strat purchased for $50 set Farkas on his way, with the final creation coming equipped with locking D’Addario tuners, a sole EMG 81 active humbucker, black hardtail bridge, a custom Hell Kitty pickguard, and a lone volume control that has been fashioned into the shape of a cross.
As it turns out, the volume knob and pickguard were the hardest parts of the build: “I fabricated these from scratch,” Farkas reflects, “and they definitely took the most amount of time.”
Now, there’s no denying that the Hell Kitty pickguard reinforces the satanic six-string vibe, but guitar fans will also notice something else about the guitar’s artwork – namely, it carries a distinct Eddie Van Halen stripe-esque aesthetic.
“The obvious tip of the hat to EVH with the paint job was something I wasn't planning on doing in the beginning but I had an itch I just had to scratch.”
The Hell Kitty wasn't Farkas’s first foray into the world of guitar DIY. In fact, the Hell Kitty is his third customized guitar, following a B.C. Rich Warlock modified to resemble the Stranger Things model – gifted for free to a stranger online – and a Peavey T-25 that was given a Transformers-themed makeover.
He's also crafted a model named Angel of Death – a Hellboy-inspired build fashioned from a torched Fender Strat that was painstakingly carved by hand.
“I don't consider myself a guitar builder but more of a customizer,” Farkas says of his hobby. “Building a guitar from scratch terrifies me because I would spend way too much time on details that probably don't really matter. That's why I put all of my energy into taking something that's already finished and completely transforming it.”
Now all that remains is for the Hell Kitty and Hello Kitty Strats to engage in an epic guitar duel to determine which is the superior feline-themed instrument once and for all.
Farkas plans to sell the Hell Kitty on Reverb in the future, so head that way for future updates. Check out his Instagram page and YouTube account to keep up to date with his upcoming builds.
