Following Eddie Van Halen’s death at age 65 in October 2020, his band’s music, not surprisingly, witnessed a surge in popularity, spiking a collective 463 percent on U.S. streaming platforms alone.
But it’s not just the Van Halen catalog that has surged. According to data collected by Reverb.com, searches for Eddie-related electric guitars and other gear is up by as much as 80 percent in the wake of his passing.
“Reverb saw four times more searches for terms like 'EVH' compared to the same period the previous year,” Cyril Nigg, Reverb’s Director of Analytics, told Guitar.com. “Two guitar brands that saw significant search spikes were Kramer and EVH. Searches for Kramer, which made the first Frankenstrat replicas that Eddie endorsed, were up 80 per cent compared to the same time the previous year.”
Additionally, Ed-identified effects like the MXR Phase 90 and MXR EVH Flanger were two of the most popular pedals at the end of 2020, with searches for phase pedals up 75 per cent compared to the same period in 2019.
And while Nigg said that, rather expectedly, “We’re seeing continued interest for Van Halen-related gear, and ‘EVH’ remains one of our top search terms,” he also concluded, that “based on what we saw on Reverb last year, it’s clear that the guitar is alive and well.
“Orders and searches for guitars have been up significantly, as well as searches for music gear that you pair with your guitar – amps, guitar straps, effects pedals, and more," he continued. "It’s inspiring to see that Eddie’s influence and legacy will live on and continue to inspire future generations of players.”
