Music Folks
Wes Borland: Limp Bizkit’s Painted Guitar Experimenter
October 15, 2026 · by Music Folks
Wes Borland is the guitarist whose inventive playing and startling stage costumes made him the visual and musical wild card of Limp Bizkit. Away from that band he has built a long, restless sideline of experimental projects, instrumental solo albums and artwork, and he has played guitar for Marilyn Manson along the way. He is one of the few nu metal players whose name means something well beyond the genre.
Quick Facts
- Born: Wesley Louden Borland, February 7, 1975, Richmond, Virginia
- Based in: Jacksonville, Florida, during Limp Bizkit’s rise; later Detroit, Michigan
- Known for: Guitar in Limp Bizkit; Black Light Burns; Big Dumb Face
- Genre: Nu metal, alternative metal, experimental rock
- Solo albums: Crystal Machete (2016), The Astral Hand (2020), Mutiny on the Starbarge (2023)
The Guitarist in the Body Paint
Borland wanted to play drums as a boy, but his parents steered him toward a quieter instrument, and he took his first guitar lessons from a member of his church. He joined Limp Bizkit in Jacksonville in the band’s early days, and his theatrical presence quickly became one of its biggest draws. He played without a pick on the 1997 debut Three Dollar Bill, Y’all and became known for unconventional parts on six- and seven-string guitars, as well as tenor and baritone four-string instruments. On stage he wore full-body paint, masks and costumes, from a skeleton look to a “burnt match” outfit. He even supplied the second half of the title Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water.
His relationship with the band has been on and off. He left in fall 2001, citing creative differences, came back in 2004, and stepped away again after the band went on hiatus following The Unquestionable Truth (Part 1) in 2005. The original lineup reunited in 2009, and he has been there since, through Gold Cobra (2011) and Still Sucks (2021). The full Limp Bizkit story is told in our band profile.
Side Projects and Solo Work
Borland’s longest-running outlet outside the band is Big Dumb Face, formed with his brother Scott in 1998, which released Duke Lion Fights the Terror!! in 2001 and returned after 16 years with a second album in 2017. His main project of the late 2000s was Black Light Burns, which released four albums between 2007 and 2013 before he ended it in 2016. He also briefly joined Marilyn Manson’s band as guitarist in 2008, leaving in May 2009.
His solo records show a quieter side. Crystal Machete (2016) is an instrumental album with no distorted guitars or vocals, released on his own label, Edison Sound. He has also played on film soundtracks, worked on “Hybrid Worlds,” the 2013 League of Legends World Championship theme and joined Danny Elfman’s band for his Coachella set in 2022. A visual artist too, he paints and has drawn album covers for his own projects. Total Guitar once ranked him 37th on its list of the 100 greatest guitarists.
Where He Is Now
As of October 2026, Borland is still Limp Bizkit’s guitarist, part of a core lineup with Fred Durst, John Otto and DJ Lethal that was booked to headline Louder Than Life in September 2026, a year after the death of founding bassist Sam Rivers in October 2025. Decades after the body paint first turned heads, he remains the band’s most adventurous musician.