Latest articles by Michael Astley-Brown
February 2025 Guitar World Editors’ Picks
A round-up of the best new guitar releases from the month of Feb, with new cuts from Sam Fender, Tash Sultana, Los Pirañas, and... Buddy Guy and Switchfoot?
After his spiritual awakening, Tim Henson is ready for anything – heavy Polyphia, trippy solo records and A-list film collabs
One of today’s premier guitar talents opens up on the future of Polyphia and their upcoming signature models, his debut solo record and how Machine Gun Kelly made guitar cool again…
Rhythm guitarists are harder to identify on recordings than lead players. But there’s one rhythm king that Cory Wong can pick out without fail
The Minneapolis maestro is a self-confessed rhythm guitar junkie, but one player bends his ear more than any other
“One of the best legitimately new guitars Fender has produced in decades”: Fender American Ultra II Meteora review
The Meteora is that rarest of things: a new body shape from one of the oldest electric guitar manufacturers. As this “sports car version” of the Fender Jazzmaster joins the Big F’s most high-performance range, is it a match made in offset heaven?
We asked Tim Henson and Tosin Abasi who is blowing their minds right now. They both named the same guitarist
This progressive virtuoso has already been labeled shred’s next hope – now he’s been tipped for greatness… and a Polyphia guest spot
Phil X confirms new Bon Jovi material will feature one seriously ripping solo – and a tour is also in the works
Guitar World caught up with Phil X to discuss rumors of a new Bon Jovi record, and the guitar ace dished out some spoilers on one of his standout contributions
Why Fender is building its $599 Standard Series in Indonesia – and how its ideological shift delivers better value for players
Fender’s EVP of Product Justin Norvell explains what convinced Fender to change its mindset on where its guitars are built – and what makes the new Standards different from the Player Series (apart from where they’re built)
Why Yvette Young was afraid of pedals – then ended up with a signature one
Young also talks about what inspired her signature Qi Etherealizer multi-effects pedal, and why it's the ultimate “ambient machine”
Polyphia’s next album is going to be brutal – and some big-name metal artists are already slated for guest appearances
Tim Henson let us in on what’s next for the boundary-smashing instrumental band – and it’s all in the name of blowing festival crowds away (and maybe, just maybe, selling more guitars)
January 2025 Guitar World Editors’ Picks
2025 has kicked off with an explosion of new guitar releases, led by Joe Bonamassa and Sammy Hagar, G3, Alex Lifeson, Billy Gibbons, Joanne Shaw Taylor and so very many more
These are the gear trends that will shape your guitar buying in 2025
NAMM 2025 was one for the history books, with an avalanche of surprise announcements as industry titans broke their own rules, the neck humbucker took a backseat and guitar stars started seeing other companies – here’s what we learned
NAMM 2025 live! The biggest guitar news as it happened
All the red-hot gear news and artist goings-ons from the show floor at the world’s biggest guitar gear trade show
Best chorus pedals 2025: top choices for your 'board
From analog to digital, and shimmery to subtle, let us show you the top chorus pedals you can buy today
Jack White announces a Custom Shop version of his wild, ever-evolving Triplecaster – and it colors way outside the Fender lines
The tricked-out guitar was available to play at NAMM 2025, and marks the latest refinement of White’s bonkers Telecaster
John Mayer pays tribute to Paul Reed Smith, and explains why anyone who says PRS guitars are “too nice” have got it wrong
10 years since his first phone call to the firm, the guitar hero hailed the iconic guitar builder as “the hidden member of everyone’s band all the time”
NAMM 2025: rumors, predictions and breaking news from the world’s biggest gear show
With the likes of Fender, Gibson and Marshall returning to Anaheim at long last, this year’s event is set to be the biggest in five years – with secrets and surprises to match
Jackson has revived its offset Surfcaster for a new generation of heavy players – and it’s surprisingly affordable
The biggest Jackson news from NAMM 2025 is the return of the cult offsets recently wielded by Misha Mansoor and Mike Stringer – and it’s about time
Walrus Audio just created an entirely new type of pedal that’s aimed at improving your playing, not your tone
The Canvas Rehearsal stalks new ground as a metronome, headphone amp and Bluetooth streamer in one
“One of the best compact wireless systems you can buy”: Xvive A58 Guitar Wireless System review
The successor to Xvive’s best-selling U2 wireless system offers a wealth of upgrades and impressive performance
The iconic charity rock song that missed out on its star guitarist due to illness – and why it could have sounded very different
Do They Know It’s Christmas? could have ended up with more guitars had fate not intervened
The best guitar albums of 2024
The guitar albums that had the biggest impact in the guitar world and beyond, as chosen by GW editors and pro players
“It’s rare to find Gilmour and Vai in one package”: December 2024 Guitar World Editors’ Picks
This must surely be the busiest December for guitar releases since records began, as the likes of Bumblefoot, Reba Meyers, Julien Baker, TORRES and Phil X save their best for the end of the year
The best guitar songs of 2024 – as chosen by Guitar World editors and pro players
With the help of pals including Eric Gales and Vernon Reid, we run down the songs that lit up the guitar-o-sphere this year, including a remarkable hardcore breakthrough, a virtuoso collab for the ages and the prodigy that everyone’s talking about
