Latest articles by Michael Astley-Brown
Gossamer tremolo picking and the stuff of Phrygian nightmares: This week's essential guitar tracks
Unmissable new songs from Fiddlehead, HotWax, Guns N’ Roses, Emily Wolfe, Born of Osiris, Babymetal ft. Tom Morello, CLT DRP, and more
The best-value electric guitar of 2023? Shergold unveils the surprisingly affordable Telstar – and it’s a serious looker
The revived UK brand’s third electric guitar model delivers boutique Cabronita Telecaster vibes with a low price tag and an offset twist – but there’s a catch
Palm-muted gut-punches and Strandberg shred that sounds like Plini meets Mario Kart: This week’s essential guitar tracks
Fresh, guitar-driven cuts from Bleed From Within, The Joy Formidable, Ottto, Angra, James Bay, Eliza McLamb, and loads more
Electro-Harmonix just launched a serious competitor in the mini compressor pedal stakes
The Pico Platform Compressor/Limiter won’t take up much room on your pedalboard, but it will deliver studio-style squeeze with plenty of flexibility
The Halcyon Gold Overdrive just became the most exciting Klon-inspired pedal on the market – because it’s so much more than just a clone
Thanks to Adaptive Circuitry, Origin Effects’ latest overdrive can go far beyond the capabilities of the original Centaur
Johnny Cash’s 1930s Martin makes a comeback – and so does Napster-era crunch: This week's essential guitar tracks
You just gotta hear these new songs from Sophie Lloyd, The String Revolution ft. Tommy Emmanuel, Crypta, Graveyard, The Linda Lindas, Wilco, Nervosa and so very many more
He’s one of Japan’s most iconic shredders and plays in a band called Loudness – now Akira Takasaki has an outrageous fuzz-loaded Cry Baby worthy of his reputation
The fleet-fingered virtuoso has collaborated with Dunlop on one of the wildest Cry Babys yet
Chuck Berry-by-way-of-the-gutter riffs and choppy Strat-isms from Fender's latest signature artist: This week's essential guitar tracks
Must-hear new cuts from Brian Setzer, Steve Lacy, Of Mice & Men, Buck Meek, Bad Wolves and loooads more
Introducing nu-disco shred, a fresh genre of guitar playing that combines ’70s pop and ’80s soloing – and where dancing while you two-hand tap is an absolute must
Nile Rodgers meets Eddie Van Halen in these tap-happy fretboard freakouts – creator Dre DiMura explains what inspired his daring mashup and why “tradition can be a prison”
Electro-Harmonix heralds a new era of mini pedals with its most versatile compact POG yet
The Pico POG adds a new Filter section, and will be the first in a new line of Pico mini pedals
It’s official: the Fender Tom DeLonge Stratocaster is coming back – with one neat twist
The Blink-182 guitarist and the Big F have confirmed the cult classic’s return ahead of its official release – which is sooner than you might think…
High-profile collabs with '90s alt-rock guitar royalty and Keanu Reeves' return to music: this week's essential guitar tracks
The freshest cuts from Code Orange ft. Billy Corgan, Alice Cooper ft. Tom Morello, The Gaslight Anthem ft. Bruce Springsteen, Dogstar, Brothers Osborne, Night Verses and a heck of a lot more
Ken’s guitar of choice in the Barbie Movie is… a Gibson Jerry Cantrell acoustic?
Ryan Gosling is giving up the customized guitar – which has links to Metallica and Alice in Chains – to apologize for a fashion faux-pas
Fake Klon Centaur pedals are being sold “for big money”, warns designer Bill Finnegan
The legendary overdrive pedal is worth up to $5,000 on the used market – and now copycats are taking advantage
Meet John Matos, the death-metal guitarist whose brutal viral video riffs have cracked up guitar heroes and comedians alike
Everyone from Matt Heafy to Eric André have found themselves chuckling at Matos’ vicious riff displays over clips of unusually aggressive roosters and waylaid sandwiches – and some of his compositions even inspire full songs with his deathcore outfit Abiotic
5-string Strandbergs and 11-minute djent epics: this week's essential guitar tracks
New face-melters from Jacob Collier, Tesseract, Cherry Glazerr, Dan Auerbach, Demi Lovato + Slash, Svalbard and many more
Wait, is Fender about to revive Tom DeLonge’s highly sought-after Stratocaster?
As used examples of his signature model approach $2,000, the Blink-182 guitarist has offered a very strong hint that a reissue is on the cards – nearly two decades after his Strat was last produced
Eddie Van Halen's guitar rig rises again and a Seattle supergroup returns: this week's essential guitar tracks
Fresh cuts from Mammoth WVH, 3rd Secret, Becca Mancari feat. Brittany Howard, Ariel Posen, Ola Englund, L.S. Dunes… and loads more!
Harley Benton’s new pedalboards feature a built-in power supply – and rechargeable battery
The affordable gear champ’s new Spaceship PowerBar fuels your rig but doesn’t need to be plugged into the wall
Mojotone unveils the British Neo, a neodymium amp speaker that promises classic tone without the weight
The company’s first neodymium speaker is the result of years of research and development
John Frusciante’s guitar teacher once told him he wasn’t a good guitarist – so he learned to play like Steve Vai: “No-one was going to say that to me again”
The Red Hot Chili Peppers guitar hero recalls being criticized because he couldn’t play the blues scale fast enough: “It was about the worst feeling I could imagine”
Silver Sky meets Stevie Ray Vaughan and Jonny Greenwood goes stoner rock: this week’s essential guitar tracks
Fresh cuts from Baroness, The Smile, Slowdive, Cannibal Corpse, Rocco, Lance Lopez, Ichika Nito, Laurence Jones and a heck of a lot more…
How the guitarist from Incubus ended up writing one of the biggest riffs of the 21st century… with Avicii
It may not fit into conventional riff territory, but Mike Einziger’s infectious guitar line in Wake Me Up is among the most widely heard refrains of the past two decades – yet, as the guitarist admits, he “had no idea it would do what it did”
