Michael Astley-Brown
Mike is Editor-in-Chief of GuitarWorld.com, in addition to being an offset fiend and recovering pedal addict. He has a master's degree in journalism from Cardiff University, and over a decade's experience writing and editing for guitar publications including MusicRadar, Total Guitar and Guitarist, as well as 20 years of recording and live experience in original and function bands. During his career, he has interviewed the likes of John Frusciante, Chris Cornell, Tom Morello, Matt Bellamy, Kirk Hammett, Jerry Cantrell, Joe Satriani, Tom DeLonge, Ed O'Brien, Polyphia, Tosin Abasi, Yvette Young and many more. In his free time, you'll find him making progressive instrumental rock under the nom de plume Maebe.
Latest articles by Michael Astley-Brown
Musician's Friend Black Friday deals 2024: get up to 50% off gear right now!
By Chris Barnes last updated
Your place for the latest Black Friday deals at Musician's Friend this Cyber Weekend
Black Friday Fender deals 2024: the early deals are already here, save big on guitars, amps, pedals, and more
By Daryl Robertson last updated
Black Friday is nearly here, and we're expecting big discounts on some of the most iconic guitars ever made
Sweetwater Black Friday deals 2024: save up to 80% on guitar gear
By Daryl Robertson last updated
The full Sweetwater Black Friday sale has arrived – here's your one-stop shop for all the best deals
Guitar Center Black Friday deals 2024: the GC Black Friday sale is officially live
By Chris Barnes last updated
Grab yourself massive savings of up to 50% off, with some of the lowest prices of the year on gear at Guitar Center
Black Friday guitar pedal deals 2024: We round up the very best early Black Friday stompbox deals
By Daryl Robertson last updated
Your place for all the greatest Black Friday deals on guitar pedals, pedalboards, power supplies and more
Black Friday guitar deals 2024: get in on the early Black Friday sales action
By Daryl Robertson last updated
Your place to find all the information on Black Friday 2024, including my predictions, early deals, and shopping tips
Best budget guitar amps under $500 in 2024: cost-cutting amplifiers for the budget-conscious player
By Michael Astley-Brown last updated
Get great sounds and features without blowing your budget – from affordable tube amps to wallet-friendly digital modeling amps and everything in between
Robert Smith’s 2024 guitar rig flies in the face of modern guitar culture – and sounds all the more majestic for it
By Michael Astley-Brown published
As The Cure return to the stage with their first album in 16 years, their leader is employing a setup that defiantly rejects contemporary tonal wisdom
Black Friday Positive Grid deals 2024: Save up to 50% off amps and software in the huge Black November sale!
By Chris Barnes last updated
Positive Grid's official Black November sale will be live throughout November with huge hardware and software discounts up for grabs. But is Positive Grid holding any Spark 2 discounts up its sleeve?
Ghost, Royal Blood and Pixies producer reveals “the biggest mistake guitar players make” when recording
By Michael Astley-Brown published
Tom Dalgety has crafted some of modern rock’s biggest-sounding albums – and he has some sage words of wisdom when it comes to guitar tone
“The sonic equivalent of a fist-fight between James Hetfield and Alex Lifeson”: October 2024 Guitar World editors’ picks
By Michael Astley-Brown published
The hot new tracks and deep cuts GW editors have been listening to this month
Surviving Grateful Dead members pay tribute to bassist Phil Lesh, who has died aged 84
By Michael Astley-Brown published
Lesh didn’t play bass when he joined Jerry Garcia’s new band, leading to an innovative style that brought the instrument to the fore
From a virtuoso Tool support to Rabea Massaad’s new supergroup, meet the next generation of progressive guitar heroes
By Michael Astley-Brown published
The UK’s ArcTanGent Festival is the world’s biggest celebration of heavy progressive music, and this year’s lineup featured epic sets from Meshuggah, Mogwai and Explosions in the Sky. Could these 5 bands be the headliners of the future?
Mark Hoppus charts his bass origin story, embracing amp modelers and switching from Ernie Ball to Fender
By Michael Astley-Brown published
In a rare interview, the blink-182 bassist shares his tone secrets, the bassline he still struggles to play, and how Ned’s Atomic Dustbin changed the way he approaches the bass
“He started playing bass… He got so into it he started bleeding”: Alex Van Halen reveals his and Eddie’s secret jams with Chris Cornell
By Michael Astley-Brown published
Eddie Van Halen and his brother tried out the Soundgarden singer shortly before his death – and at one stage, an Ozzy Osbourne-fronted Van Halen album was also on the cards
Mark Hoppus explains why he switched to Kemper and Quad Cortex for blink-182’s mammoth arena shows
By Michael Astley-Brown published
The blink-182 bassist conducted tone tests to make sure the modelers could match his previous tube rigs
David Gilmour explains why he still uses a 30-year-old Zoom multi-FX for his home demos
By Jackson Maxwell published
He may have once had a guitar worth $4 million, and you'll still see physical heads and cabinets at his live shows, but when laying tracks down at home, the Pink Floyd legend's tastes are far from expensive
Mark Hoppus combines Jaguar, Precision and Jazz Bass parts on his new Fender signature model
By Michael Astley-Brown published
The blink-182 bassist’s latest signature arrives over two decades after his first Fender model, and follows bandmate Tom DeLonge’s recent Starcaster guitar
“I needed to get out of the way of it”: OG Incubus bassist Dirk Lance on how Drive taught him to stop overplaying
By Michael Astley-Brown published
Alex Katunich’s busy slap and pop basslines fueled much of the band’s early output, but in a rare new interview, he explains how their biggest hit forced him to take a step back
Billie Eilish goes electric with a Fender Telecaster at tour debut, following guitar lessons from brother FINNEAS
By Michael Astley-Brown published
The pop megastar kicked off her massive Hit Me Hard and Soft tour with a new electric guitar in tow
Taylor once released a replica of The Last of Us’ iconic acoustic guitar – now the real-life version will appear in season two of the TV show
By Michael Astley-Brown published
A new trailer for The Last of Us season two shows the guitar in the hands of both Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey – and it’s not the only acoustic that makes an appearance
“I have convinced myself that they are the best actual rock band in the world at the moment”: September 2024 Guitar World editors' picks
By Michael Astley-Brown published
Your monthly round up of the freshest new cuts from the world of guitar courtesy of Tetrarch, The Cure, Larkin Poe, Amyl and The Sniffers, Dayglow, and many more
Why Gen Z guitar star Beabadoobee’s chords have confused her fellow guitarists – but won over Rick Rubin
By Janelle Borg published
Beabadoobee, aka Beatrice Laus, recently landed a number one album in her native UK, but her fondness for My Bloody Valentine, Sonic Youth and Elliott Smith has spawned a guitar style that has confounded her fellow players
The final pedal Diamond designed before the revered effects firm closed down is finally seeing the light of day
By Michael Astley-Brown published
The innovative delay is a ‘greatest hits’ of Diamond designs, with a unique reverse mode that’s “like echoes bounding through a stormy canyon”
Perry Farrell punched Dave Navarro in the face backstage, alleges Jane’s Addiction guitar tech as he reveals the background to the band’s onstage fight
By Michael Astley-Brown published
Dan Cleary was the man who restrained Farrell seconds after the singer attacked Navarro mid-gig – he opens up about the months of tension that led to what he believes to be the band’s last-ever show
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