Brian Bell: “This is actually Rivers’ guitar - it’s never been mine, so I don’t know the story of how he got that one, but I do know the story of how I got it… We were rehearsing at Rivers’ house and I saw it sitting in the corner. I asked if him if he was using it and he said, ‘Nah, go for it!’

This thing is a solid guitar. If it falls, I know it will be okay

“After plugging in, I thought to myself, ‘Damn this thing sounds great!’ and it didn’t feel as fragile or precious as my vintage guitars, taking them out on the road brings the risk of damaging them. This thing is a solid guitar. If it falls, I know it will be okay. If an SG falls, the neck is snapped! I don’t want to do that to my guitars.

“We have one back-up Explorer that’s just there and ready to go. It actually sounds better than the Champagne Gold on certain songs too. I very seldom break strings, but I did the other night and needed an immediate change. Luckily, it was at a point where I could drop out, during a verse so I could come back in during the chorus.

“We both use Gibsons for pretty much the entire set - though there’s something to be said for combining Fender and Gibson together, which we’ve done in the past. You can get a great sound that’s kinda like having the best of both worlds. For the last couple of records, I have a beautiful ’64 SG that I’ve been using, and that’s it! The guitar is so versatile, but I can only use it for hometown gigs or rehearsals. In a live situation, anything can happen in a moment… it feels a bit unprotected. So I keep it in this vintage case, and it has to be on a locking stand, never a normal one.

Rivers: “I got this particular gold Explorer around 2002 when we had lots of pyro and a big, heavy metal stage show! We used this all over Maladroit - it’s all that guitar. I just really love the sound of it. I reckon that it probably qualifies as vintage now!”