Mr. Brightside
The Killers
A circling, high-register arpeggio over an open high E string left ringing.
What is the Mr. Brightside guitar tone?
The Mr. Brightside guitar tone is a circling, high-register arpeggio over an open high E string left ringing, heard on The Killers' 2000s indie rock recording. It is a distorted riff tone, and The Killers reportedly tracked it with Dave Keuning's Ibanez Destroyer into a Fender Hot Rod DeVille, the rig he says played this song and about 90 percent of Hot Fuss, with the riff voiced as a Dadd9 rooted at the 17th fret of the A string while the open high E rings through every shape, which he calls the key to the whole thing; he wrote it on his Gibson SG in his closet with a Big Muff on, the band kept the reference mix Mark Needham made in just over half an hour over several later remixes, and the song came from sessions with producer Jeff Saltzman at Kill the Messenger in Henderson, Nevada, before its release as a single on 29 September 2003. Indie rock guitar is mostly riffs and arpeggios that sit bright and mid-forward beside the bass, so note definition and the gaps between the notes matter more than the amount of gain.
You do not need that exact gear to land in the same place. What carries this sound is the gain structure, the EQ curve, the pickup choice and the order of the effects, and all four can be rebuilt on equipment that costs a fraction of the original. The numbers change from amp to amp, because a high-gain head and a small practice amp reach the same voicing from different knob positions. That translation is what Tonelify works out for the rig you actually own.
Mr. Brightside amp settings: a starting point
On a generic five-knob amp, start at Gain 5, Bass 4, Middle 6, Treble 7, Presence 6, Reverb 2, with the bridge pickup.
- Gain 5
- Bass 4
- Middle 6
- Treble 7
- Presence 6
- Reverb 2
- Signal chain
- Overdrive or fuzz → Short delay → Room reverb
- The control that matters most
- The open high E string. Keuning says the open E is the key to the whole thing: he plays a Dadd9 shape rooted at the 17th fret of the A string and lets the high E ring through every change, so a muted E loses the sound whatever the amp does. Keep the drive moderate so that drone stays clear instead of turning to mush.
These positions are free and they are a starting point. A Katana, a Spark and a valve head reach this voicing from different knob positions, so Tonelify rewrites every value above for the amp and guitar you own. Your first match is free with an account, and needs no card.
Adapt these to my amp- Pickup
- Bridge pickup
These are positions on a generic five-knob amp with gain, bass, middle, treble and presence, each running 0 to 10. They are a starting point, not the settings used on the record, and they will not transfer unchanged to an amp with a different gain structure or EQ voicing. If you tell Tonelify which amp you own, it rewrites every value above for the controls that amp actually has.
What gear did The Killers use on Mr. Brightside?
Dave Keuning's Ibanez Destroyer into a Fender Hot Rod DeVille, the rig he says played this song and about 90 percent of Hot Fuss, with the riff voiced as a Dadd9 rooted at the 17th fret of the A string while the open high E rings through every shape, which he calls the key to the whole thing; he wrote it on his Gibson SG in his closet with a Big Muff on, the band kept the reference mix Mark Needham made in just over half an hour over several later remixes, and the song came from sessions with producer Jeff Saltzman at Kill the Messenger in Henderson, Nevada, before its release as a single on 29 September 2003.
Sources: Guitar Player: Dave Keuning's top five career-defining tracks, MusicRadar: how Mr. Brightside was written, Wikipedia: Mr. Brightside
Tonelify reads that chain and translates it to the amp and guitar you already own, returning gain, bass, mids, treble and presence values along with a pickup position.
How do you get the Mr. Brightside tone on your own amp?
Tell us your guitar, amp, and pedals
AI researches the original tone of Mr. Brightside
Get exact knob settings adapted to your rig
Mr. Brightside tone questions
What amp settings do you need for Mr. Brightside?
On a generic five-knob amp, start at Gain 5, Bass 4, Middle 6, Treble 7, Presence 6, Reverb 2, with the bridge pickup. These are positions on a generic five-knob amp with gain, bass, middle, treble and presence, each running 0 to 10. They are a starting point, not the settings used on the record, and they will not transfer unchanged to an amp with a different gain structure or EQ voicing. Tonelify rewrites the same values for the specific amp and guitar you own, because a high-gain head and a small solid-state combo reach the same circling, high-register arpeggio over an open high E string left ringing from different positions.
What is the most important control for the Mr. Brightside tone?
The open high E string. Keuning says the open E is the key to the whole thing: he plays a Dadd9 shape rooted at the 17th fret of the A string and lets the high E ring through every change, so a muted E loses the sound whatever the amp does. Keep the drive moderate so that drone stays clear instead of turning to mush.
Can you get the Mr. Brightside tone without the original gear?
Yes. The original was tracked with Dave Keuning's Ibanez Destroyer into a Fender Hot Rod DeVille, the rig he says played this song and about 90 percent of Hot Fuss, with the riff voiced as a Dadd9 rooted at the 17th fret of the A string while the open high E rings through every shape, which he calls the key to the whole thing; he wrote it on his Gibson SG in his closet with a Big Muff on, the band kept the reference mix Mark Needham made in just over half an hour over several later remixes, and the song came from sessions with producer Jeff Saltzman at Kill the Messenger in Henderson, Nevada, before its release as a single on 29 September 2003, but the parts that define the sound are the gain structure, the EQ curve, the pickup position and the effects order. Those translate to other equipment, which is what the adaptation step does.
Is Mr. Brightside a rhythm or a lead tone?
It is a riff part with a distorted character, from The Killers' 2000s indie rock catalogue.
Does Tonelify cost anything to try?
Your first match for your own gear is free with an account, and needs no card. After that both plans start with a 7-day free trial: Stage is $6.99 a month for 20 matches, Headliner is $10.99 a month for unlimited matching within a fair use limit of 150 new matches a day, and yearly billing works out cheaper on both. Reading this page and the rest of the library costs nothing and needs no account.
