British rockers MUSE have paid the price for their rock 'n roll live shows - frontman MATT BELLAMY has smashed more than $32,000 (GBP20,000) worth of guitars on tour.

During their early days, the singer developed a ritual of destroying his $243 (GBP150) guitar at the end of every performance, and the band clocked up more than 140 shows on their Origin of Symmetry tour, following the 2003 album of the same name.

And their tour manager, Glen Rowe, insists the rockers had to pay for the damage themselves.

He says in Out of This World: The Story of Muse, a new biography of the band, "Every day he'd (Bellamy) smash up the guitar in the same way. When they smash the stuff it comes out of their own pocket. After a while they learnt to smash up their gear without ruining it."