Learn how to conquer forearm-punishing riffs of the sort found in everything from early Metallica to Slayer and Megadeth.
Chops: Advanced
Theory: Intermediate
Lesson Overview:
• Strengthen your picking hand.
• Learn forward and reverse gallop rhythms.
• Create brutal riffs in the style of Slayer, Metallica, and Megadeth.
Click here to download a printable PDF of this lesson's notation.
Over the last 15 years metal has reached new heights in popularity and splintered into a wealth of different subgenres that include everything from the dissonance of djent to the retro-vibe of ’80s-style sleaze rock. In this lesson we’ll look at the roots of modern metal and dive into the art of thrash rhythm guitar. In the 1980s, three of the biggest names in this then-new style were Metallica, Slayer, and Megadeth; each were inspired by British metal bands Iron Maiden and Judas Priest, among others. During this time the rhythms were characterized by extreme speed, brutally heavy riffs, and unabashed shredding solos. Some bands, such as Megadeth and Metallica, also showed progressive influences with extended song arrangements that often juxtaposed acoustic and electric sounds.
We’ll tackle a variety of common thrash rhythms and then apply them to stylistic examples from the bands that I’ve previously mentioned. The first group of examples are aimed at improving picking-hand stamina and speed. They are all based on the 6th string, but feel free to move them around to various other strings or scales.
Ex. 1 is a straight-eighth rhythm. Simple enough, right? Well, when you add the frantic tempo (175 bpm) and the fact that you play this with all downstrokes, it provides quite a challenge. This example also uses palm muting, which produces a very tight and aggressive sound. James Hetfield of Metallica is a master of the fast downstrokes.
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We double up the notes for Ex. 2. Instead of two notes per beat, we’re now playing four. Remember: Strict alternate picking will benefit you here rather than the all-downstroke technique used in Ex. 1. Start slow and lock in with the metronome, and then gradually work your way up. If you want to tackle Kerry King’s technique, getting this up to speed is essential.
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Now it’s time for the “gallop,” one of the hallmarks of thrash. In Ex. 3 we have what’s called the “forward” gallop where we play one eighth-note followed by two 16th-notes. A prime example of this is Metallica’s “Master of Puppets,” but you can dial up nearly any ’80s thrash album to hear it. Pay attention to the picking. It’s a down-down-up motion.
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YouTube It
Slayer’s “Raining Blood” is hard to beat when it comes to pure SoCal thrash. The trademark galloping rhythm kicks in at 0:58. Hold on!
Naturally, we can reconfigure this three-stroke rhythm for each beat to create a “reverse” gallop (Ex. 4). Simply flip around the eighth- and 16th-notes and you get instant Slayer. This rhythm is tricky to get up to speed; you’ll need to fight the tendency to want to split the eighth-note into two 16th-notes.
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In Ex. 5, we combine an eighth-note with a 16th-note triplet that harkens back to old-school Metallica and Megadeth. The basic concept is that the second eighth-note is equally divided into three 16th-notes. The tricky thing here is the picking, as you want to aim to have a downstroke on the downbeat.
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We move to a variation of the previous example for Ex. 6. Simply play the triplet on the first half of the beat with the eighth-note falling on the second half. This rhythm is slightly easier to pick: The eighth-note lands on an upstroke, making the subsequent downstroke easier.
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Ex. 7 is a steady stream of eighth-notes, but with a 16th-note burst leading into beat 1. This driving rhythm is common in thrash metal, and is very effective when performed at speed.
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Ex. 8 is a galloping combination that mixes up a forward gallop with a pair of eighth-notes on beat 4.
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Our next variation (Ex. 9) is a reverse gallop with a quarter-note on beat 4. Use your palm to keep the gallop muted and let that quarter-note sound for its full value.
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Ex. 10 is classic Metallica. It’s similar to the riff that pops up in the middle of “One.” Start slow on this one because those sextuplets are faster than you think! Pay attention to the staccato marking on the eighth-notes. Keep them short and tight.
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Now let’s get to some real music. In Ex. 11, I crafted a fun riff that brings to mind Dave Mustaine’s unforgiving style. We have looked at these various rhythm combinations in our previous examples, but now we add some power chords. One of the stylistic traits of Megadeth’s rhythm style is the use of sliding power chords, which are used throughout this example.
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Ex. 12 is a fast galloping rhythm example based in the style of early Metallica. Rhythmically it’s nothing new, but check out the double-stops at the end of the fourth measure. The minor thirds give a darker sound to the riff and breaks up the monotony of root-5 voicings.
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Let’s stick with Metallica for Ex. 13, but this time we’ll add some harmony. Here, we have two guitars in lockstep for the sextuplets before they split off into harmony for the quarter-notes and the syncopated figure at the end of the fourth measure.
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The Slayer-inspired riff in Ex. 14 is a very fast forward gallop with a descending diminished pattern on the 6th string. The twin-guitar harmonies come back in the final measure with some evil-sounding eighth-notes.
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Our final stylistic riff (Ex. 15) again borrows from the mighty Slayer catalog. Thanks to the work we put in with the various rhythmic combinations, there’s not much brand-new work to be done. All you need to add is a towering wall of amps and piles of scooped overdrive.
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Ten exercises to help you master blazing-fast pick runs.
Chops: Advanced
Theory: Intermediate
Lesson Overview:
• Develop a smooth sweep-picking technique.
• Link multiple arpeggios to cover the entire fretboard.
• Explore essential stylistic traits of Jason Becker, Richie Kotzen, and Frank Gambale.
Click here to download a printable PDF of this lesson's notation.
Sweep picking is often seen as one of the most demanding techniques to master on the guitar. Pioneered by such revered 6-stringers as Les Paul, Yngwie Malmsteen, Richie Kotzen, Jason Becker, and Frank Gambale, the technique is used in many different ways in a wide variety of genres.
The basic concept of sweep picking is to use all downstrokes when ascending across adjacent strings and all upstrokes on the descent. Sweep picking has many different applications that include arpeggios and pentatonic, major, and minor scales. The key to this technique is to use a rest stroke on each string, which means after striking a string your pick comes to rest on the next string in a single, smooth motion. This idea is very important for mastering sweep picking.
Sweep picking can be incorporated into other techniques. Frank Gambale—one of the greatest ambassadors of sweep picking—mixes alternate picking with sweep picking to play complex runs. The fusion of these two approaches is often referred to as economy picking. Before Richie Kotzen ditched the pick he blended sweep picking with legato fretting-hand techniques to play extended arpeggio lines.
Ex. 1 is a basic sweep picking lick that illustrates a triplet rhythm figure on the top two strings. The first two notes of each arpeggio are performed with a downward sweep, while the final note is performed with an upstroke. Make sure the pick comes to rest on the 1st string directly after attacking the 2nd string.
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In Ex. 2, we move to a three-string pattern that moves up and down the neck through a Bm–F#m–E–A progression. To give the phrase some movement, I use a few different inversions of the F#m, E, and A chords.
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We add yet another string for Ex. 3. This four-string pattern moves through a series of major arpeggios in various whole- and half-step root movements.
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The legendary Jason Becker is a complete and total inspiration. Not only because of his seminal work on the Shrapnel label, but his story of living with ALS. Here’s a look at a young Becker blazing through his tune “Serrana.”
That inspiration leads us to Ex. 4, a short etude inspired by Becker. It opens with a series of A major (A–C–E) arpeggios that move up the neck through several inversions. We then shift to F#m—A major’s relative minor—for a series of descending arpeggios that ultimately carry us down to 5th position. You can hear Becker use these shapes in “Altitudes.” Once again, strive to create a smooth, fluent sweep, and look out for the occasional hammer-on and pull-off.
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The Winery Dogs’ Richie Kotzen provides the inspiration for Ex. 5. As I mentioned earlier, before Kotzen ditched his pick, he’d craft incredible lines that combined legato techniques with sweep picking. Here we’re playing a chord progression similar to “Pachelbel’s Canon.” There are some rather difficult stretches, so be sure to start slow and work up to a comfortable tempo.
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You can hear shades of both Kotzen and Becker in Ex. 6. This is from one of my tunes called “Ceremony” and involves not only sweeping and legato, but also some tapping.The idea of this lick is to perform diatonic arpeggios over a static D5 chord. In this case, we’re using Bm (B–D–F#) and Gmaj7 (G–B–D–F#). I love this approach to sweep picking: We simply cascade over the beats rather than playing “in time.”
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Ex. 7 is a Frank Gambale-inspired figure that extends the harmony over an E minor tonality. We basically play off each degree of Em (E–G–B) using a diatonic arpeggio. This lick concludes with a 1st-string bend embellished with a tapped note on the held bend.
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We’re using E Dorian (E–F#–G–A–B–C#–D) for the various approaches in Ex. 8. The quintuplets in the first measure alternate between Bm9 (B–D–F#–A–C) and Em9 (E–G–B–D–F#). The intensity picks up in the second measure with a wild combination of tapping, pull-offs, slides, and more.
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Ex. 9 is a great lick based around symmetrical triads from the G half-whole diminished scale (G–Ab–Bb–B–Db–D–E–F). This lick is a great way of playing “outside” on the fourth measure of a G blues progression before G7 moves to C9, the IV. This phrase implies an altered tonality, but has a satisfying resolution.
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Our final example (Ex. 10) is another Frank Gambale idea, based around D Dorian (D–E–F–G–A–B–C). This modern-sounding lick kicks off with some sus2 arpeggios performed in quintuplets. The next phrase includes a cross rhythm idea: three groups of 16th-notes played to the value of a quarter-note triplet. This figure mixes fourth and fifths and lets you play flurries of notes. To conclude, we cascade across a series of four-note arpeggios.
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Eddie Van Halen didn’t invent tapping, but he certainly popularized it. Learn how to unlock the fretboard with this collection of finger-busting licks.
Chops: Advanced
Theory: Intermediate
Lesson Overview:
• Learn how to play extended arpeggios.
• Unlock the secrets of single-finger tapping.
• Create exciting licks using string skipping, four-note-per-string fingerings, and wide intervals.
Click here to download a printable PDF of this lesson's notation.
A big reason why tapping became so ubiquitous in the ’70s and ’80s was due to Eddie Van Halen’s groundbreaking instrumental, “Eruption.” Ask nearly any guitar player who came of age during that era and it’s likely they can describe exactly where they were when their ears were assaulted with EVH’s insanely fluid flurry of notes. From that moment, a new breed of guitar player was born. Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, Paul Gilbert, Reb Beach, Greg Howe, and George Lynch each took the inspiration they got from King Eddie and pushed their own technique to the limits. Guitarist T.J. Helmerich was a big proponent of eight-finger tapping. Check out the video below to get a taste of this mind-boggling technique.
In this lesson, I’ll walk you through 14 licks that cover many different approaches and styles. But before we dig into those, let’s review the physical process: A legato-based technique, tapping uses picking-hand hammer-ons to extend the range of conventionally fretted lines.
And tapping isn’t limited to single-note lines—it can also be used to produce chord progressions. For example, you can tap out a chord progression with your picking hand while your fretting hand plays a bass line. In the video below, Joe Satriani plays “Midnight” and demonstrates his unique approach to two-hand tapping.
Ex. 1 is based around the A Aeolian mode (A–B–C–D–E–F–G) and works great over an A minor groove. The trick here is to hold the bend while tapping notes up the string. Remember: Keep your bends in tune so the tapped notes will be in tune as well.
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Ex. 2 is a classic EVH-style tapping lick that’s based around three-note-per-string arpeggio patterns on the 1st string. As you play through the progression, notice how we’re using voice-leading to change only the most essential notes with as little movement as possible.
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The late, great Randy Rhoads inspired Ex. 3. It’s the same basic idea as before, but this time we are descending by a major third (A–F–Db–A) each time we shift chords.
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In Ex. 4 we combine two adjacent pentatonic shapes in the key of A minor. The fretting hand covers the basic pentatonic box at the 5th fret, while the tapping hand strikes notes found within the next box up the neck. The new wrinkle is that we are now using “hammer-ons from nowhere.” These are simply notes that are sounded by tapping with a fretting-hand finger.
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Our next tapping lick (Ex. 5) is based on something that Extreme’s Nuno Bettencourt might play. It demonstrates just how far patterns can be extended with two-handed tapping. We continue with our hammer-ons from nowhere each time we move to a new string.
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We stick with the key of A minor for Ex. 6, which is straight out of Greg Howe’s bag of tricks. This lick demonstrates how to work through three-note-per-string patterns with traditional tapping and hammer-ons from nowhere—one of Howe’s signature techniques.
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Ex. 7 is based on an idea from guitar ace Reb Beach. The work that Beach does in both Winger and Whitesnake offers a wealth of blistering tapping licks. In this example, we stay on the top two strings and move through the A minor pentatonic scale (A–C–D–E–G). Once you have the pattern down, try moving it to other strings.
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Reb Beach also inspired Ex. 8. The lick is a lengthy run in E Dorian (E–F#–G–A–B–C#–D) that’s based around a series of four-note-per-string patterns. This figure is quite difficult and there are a lot of notes, so try to minimize extraneous noise when crossing strings.
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We turn to the legendary Mr. Big axeman, Paul Gilbert, in Ex. 9. This is a long ascending phrase that flows smoothly through the E Aeolian mode (E–F#–G–A–B–C–D). It totally would fall in line with something you might hear Gilbert play on a Racer X album.
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Let’s take another look at something in the style of Greg Howe (Ex. 10). Howe often performs three-note-per-string runs using tapping, and here we work through the E Dorian mode again. Because the basic pattern is quite simple, it would be easy to move to other keys.
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We can hardly do a column on tapping without looking at one of the instrument’s all-time wizards, Steve Vai. I love Vai’s immense tapped runs, and Ex. 11 is a prime example of his fretwork. This lick uses the E Aeolian mode and covers nearly the entire fretboard. Try breaking down this lick into easy-to-digest segments before joining them together.
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One of the most underrated guitarists of the shred era was Todd Duane, and Ex. 12 is a demanding lick I copped from him. We’re using a four-note-per-string pattern along with some string skipping. This challenging lick is really potent when you work it up to speed.
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Ex. 13 is one of my favorite approaches to tapping arpeggios, and is similar to what underground shredder Darren Housholder might play. The big change here is that we’re playing groups of five, or quintuplets, with a double-tap technique. The first two measures outline an A major arpeggio, and the last two cover an F#m arpeggio.
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Our final lick (Ex. 14) comes from one of my own tunes called “The Nashville Song.” This phrase demonstrates how string skipping and tapping can be used on extended arpeggios. We’re moving between an F#m7 arpeggio in the first measure to an Amaj7 arpeggio in the second measure, and this combination creates a nice Fm9 sound.
