may-2016

In her latest lesson, virtuoso Nili Brosh analyzes techniques and approaches made famous on records from the venerated '80s record label.


Chops: Advanced
Theory: Intermediate
Lesson Overview:
• Work through sweep arpeggios in the style of Jason Becker.
• Add more chromatic notes to your improvised solos.
• Make your riffs more compelling with unexpected rhythmic subdivisions.


Click here to download a printable PDF of this lesson's notation.

Shrapnel Records introduced the world to some of the most virtuosic rock and metal guitarists to have ever plugged into a high-gain amp. Starting in the ’80s, an era that has subsequently become infamous for guitar gods, Shrapnel’s founder Mike Varney carefully selected the cream-of-the-crop players for his unique record label.

Some Shrapnel alumni are best known for sweep picking, others for insane alternate picking, and yet others for emphasizing legato fretwork. But all of them are known for playing a lot of notes in a very musical way. What made many of these players great, in my opinion, is that each took a unique approach to playing and writing within the fairly specific “shred” genre.

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Legendary rock guitarists such as Paul Gilbert, Guthrie Govan, Shawn Lane, and Nuno Bettencourt created wildly interesting and provocative lines by simply skipping over the obvious choice.


Chops: Intermediate
Theory: Beginner
Lesson Overview:
• Become more fluent in three-note-per-string scales.
• Unleash the power of intervallic licks.
• Learn how to navigate arpeggios using string skipping.


Click here to download a printable PDF of this lesson's notation.

In this installment of Cram Session we’ll take a look at some inventive ways to practice and apply various string-skipping techniques. It was during the ’80s and ’90s that Eric Johnson, Paul Gilbert, Nuno Bettencourt, Shawn Lane, and other legendary rockers pushed the boundaries of what was possible on the guitar, and skipping strings was one of the principles these players refined and perfected.

The basic concept is simple: When you play a lick, don’t move to an adjacent string.

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Beautifully integrated fuzz and reverb conspire in a bubbling-over box of shoegaze delights.

All clips played with Squier J Mascis Jazzmaster and Fender Champ.
Reverb Types: Reverse, followed by two hall reverb samples and two shimmer reverb samples at various levels.
Reverse reverb – Heavy fuzz: Decay, Pre-Delay, and Blend at 2 o’ clock. Warmth at maximum. Level at 9 o’clock, tone at 10 o’clock, fuzz at 3 o’clock.

As far as I know, there’s no pedal category called “Kevin Shields in a Box.” If there were, the Keeley Sojourner certainly qualifies. It essentially combines Keeley’s Psi fuzz and Nocturner reverb circuits. But in doing so, it also combines a very creamy fuzz sound with reverse reverb—cornerstones of several My Bloody Valentine live and Loveless tone recipes.

Pink and purple shoegaze shades aren’t the only sounds on tap. There are also hall and shimmer reverb settings, although the latter uses a POG-like octave overtone path to “shimmeriness” that can sound less than seamlessly integrated. The hall reverb is more versatile, but neither is especially expansive.

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