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Post by thenotshredder on Jul 13, 2007 20:47:42 GMT -5
I know I rape this board's thread count regularly. For that, I apologize. But I have an interesting dilemma. I'm trying to play frickin' Master of Puppets cleanly. I used to be able to, honest! But my downpicking has become extremely erratic. Sometimes I can nail every riff, sometimes (when I'm also completely warmed up and at 10) completely fail at playing this stuff cleanly. And I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong, because I try a lot of different right hand positions. Trying different picks (have 1.0 and 1.14mm Tortex Wedges here, standard 1.0 and 1.14mm Tortex picks, some green .88 Tortex, and some black Jazz IIIs) doesn't seem to make a huge difference, except that if I choke up on the pick a lot I either miss the string or take the skin off my index finger (I had the same problem with hitting my finger when I /could/ play it, too), and if I don't I can't pick fast enough. I realize this sounds like a precision problem, but metronome work hasn't been helping. I can play, say, Battery's main riff at full speed without much problem, but the straight downpicking positively murders me (the prechorus riff in Creeping Death also fucks me up with downpicking on the 2 of the low E). So yeah, there's my rambling, obnoxious post for the week.
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Post by Metal Dan on Jul 14, 2007 0:37:46 GMT -5
Maybe the problem lies in the fact that you keep trying different hand positions... you hands learn what to do through constant, precise repetition. Switching things up too much confuses the hell out of it and slows the learning process (For Example: I have found that in most cases it is best for me to avoid teaching alternate picking and sweep picking at the same time to intermediate students. The picking styles contradict each other and can confuse someone who isn't familiar with the techniques). This is essentially what you are doing to your hand.
Find a hand position that allows your hand (and pick) to fall naturally at about a 45 degree angle across the strings and stick with it.
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Post by mattjem7vwh on Jul 14, 2007 2:46:20 GMT -5
hmmm if your taking skin off your hand maybe your trying to hard???
try lightening up a little and relaxing.... and dont forget to practice with a clean tone, and attempt to push your limits everyday... ie try master of puppets at 10% faster than its suposed to be, then slow it down again to say 80% and work it up from there....
like I always say.. 90% of guitar is in your head.. get your head to work and your fingers will follow.
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Post by jazziiiguy on Jul 14, 2007 4:27:50 GMT -5
I agree with Dr. Matt's suggestion of playing 10% faster for a bit, but I'd also recomend that you try it at a slower tempo. Find a speed at which you can play it perfectly: keep it at that speed for several repetitions (just like bodybuilding ) and then speed it up a little at a time. Practice it in a variety of tempos, not just uber-fast. And dsorber is correct: even if it's not the cause of your specific problem, you are probably confusing your hands. Find what works for you and stick with it.
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Post by thenotshredder on Jul 14, 2007 8:32:39 GMT -5
Ah, but the finding's the thing, Jazzman. Anyway, I woke up this morning with downpicking working a lot better than it was yesterday, and I'm thinking that the reason is that I switched back to the 1mm Tortex, which were my old reliables back when I was a kid playing my ass off. Thanks for the advice, guys, and I still have a long ways to go.
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Post by Metal Dan on Jul 14, 2007 10:36:18 GMT -5
Tension maybe. If you are tensing up (which is a natural reaction to this fast down picking style) that would kill your accuracy too. Work it up slowly with a metronome and stay relaxed. But every now and then crank that metronome up and just move! Slow, precise practice is essential but sometimes you have to teach the hand just to move faster even if it's a bit sloppy (DISCLAIMER: never substitute the former with the latter. Both should be used in conjunction with one another). I'm just rambling. It's difficult for me to say without actually seeing how you pick.
There's some good exercises in IG's rhythm masterclass and Joel had some rhythm lessons too in the archives.
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