['bob']

Hey guys. Ive seen so much bs on the net in terms of "How to learn to shred in 2 days" and the such..

I can play chords and lead to a good pace but i cant really hit those quick passages in a lot of rock solo's. So if you can play guitar leads and chords quickly, how did you get there? What did your practice comprise of to overcome this speed barrier that i hear alot of people run into after playing ~2 years. I'm good with all the basics of chords, pull offs, flick ons, and alternate picking. I simply just need to do it all faster.

[Kiss]

I don't want to put you off but it does take a long time. I'm almost able to play the solo to MOP by Metallica at full speed but it took me nearly 10 months. But even before then I had to master all the basics. It's not something that happens over night, but the best thing you can do is be accurate.

[DannyBoy123]

Practice, practice, practice, practice...etc.

There's a few drills and that you can use to aid it but ultimately you need to be at the point where you don't think about what your're playing...your brain is too slow to think then do, you need to learn to simply do. Everyone gets to a certain level where the improvement tails off, you just have to focus on making everything a little bit better, and over time it will come.

Oh and like the guy said above me - focus on accuracy, that's how you build the muscle memory. There's no point being able to play something fast and crap after all.

[Freier._.lance]

Practice....That's all people will tell you! Speed comes when your fingers are so comfortable playing the piece that the muscles do the work for you before you even think about it. You cannot rush these things, they take time.

[JordanR]

Practising a lot. Your picking is what needs work, I guarantee it.

[A Cat]

learn scales (Major and Minor). Play and practice scales every day. Start at A - 5th fret on low E string.

e-5-7-8
B-5-6-8
G-5-7
D-5-7-9
A-5-7-8
E-5-7-8

Learn the sound of this minor scale, replicate that sound all over the fretboard. Four frets up from the root note (E-5 [Am]) will bring you to the (C) Major scale, as long as you follow the notes on that tab.

Every good guitar player will tell you that the way they got good was through practice. It is through love of music and the instrument that the drive to practice comes, it's not seen as a chore, but a hobby, something one enjoys. Start slow, alternate picking, and when you know the shape and sound of the scale then slowly increase your speed.

Don't give up!

[KCosmo]

There's no shortcut, you just need to practice your fingers off A metronome is handy, you can see how fast you can go on a certain scale/riff etc. and then crank up the speed gradually the more you are comfortable. If you don't have one there on tons of keyboards, or just google metronome to get one on your computer

['bob']

(Original post by JordanR)
Practising a lot. Your picking is what needs work, I guarantee it.

Nice cover, gj man. You should really cover space ship one or down to mexico though

[JordanR]

(Original post by 'bob')
Nice cover, gj man. You should really cover space ship one or down to mexico though

Leave this idea with me. sure I can handle that.

['bob']

(Original post by JordanR)
Leave this idea with me. sure I can handle that.

Lol i wasn't saying it as a challenge. I'm sure you can play them. They're just awesome songs that i want to hear more lol :P

[Vixen47]

Practice, practice, practice and practice....and then practice some more. Then keep practicing after that. (I've written the word so many times that I am now questioning my spelling abilities. )

The repeated finger movement conditions your fingers so they can "remember" what string/fret to press without you thinking about it. I just made that up but it seems to make some kind of sense

[JordanR]

(Original post by 'bob')
Lol i wasn't saying it as a challenge. I'm sure you can play them. They're just awesome songs that i want to hear more lol :P

Oh, I can. I can play both of them (although I'm a little shakier on Space Ship One -- haven't played it as much). There's actually a really difficult lick in there. This bit.

(Original post by Vixen47)
Practice, practice, practice and practice....and then practice some more. Then keep practicing after that. (I've written the word so many times that I am now questioning my spelling abilities. )

The repeated finger movement conditions your fingers so they can "remember" what string/fret to press without you thinking about it. I just made that up but it seems to make some kind of sense

You're referring to Practice, practice, practice and practice....and then practice some more. Then keep practicing after that. (I've written the word so many times that I am now questioning my spelling abilities. )

The repeated finger movement conditions your fingers so they can "remember" what string/fret to press without you thinking about it. I just made that up but it seems to make some kind of sense [/QUOTE]
]muscle memory.

[Hype en Ecosse]

(Original post by JordanR)
Oh, I can. I can play both of them (although I'm a little shakier on Space Ship One -- haven't played it as much). There's actually a really difficult lick in there. This bit.



You're referring to muscle memory.

Smooth Jordan, smooth.

Edit: Never mind then, in the quote it looks okay. But on my end you've turned her entire quote into a hyperlink in the middle of the sentence - which links no where. Strange. First time I've seen that happen!

['bob']

(Original post by JordanR)
Oh, I can. I can play both of them (although I'm a little shakier on Space Ship One -- haven't played it as much). There's actually a really difficult lick in there. This bit.



You're referring to muscle memory.

Oh yeah for sure. That part struck me as a pretty insanely difficult passage first time i heard it. I'm gonna get started on spaceship one. I think i can do the all of the song except for the two really fast passages. It'll take me a few weeks but it'll be really good for improving my technique in general. I subbed to your channel on youtube so i'll see when you upload anything :P

Can you tell me about your setup for recording? I eventually want to do the same thing.

[JordanR]

(Original post by Hype en Ecosse)
Smooth Jordan, smooth.

Edit: Never mind then, in the quote it looks okay. But on my end you've turned her entire quote into a hyperlink in the middle of the sentence - which links no where. Strange. First time I've seen that happen!

Yeah, it's a little weird on my screen. Ah well.

(Original post by 'bob')
Oh yeah for sure. That part struck me as a pretty insanely difficult passage first time i heard it. I'm gonna get started on spaceship one. I think i can do the all of the song except for the two really fast passages. It'll take me a few weeks but it'll be really good for improving my technique in general. I subbed to your channel on youtube so i'll see when you upload anything :P

Can you tell me about your setup for recording? I eventually want to do the same thing.

I think one of the hardest licks that Gilbert has in his repertoire has to be the end string skipping lick to Superheroes too. HUGE stretches required to play some of it. And of course the terrifying minor 7th/diminished arpeggios... Haha, thanks! Well I'll be sure to upload something soon then. I've been thinking of doing Silence Followed by a Deafening Roar. That's so fun to play.

I just use a Behringer UCG102 audio interface and Amplitube 3 software. Most recordings are done just using the in-program recording station thingy. Simple, but it gets the job done. Best value for money guitar item I've ever bought!

[tooosh]

Do you use a metronome? It's tedius work, working speed up but it's the best way to do it.

['bob']

(Original post by JordanR)
Yeah, it's a little weird on my screen. Ah well.


I think one of the hardest licks that Gilbert has in his repertoire has to be the end string skipping lick to Superheroes too. HUGE stretches required to play some of it. And of course the terrifying minor 7th/diminished arpeggios... Haha, thanks! Well I'll be sure to upload something soon then. I've been thinking of doing Silence Followed by a Deafening Roar. That's so fun to play.

I just use a Behringer UCG102 audio interface and Amplitube 3 software. Most recordings are done just using the in-program recording station thingy. Simple, but it gets the job done. Best value for money guitar item I've ever bought!

Look at the size of his fingers... His pinky is way bigger than my index finger. Thats why some of the stretches are gonna seem ridicilous for most people.

Wow thats pretty cool. I was gonna eventually buy one of a much more expensive output device for my behringer v-amp but i might just buy one of these in the mean time since its so cheap. Man your really making me want to splurge out on a new guitar with my student loan lol.

[JordanR]

(Original post by 'bob')


Look at the size of his fingers... His pinky is way bigger than my index finger. Thats why some of the stretches are gonna seem ridicilous for most people.

Wow thats pretty cool. I was gonna eventually buy one of a much more expensive output device for my behringer v-amp but i might just buy one of these in the mean time since its so cheap. Man your really making me want to splurge out on a new guitar with my student loan lol.

Yep, crazy. When I shook his hand a couple of years ago, his dwarfed mine; although mine have grown a bit since then... my hands.

Seriously, buy one. Best investment ever! Not so sure the student loan thing is wise though... You made want to record a run of Technical Difficulties... so I did!.

['bob']

(Original post by JordanR)
Yep, crazy. When I shook his hand a couple of years ago, his dwarfed mine; although mine have grown a bit since then... my hands.

Seriously, buy one. Best investment ever! Not so sure the student loan thing is wise though... You made want to record a run of Technical Difficulties... so I did!.

Yeah your fingers are pretty lanky lol. But its that you can actually stretch them that far that is impressive. You basically have webbed hands.

Where did you get to meet him? Pretty cool. I'll check your cover out in a lil bit :]

Ha, dont worry m8 i have a job lol.

[JordanR]

(Original post by 'bob')
Yeah your fingers are pretty lanky lol. But its that you can actually stretch them that far that is impressive. You basically have webbed hands.

Where did you get to meet him? Pretty cool. I'll check your cover out in a lil bit :]

Ha, dont worry m8 i have a job lol.

Being slightly hypermobile helps. It's like guitar hax.

It was after I saw him live in London on his Fuzz Universe tour. If he's touring again in the UK, you should try and see him. Shows are great and cheap (usually pretty small numbers of people too). Cheers! It's a bit rough around the edges though... especially the end.