in jail.... I used to be able to nail this song with one take per side... this is after about 4 hours worth of frustration...

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/8290798/god%20damnit.mp3

I'm fucking pissed.

Ouch. The heavy rhythm stuff really does require constant maintenance. My experience says that's the first thing to start slipping.

For me the downpicking went first. Being forced to alternate pick stuff that you used to downpick is the worst; anyone who says they sound the same is either lying or has awful tone and can't tell. Hell, if I was doing transcriptions I'd include the upstroke and downstroke marks from my classical string playing days.

Listen to Pantera - Revolution is My Name.... during the main riff he does all down strokes, but on the verse riff/pre-chorus riffs he alternate picks. There is a pretty big difference.


My down-picking came right back after a few warm up hours, but my alternate picking is totally fucked and it's not gotten noticeably better since I recorded this. I've always had weird alternate picking limitations, though. Anything below say 130 bpm is slop city (16ths of course)... whereas anything above there up to about 200 bpm is/was at least decently tight. I haven't figured out if that's a technique problem or a brain problem, though.

I'm familiar with the song, actually well enough to know what you're referencing. Having grown up on old-school thrash, I never alternate-pick chuggy stuff unless necessary for sheer speed. I get worn out fast now though. It's just a skill I don't use much now.

What's your right-hand (assuming you're right-handed) technique like? My friend I play bass for when we have a metal band going is all wrist action, total economy of motion. Actually, no, scratch that, for speedy stuff it's thumb and forefinger. Blows my mind to watch. We'd done metal before with both of us on guitars, and I am brute force forearm Zakk Wylde type to watch with the 3mm pick and the vintage-y pickups and giant strings, precious little gain and plenty o' hate. I'm pretty friggin' sloppy with the alternate stuff on chord work too unless it's so damn fast it doesn't matter. Might just be all the years of downpicked chugging. I don't know.

All wrist but I wouldn't call it economy at all... most of the economic pickers are gentle, I break a top E string once or twice a month. If I can physically do downstrokes at a speed, I do them. I tend to hold the pick at a slight angle to the strings.