Cynic

Here we have a Paul Masvidal inspired example which starts off with a nice melodic arpeggio that is a hybrid between an E minor and an Eb diminished triad. Sweeping technique is used in conjunction with slides and hammer on’s, so memorise it very slowly and try to get as smooth a tone as possible. Keep the pick angle straight and pick over the front pick up.  In bar 3, there is a very cool cascading arpeggio sequence, again learn it beat by beat, building up recognition in small amounts.

In bar 5, lock in to the triplet feel by accenting the pick every three notes and dig in to get the resolving pinch harmonic, with three tone wide downwards vibratos. In bar 7, the picking hand taps the high note with the second finger, allowing the pick to stay ready for the next phrase. In bar 8, economy picking is used to execute the arpeggio line. This solo contains all the techniques used in modern rock and is a great study in using them all in conjunction to get a colourful and distinctive style. Break the solo down into the various key elements and practice in isolation before building back up together.

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