Troy analyzes Tommo plagiarizing Paul Gilbert riffs - with Tabs

Show and Tell
#1

Edit: We got tabs for it now :slight_smile:

I’ve been working on a variety of things behind the scenes, including setting up a proper filming setup and trying to come up with etudes to master the art of “Technical Difficulties Picking” (TD in short).

TD is difficult because:

  1. The 16th-note pedal tone riff involves a mix of DSX and USX picking, with a single note on a string (i.e. a DBX pickstroke) at the turning points
  2. It involves the rhythmic challenge of combining 16th notes and sextuplets at 130bpm
  3. The sextuplet runs (when done with alternate picking) require “mixed escapes” picking at a pretty fast pace (equivalent to 195bpm 16th notes)
  4. The TD riff has quite tricky fretting hand shapes, involving stretches and finger barring

This first etude addresses the challenges 1 and 2: I simplified a bit the sextuplet runs to make them fully DSX-compatible. In this way, I can focus solely on trying to keep the rhythms tight. The second part of the etude is instead a blatant Scarified ripoff :smiley:

In this recent IG post by Troy we look in particular at the mix of USX and DSX required for the 16th-note pedal tone riff, hope you’ll enjoy:

Since I can’t resist double tracking everything, here is also a bonus 2-guitar version recorded with my more amateurish filming setup:

Fun fact about red light syndrome: it took me about 1 hour and 4 takes total to write, practice and record the “amateurish filming version”. When we decided to turn this into a “proper” CTC clip, and after setting up all the professional filming gear, I had to do something like 10 takes to get a decent one. And none of them was as good as my earlier 4 “easygoing” takes! Don’t get me wrong, the take is good, and it has basically no mistakes. But I feel like the quality of my rhythm and phrasing is still not where it should be.

So here’s my homework for the future: do more proper filming to get better at it!

PS: the similarity to “Painkiller” by Judas Priest was not intentional. In fact I discovered that song just after writing this :slight_smile:

5 Likes
#2

Nice one :slight_smile: Will there be backing track and tabs for this?

1 Like
#3

Great job tommo

I like the tone here, sounds fat, really nice attack

1 Like
#4

Thanks both :slight_smile:

If we end up making an actual lesson for this, sure, there will be! For now I’ll attach here drum machine, bass and guitar tracks if you want to play with them. It’s all very homemade at this stage :slight_smile: I can also included the DI (AKA “the truth!”)

Thank you very mucho! But it’s all fake man :rofl: I’m using an amp simulator called “Audiority Solidus Randy 250”. It’s really awesome, can easily pass for a “real” amp.

2 Likes
#5

would love to get a tab on this haha be fun to practice

1 Like
#6

oh man, I don’t know if Troy has the same experience as I do, but I find the more I film myself over time, the more takes I wind up doing. For something like this, ten takes seems breezy!

This is what my phone’s camera roll always looks like:

IMG_0460977DD6DC-1
IMG_0460977DD6DC-1750×1334 999 KB

I can think of several instagram posts that were probably less than 20 seconds long, in some cases even less than 10, that I took like 90 minutes to record!

3 Likes
#7

Thank you for this. The only thing I can’t figure out is the Scarified type section, I keep trying :sweat_smile:

1 Like
#8

Glad I’m not alone… although I’d be even… gladder(?) if neither of us had to go through this and get it in 2-3 takes :smiley:

2 Likes
#9

I think we all know that you are gonna come up with a better & faster version of this in less than 24hrs :rofl: :rofl:

Hint: asend the F# minor scale, descend with E6 arpeggio :slight_smile:

1 Like
#10

It’s just all relative to standards and expectations I guess. Even on something simple I get really bothered if a dynamic is a little off on one note, or I get a little click/buzz in a place that really detracts.

Interestingly, with short clips, each note counts for a lot more.

When I first started posting stuff on instagram I was less intense about this issue, and that was good to just get me over the hump rather than never sharing anything at all. Over time I just got less accepting. “If you can’t get the take you love, love the take you got”

This has been a useful therapy session for me, thanks, will venmo $175.

3 Likes
#11

Okay, got it :smiley: I’ll spend some time on this in the evening and see where I get.

1 Like
#12

Tabs added in the opening post :slight_smile:

2 Likes
Gabrielthorn progress thread