Which mechanic to play this line? Tab included

Playing Technique
#1

Hey guys,
I picked my guitar back up after some months and tried to learn a solo from my teenage years. I just can’t get this line clean though (never could). Especially the single note with the question mark above seems to throw me off.
How would you play it?

10
101166×276 27.2 KB

I’m a natural upward pickslanter and can’t really make it work (without audible swiping). If it would be all UWPS, no problem. If I understood Troy’s pickslanting primer correctly though, this line would be a case for TWPS, but it kinda seems pretty hard to switch the slant that rapidly for that single note to stay in the thinking of [last note upstroke → DWPS] [last note downstroke → UWPS].

Can you help me out with some ideas? Just keep practicing with the mechanic indicated in the image or is there another trick I don’t know about (not including throwing in a hammer on or pull off)? :slight_smile:

By the way, it’s the intro solo of Deadnight Warrior from Children of Bodom’s debut album.

1 Like
#2

How confident are you that that fingering is correct on the tab?

I’m not familiar with the solo or much about Alexi’s playing, but if you started that on the 7th fret on the D string and then moved up to the G on the 4th note, and then ascended along the G string until the 15th fret on the B, it looks like you could probably get that down to a single escaped upstroke, which would be a lot cleaner for you.

2 Likes
#3

I’m an upward pick slanter as well. I play more economy style, so I would sweep through the string changes and when you get to the note in question, slide down on the G string. So, 14 16 14 sl \ 12 14 16 change strings 13 15 17 19 change strings 15 17 19. That would make the picking even on the G and B strings allowing for an escape going to the E string. My guess is that Alexi is a downward pick slanter like yngwie, who is his biggest influence.

1 Like
#4

@Drew
Thanks for your interest! I got the tab from the CoB-forums and although the guy transcribing most songs there is pretty reliable, I remember I checked some live videos so that I could at least tell if the basic region on the neck is correct:


This specific line starts at 01:04, but I obviously don’t expect you to dive right in.

I checked your fingering an see the potential there (besides some much needed training sessions in horizontal playing on one string). There’s another possibility which would allow for UWPS exclusively:

25
251010×248 21.7 KB

I would still be interested how a TWPS-player would approach the fingering in the original post. The note with a question mark - would you just play it with an escaped downstroke to continue with DWPS? Something like that:

07
071280×272 25.8 KB

1 Like
#5

I posted just before your follow up, but came to the same conclusion, slide down on the G and four notes on the B string. That should flow right through with those changes.

To play it as you have originally, it would be more of an Eric Johnson approach, sweep the 17 into the 14 on the a downstroke and continue on.

1 Like
#6

Yeah that looks better - honestly, a lot about how the original is notated just feels weird to me. If I was to just go at it and hack away, I think I’d still re-finger it a bit, moving the G on the D string to the G 12th fret, which feels a little more natural as a two-way lick.

#7

Yes, that’s kinda the solution I came up with, too (see the other post). Nice to see someone else suggesting it, meaning it can’t be that far off. The sliding on the b-string was bothering me though and on top of that I think it sounds a bit different (the original sounds kinda like a typical three-note-per-string-lick).

#8

Ok, you guys made me reconsider my decision to try to stick to the first fingering. The slide still kills my hand synchronisation, but nothing too bad compared to string switching problems, as we all know.

#9

The sound of the live clip that you posted would suggest three note per string on the last three strings, sweep picked like Yng or Joe Stump. He played the lick a little sloppy, so it sounds like the first part in triplets, a flub, then that quick brrrpppppp up the scale. Again, most likely he is playing the lick with economy picking, on the record, he would probably play the 14 16 (down from a sweep, up, pull off) down pick the 17th on the D, sweep to the 15th and sweep the next string changes as well.