How to Play Extreme Metal Guitar

Yes, the guys from Metallica cut their hair and stopped writing complex music, but metal is not dead. In bars and lounges all across our great nation, power-guitar fiends are still cranking out ever more extreme styles of metal guitar. Doing extreme metal is all about creating songs in an inventive way, and for truly original guitarists, the tricks of their trade will be their meal ticket. Here are some ways to get the metal amped up for your band.

Difficulty: Challenging

Instructions

1. Do the effects to death. Yeah, a lot of bands use a distortion metal cranked up about halfway. For truly over the top metal sounds, you'll need to build on that with effects and pedals that really meld the sound into something almost atonally heavy. Don't be afraid to lose musicality by running your guitar through a series of effects. The result will be a sonic invention.

2. Use repeating notes. A lot of metal musicians rely on quick repetition more than fancy scale work. For solos, of course, that's not usually the case, but for a basic song structure, you'll want to focus more on keeping the line going than experimenting with notes.

3. Find metal rhythms. Again, the metal guitar is generally more of a rhythm instrument, especially for live shows. Concert goers want a driven performance with a reliable, frenetic backbeat and an almost mechanical guitar style. Experiment to find your own rhythms in collaboration with the drummer and bassist.

4. Utilize power chords. These popular metal riffs are really called "diads," they consist of playing two strings at a familiar distance like a chromatic 1 and 5. Get good at them, and you can do metal chord progressions easily.

5. Practice consistency. A riff that might be awe-inspiring if done consistently can fizzle if the crowd perceives you're just making it up as you go. Try to find your groove and stick with it to sound professional.