By the way, Blackened uses a really cool technique called string skipping, and that’s just one of the many techniques I’ll share with you below.

In this post, I’m going to walk you through five metal guitar techniques that will take your riffs and rhythm playing to the next level.

Sure, power chords and palm muting are the foundation of heavy metal guitar (and pretty much every sub-genre of metal). But if you want to go beyond the basics and create more captivating riffs and write your own killer riffs, this post is for you.

Next Level Metal Guitar Techniques: Video Lesson

Oh, and these are the same concepts I teach in my free Metal Riffs & Licks guide and inside the Jason Stallworth Guitar Academy (get my free stuff first!).

1. Hammer-Ons and Pull-Offs for Metal Riffs

Hammer-ons and pull-offs are often associated with guitar solos, but they can also add a whole new dimension to your metal rhythm playing. Using them in riffs can give your rhythms more character and add a new dynamic.

Hammer-Ons

A hammer-on happens when you pick one note and then immediately “hammer” another finger onto a higher fret without picking again.

Example:

• Pick the 7th fret on the D string with your index finger.
• Then “hammer” your middle finger onto the 8th fret. No picking, just pressing down.
• That new note rings out from the force of your finger.

You picked once, but you got two notes.

Pull-Offs

A pull-off is the opposite. You pick a note and then release your finger in a way that makes the lower note sound.

Example:

• Start with the same 7th fret on the D string (index finger).
• Hammer-on to the 8th fret (middle finger).
• Now pull off your middle finger so the 7th fret note rings out again.

In this case, you picked once, but you heard three notes: 7th fret → 8th fret → back to 7th fret.

Expanding the Idea

Once you’re comfortable, try moving the pattern to different frets. For instance:

• Pick the 5th fret on the D string (index finger).
• Hammer-on to the 7th fret (ring finger).
• Pull-off back to the 5th fret.

Now you’re creating small licks that can be dropped into riffs anywhere across the fretboard.

Making It Sound Like a Riff

Here’s a cool way to make hammer-ons and pull-offs sound more like a riff and less like an exercise:

• Palm mute the open A string twice.
• Play your hammer-on/pull-off lick.
• Palm mute the open A string twice again.
• Repeat.

You can even take it a step further: on the D string 7th fret, hammer to the 8th fret, pull off back to 7th, then pull off again to let the open D string ring out. Combine that with your palm-muted A string, and you’ll instantly have a riff with attitude.

Don’t limit yourself to just these examples. Move this concept around the fretboard, mix it with palm muting, and see what riffs you come up with.

2. String Skipping for Creative Riffs

String skipping is a simple concept, but it can completely change the way your riffs sound. Instead of always playing notes that are right next to each other, you skip over a string to reach a note further away. This opens up new sounds and textures you won’t get from standard power chords or clustered single-note riffs.

There are two examples of string skipping below, both equally cool to add to your rhythm playing.

Example 1: Single-Note String Skipping

Let’s start with a basic example:

• Play the 2nd fret on the A string (index finger).
• Skip over the D string.
• Play the 4th fret on the G string, then the 5th fret, then back to the 4th fret.

You’ve just skipped over an entire string (the D string). You can also apply the technique we just covered for this 3-note riff, in hammer-ons and pull-offs.

This simple move immediately opens up your ‘note library’ for riffs. And once you get faster with it, your rhythm playing takes on a whole new dimension.

Example 2: Dual-Note String-Skipping

Another way to use string skipping is by playing two notes at the same time, almost like a chord, but with a string skipped in the middle.

Try this:

• Play the 2nd fret on the A string with your index finger.
• Skip over the D string.
• Play the 4th fret on the G string with your pinky (or ring finger, if that feels better).
• Pick both strings together.

You’ll notice that if you strum across, the muted D string might ring. To prevent that, let your index finger lightly touch the D string to mute it. That way, only the A and G strings ring out cleanly.

Now take that shape and slide it up the neck:

• A string 3rd fret + G string 5th fret
• A string 5th fret + G string 7th fret
• A string 6th fret + G string 8th fret

Note: Slide from one pair of notes to the next as seen in the tabs:

What you’re really doing here is playing the root note and its higher octave. This almost sounds like you’re using an effect or octave pedal, but it’s 100% organic and straight from your hands.

Why String Skipping Works

When your riffs start to feel stale or you’re tired of cycling through the same power chords, string skipping forces you into new territory. It spreads your notes out across the fretboard and instantly gives your riffs a unique vibe.

3. Arpeggiated Chords to Break Away from Power Chords

When we think of metal riffs, we usually think of power chords, palm muting, and single-note riffs. But if you want to add a completely new dimension to your rhythm playing, try arpeggiated chords.

Arpeggiating simply means picking the notes of a chord one at a time instead of strumming them all together. This can give your riffs a darker, more atmospheric vibe, which is perfect for metal and a change in your sound.

Note: You don’t have to play or arpeggiate every note within the chord, as you’ll see in the example below.

Basic Example Using an E Minor Bar Chord

Here’s a simple way to try this out:

• Hold down an E minor bar chord.
• Instead of strumming the whole thing, pick the B string → G string → D string one note at a time.

You’re still in the full chord position, but you’re just breaking it apart into smaller pieces.

Pro tip: Add a light palm mute to each note. With distortion, this keeps things tight and avoids unwanted noise or muddiness.

Changing It Up Within the Chord

You don’t have to stick to the same notes every time. For example:

• While in the E minor bar chord, your middle finger presses the 8th fret of the B string, pinky on the 9th fret of the G string, and ring finger on the 9th fret of the D string.
• Play those three notes (B → G → D strings).
• Now lift your middle and pinky fingers while keeping the bar in place.
• This changes your B and G strings from the 8th/9th frets down to the 7th fret (barred).
• Arpeggiate those three strings again.

Going back and forth between those two shapes creates a subtle but powerful movement. It almost sounds like you’re layering two riffs in one.

Beyond Chord Shapes

You don’t have to stick with full chords or even have your hand positioned for a complete chord. For example, you can try this:

• Choose two to five notes across different strings and arpeggiate them.
• Go from high strings down to low strings (or vice versa).
• Mix and match the order for unique rhythmic effects.

Why This Works for Metal

Metal guitar often defaults to heavy chugs, single-note riffing, and ‘power’ful chords (forgive the pun). Arpeggiating breaks that mold and opens up new textures. It’s a great way to get out of a creative rut or add variety to a riff you’re writing.

If you’re stuck writing the same riffs over and over, arpeggiated chords can be the key to unlocking something fresh.

4. Tremolo Picking for Darker Styles

If you’ve listened to bands in the death metal, melodic death metal, or black metal genres, you’ve definitely heard tremolo picking. It’s one of the defining guitar techniques of darker metal styles, and it can instantly give your riffs a sinister edge.

What Is Tremolo Picking?

At its core, tremolo picking is just fast alternate picking on a single note. You’re simply picking back and forth as quickly as possible, often repeating the same note several times before moving to another.

There’s no strict rule for how many times you need to pick each note. The key is to keep the motion tight, fast, and consistent.

A Simple Tremolo Picking Riff

Here’s a riff you can try to get started:

• Begin by tremolo picking the open low E string quickly (about eight times).
• Move up the same string and tremolo pick notes on the 3rd fret, 2nd fret, and 6th fret.

Once you’ve got this down, experiment with adding more notes, form dark melodies, and see where this takes your playing.

Pro Tip: Add a Light Palm Mute

One way to keep your tremolo picking tight is to add a slight palm mute. Not a full chugging mute, but just enough to stop the notes from ringing out too much. This helps prevent muddiness, especially when playing with high gain.

You don’t have to mute, though. Sometimes letting the notes ring out adds the raw chaos, and that may be what you want for that song, or part of a song. Other times, tightening it up with palm muting sounds more aggressive. Experiment with both and see which feels best for the riff you’re creating.

Beyond One String

Once you’re comfortable, try moving your tremolo picking across strings. For example, starting on the low E, then shifting to the A string, then the D string. This adds complexity and can make your riffs sound even more intense.

Try this riff below and see how these notes form a sinister-sounding melody (then add your own flavor to it).

Why Tremolo Picking Inspires Darker Riffs

Here’s the cool part: even if you don’t usually write death metal or black metal riffs, once you start practicing tremolo picking, darker riffs tend to just happen. Something about the speed and intensity brings out that sinister character naturally.

Remember: there’s no right or wrong here. Whether you mute or not, stay on one string or move across several strings. The best riff is always the one you create. That’s how you develop your own unique style.
If you’ve watched my YouTube videos or you’re in my guitar academy, you know I’m big on this; you being you!

5. Galloping and Next-Level Galloping for Killer Metal Riffs

Galloping is one of my personal favorite metal guitar techniques. It’s fun to play, it sounds powerful, and, well, it’s just cool.

At its core, galloping is just alternate picking with a specific rhythmic pattern. Think of it as a quick three-note sequence:

• Downstroke
• Upstroke
• Downstroke

…followed by a slight pause before repeating or moving to the next note.

The best way to describe it (if you’ve never heard it on guitar) is to imagine the sound of horses galloping: one-two-three, pause … one-two-three, pause. Or, as I like to say: It’s like demon bulls coming after you.

Getting Started with Galloping

A great way to practice this is on the open low E string with palm muting:

• Play: down → up → down → pause.
• Repeat: one-two-three, pause … one-two-three, pause.

Once you get that down, try these variations:

1. Gallop with Pre-Notes: Add two palm-muted downstrokes before the gallop. (Down, down, then down, up, down, pause).
2. Gallop with Post-Notes: Add two palm-muted downstrokes after the gallop. (Down, up, down, pause, then down, down).

These simple variations will prepare you for more advanced galloping.

Next-Level Galloping: Changing Notes Mid-Gallop

Here’s where things get really interesting. Instead of keeping all three strokes on the same fret, you change the note in the middle of the gallop.

Example:

• Start on the 6th fret of the low E string.
• Play: downstroke (6th fret), upstroke (6th fret).
• Then switch the final downstroke to the 5th fret.

So your gallop becomes 6–6–5 instead of staying on one note.

This creates an insanely fast, sounding riff. It’s only a split-second, but it makes your riff come alive.

Putting It Into a Riff

Here’s a riff idea you can practice:

• Gallop: 6–6–5 (pinky on 6th fret, ring finger on 5th).
• Then: 3rd fret → 5th fret → 3rd fret → open E → 2nd fret → 3rd fret → finish with an E power chord.

This way, you’re not just practicing galloping in isolation. You’re applying it in the context of a real riff, which is how you’ll actually use it when writing songs.

Why Galloping Works

Galloping has been used across many metal subgenres (especially thrash metal), and for good reason. It creates momentum, power, and aggression that keep a riff driving forward with power.

And once you start experimenting with next-level galloping, where you change notes mid-pattern, your riffs will sound more advanced and captivating.

Don’t just practice galloping as an exercise. Start using it in riffs you write. That’s where this technique really shines.

Putting It All Together

These five metal guitar techniques can definitely take your rhythm playing to the next level. But more important than simply playing faster riffs or mastering new skills is this: developing your own style.

Sometimes that style may mean aggressive thrash riffs with insane downstrokes or next-level galloping. Other times it might mean slowing things down into a heavy, doom-like chug. It doesn’t matter what direction you go. What matters is that it’s true to you.

At the end of the day, your riffs should reflect the feelings and emotions inside you. That’s what makes your playing authentic.

I’ve said this before, and I’ll say it again: the most important thing you can do is create your own style of guitar playing. Not someone else’s style. Not someone else’s sound.

That said, techniques like the ones we covered in this post (and in the video above) are powerful tools to have in your back pocket. They give you more creative options and prevent you from being limited in what you can write and play.

So use these techniques, experiment with them, and let them fuel your creativity. Most of all, let them inspire you to keep writing riffs that are yours.

Keep it Metal,

Jason

If you’re ready to take these techniques further, grab my FREE Metal Riffs & Licks guide. It’s packed with riffs, tabs, and videos to help you keep leveling up.
Get Metal Riffs and Licks FREE

And if you already have the guide and want to go deeper, check out the Jason Stallworth Guitar Academy, where I’ve got full courses and monthly lessons waiting for you to help you continue progressing and developing your own style.
Learn more about the Jason Stallworth Guitar Academy

The post 5 Metal Guitar Techniques to Take Your Riffs to the Next Level appeared first on Jason Stallworth.

That said, this post is your quick-start guide to learning how to read guitar tabs – specifically for playing metal riffs. Once you understand these basics, you’ll be able to read and play almost any metal guitar rhythm or riff you come across.

Prefer to learn by watching? Here’s the full lesson in video form

Want riffs with tabs and backing tracks? Grab my free Metal Riffs & Licks guide.

What Are Guitar Tabs?

Tabs (short for tablature) are a simple way of writing music for guitar without needing to read traditional music notation. And it’s a much faster way to show exactly what’s being played on guitar.

Here are the basics of reading guitar tabs:

• The six lines represent the six strings on your guitar
• The numbers tell you what frets to play

So, instead of this (traditional music notation):

You get this (guitar tabs):

The Basics of Reading Metal Guitar Tabs

Now, let’s dive deeper into the basics and how that translates tabs to what to play on guitar. After that, we’ll expand and apply them to some actual metal riffs.

Six Lines of Tabs = Six Strings on Guitar

As you can see below, each line represents a string. And the easiest way to remember where to start is that the lowest line represents the lowest string, your low E string. From there, you just go up through the rest of the strings from the low E, A, D, G, B, and the high E.

Here’s what that looks like on your guitar. Simple. Easy.

What the Numbers Mean

The numbers you see on those lines represent frets that you will play. In the example below, there is a ‘2’ and ‘3’ on the lowest line, followed by a ‘2’ on the line above, then you go in reverse with the ‘3’ and ‘2’ played on the first line again.

On guitar, you’ll play:

• Frets 2 then 3 on the Low E string
• 2nd fret on the A string
• Frets 3 then 2 on the low E string

Let’s go over another riff example, but this time, we won’t start on the low E string. Here are the tabs for the next riff:

On guitar, you’ll play:

• Frets 5, 4, and 2 on the D string
• Frets 3 and 2 on the A string

Open Strings (The “0”)

Oftentimes, especially with metal tabs, you’ll come across a ‘0,’ which means you’ll play that string open. Let’s go back to the first riff above and add a ‘0.’

What you’ve seen so far is the beginning of playing single-note metal riffs. Now you’re starting to see how this works and how easy it is to read guitar tabs.

Numbers Stacked Vertically (Power Chords in Tabs)

Another thing you’ll see a lot in metal guitar tabs is two numbers stacked on top of one another. When the numbers are stacked vertically, it means you play them together. This is how power chords (the backbone of metal) are written.

Here’s an example of a power chord progression:

This progression of power chords is: E, F, G, B, B flat.

Below is a visual reference of a G power chord (E string = 3rd fret with A string = 5th fret):

Common Metal Guitar Tab Symbols

Now that you know the basics for reading tabs, there are a few symbols you’ll likely come across for metal guitar rhythms and riffs. In this section, I’ll cover:

• Palm muting
• Hammer Ons and Pull Offs
• Slides

Palm Muting (PM)

In some tabs, you may see ‘PM’ written above a riff. This will usually be on the very top of the tabs, above the first line, and will pertain to the numbers (notes) under the ‘PM.’

That means palm mute the notes for that classic metal chugging sound. In the example below, you’ll palm mute that open E string.

In cases like this, where you’re palm muting the same note consecutively, you may see ‘PM’ followed by dashes, as seen above.

Hammer-Ons and Pull-Offs

Curved lines connecting notes mean hammer-ons or pull-offs. An ‘h’ or ‘p’ may also appear above the notes. Here’s a riff example with a hammer-on/pull-off on the A string at the end.

You can see the curved line starts on the 7th fret of the A string. That note is picked. The 8th fret is for the hammer-on, followed by pulling off of that fret, which will make the original note (7th fret) resonate.

You can also see the ‘h’ and ‘p’ at the top, where the hammer-on and pull-off are applied. This is also known as legato picking. Playing notes without picking those notes.

Slides

A straight diagonal line means sliding from one fret to another. This is also a technique you’ll hear often in metal riffs and see in tablature.

This riff below has you sliding from the 7th to the 10th fret on the A string. So, you’ll pick that note on the 7th fret and slide your finger to the 10th.

This is a cool technique to use when you want to add something different to your riff – it can really make the riff come alive. And know you’ll know what to do when you see this symbol in the tabs.

More Symbols for Techniques and Timing

There are many more symbols for techniques like string bending and vibrato (mainly seen in tabs for guitar solos), legato, harmonics, and several others for guitar. Not all tabs will have these additional symbols, but some may.

There is also the timing of notes like whole, half, quarter, 8th, 16th notes, and so forth. I’ll dive deeper into this in another post and video. Right now, I encourage you to focus on using what you’ve learned here to learn your favorite riffs.

The intent of this post was to help you build your foundation in learning metal guitar tabs without overwhelming you. The idea is to get you playing some riffs, not overthinking.

Always Trust Your Ears

As I mentioned in the beginning, always trust your ears. Tabs are helpful, but they’re not always accurate. I started playing guitar in 1989, and I can’t tell you how many times the tabs in those old guitar magazines (that’s how we learned back then!) were a little off.

That’s why it’s so important to build the skill of listening and figuring riffs out on your own. In fact, I often encourage you to try doing that first – before looking at any tabs.

Yes, use tabs. But don’t let them hold you back if you don’t have them. You want to be able to listen and pick out the majority of the notes you hear.

Combine ear training with tabs, and you become an unstoppable metal guitarist (the word ‘unstoppable‘ came to me from Joe Satriani’s album ‘Unstoppable Momentum‘).

Next Steps for Metal Guitar Players

Tabs are just the beginning. Once you’re comfortable reading them, you’ll be ready to dive into full riffs, licks, and songs.

Want riffs with tabs and backing tracks? Grab my free Metal Riffs & Licks guide.
Ready to go deeper? Join the Jason Stallworth Guitar Academy for full courses, lessons, tabs, and tracks.

Keep it Metal,

Jason

The post How to Read Metal Guitar Tabs (Beginner’s Guide for Riffs, Power Chords & Palm Muting) appeared first on Jason Stallworth.

In fact, I’ve gone through this several times throughout my music career. But the good news is I’ve found some things that will really help you get over that musical hump and become a better metal guitar player.

Much of what you’ll learn starts in your mind, so we’re going to nail that part first…

1 – Get Your (Metal) Head in the Right Place

Playing metal guitar can be challenging so you need to be zoned in on what you’re doing. Seriously, at that time, nothing else matters (yes, that was a Metallica pun – there will be more song puns, so pay attention!).

You need to be focused, and that requires you to have your head in the right place when you’re playing guitar.

There are going to be 2 parts to this.

1. When you pick up your guitar, put away your phone! Don’t be jamming out only to stop every 30 seconds to check how many people liked your latest post on Facebook and Instagram.
   
   Seriously, I see this same thing happen in the gym every day; someone hogging up the bench with their face in their phones half the time! Not cool!
   
2. Clear your mind of any negativity before you pick up your guitar. If you’re having one of those days or something is going on in your life, like drama or whatever, take a few minutes to meditate and or do some deep breathing.
   
   I know what you’re thinking. If you’re upset you can harness those emotions into your music. That’s fine, I get it; however…
   
   You don’t want is to start your guitar practice session with a negative mindset because that can carry over into your performance and playing. And you will be focused on that ‘thing’ rather than playing your guitar.

Here are some additional tips to get in the right headspace and mindset before picking up your guitar:

• Meditate for a few minutes right before practice
• Do some deep breathing or Yoga before you play guitar
• Read, watch, or listen to something that motivates you and makes you feel like you’re ‘Standing on Top of the World.’

Video: How to Become a Better Metal Guitarist

You can watch the video version of this post below on YouTube. I do encourage you to continue reading the post as well.

Now, this is going to flow right into the next tip….

2 – Schedule Focused Guitar Practice Sessions

Us musicians aren’t big fans of schedules and structure. That messes with our creative process and we just want to be free spirits, like fairy dusted dragons that just glide over the horizon.

Here’s the reality: If you do not schedule your guitar practice times you will more than likely not practice, or at least not as often. And you will be cheating yourself out of becoming a better metal musician.

It’s that simple. If you’re serious about becoming a better metal guitar player, you have to make practicing guitar a priority.

Next, you want to make sure your guitar practice sessions have a focus. If you just sit down a start playing guitar without a clear plan, your practice time isn’t going to be as valuable.

Sample Focused Guitar Practice Schedule

As you can see, we went even deeper. Not only are you scheduling your guitar practice times but you’re also listing what specific guitar techniques you want to work on.

You don’t want to just noodle around and playing random stuff on your guitar. Sure, there’s a time and place for that but this isn’t it.

You’ll also notice that you are practicing the same techniques throughout the week.

This is because consistency and repetition are crucial to becoming a better metal guitar player.

Oh, and you can take it to the next level and schedule these times on your phone or electronic calendar. And don’t forget to create reminders!

You have to treat your practice time like you would a job (unless you don’t show up half the time at your job, which if that’s the case you probably won’t be working there much longer…now do you get my point?).

This is especially true if you plan to do more than just play guitar in your bedroom.

3 – Don’t Just Learn Other People’s Songs

One of the first things we all did when we started playing the guitar was to learn our favorite metal songs. In fact, this was a huge reason why many of us started playing in the first place. However…

I may catch some crap for this section, but hear me out. I’ll start with my own personal journey, which yours may be a similar one…

I’ll never forget hearing Metallica for the first time. I immediately took the $20 I made from the last yard I mowed and bought the And Justice for All and Master of Puppets cassettes!

**Cassettes: These are ancient devices from an alien world that no longer exist (actually, cassettes are sort of making a comeback like vinyl!)

I wanted to learn how to play every song on those albums! I’m sure you had a similar experience. But at the end of the day, you’re just playing a song that someone else wrote instead of your own.

If you really want to become a better metal guitarist you need to practice writing your own riffs.

I’m not saying don’t learn your favorite metal songs. It’s actually great to learn these tunes.

What I’m saying is Don’t Stop Believ…aah, another song pun! I meant don’t stop there!

Use these songs that you’re learning to form metal riff ideas of your own! I show you how to do this is the video below…

Again, learning other band’s songs is a great place to start. And of course, if you’re in a cover band, it’s a necessity.

However, if all you play is other people’s music you’re not going to become the best guitar player that you can possibly be. You need to write your own riffs!

Now, the next tip is going to tie in very closely with what we just discussed…

4 – Get Out of Your Comfort Zone

One of the things us metal guitarists often guilty of is we tend to hang around in our comfort zone. And that’s typically playing the heaviest notes possible, most of the time.

Look, I get it. We’re metalheads! So it has to be heavy, right?

The problem with that is you really box yourself into a tiny little space and neglect other areas of the fretboard. Hey, those other frets need love too!

The solution is simple…

Make a conscious effort to start expanding on those riffs you play all the time. Heck, you can even add your own notes to other people’s songs (like we talked about earlier!).

Here’s a video lesson to show you some ways you can expand your guitar playing.

And though this lesson is primarily for metal rhythms, you can apply this same philosophy to your leads…

Another method that will help you get out of your comfort zone is to just pick a common riff that you play a lot and play that same riff in a different place on your fretboard.

For example, you can play it an octave higher. Or you can place it in a completely different place (in a different key). This will help you expand.

It’s also not a bad idea to play different styles of music. Yes, I get it…we’re metal guitarists.

But learning other styles can help you go deeper in developing your own signature style.

Heck, I even played in church for the first 15 years or so of playing guitar. Although today’s churches play more modern styles the one I grew up in was extremely old fashioned.

That meant most of the songs were not guitar-friendly (lot of E flats, A flats, and B flats which meant bar chords and playing frets we normally don’t play for us guitarists).

But this was a ‘blessing’ as it gave me more knowledge of the fretboard.

5 – Freestyle Riffs and Licks to Other Music

Do you want to know the one thing that helped me the most in my guitar playing (especially playing solos)? Making up stuff that goes with other songs! Or if you want to call if ‘freestyling riffs and licks!’

So what do I mean by freestyle guitar playing? In my early years, I would either turn on the radio or put in a cassette and I would play along with the songs.

But here’s the caveat. I wouldn’t actually play the songs as they’re being played. I would make up my own solos and play along. And sometimes I would do the same with single-note riffs lower on the neck.

Now, the radio was better because rarely would a song in the same key be played back to back. So this forced me to learn the fretboard even more!

So here’s what you can do…

• Create a playlist of songs from different bands and artists
• Put it on random play
• Start making up your own solos and riffs

This is truly a powerful method for guitar players because it also helps you develop the ability to play by ear.

Make sure that the levels are balanced. In other words, you don’t want your guitar blasting so loud that you can’t hear the music (then you won’t be able to tell when you’re hitting wrong notes!).

Likewise, make sure the music doesn’t overpower your guitar…for the same reason!

*This may sound like it contradicts the structured practice sessions we went over earlier. But freestyle guitar playing is in addition to your practice sessions.

If you’re limited on time you could do your structured practices during the weekend and freestyle play on the weekends.

6 – Lift Weights and Eat Well

You may be wondering what working out and eating healthy has to do with becoming a better guitar player. Well, it has everything to do with it!

This actually ties back to the first tip for becoming a better metal guitar player. It all starts with your mindset.

If you’re taking care of your health and building a strong body, you’re going to feel better. You’re also going to have more energy, physically and mentally to perform better and practice more.

If your health is ‘poop‘ then you’re going to feel drained and uninspired all the time.

Now, this doesn’t mean you have to become bodybuilder or powerlifter and live in the gym, although that’s awesome if you want to push yourself to that level.

But (in my ‘strong’ opinion), you do need to do some type of resistance training and obviously don’t eat like crap all of the time.

I’m actually going to give you a simple plan to follow below…

Your Workout

• Monday: Back workout
• Tuesday: Leg workout
• Wednesday: Rest
• Thursday: Chest and biceps workout
• Friday: Shoulders and triceps workout
• Saturday: Rest
• Sunday: Rest

This is just an example (and somewhat of a typical bodybuilding workout). You can change this workout plan to fit your own schedule.

You may prefer to train more on the weekends and have more rest days during the week. That’s fine.

*If you want a full workout program, read my post: Heavy Metal Strength and Conditioning Workout Routine

I’ll be posting some more workouts as well, so stay ‘tuned’ for that!

Oh, and if you’re not aware I also have the Heavy Metal Workout album series on all music streaming platforms:

Heavy Metal Workout
Heavy Metal Workout II

Your Nutrition

I’m not going to dive too deep into this. For one, everyone’s different and there’s no one-size-fits-all meal plan.

Two, some people get super emotional about the diet they choose…it’s almost like a cult (no carbs, carbs, keto, plant-based, vegan, paleo, whatever-o…blah!).

My advice is to just have a sensible meal plan, and here are a few ways to do that…

• Limit processed foods
• Limit refined sugars
• Eat a decent amount of protein
• Eat some healthy fats throughout the day

If you stick to that you’ll be able to figure out the rest and what works for your body.

**I realize that this section (working out and your health) contradicts the fact that many of our Rock and Metal Gods were strung out or drunk most of the time in their early years.

But don’t be deceived by this because you can rest-assure that lifestyle did indeed impact their lives.

And if you’ve ever tried to play guitar when you’re all f’d up, well, you know how that goes and it’s not pretty.

7 – Be You (Don’t Compare Yourself to Other Guitarists)

This is a mistake I see many metal guitar players make, and I’ve been guilty of this as well. You see someone get on stage (or on YouTube) just ripping it up and down the neck.

And you may be tempted to look at other awesome guitarists and think:

“It’s not in the cards for me to ever be at that level…it’s just not attainable for me!”

Well, I’m going to stop you dead in your tracks. The first problem with that mindset is that you’re already setting yourself up for failure with self-defeating thoughts.

Secondly, the truth is no one can play their guitar exactly the way you play!

You see when you’re consistently practicing and striving to become a better metal guitar player you’re continuously developing your own signature sound.

I’ll open up a little more here. One of my weaker areas in playing guitar is sweep arpeggios. And there are some guitarists out there who are completely amazing at that.

But I always have to remind myself that I have my own signature sound and tone. And so do you. And we have to continue to feed that and grow, not only as metal guitarists but as musicians.

Become a Better Metal Guitarist Everyday

By now you’re probably itching to go pick up your guitar and play some metal! I certainly encourage you to do that!

But first, here’s a quick recap of the 7 tips to becoming a better metal guitarist…

1. Get your head in the right place
2. Schedule focused practice sessions
3. Don’t just learn other people’s songs
4. Get out of your comfort zone
5. Freestyle to other music/songs
6. Lift weights and eat well
7. Don’t compare yourself to other guitarists

I hope you enjoyed reading these tips for becoming a better metal guitar player!

Don’t forget to listen to my albums here: Jason’s Music

Keep it Metal,

Jason

The post 7 Tips on How to Become a Better Metal Guitar Player appeared first on Jason Stallworth.

In this post (and the video below), I’m going to walk you through 6 essential metal guitar techniques that every beginner needs to know.

If you’re just getting started—or if you’re coming back after months or years away—these techniques will help you build real skills and start playing heavy metal riffs that sound legit.

Now, I keep things simple. You won’t get bogged down with music theory or endless warmups. Instead, I’m going to show you the exact techniques you need to get your hands moving and your tone sounding heavy, right from day one.

And if you’re already past the beginner phase, stick around. These are also foundational metal skills that many intermediate players overlook or need to clean up, especially if you want tighter rhythms, better tone, and faster progress.

Metal Guitar for Beginners – Basic Techniques to Get Started

These 6 techniques are what I consider the core of playing metal guitar. If you lock these down, you’ll be able to start learning real songs and writing your own riffs fast. And it all starts with rhythm—that’s the heartbeat of metal.

Here’s what you’ll learn in this post:

Power chords made simple

The core of almost every heavy metal riff.

Palm muting that actually sounds heavy

Learn how to make your chugs tight and controlled (not sloppy).

Downstrokes that hit hard

From Metallica to Slayer, this is the engine behind that aggressive sound.

Metal riffing techniques

Start moving around the fretboard and build your rhythm chops.

Alternate picking

Play fast and clean—without relying on just downstrokes.

Galloping

One of the coolest (and most fun) metal techniques to learn.

We’ll keep it straightforward and practical so you can start playing metal riffs today—not weeks from now.

Watch the Lesson Below

I walk you through these 6 core techniques and simplify everything you need to know in this video below. If you’re a beginner or just getting back into guitar, this will get you playing metal riffs fast.

Click play below to get started…

Video Timestamps – 6 Metal Guitar Techniques:

• 00:46 – Easy Way to Learn Power Chords
• 03:01 – The Right Way to Palm Mute for Metal
• 04:49 – Downstrokes with Power Chords + Palm Muting
• 06:59 – How to Riff on Guitar
• 10:12 – Playing Fast Rhythms with Alternate Picking
• 14:51 – Galloping (Triplets That Sound Awesome!)

1 – Power Chords Made Easy

Power chords are the foundation of metal guitar. In fact, this is the first technique I cover in depth in my metal guitar for beginners course. More on that later.

These chords bring out the heaviness and chunk of metal riffs. Just dial back to bands like Black Sabbath—they made power chords a metal staple. (Though the first to really use them was Link Wray—known as the “Father of the Power Chord.”)

So, what is a power chord?

It’s simply a root note and the 5th. That’s it. No major or minor tonality, which is part of what gives it that heavy, neutral, powerful sound.

Let’s look at three common power chords you’ll start with:

E Power Chord (open)

• E string (6th) = open
• A string (5th) = 2nd fret

G Power Chord

• E string (6th) = 3rd fret
• A string (5th) = 5th fret

C Power Chord

• A string (5th) = 3rd fret
• D string (4th) = 5th fret

Notice how the G and C shapes are exactly the same, just moved over a string. That’s the beauty of power chords—you can move them all over the fretboard.

2 – How to Palm Mute Properly

Right after power chords, palm muting is the next essential skill for metal guitar.

It’s that chunky, chugging sound you hear in nearly every metal riff—it feels like a freight train is headed straight toward you (no, I didn’t mean to steal that line from Metallica’s “No Leaf Clover!”).

Palm muting gives your playing that tight, aggressive, controlled tone that makes riffs feel heavy. But it’s not just about slamming the strings—it’s about control.

Here’s how to palm mute the right way:

Jason’s Palm Muting Technique:

• Rest the edge of your picking hand (palm side) gently over the strings—right on top of the bridge
• Don’t press too hard—you’ll kill the note and your tuning will suffer
• Don’t mute too far up the strings—if your palm is too far off the bridge, it’ll sound too muffled and possibly out of tune

This might feel a little weird at first. You’re playing heavy riffs—but this technique actually takes a lighter touch. It’s all about balance: controlled aggression.

Ready for the next technique? Let’s dig into picking!

3 – Tips for Downstrokes

The kings of downstrokes start with the Big 4:

• Metallica
• Megadeth
• Slayer
• Anthrax

…as if I need to name all that out for you!

Of course, it doesn’t stop there. Bands like Testament, Exodus, Kreator, Overkill, and a long list of others were right there with them (I always thought Testament should have been included in the Big 4 – not gonna say who I’d knock out).

The concept of downstrokes is simple. It’s just picking downward. Where it gets complex is when you start playing faster.

My simple method for getting faster at playing downstrokes is this:

• ‘Pick’ (uh-um…choose!) a simple riff to downstroke
• Set your click track or drum machine to a moderate BPM (maybe start with 90)
• Gradually increase the BPM speed
• Each day, start with a little higher BPM speed

You can also add in more notes and challenge yourself more once you get to a comfortable point. Or just learn Megadeth’s intro to Tornado of Souls! That’s a tough downstroke song to play!

Want to Level Up Faster?

My Metal Guitar Apprentice course is the fastest way to go from beginner to confidently playing real metal riffs and solos. It’s part of my exclusive membership at the Jason Stallworth Guitar Academy.

Join the Academy Now

4 – Metal Riffing Techniques

Okay, riffing isn’t technically a beginner technique. But I’m including it here for a reason…

If you’re learning to play metal guitar, you’ve gotta get used to playing riffs early on. Riffing is a core part of metal music. And the more you play them, the faster you’ll improve.

So, what is riffing?

Think of riffing as playing single notes (not chords) in the rhythm section of the fretboard. It’s kind of like lead guitar meets rhythm guitar. You’re not just chugging power chords—you’re moving your fingers around, creating motion and melody.

Here’s a simple, easy riff example to get you started:

Once you get that down, try this:

1. Play the same pattern on your A string
2. Then connect them: play the riff on the E string, followed by the A string
3. Add more notes, experiment with patterns, and expand to other strings

Now you’re riffing!

Metal Guitarists Known for Killer Riffs:

• Chris Broderick (Act of Defiance, ex-Megadeth)
• Jeff Loomis (Arch Enemy, Nevermore)
• Dave Mustaine (Megadeth)
• Jadran “Conan” Gonzales & David Rivera (Exmortus)
• Adam Dutkiewicz & Joel Stroetzel (Killswitch Engage)

And of course, there are many more!

5 – Alternate Picking for Metal

If you master just the first four metal guitar techniques above, you’ll already be crushing it (hey… maybe we should call those the Big 4 ).

But to really build your speed and precision, alternate picking is the next technique to lock in.

What Is Alternate Picking?

It’s pretty simple:

Instead of playing every note with a downstroke, you alternate:

• 1st note = down
• 2nd note = up
• 3rd note = down
• 4th note = up
  …and so on.

This back-and-forth motion allows you to play faster, more fluidly, and with way less tension in your picking hand.

Alternate picking is your gateway to playing fast metal rhythms—the kind that sound like a freight train hitting the turbo boost.

Try This Exercise:

Take the riff I showed you earlier:

Play it 4x using only downstrokes
Play it 4x using alternate picking
Continue switching back and forth until you’re comfortable with both picking methods
Expand by adding more notes and strings

This contrast will train your hands, build control, and help you develop that clean metal tone even at faster speeds.

Metal Songs with Fast Alternate Picking

6 – Galloping on Guitar (The Fast Track to Next Level Metal Playing)

Now we’re starting to push beyond basic metal guitar techniques and into that intermediate zone. But since you’ve just tackled alternate picking, this next move is a natural step forward.

You may be asking…

“What the hell is galloping on guitar?”

Listen to the intro of “She-Wolf” from Megadeth’s Cryptic Writings album—that’s the perfect example of galloping. It’s got that driving, horse-stomping feel that makes metal feel fast and intense.

How Galloping Works

Think of galloping as playing three quick notes in a burst—like a triplet—but picked in a specific way:

• Down
• Up
• Down

That’s it! You’re essentially alternate picking in groups of three, and it sounds brutal when done right.

Many metalheads call these triplets, but I prefer “galloping” because… well, it just sounds cooler.

You’ll learn this exact technique in the video towards the beginning of this post (it starts around 14:51).

Practice Tip:

Start slow—like real slow.

• Focus on open E string gallops first
• Get the feel for that down-up-down pattern
• Then gradually speed up once it starts to lock in

It may feel weird at first, but I promise you—if you practice every day, you’ll nail this.

And when you do, you’re officially on your way to playing like legends from Iron Maiden, Megadeth, and Testament.

From Beginner to Advanced Metal Guitar

If you’re serious about getting better at metal guitar, there’s one simple but powerful truth: you’ve got to put in the reps.

Practice metal guitar, not just guitar.
If your heart is set on shredding heavy riffs and brutal palm-muted rhythms, then focus on metal from the start. You don’t need to “go learn blues first.” Metal is your foundation—and by playing it consistently, you’ll naturally pick up skills that cross over into other genres.

Consistency Beats Random Jamming

Each time you pick up your guitar, have a purpose.
Don’t just noodle around or play the same songs on autopilot. Instead, focus on 2–3 metal guitar techniques in each practice session.

For example:

• One day, dial in your palm muting and power chords
• Next, focus on alternate picking and riffing
• Another day, challenge yourself with galloping

Even 15–30 minutes of intentional practice a day will level you up fast.

Rewatch the video at the top of this post anytime—pause it, rewind it, and practice those patterns I show you.

I truly hope this post helped you get a solid start with metal guitar. And hey—if you’re ready to go deeper, check out my course Metal Guitar Apprentice over at the Jason Stallworth Guitar Academy.

Feel free to share this post with a fellow metalhead!

Ready to Go Deeper with Your Metal Guitar Playing?

If this post lit a fire under your fingers, then you’re gonna love what I’ve got for you next.

Inside the Jason Stallworth Guitar Academy (JSGA), you’ll get full access to structured video lessons, tabs, backing tracks, and new monthly content to keep your skills growing.

Whether you’re just getting started or you’re ready to level up and start ripping solos, JSGA is where you’ll develop your own unique metal style, not someone else’s.

Join the Academy Here (and get instant access to all courses)

Or start with my free guide:
Grab your copy of Metal Riffs and Licks and get video lessons + tabs:
Download It Free Here

Keep it Metal,
Jason

The post Metal Guitar for Beginners: 6 Techniques You Must Know appeared first on Jason Stallworth.

Here’s is what you will learn in this 30 day heavy metal guitar lesson series with guitar tabs in each video:

• How to play and combine different metal guitar techniques (such as galloping, alternate picking, palm muting and more!)
• A variety of metal guitar styles from the many sub-genres of metal (ex: classic metal, thrash metal, death metal, etc)
• How to expand on these lessons to write and compose your own metal riffs
• How to establish a daily guitar practice pattern and stick to it
• You WILL be a BETTER metal guitarist, musician and riff writer within these 30 days

**If you want to just watch the entire playlist on YouTube, CLICK HERE. 

Lesson 1: METAL CHOPS RIFFS

The first metal guitar lesson in the 30 Days of Metal Riffs series is called POWER CHOPS. 

Why must we call it that? Perhaps I was a wee-bit hungry and pondering on eating pork chops!

Anyway, Power Chops is a classic thrash metal style of guitar playing. The techniques you’re going to use are heavy power chords with palm muting. And you’re also going to be playing a metal riff at the end of the progression. 

The goal of learning the Power Chops metal guitar riff is to teach you how to play the simple techniques (power chords and palm muting) along with moving your fingers around the fretboard more (aka: the riff at the end). 

Go grab your guitar and check out the video for Power Chops below:

Metal Riffs 1 Video

Lesson 2: CHOP CHOP RIFFS

Lesson 2 is a more intense follow up to the first lesson in 30 Days of Metal Riffs. I’m calling it: ‘CHOP CHOP‘ (my wife tells me to ‘chop chop’ all the time!).

The focus in this metal rhythm guitar lesson is playing single notes. The purpose here is to move those fingers around the fretboard more.

You’ll also be palm muting, which is one of the core guitar techniques in metal music.

The lesson is broken down into two parts:

1. Palm muting single notes: You’re on the open E string while playing single notes between those palm mutes. 
2. Different types of power chords: You are going to learn how to play some different types of power chords at the end of the riff. This will hep you expand what you know and will also help you be more creative when playing and writing metal riffs on guitar.  

Here’s the video…

Metal Riffs 2 Video

Lesson 3: GALLOPING (RIFFS) BULLS

One of my personal favorite metal guitar techniques is often referred to as ‘galloping’ so I’m calling this lesson GALLOPING BULLS. 

**Background Note (this is totally irrelevant, btw): The name ‘galloping bulls’ spawns from this game at the Tampa Hard Rock Casino. It has these cool yet fierce looking bulls on it, and when you press the button, you can hear them galloping. It sounds like a metal song (don’t worry, I don’t have a gambling problem…I never blow more than $20!). 

Back to the lesson…this is a very fast, quick-pick (if you will) technique. ‘Galloping’ is performed by alternate picking the string, but in a triplet-style manner (I really hope that makes sense, but you’ll hear it in the video lesson below and it will then make sense!). 

If you’re new to galloping, or triplets, then I recommend that you start out by learning this lesson one small section at a time. You will get it, I promise! But this technique does take some practice if it’s new to you. 

Metal Riffs 3 Video

Lesson 4: MOVING POWER CHORDS

You’re probably asking “Dude, do power chords move by themselves?‘

No, they do not. Well, unless they’re possessed or something! If that’s not the case, then YOU must move them!

That’s what this metal guitar lesson is all about. You’re going to practice quickly moving from one power chord to another.

This is a classic metal guitar style of playing. Like palm muting, playing power chords is a skill that you must master if you want to be an accomplished metal guitarist.  

Power chords may seem simple in nature. But when you start moving power chords it can become more challenging. 

As you would expect, you’re also going to end the moving power chords with a riff. Remember, I don’t want you to just learn one simple riff each lesson. My goal is for you to be able to integrate multiple metal guitar techniques into one riff. 

Watch the video and start moving those power chords around…

Metal Riffs 4 Video

Lesson 5: DEATH THRASH METAL RIFFS

Do you like playing death metal on guitar? Do you also enjoy playing thrash metal?

You’re going to combine elements of both sub-genres of metal music with this lesson called DEATH THRASH. 

The focus with this metal guitar lesson is alternate picking. But there’s a catch. This isn’t your normal alternate picking lesson. You’re going to be picking on your guitar very fast!

With a light palm mute, you’ll alternate pick back and forth on the string while moving around from one note to another. Keep those hands in sync with one another so that your guitar playing is smooth. Even though this is a fast death metal meets thrash metal riff, you want each note to be distinguished. 

Both death metal and thrash metal bands use this technique in their music. And we add an additional dose of thrash metal guitar playing with the ending riff. 

Learn this riff by watching the video below… 

Metal Riffs 5 Video

Lesson 6: PLAYING RIFFS BETWEEN CHORDS

Lesson 6 could very well be the most important concept of playing metal guitar. It is crucial that you learn how to play RIFFS BETWEEN CHORDS.

You know that I preach this like a religion: DO NOT just play mere power chords all the time! 

I want you to throw in riffs because this is what will separate you from a dude (or dudette) who just plays guitar in their bedroom now and then, and someone who sounds like a pro when they play. 

The goal with this metal guitar lesson is for you to play a simple rhythm (in this case, a few power chords) and break it up by doing some riffing. 

Here are some places where riffs can be played between chords:

• Riffs between the verse and chorus
• Riffs to break up a long verse or long part of the same progression
• Riffs between a chorus and bridge
• Riffs going into or coming out of the guitar solo progression5
• Intro and outro riffs (going into or coming out of another rhythm)

Seriously, it’s imperative that you learn this concept. So watch the video below for more details on how to do this. And then I want you to take what you’ve learned in this guitar lesson and start adding your own notes to it. 

Metal Riffs 6 Video

Lesson 7: ARPEGGIATED RHYTHMS

What’s the first thing you think of when you hear the word arpeggios, or arpeggiated? Probably sweep arpeggios, which we associate with guitar solos.

Those are awesome, I want to share a lesson on ARPEGGIATED RHYTHMS. This lesson is different all of the rest as it’s not your standard metal guitar style of riff. 

However, learning how to arpeggiate your rhythm playing is going to do nothing but enhance your overall abilities to play metal guitar!

So what exactly are arpeggiated rhythms? 

It’s similar to playing a chord. Think of playing a regular G or C. Instead of strumming all of the notes together, you would play each note of that chord one by one. ​

Now you need to make it sound metal! How do you do that? 

By palm muting while arpeggiating the notes. There’s a touch of elegance required when playing arpeggiated riffs and rhythms. 

Want an example? Listen to the beginning of Lucretia from Megadeth (off the Rust In Peace album). 

Alright, let’s learn this arpeggiated rhythm! 

Metal Riffs 7 Video

Lesson 8: 80’s MELODIC METAL RIFFS

Remember some of those killer riffs from 80’s metal bands? That era gave us a ton of awesome guitar riffs!

This lesson is based on that style of music, so I’m calling it 80’s MELODIC PATTERN. 

You may find this to be the most intense and difficult lesson of the series simply because you’re moving those fingers around a lot more. In fact, you start riffing immediately with the intro. 

There’s a mixture of metal guitar techniques here as well, such as complex palm muting (going from one note that’s palm muted to another that’s choppy, then back to the palm muted note). You also have a progression of different types of power chords after the riffing is done. 

I called these power chords on roids!

You’re playing the root note (the first note that starts the chord). But you’re not necessarily playing a normal power chord with that second note being the 5th note. Instead, you’re experimenting with other notes for that second note. 

Playing these different types of power chords will make your song standout from every other metal song. And the pattern itself is very melodic, which is why I call it the 80’s Melodic Pattern!

So check out the video below for this 80’s style metal riff…

Metal Riffs 8 Video

Lesson 9: RIFFS WITH PULL OFFS

Ready to learn a technique that will greatly enhance your metal rhythm guitar playing? In this lesson, I’m going to teach you how to integrate PULL OFFS into metal riffs. 

Pulls off are more commonly used in guitar solos. So when you hear pull offs in a metal rhythm, it gives you that ‘Whoa, where did that come from?‘ effect. It just sounds cool. 

How do you play pull offs? Going from a low to high note on the fretboard, you hammer on that high note and roll it right off, which will land on that low note you hit the first time. This will give you that quick, snappy sound of the three fast notes being played. 

There are two parts to learning this guitar riff. The first is fairly simple and gets you used to playing the technique. You’re only playing notes on the E string. 

The second part of this metal guitar lesson has you switching back and forth between two strings. This adds more complexity to the lesson and can be challenging. 

You’ll also notice that I don’t have you just playing the pull offs on guitar. You’re playing a riff that leads into the pull-off method. 

Why do I do this?

Simple. Remember, I don’t want you to just learn techniques or one-off riffs. I want you to be able to play these riffs and techniques in a ‘real world scenario‘ as if you were playing an actual metal song. 

Watch the video and get ready to start pulling-off!

Metal Riffs 9 Video

Lesson 10: WALKDOWN METAL RIFFS

Have you ever heard the term ‘runs‘ in guitar talk? And no, I don’t mean runs as in having to poop! Sorry, I love poop jokes…

Runs are what us metal guitar players call riffs. And in the world of guitar, a type of run is a walkdown. And I call this lesson WALKING DOWN THE FRETBOARD.

A walkdown is a run (or in our case, a metal riff!) that consists to going from high to low notes. It’s simple in nature, but it certainly sounds killer when you hear them being played in your favorite metal song. 

In this guitar lesson, you don’t play the walkdown until the end of the riff. This could be the end of a verse, chorus, or what I call a transition riff to bridge two parts of the song together. 

You’ll start out with a simple metal rhythm part. This will lead into the walkdown. The reason for this is to get you used to integrating a walkdown (or any riff) as part of a song or measure. 

Check out the video below…

Metal Riffs 10 Video

Lesson 11: SINGLE NOTE METAL RHYTHMS

Have you ever heard the rhythm guitars that sound like guitar solos? That’s typically because the guitarist is playing SINGLE NOTE RHYTHMS. 

If you want a sure way to add more character and spice up your metal rhythm playing, throw in some single note rhythms. It’s what you’ll hear in a lot of the progressive rock and metal songs (naturally with single notes, you can add more complexity). 

Technically, these are just riffs. The core difference is single note rhythms are often played long. For example, an entire part of the song, like a verse or bridge, could be based on single note rhythms.

In this lesson, you’re going to get accustomed to playing these types of riffs on a single note. There are two parts to this guitar riff, and the second is just slightly different. 

Oh, I forgot to mention…you’re also performing another technique by doing a slide. I’m not sure why I threw this in but it sounded cool at the time, so here we are!

Metal Riffs 11 Video

Lesson 12: PROG THRASH RIFF

Ok, let me know if I screwed up the name of this lesson. I called it PROG THRASH because you’re mixing the progressive metal and thrash metal styles of guitar together.

Similar to Lesson 11 you just learned, this riff starts out with single notes. There’s a lot of finger movement and also a chromatic riff hidden in there. This is what gives it that prog feel (in my opinion).  

The second half of the riff has more of a thrash metal feel to it. You bring in the palm muting and as you would hear in Metallica or Megadeth songs.

These two styles combined, prog and thrash, can be very powerful. And playing these types of metal riffs will make you sound like a true guitar pro. 

Metal Riffs 12 Video

Lesson 13: ALTERNATE PICKING NOTES

I pulled this riff from one of my own songs called ‘Skull Crusher’ from my Heavy Metal Workout album (the first one). And I’m going to teach you this technique from it with ALTERNATE PICKING NOTES.

This isn’t your typical alternate picking guitar lesson. As you will see (uh…or hear, rather) in the video, there’s a particular rhythmic pattern going on here. 

In this metal guitar riff lesson, you’re not just alternate picking on one string. Instead, you’re going back and forth between two strings. This adds a level of difficulty to most, especially if you’re used to playing standard metal riffs.

Here’s how playing alternate picked notes is done:

• Downstroke the first note (in this case, the open E string) while lightly palm muting that note
• Upstroke the next note, which is on the next string (A string, 2nd fret)

Notice the rhythm pattern, as I mentioned above. It’s a swinging or swaying feel. Like a trees blowing in the wind (oh dude, that sounded so cheesy). Anyway, you get it…

Metal Riffs 13 Video

Lesson 14: COOL CHORDS AND HANGING NOTES

In this lesson, I’m going to show you some various ways you can play power chords. On top of that, we’re gonna ‘hang around‘ together on the some of the notes (pun explained: we’ll hang on some of the notes). I know…it’s even worse when you tell a bad pun and then explain it. 

I’m calling this lesson COOL CHORDS AND HANGING NOTES! There’s a lot going on here, so hang tight and get ready to learn some cool metal rhythms on guitar.

Let’s start with the different types of power chords you’re playing here. The concept is simple. Rather than playing the typical root note with the 5th note, you’re just doing something unique with that second note. In this case, it’s the 3rd note for the first chord (C power chord). 

The following power chord is almost like working out because you’re doing a stretch. You’re also playing across three strings for this one. Make sure those notes are all pronounced and not muffled.

Lastly, you’re playing a metal riff that has those hanging notes. Another term for this is milking the notes. I didn’t want to use that term because I start thinking about cows being milked. Although I do like chocolate milk!

Check out the video below…

Metal Riffs 14 Video

Lesson 15: HAMMER ONS PULL OFFS

If you recall a few lessons back you learned how to incorporate pull offs into your metal guitar rhythms. In this lesson, you’ll learn how to play both HAMMER ONS AND PULL OFFS. 

Essentially, hammer ons and pull offs are always played together. In lesson 9 you learned pull offs. I didn’t mentioned hammer ons because I wanted your focus on the technique rather than technicalities of terms, of that makes sense (I know…sometimes I even confuse me!). 

We’re bringing hammers ons into the terminology of this riff because I want you to focus on the concept of hammer ons and pull offs being one. Kinda like us Metal Heads. We are one!

The bulk of this metal riff is based on learning the technique. But I always encourage you to add more to all of my lessons. For example, you could throw in some power chords before and after this riff to expand on it. 

Metal Riffs 15 Video

Lesson 16: HARMONIZING RIFFS

Alright, this is a special lesson. You’re not only going to learn a metal riff. I’m going to teach you HARMONIZING RIFFS. 

Think of some of your favorite metal songs where you hear the rhythm guitars harmonizing with one another. Bands like Iron Maiden and Judas Priest are famous for this. 

You may be thinking that you need another guitar player to do this with. Maybe so. But you can at least learn the notes the harmonizes with the core notes, and that’s what you’re going to learn in this metal guitar riff lesson.

First, I show you the core riff. These are all single notes (as you’ve learned in an earlier lessons). 

Next, I teach you how to play the harmony notes. In this case, you’ll be playing the 3rd note to every core note. 

The result? An extremely killer guitar sound! 

Metal Riffs 16 Video

Lesson 17: METAL ON ACOUSTIC

What??? You’re playing METAL ON ACOUSTIC?

Yes! And if you have an acoustic guitar, go grab it. And get ready to learn how to play this metal riff on acoustic.  

The riff itself is what you may call a stock metal riff (Oh man, don’t say that too loud…did you see Metallica’s ‘Some Kind of Monster’ when James tells Lars his drum beat sounded like a stock beat? That’s didn’t go over too well!). 

Anyway, the point I’m making is this lesson isn’t so much about the riff. It’s more about strengthening your fingers by playing metal riffs on acoustic. 

This is the only lesson in our 30 Days of Metal Riffs series that you’ll break out your acoustic.

But I do encourage you to practice, in general, on your acoustic a few times a week. Or at least one a week.

Why?

Well, do this test on yourself. Play this riff (or any riffs) on acoustic for a few minutes. Then go pick up your electric guitar. Your fingers will be flying all over the place and it will feel easier! 

Metal Riffs 17 Video

Lesson 18: METAL RIFFING TRIPLETS

Ready for some METAL RIFFING TRIPLETS? 

You’re probably thinking ‘Yes Jason, but WTH are riffing triplets?‘ 

First, it’s a cool name I came up with for this lesson. More importantly, it’s based on the galloping metal riff technique you learned in the beginning of the 30 Days of Metal Riffs series.

Let’s explain triplets. This is a note that is picked three times, extremely fast. It’s very snappy, as you can hear in the video. The technique is similar to playing tennis or ping ping…it’s all in the wrist. 

Now, the reason I add the term ‘riffing’ is because you’re not just playing these triplets in one place. You’re playing the triplets while you’re riffing. 

This means you’re moving your fingers across the fretboard while playing this technique.

Check out the video below…

Metal Riffs 18 Video

Lesson 19: SPEED DEMON METAL RIFFS

I know what you’re thinking. The name of this riff sounds killer and you’re ready to learn it! SPEED DEMON!

I love hearing these types of riffs in my metal. In fact, there’s a breakdown in a song called ‘Mission: Terminate‘ from my first album, Apocalyptic Dreams. It’s very similar to what you’re learning in this lesson.

The goal is to alternate pick power chords on higher notes (we’re playing these chords on the D and G strings as opposed to the heavier strings). This riff is sort of a Dokken meets Queensryche style of playing, only much faster. 

The fast alternate picking is accompanies by some light palm muting. This makes the sound much tighter and gives it more of an edge. 

Next, you’re playing some different types of power chords (as we’ve gone over in prior lessons). Using this technique gives the riff more aggression. 

When playing this riff, think of it as if you’re attacking those strings. Not necessarily playing harder, but adopt that aggressive mindset when playing this particular riff. Sounds weird but you’ll hear this in your playing! 

Metal Riffs 19 Video

Lesson 20: CLASSIC METAL RIFF

In this lesson, we’re going to dial it back to some of the founding fathers of metal and learn a CLASSIC METAL RIFF.

It’s always a good thing to go back to the basics of metal guitar and what defines metal guitar. That’s the focus of learning this riff.

This metal guitar riff is filled with the three things that define metal music:

1. Riffs
2. Palm muting
3. Power chords

You’ll be incorporating much of all three of these techniques…

Metal Riffs 20 Video

Lesson 21: DEATH METAL RIFFS (BASIC)

You’re about to go to the next level of heaviness in this metal guitar lesson. It’s time to learn some DEATH METAL riffs. 

The culprit of playing death metal on guitar is fast alternate picking. You’re basically speed picking on the lower notes for these rhythms. 

This lesson is an introduction to death metal. There’s not a ton of finger movement on the fretboard. Rather, it’s designed to help you master the art of fast alternate picking for your rhythm playing.

Go grab your guitar and get ready to play fast! 

Metal Riffs 21 Video

Lesson 22: ADVANCED DEATH METAL

This is a follow up from the previous lesson but we’re going to turn it up a notch with this ADVANCED DEATH METAL riff. 

You just learned the dynamics of fast alternate picking for playing death metal on guitar. You’re going to implement that even more in this lesson.

Not only will you be moving around more on the fretboard. You’re also going to be performing this technique on more than one string. This is the part many will struggle with, so I encourage you to practice this riff over and over. 

You’ll end the riff by changing up your picking pattern with some fast downstrokes that land on a power chord. This is the perfect death metal exercise to get you acquainted with playing multiple techniques. 

Metal Riffs 22 Video

Lesson 23: RIFFS WITH WICKED BENDS

In this WICKED BENDS lesson you are going to learn how to play what is referred as bendy heavy metal guitar or guitar bending.

Bends are often reserved for guitar solos. But as you’ve learned in other lessons in this 30 Days of Metal Riffs series, you can implement these types of techniques into your rhythms to add more flavor and character to your metal riffs.  

The bend that’s happening in the vide in bending the note to reach the next note. The two guitar bends are:

1. 9th to 10th fret on the D string
2. 7th to 8th fret on the A string

If you’re not used to playing bends, especially in your rhythms, then take your time and make sure the bend sounds right (aka: bending to the correct note!). 

Metal Riffs 23 Video

Lesson 24: F# RHYTHM (METAL RIFF)

Have you ever been listening to a metal album and notice that track 7 sounds like track 4, and track 4 is very similar to track 1? 

Much of that is due to every song started with the same note, or in the same key. 

I get it…it’s metal. So we want to play the heaviest notes available to us. But we need to realize that it’s ok if we start a song or two on the album in a different key. And that’s what you’re going to learn in this lesson. A metal RHYTHM IN F#. 

Instead of starting out the riff in E Minor (since that’s the heaviest note in standard tuning), you’re going to start this rhythm in F#. 

The riff is similar to Ozzy’s ‘Crazy Train.’  The notes will be different, of course. But it’s the same concept with starting on the 2nd fret and also playing that 4th and 5th fret on the next string. 

After the riff in F#, you’ll play a series of single notes, which are in that key. The goal here is to subtly use some different notes that what you may be used to play. This will help diversify your guitar playing abilities. 

Metal Riffs 24 Video

Lesson 25: OUTRO METAL RIFF

One of the most forgotten parts of a song is the song ending. The OUTRO. 

The outro is a crucial part of any metal song. You need a strong ending because that’s the last thing people will hear from that song and it could very well determine whether they listen to it again. So the outro should be strong.

This outro you’re going to learn is metal to the core. You’ll be palm muting and doing a lot of riffing.

Pay close attention to how it’s played in the video…

Metal Riffs 25 Video

Lesson 26: INTRO METAL RIFF

You’ve just learned a killer outro; now it’s time to learn the other part of this crucial element to metal music. The INTRO. 

Intros are one of the coolest things about metal music. Many times metal bands will play a long intro that builds into the first verse.

This is also a time to display some awesome musicianship and win over the listener. If you’re captivated by the intro, you’re likely to hear the rest of the song differently and your brain is already predisposed to this being an awesome experience. 

There’s a lot of choppy riffs in this intro. And in the very beginning, you’ll notice there are some stops. This adds another dimension to your rhythm playing. 

Ready for the intro? 

Metal Riffs 26 Video

Lesson 27: SLOW TO FAST

Now it’s time to learn how to start out with a slow metal riff and go into playing a faster one. I don’t mean tempo change (the BPM is the same…I’m way too lazy to change that in mid-song). But the rhythm in the beginning to basically less notes going into more notes. Hopefully that makes sense!

In this SLOW TO FAST metal rhythm, you’re going to be playing the expected palm muting but also some open notes. That’s something we haven’t done a lot of. 

The purpose of this lesson is to get you used to making changes in your playing. It can be a challenge going from playing less notes to playing more notes (which involves faster finger movement on the fretboard). 

One suggestion I’ll make if you have a studio or any type of drum software is this:

• Take a loop that is played in half time (slower paced)
• Then add a loop after that played in full time (faster paced)

Just mimic what you hear in the video below. That will help you with timing. 

Metal Riffs 27 Video

Lesson 28: BAD ASS RIFF

I didn’t know what else to call this so I just named it BAD ASS METAL RIFF. Perhaps I was a bit inspired by a recent visit to a winery in upstate NY called Pompous Ass Winery! 

We can get away with the name of the because it’s a pure and unadulterated metal guitar riff. 

Learning this riff allows you to practice the core components of metal guitar. Though there’s a couple tricky parts. 

You’ll notice between the first two power chords after the palm muting, you have a very quick palm muted note before hitting that second chord. This takes a fast right-hand (or pick hand) downstroke technique. 

You’ll finish out the riff multiple notes that palm muted on and off. In the video you’ll hear that distinction. 

Metal Riffs 28 Video

Lesson 29: STRING SKIPPING

Here’s something we haven’t covered yet. STRING SKIPPING. But this isn’t your normal string skipping guitar lesson.

If you recall several lessons ago you learned a metal riff that had you alternate picking between two strings. The same concept applies here but there’s a twist.

You’re not going to play the next string over. Instead, you’re going to be skipping that string. 

This may add a greater level of difficulty, but stick with it, practice and you’ll eventually get it down.

Playing this riff has that swinging effect, as you’ll hear in the video below. Mimic that rhythm when playing this string skipping riff. 

Metal Riffs 29 Video

Lesson 30: METALLICA’ISH RIFF

Most know that Metallica is one of the reasons why I started playing guitar back in 1990 (if you want to know more about that, click on the ‘About’ section of this site).

So it’s not by chance that I’m giving you a METALLICA’ISH RIFF to learn. Actually, you’re going to learn three riffs in this exercise.

Now, I say ‘Metallica’ish‘ because these aren’t actual Metallica riffs. They’re riffs that very similar to theirs. So without me saying anymore, see if you can pick out the three songs that these riffs sound like.

Metal Riffs 30 Video

BONUS Lesson: FULL METAL SONG

Just when you thought it was over, there’s a bonus! Now you’re going to learn how to play a FULL METAL SONG!

When I say full song, I’m referring to every component that makes up a metal song. I’ll break it down below…

• Intro – This is the beginning of the metal song that builds into the next part.
• Verse – After the intro, you start playing a riff that could be a verse (think of some cool metal lyrics in the background while playing this riff). 
• Bridge – This part could also be the guitar solo section. Or you could have vocals here as well. Either way, it has a slightly different feel from the rest of the song.
• Chorus – The intent with this part of the riff was to be big enough to accompany some metal vocals for a chorus line. 
• Outro – The grand finale and ending to this metal song

There you have it, all the components for a full metal song. Of course you can add more pieces to this. In fact, once you learn these metal guitar riffs, I encourage you to make changes or add more notes! 

Bonus Lesson Video

What’s Next?

I hope you enjoyed my 30 Days of Metal Riffs series!

Here’s the thing…don’t just learn what I’m teaching you. Take it to the next level. Here’s what I want you to do…

• Learn the lessons by going through them 1-by-1
• Go back through each lesson again, but add 2-3 more notes to each riff!
• Now experiment playing these riffs in different places on the fretboard

Doing this will make you a GRAND MASTER at playing and writing metal rhythm guitar parts! 

If you have questions, you can leave a comment below, or you can click on the video and leave a comment on the YouTube video.  

Keep it Metal,

Jason

The post 30 Days of Metal Riffs: Metal Rhythm Guitar Lessons appeared first on Jason Stallworth.