WELL FOUGHT SOLDIER!!! I notice you are doing a lot of articulation using just your finger and thumb and it's great to see!! This is something that some folks just fight and fight and fight. It seems you have fought and are winning this battle. Super congrats there. Also, your technique continues to be very solid and you are even using your PINKY!!!! Soldier, this is the type of Mission Vid! I like to see!

Let's Debrief!


MEDALS OF HONOR
1.)Planted palm mute and using your fingers to control the pick. Nice!

2.)Very precise control over your String Traverse. Traverse is just plain difficult for many a Soldier. Traverse of course, just talking about moving from one string to another. Once you get this, soooooo many other things fall in to place and you got a really good handle on it Soldier!!

3.)Even handed timing and synch. Not rushing or dragging, just right.

In short, you are showing great finger control and pick control and very good right/left hand synchronization. This is exactly what I like to see. Soldier you just...


LEVELED UP!!!!
IN ADDITION, YOU JUST MADE IT TO THE TRIPLE CHEVRON BADGE!! CONGRATS!!!

Here we go, Lesson 27!

Well Fought Yet Again Soldier!! You have come a LONG way and it's great to see!! This Mission makes use of the dreaded PINKY and involves a bit of a Streeeetch as a bonus. I wanted to say very well done on using Economic picking (two down strokes when ascending from B to high E), or at least it looks like that's whats happening This Mission, like all of them, has it's challenges and you have clearly got a very good handle on tough bits involved. On to the debrief!!


MEDALS OF HONOR
1.)Planted palm mute! Easy to get string noise when traversing, good to see you muting well!

2.)Tight right/left synch on the hands. If your hand synch drifts even a pinch, drills like this will let you know. Especially when played to a metronome. If you don't play with precision, it will jump out at you. You played with a very high degree of precision here.

3.)Smooth Traverse and Fret Transition. Being able to traverse frets and strings while making everything sound like it's being played on one string that's moving under your hand instead of your hand moving, is the goal and you nailed it

In short, you are showing great finger control and pick control and very good right/left hand synchronization. This is exactly what I like to see. Soldier you just...

LEVELED UP!!!!

Lesson 28! I'm working on the Pink Floyd challenge too. I had a lot of fun on the Rammstein collab, so I think I'm going to try to do more of my own small writing challenges to try to improve in that area too.

NICE!! This is a very technical bit of playing and you NAILED IT per usual. Your finger dexterity and pick articulation are coming along very nicely. Keep this up and you will be the TERMINATOR!

Let's debrief!

You ticked off every box I look for on this one Soldier!!

MEDALS OF HONOR

1.)Finger Traverse: With skill and grace, you traverse like a champ!

2.)Very good muting resulting in clean tone without string noise. KEY to playing a bit like this. Without good muting, it's a mess.

3.)Picking articulation is some of the best from you I've seen: AWESOME!

E.G. KRUSHED IT! and..

LEVELED UP!!!!

Oh man, I can only hope. I am really feeling good about my playing right now, like I am actually getting better FINALLY. I still need some more speed. After listening to my Pink Floyd Sunday Shred fest, it has my classic problem of now variety in tempo. The very end I throw in a quicker lick, but slow <-> fast, quiet <-> loud, those are the ranges to explore to make your music interesting. Very excited with my progress lately, maybe just because I'm extending myself in the collabs and sunday shred. That said, here's Lesson 29!

GREAT WORK SOLDIER!!! I've been very impressed with how fast you are getting better!!! I"m glad you can see it in your playing as well The BOOTCAMP is a great way to get better quick!!! IT's only part of the puzzle of course, but once you have this part moving, the other parts start falling in place. Sorta like learning one language makes it a bit easier to learn others, learning one aspect of guitar (Precision/shredding/syncopation/synchrony) can aid in learning other aspects. It's contrasting between these various bits, as you mentioned, that gives a player "dynamics" and allows him/her to create their own "Style". To wit!!!

This look far too easy for you Soldier!! I want you to dive in to BLACK OPS!! Give me a quick video of DOUBLE PICKING on just the first part of the MISSION. Just the first lick. I"ve seen folks have their noggin blow up just trying to multi pick this lick, but you can do it!!!

SARGE

Here we go, double picking at 110bpm

NICE!!! Still making it look easy, even at speed!!! No point in delaying this any more, you are ready for what's next. Let's debrief!!


I keep setting them up and you keep knocking em down!! I like the fight in you Soldier!! You are really on a roll. Keep it up!!!

MEDALS OF HONOR

1.)Clean muting/picking. Doing a great job managing the string noise that is very hard to escape in licks like these! Nice!

2.)Very smooth timing. It's often the case that these licks get rushed, dragged, but not by you!!

3.)DOUBLE PICKING! Very well done on the double picking here. You don't lose your mute, you don't start rushing or dragging, solid as a rock.

You are well prepped for the uphill climb before you soldier!!!


You are on a roll Soldier!! In short, you just...

LEVELED UP!!!!

After a ton of back and forth with Fender and Line 6, I have ALL my gear back. So, after a short hiatus, I am back to practicing again. Hope your back is feeling better, here's Lesson 30 to keep you occupied

Welcome Back Soldier!!! Glad to hear your kit is back to fighting shape as well! It's hard to fight without your Gun! Keep her clean and loaded at all times. On to the debrief!


MEDALS OF HONOR

1.)SYNCH! Your right/left hand synchronization is spot on Soldier. This workout, like most, will help show you if there are any gaps hiding from view. The good news is I don't see any!!!

2.)Technique: Your right hand is well planted to prevent unwanted string noise, and it's doing a good deal of the muting. This is something else that stumps many players as they often rely on right hand muting which results in not being able to play certain licks without generating string noise. Most of these licks are designed to make wads of string noise if you play them wrong. But you play them just right!!

3.)Steady Hand: Your picking is very clean and even. That's one of the hardest of all. This is VERY important and you've got a really good handle on it. Like I always say, you gotta learn to play like a robot if you wanna shred like a God!!!

You've ticked every box I want ticked for this mission Soldier! Stick a fork in it! It's done!!

In short you just....

LEVELED UP!!!!

Lesson 31 ready to go Sarge! I don't like how my fingers are flapping in the wind on the 3rd part, but it's really tough to keep them close to the fretboard. My RG760 in this video got a new neck pickup this week, going from the Dimarzio Pro Track (mini-humbucker) to a Dimarzio Injector noiseless single-coil. It lets me get a lot more range out of one guitar and sets it a bit more apart from my other ones

Congrats on your upgrade! The single coils are the one weak spot imho on many of my fave ibby's. I've often wanted a pup like you are installing with a coil tap so that I could use it as a humbucker and single coil, depending. However, the burden of being a bit of an Ibby purist has so far restrained me from modifying my golden era ibby's but never say never! I find I have to dig much deeper/harder than I like when using the stock singles.

For now, let's talk about your Mission!

This mission requires quite a bit of picking precision that makes you find picking direction and then keep it clean. Then I add a stretch in to things. This is one lesson on which many warriors have stumbled, but not you! Let's debrief...


MEDALS OF HONOR

1.)Precise and clean picking, even with a stretch.
2.)Very tight and controlled, right/left hand synch.
3.)Very good muting and noise control with the right hand

I know this Mission is not easy. But it's worth it!! You have demonstrated impressive ability and are ready for what awaits!


Congrats Soldier, you just ...

LEVELED UP!!

Now it gets a bit complicated. But you are ready!!

Sarge

It feels like forever since I posted a video. Xmas & New Years were slammed with family, then I got pneumonia. I'm almost better and wanted to post a take for Lesson 32.

WELL FOUGHT SOLDIER!!!!

This lesson has a wad of different techniques that have to be all tied together in order to play all of these various licks. I gotta say you really killed it!! It's a great example of putting everything we've done so far to very good use and all in very tight synch and well paced.


Let's DEBRIEF!!!

MEDAL OF HONOR
1.)TIGHT right and left hand synchronization!

2.)PLANTED right hand for a solid mute.

3.)PRECISION picking with very good pacing.

Ticked every single box I was looking for and did so with grace and apparent ease!!!! You are more than ready to move forward Soldier!!!!

In other words Soldier, you just...

LEVELED UP!!!!




This post has been edited by Todd Simpson: Jan 22 2017, 08:40 AM

Lesson 33 here! I got sick... again... so these lessons are slow coming, but I'm still working. Daycare produces some of the nastiest viruses known to man. I'll also be gone for a week in Feb to take of my mom after her back surgery. It's been a tough month around here, but I'm still practicing as much as I can. I want to be good soooo bad.

The hammer-on part wasn't too bad, but the alt picking was more challenging. Less so because of the picking, but I tried really hard to focus on palm muting the first note and playing the second two open. I took more time to improve the hand synch, but I think I got precise if not especially fast.

BINGO!!!! Soldier!!! This makes me enormously proud to see. You are doing an "Alternate Mute" (like alt picking but with muting) without even being asked to do it. Being able to "Alt Mute" as you are doing, is the culmination of the muting strategy that we have been working on since Lesson 1. Some players,...scratch that....MOST players that I've seen play, struggle with this type of advanced mute. Many rely on the left hand for muting the high strings until they play their last. Not you Soldier. You have crossed over the River of Blood. Congratulations

MEDALS OF HONOR

1.)ALT MUTING!!! Great to see you adopting this technique and doing it well!

2.)Keeping Symch While Alt Muting!!! Even better

3.)Smooth Traverse while Alt Muting!!!! Best yet

In other words, you just

LEVELED UP!!!!!




On a personal note, I'm very sorry to hear you have hit a rough patch Great to see you finding the time to practice despite hitting said patch. Believe me, rough patches are plentiful, they are not a reason to skip practice. In fact, I find practicing often helps me stay calm during the really rough bits. I wish your Mom the best with her Sugery! She is lucky to have a good son to look after her

Onward!!

Sarge




This post has been edited by Todd Simpson: Feb 2 2017, 04:23 AM

Thanks Todd! I needed that. Things have been rough, having kids is hard. It'll get better, playing my guitar has been very nice when I've been able to.

I can only imagine. I'm glad that you have found refuge in music I certainly have, my entire life. I also found solace in practice which made things easier I found the repetition soothing. I"m a pinch on the Autism (aspergers) scale, which may explain why repeats are calming. Evidenly "aspies" find calm in repetition The repeat becomes a kind of mantra, like Buddhists use in chanting, to get out of ones own head.

Onward Soldier!

Sarge

Lesson 34 - This one I was surprisingly able to go faster than expected. I don't really know how, with the big stretch, but this one wasn't too bad for me.