FEW PLAYERS CAN CLAIM TO MATCH the rhythm guitar chops of James Hetfield. Famed for his breakneck alternate-picking speed, flawless palm muting and, above all, his wrist-cramping down picking stamina, the Metallica front man has inspired a generation of hard rock and metal guitarists. What’s all the more impressive is his ability to do all this while singing! Try to play and sing any heavy/fast Metallica song, such as “Master of Puppets” and you’ll discover the meaning of tightness and coordination.
Hetfield’s rhythm style, in terms of playing and writing riffs, is legendary in the metal world. Following his example will help you develop a metronomic riffing style and picking accuracy, one which is also combined with a looseness that will help you not just in playing metal, but other styles as well.
Back in 2009, during one of Metallica’s many stadium tours, we had the opportunity to sit down and enjoy a vitamin drink with Mr. Hetfield as he revealed how he developed his awe-inspiring rhythm skills. Below are the results, plus two Hetfield-inspired riffs (with tab and audio), none of which has ever appeared in GW till now.
When did you get interested in becoming a musician?
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Bu hikaye Guitar World dergisinin June 2023 sayısından alınmıştır.
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Already a subscriber? Giriş Yap
Caparison Dellinger-JSM V2
WAY BACK IN the dark ages (a.k.a. the Eighties), there were two distinct types of guitar shredders who occupied opposite sides of the spectrum: the hard rock player whose weapon of choice was a super Strat versus the country picker who inevitably opted for a Telecaster.
The Ultimate Guitar Shop
Christie’s Jeff Beck Auction offers a revealing look at numerous iconic instruments from the legendary guitarist’s entire career from the Yardbirds to Johnny Depp
Blown Away
Jeff Beck's landmark Blow by Blow dramatically transformed the future for instrumental electric guitar music. Fifty years later, it still remains an inspirational force
TAKE NO PRISONERS
In this exclusive excerpt from Dreaming Japanese, Marty Friedman's new autobiography (co-written by frequent GW contributor Jon Wiederhorn), the ace guitarist details his auditions with Ozzy, Megadeth and - what's this about Madonna?
MAGNIFICENT
Tearing up the blueprint with an octave G string, Johnny Marr's new seven-string Martin signature model is a distillation of all the British icon's most rebellious opinions on acoustic (and yes, there's also a six-string version)
Xotic XSS Super S-Style electric guitar
AS FUNNY AS this sounds, when a brand sends me a new guitar model outfitted with only one pickup, I say to myself, “That’s bold.” Releasing a spartan guitar like the Xotic XSS Super S-Style seems like such a throwback to a time when a guy with the initials EVH changed the entire guitar-world landscape by playing guitar with a solitary humbucker and making every guitarist around the globe realize that might be all we need.
IF GUITAR GOD IS A WOMAN
With renewed confidence and a slew of new guitar-forward songs, Larkin Poe's Rebecca and Megan Lovell are upping the ante of their blues-rock sound once again on seventh album Bloom
TC Electronic Plethora X1 TonePrint Loader
JUDGING BY THE abundance of effects that the TC Electronic Plethora X1 TonePrint Loader makes available to guitarists, it is obvious that TC knows what it means to have a plethora. Just the same, if having too much of a good thing brings you joy, then TC Electronic's Plethora will bring much delight with its many desirable and stellar-sounding effects - each offering a wealth of options.
1950-69, 1986-PRESENT FENDER ESQUIRE
IT’S PRETTY DAMN cool that the very first commercially produced solidbody electric guitar, the Fender Esquire, can still kick serious butt today; you can’t say that about too many 75-year-olds. Many guitarists often forget that the Esquire came before the Telecaster and that a two-pickup version of the Esquire, which came a few months after the single-pickup version, was essentially the first Broadcaster/Nocaster/ Telecaster. But here I’m just going to focus on the single-pickup version.
Tallon Electric "The Noise"
UNLESS YOU’VE BEEN living under a rock, you’ll know that collaborative pedals between artists and manufacturers are all the rage now.
