Shred 101

How to begin your life as a shameless shredder

I would say that the most important aspect to being a better shredder is to accept a few of the realities. The truly gifted shredders are patient methodical people. Take a look at a few of thier videos. For example, when you see Frank Gamble, Paul Gilbert, Tony McAlpine or Steve Vai speak, they are very reasonable and calm people. They never have a ciggarette hanging out of thier mouth like Slash or Eddie Van Halen. You never see the guitar slung down to their knees. These guys are technicians, and exactness is really their forte.

Now, don’t get me wrong, Slash and Van Halen are both phenomenal guitarists and I like their playing alot. But they are both examples of guys with more of a “Go for it” approach to guitar. They do their own thing, and for them, it worked out very well, and of course, the cigarette is a cool touch.

At first I used to think shredding was a nearly un-attainable skill, possible only for those who seemed to possess some magical talent. But over time I have come to realize that the real shredders are simply guys who not only happen to be excellent guitarists, but they are also very methodical in their approach to playing.

I once heard an expression about speed (with respect to guitar) that really made sense to me. It was something like “A really fast guitar lick or run is simply a very slow guitar lick or run executed much faster than when played slowly.” Of course this is not exactly the deepest statement on earth, but the amazing thing is that in my opinion, 99% of guitar players really do miss that point. They play way too fast when they practice, and they tense up when they play fast.

With all that said, I would recommend the following steps to better shredding:

1. Find a great teacher in your area who is a great shredder, and commit to regular lessons. If that is not possible, invest in a few instructional DVDs by one of the masters. I recommend Frank Gambale, Paul Gilbert, or John Pattatucci… just to name a few.

2. If you don’t have a metronome, buy one tomorrow

3. Make the commitment in your mind that this will be all about practicing painfully slow and to a metronome at first, and never bumping up the metronome until you can play something flawlessly.