By the Pain I see in Others picking question

[Brave.Archangel]

ok this is about the fast little acoustic hook that occurs 1:20 in. Can anyone tell me the picking pattern. Alternate picking seems impossible so I was thinking more along the lines of down down up up down down up down down up down down up down up down.. sorry for noob guitar questions...

its also like that part 3:14 in Demon of the fall after the chorus. Is that all alternate or does he do two downstrokes in a row going down the strings?

 

[Goodyear]

What?! Someone is actually talking about Opeth material that isn't named Watershed? Blasphemy!

Oh, I don't have an answer to your post. Sorry.

 

[Lothlorien]

just watch lamentations and follow how mikael picks it. theres a part where he and martin and jamming to that part.

 

[Annihilat0r]

I use economy picking, so here's how I do it:

down-down-down-up-up-down-down-up-down-down-up-down-down-up-down-up

respectively for strings

e-a-d-a-e-a-d-e-a-d-e-a-d-a-d-a

 

[Brave.Archangel]

thanks

btw
what is economy picking?

 

[Annihilat0r]

In normal alternate picking; for example when you pick one string DOWN, if the next note is a string below the string you plucked, you'd still have to pick that string UP, wasting energy and time. This is what most everybody (including Akerfeldt) does.

In economy picking, in the same scenario as above, you'd first pick the first string DOWN, and then with that same motion of your hand pick the (thinner) string below for another DOWN. Like sweep picking. This saves you time and energy, although it takes time to learn to time how to.

If you started on full alternate picking and learnt that, I discourage you from trying to learn economy picking. Nearly everyone does alternate picking, anyway.

 

[Dante's Inferno]

Basically the alternate you suggest for alternative picking. Kinda like sweep picking (which, I guess, is a type of economy picking). It means that you when go down a string, you pick down, and the same for upwards.

So, if you're picking three notes per string and going up the strings, it would be like this: DUD, DUD, DUD, DUD, etc. Alternative picking would just be DUD, UDU, DUD, UDU, etc.

You get it?

EDIT: Annihilat0r beat me to it.

 

[Brave.Archangel]

discuss more! better than all the other shit threads going around

 

[Frosties]

Wow, I can't imagine switching to economy picking. Thanks for the explanation.

 

[grandis]

As mentioned above, I wouldn't recommend changing from alternate (or whatever you are used to) to economy. First of all it feels unatural (atleast for me) and you also have to "plan" how you are going to start.

For instance, you are picking the same string 3 times, and then you are going up one string afterwards. The natural thing for one used to alternate would be D-U-D then move your hand up to the next string, and another D. But to get the economy effect you have to start by plucking U, so it will be U-D-U-U.

Hopefully that made sense

 

[Dante's Inferno]

I can't really do economy picking unless I sweep (which I suck at). It's just so more natural for me to use alternate picking (despite the occasional inside picking).

 

[Annihilat0r]

For instance, you are picking the same string 3 times, and then you are going up one string afterwards. The natural thing for one used to alternate would be D-U-D then move your hand up to the next string, and another D. But to get the economy effect you have to start by plucking U, so it will be U-D-U-U.

Hopefully that made sense

Nope, that's not right (at least for me). In such a scenario I could simply go D-U-D-U.

In alternate picking, you're not obliged to do a sweep picking motion every time you change the string you are plucking. It's just a special case to be applied when your last hand motion while plucking the first string could be a little extended to hit the next string also.

Economy's complete definition: If you go up a string, you do an UP motion to hit that string; and if you go down you do a DOWN motion to hit that string.

 

[Dante's Inferno]

Don't you confuse "alternate" with "economy" in the last paragraph? If not, you are contradicting yourself.

 

[Brave.Archangel]

I actually taught myself "economy picking"... when you go down ... you pick down, and when you go up, you pick up... i'm gradually learning that hinders a lot of interludes especially in opeth. I've been trying to change all those DDDDUUU into DUDUDUD etc... but its so complicated mathematically.. you have to plan out everything. But anyways back to the BTPISIO part... How is it played?

 

[Annihilat0r]

Don't you confuse "alternate" with "economy" in the last paragraph? If not, you are contradicting yourself.

Yes, of course. I meant "economy".

Brave Archangel: Which Opeth pieces can't you play with Alternate? I think I've played most Opeth stuff, and %95 of them is pretty easy.

 

[Dante's Inferno]

*checks out tab*

  D D U D D D U D D U D D U D U D
|---------------------------------|
|---------------------------------|
|---------------------------------|
|-----1-------1-----1-----1---1---|
|---0---0---0-----0-----0---0---0-|
|-4-------2*----4-----2-----------|

* occasionally U

Haven't really played that riff before, but that's how it came out naturally for me when picking at that speed. There's no "right way" to do it, only what you feel is comfortable.

 

[Annihilat0r]

Here's how I do it:

  D D D U U D D U D D U D D D U D
|---------------------------------|
|---------------------------------|
|---------------------------------|
|-----1-------1-----1-----1---1---|
|---0---0---0-----0-----0---0---0-|
|-4-------2*----4-----2-----------|