I need a goal in guitar playing, aka "cool hard songs to play"

[pikachu69]

A little OT but... I have just learnt all of Red Hot Chili Peppers 'Blood Sugar Sex Magic' on bass. I am having a one off gig doing a RHCP tribute act and we are playing the album. Should be fun.

 

[tarbh666]

I am still tackling the Obscura Cosmogenesis tab book. So crazy shit going on in there. Years ago, it was Dream Theater's Images and words I used to jam to. Some cool stuff in there it's just the insane speed that Petrucci shreds at. Cowboys from Hell is another cool album to learn, Dimebag touched every aspect of hard rock/metal/shred on that album.

 

[LeSedna]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sLPXAcAsLgo

Good riffs, awesome song.. but most important the solo is so tasteful and fun to play !

FUUUUU yeah I remember I was learning this song 2 or 3 years ago. Same as Tornado of Souls and Skin O My Teeth and... LUCRETIA ! I have to get back to those songs ! Lucretia is one of the most epic songs ever and the solo is fucking tasty !


2:18

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[nialldoran]

first few challenging songs i remember having a blast learning were mostly of Deaths sound of perserverance, namely bite the pain, love playin that song so much.

i remember thinking i was badass back in the day nailing dimmu songs from death cult when it just came out, especially the riff in "allehelgens dod i helveds rike" fuckin loved that opening riff

 

[John_C]

I might get some flack for this but:

Learn the whole of metallica the black album. Learn it so you can play it properly, not just each note in the right place at the right time. Yeah it's technically a piece of piss but that's not the point.

If you want something insanely challenging to work towards, Steve Vai - Freak Show Excess. Not only will it push you to the very limits of what's possible on the guitar but it'll teach you about eastern European melodies, harmony and rhythms.

To put this in context: On a good day I can play quite a bit of freak show excess (not the really hard bits obviously), but i don't think I've ever properly nailed "don't tread on me"

 

[LeSedna]

I'm actually learning Lucretia right now. I think it will be my first one. I may post DIs the day I nail the whole song properly and clean

 

[Virgil.]

I'm actually learning Lucretia right now. I think it will be my first one. I may post DIs the day I nail the whole song properly and clean

Do it! That would be sick.

 

[LeSedna]

I've been working on this song for a few hours today. It doesn't sound that technical, but it really is not easy to play. Just the pre-solo is not easy to learn.

 

[AllanD]

Learn the whole Hatebreeder album by Children of Bodom. A lot of speed picking, some of the sweeps/solos might not be playable, but take 'em slow and you'll build up the speed naturally.

 

[butlersdog]

Try to set up your goals on how to learn guitar playing, like going from the basic of it. In that way, playing those hard songs can be easy to you. Also, practice the whole part of the song in order to really pull it off and not let you screw up big time in the long run.

 

[Chryst Krispies]

METROPOLIS Part 1

 

[Paulie!]

If I was going for Colors I'd go with Prequel to the Sequel.. some awesome sweeps going on in that song.

I'll agree big time with the Steve Vai 30hour workout, that's a pretty intense practice regiment.. I'm still trying to find enough time to get into it...

(I mean it's basically a ten hour workout over 3 sessions, but with my schedule I'd have to break it down to maybe 2-3 hours over 2 weeks...)

-P

 

[P-E]

METROPOLIS Part 1

Was about to mention this one, good call.

 

[Wohma]

Probably not the genre you're looking for, but if you're looking for a challenge... And it's fun! (not that I could play it I just listen)

 

[Jind]

While I do toss some song or portion of song into each practice session, my primary goal these days is to become as competent as I can as an improvisor. I can play most things given the time to work it through (I do have speed limitations that I'm sure I could work on more, but I do work on speed as well in most practice sessions), but I have been spending the majority of my practice time working over jam tracks, just improving over various chord changes, working on both phrasing and originality when I can. I find the idea of jamming much more fun these days as learning others songs tends to get old to me fast. One of my favorite players lately has been Warren Haynes (Allaman Brothers, Gov't Mule, solo, ...) as I am really getting into that jam band mentality of going into something with no clear cut goal other than to create music, with someone laying down a progression and just going with it.

I realized several months back, probably almost a year ago now while taking lessons from a new teacher, that my improvisation skills sucked when each week he always wanted some free form improv and I found myself sounding repetative. Suffering from years of not playing with others, from sitting in my studio room working through others songs, it had just eroded from the minimal skills I had to damn near nothing unless I really thought it through. As I get better, perhaps I'll have the confidence to hit a few jam nights locally to put the pressure on, but I still have a ways to go before I'll be comfortable with that again (when I was young I used to jam with friends quite a bit, but between age and my long period of illness, it sort of fell by the wayside for many a year).

Long story short, just jam man - just get some backing tracks going and see what happens. I have more fun doing that than anything these days.

 

[rfahey86]

Dream Theater - Any Album

 

[USofguitar]

You know. I think technique in metal is overrated. Because this is nothing to see with musicality and elementary skills such as songwriting or stuff like that. It might not be that challenging but what about digging arrangements and studying harmony and all what's behind of some Sevendust, Breaking Benjamin or even Soilwork songs? There are pretty interesting things you can learn by doing that. And thus developping yourself and in a different way and also enjoying guitar for what it is... a medium to transmit your own personnality and musicality to the world.

Good luck with finding the path that will suit you.

 

[ratsapprentice]

Most people don't learn to shred so that they can write music like Rustey Cooley, It's so that they can play whatever they write with no issue.

 

[Erratic]

Martyr! Once you learned warp zone you don't need anything else

 

[prostetnic]

Why not play some Cynic? =p I'm playing bits of The Eagle Nature and having some fun with that.