Solo - can anyone explain what is happening here?

pjf · September 2023

My little bro is obsessed with this band

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Could someone kindly explain what this guitarist is doing - in terms of tone, gear, scales? Is there any tapping involved?

The band is "Monster Truck", the song is "Get My Things and Go", and the 30-second solo begins around 1:30:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=alG8NqgX38A

To me it sounds like a wah pedal and lots of pentatonic (?) runs. There's what sounds like a 1.5 step bend at 1:56.

it doesn't sound impossible to learn, I'd just like to understand what is happening before I try to learn it for him.

P.S There's a live video on Youtube where the guitarist is playing on an SG with a wah pedal but the solo is different, I'm asking specifically about the above version.

roberty · September 2023

Bit of phaser on a couple of bars. It's 95% pentatonic I'd say

LionAquaLooper · September 2023

No doesn't sound impossible to learn. Dm blues pentatonic. There aren't any uber fast runs and sounds pretty standard blues pentatonic for the most part, apart from the short section in the middle where I can hear what sounds like a 9th being repeated (I don't have my guitar while I'm writing this so apologies if I'm wrong lol). Just saying that's the only bit that doesn't sound blues pentatonic.

There's a descending blues run near the beginning where its hard to make out the individual notes because of the fully cocked wah at that point. But overall I think you gotta nail those bends (and vibratos) to really replicate it and not just hit the solo note for note. Great solo though.

Svartmetall · September 2023

Yeah, mainly just standard pentatonic stuff with a few chromatic notes thrown in for colour in a few places. Nice vibrato, though - almost had a Jake E. Lee feel in places to my ears.

imalrightjack · September 2023

It's cool, I like it. It's very basic, and I know that because it reminds me of my own lead playing! There's definitely some chromatic playing that repeats, basically running down the D minor pentatonic at the 10th fret including the notes between, specifically Bb.

pjf · September 2023

Thanks, all really helpful. Time to re-learn playing with a pick, I can’t see that done fingerstyle

english_bob · September 2023

roberty said:

Bit of phaser on a couple of bars. It's 95% pentatonic I'd say

If there is, it's subtle enough that you wouldn't need one. All sounds like stuff you could do with a wah pedal to me.

pjf said:

P.S There's a live video on Youtube where the guitarist is playing on an SG with a wah pedal but the solo is different, I'm asking specifically about the above version.

While it's totally worthwhile learning a solo you like as close as possible, this is worth pointing out too. The solo on the record was likely improvised, so even the guy who played it probably couldn't do it again exactly the same.

That's particularly relevant for the last little run around 2:03 which definitely sounds like it was made up on the spot and wouldn't really make any rhythmical sense if you were to notate it. Likewise the playout part from around 2:43, which is just a repeated pattern played as fast as the guy can manage. That kind of playing is better (and much easier) to copy in spirit than it is to nail note-for-note. That kind of playing is as much about attitude and feel as it is about the exact note choice or rhythmic accuracy.

TeleMaster · September 2023

It's not impossible at all. It's an intermediate solo, nothing that fast in there, nothing that advanced and sounds more difficult than it is. Give it a go, you'll find it's not as hard as you think it is.

imalrightjack · September 2023

english_bob said:

That kind of playing is better (and much easier) to copy in spirit than it is to nail note-for-note. That kind of playing is as much about attitude and feel as it is about the exact note choice or rhythmic accuracy.

Wholeheartedly agree. It's probably why it reminds me of my own playing - because I've rarely learned anything from start to finish accurately!

roberty · September 2023

english_bob said:

roberty said:

Bit of phaser on a couple of bars. It's 95% pentatonic I'd say

If there is, it's subtle enough that you wouldn't need one. All sounds like stuff you could do with a wah pedal to me.

You're right it's just a slow wah sweep at 1:46

McToot · September 2023

I can't comment on the theory because I am almost completely music-less (and thicker than moose dribble).

But I will say the track in the video has more than a faint whiff of an updated ZZ Top track: La Grange, for instance.

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Solo - can anyone explain what is happening here?

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