Matt Wildcat

Matt Wildcat

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The Fierce Deity 20 From UK
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Most popular riff

Learning the Fretboard - 1st Position!

Didn't originally plan on uploading this as I started recording stuff this morning just to document my own progress. However, I figured it'd probably help my motivation to put it out there and want to improve on it later! Apologies in advance for my background, rambling, etc. So here we go, me learning the absolute basics, which @[5:@Jak Angelescu] encouraged me to do after one of my vids on Instagram! My next goal is to revisit my Kakariko Village cover thing on my Instagram and learn all of the notes the chords use, so I can gain a better understanding of what I'm doing! I'll also most likely be going back to the CAGED system stuff with this as well! Hopefully this will give me enough to do when I take small breaks from trying to sweep!
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Matt Wildcat

Matt Wildcat

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The Fierce Deity 20 From UK
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10
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Profile posts Latest activity Postings Media Lessons Achievements About

  • Matt Wildcat
    Recording a vid on the CAGED system today (briefly stepping away from the Scales so I don't burn myself out!) but beforehand I thought I'd warm up by running through a few songs (With me mum, funnily enough). Mostly just looked up chords, but I found there were a few songs had listened to but didn't know the chords to, and yet I was quickly able to just figure it out by ear! I know that's not exactly special, but I thought I'd share since it's something I know I'll find really useful when just jamming out with others!
    Matt Wildcat
    So, I've been back to playing this week after recovering, and the one thing that's been really getting me is that, no matter what I do, I STILL cannot get any sort of comfortable pick position. I'm not gonna lie, it's really disheartening because I feel like I should be able to sort out such a basic fundamental step, but I just can't figure it out. I either scratch my knuckles on strings, strain my hand, or the pick just doesn't flow. I have no idea what to do. I've had people try to show me, and I just can't get it. Does anyone know what I can do? Am I overthinking it? Please help 😅
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    Matt Wildcat
    Andrew - I've got the Syn Custom S, so a Floyd Rose (Sorry, only just seen this!)
    J
    • J

      Jak Angelescu

    OOOOHHHHkay, I'll try the best I can. This may be a little long. I actually talked with my guitar teacher (yes Bill everyone in the world knows him now :ROFLMAO:) and I actually spent about 20 minutes of my lesson time talking to him about this. Papa Gates' lesson is VERY essential because it really helps you learn how to hold a pick that makes certain techniques easier and it takes strain of your wrist. HOWEVER, Bill informed me that Kiko Loureiro and James Hetfield hold their pick for RHYTHM playing the way I use to (thumb, middle, index). But when they go to play lead, they switch to Papa Gates mode. If you were to see how John Petrucci holds his pick you would think that guy is destined for carpal tunnel.
    J
    • J

      Jak Angelescu

    In summary, this is what I learned from Bill. It's like holding a pencil to write. Everyone has a different way they hold the pencil, but they also have different ways of how they write. If you hate that your handwriting is sloppy even after months and months of practice, change how you're holding your pencil (aka pick in this case). Change it up, feel around. It could even be your actual pick itself that makes that grip awkward or uncomfortable.
    I literally took about four months of nonstop, headbashing practice to get comfortable with mine. You just kind of have to get use to it and "fall off the bike a thousand times". Have you considered uploading a video of how you hold it? Anyway, I hope ANY of this helps!
    Matt Wildcat
    Had so many plans of things to work on, especially scales stuff, but this week my body has apparently decided we're not doing that. Gutted. Hopefully should recover soon so I don't lose progress again!
    Matt Wildcat
    Very excited today - I've attempted my first improv solo jam thing using one of the lessons here! It's a bit of a mess for a 'first' go (and I say that because I re-recorded it like 50 times XD), but considering I just kinda went for it after learning the scale, I'm pretty pleased with this first step! Video shortly!
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    Ed Seith
    Learning how to improv is perhaps the messiest but most rewarding part of playing for some of us. I've stuck with it at the expense of a lot of other things that I'm only now getting to. Enjoy it, and I look forward to your vid!
    Matt Wildcat
    It really is! I never attempted it before because I want things to be absolutely perfect, but I feel like this will really help me to get better with that, and I really enjoyed just messing around with notes and finding what worked!
    Lindsey
    That’s awesome. It doesn’t matter how many times you redo it, as long as it feels good to you.
    Matt Wildcat
    I GOT IT!! After taking a rest for a few hours since my fingers were gonna fall off, I wanted to give that damn sweep one more go before I start on scales, and it just clicked!! Things feel smooth, things sound smooth!! Might record a very short video to show the progress! It's amazing what a small break and a clear mind can do after forever of just missing the mark!
    Matt Wildcat
    So, been grinding away at getting that sweeping right this morning. At first, I got pretty disheartened - No matter what, I just couldn't get it down how I wanted. I tried everything. Eventually, I think it started to click. Time for a break, and then finally gonna work on some scales and see if I can create my first lick (And maybe try shove some sweeps in there for good measure)!
    Matt Wildcat
    Finally uploading a new riff - It's Not Ready To Die..again. Alternate title could be, "Why you shouldn't slack for nearly 2 months." Been crazy busy doing all sorts lately, so this is long overdue, and boy does it show. Lesson learnt... again. :p
    Matt Wildcat
    So, I'm trying to get this fingerpicking stuff down, but I've kinda hit a wall. My college music teacher has strongly suggested I change my picking hand position so that I don't rest my wrist on the bridge area and instead have it floating, but no matter what I try, I cannot get it into the right position and be able to play, I have to have it in the position I showed in my fingerstyle video from lat month. Any ideas?
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    Brian Haner Sr.
    Hard to get a good, rich tone when you rest your hand or wrist on the bridge. Floating is the "proper" way, but is a fairly advanced move that takes time to get comfortable with. Resting the pinky is a popular fix to keep your hand stable, get a better tone, and keep from unnecessary strain.
    NONE of this is easy. It takes time. The more you do it, the better you'll get. If you have a college-level teacher, I would definitely listen to him/her.
    The harder the work - the bigger the payoff!
    Cheers!
    pg
    Matt Wildcat
    Thank you all so much for your advice! I've been giving it a good go all day (with a few breaks once I got a bit frustrated and needed time to clear my head and come back fresh) and while it's proving really tough to break out of my old habit, I think I'm making some progress! When I think I got it right, it sounded much better, but I'm noticing I'm straining my arm a bit, so more work is definitely needed. I'm not quite sure how people manage to rest their pinky fingers on the body, I can't reach that far at all XD
    Thanks again!
    K
    I had the same thing, i used to rest my pinky on guitar and changed that few months ago and in same time i also changed the way i hold my pick, it was difficult for few days, but now i really like that i changed it. What i did was practising some songs with i already knew how to play and were not too hard for me, with the new method. I tried with my picking hand closed (so i could not rest my pinky there automaticly)
    Good luck with changing it, when you do i think you are really happy you changed it
    Matt Wildcat
    So finally getting back into things today, and I have discovered I hate extended chords. Of course, it just means I need to spend more time practising, working out finger positions, building a bit of strength in some fingers and getting better at barring in places, but right now it's not in my good books XD
    Matt Wildcat
    So what I'm supposed to be doing is working on Extended Chords or Romance De Amour... but my brain's decided we're doing the solo for Tears of a Clown by Iron Maiden instead. Love that song beyond words.
    Matt Wildcat
    So damn hyped!! I just got my guitar back from being repaired as we decided it was at least worth a shot, and I'm so happy to say that it finally works!! Something about some dodgy wiring and dirty pots, but it's all been sorted and now it sings like it's meant to, and the sustainiac holds forever! Just gotta change the strings (they arrived this morning, perfect timing!) and then we'll be ready to rock! \m/
    Matt Wildcat
    Now that I'm doing a lot better, I'm finally getting back into the swing of things! Planning on really going through all the early lessons again to get myself fully back to speed. Got a few ideas for some songs I wanna learn too, so hopefully I'll have something to share soon!
    Matt Wildcat
    So I'm currently unable to play due to health reasons, but I guess that means it's a good time to brush up on some theory! Hoping to get back into playing within the next few days, missing it so badly already!
    Matt Wildcat
    So, I attempted fingerpicking today! It's seriously a lot tougher than I thought it would be, it looks so simple seeing people play it! I'll be properly working through the lessons on here starting from tomorrow and it's gonna be my little project for a while. I've recorded a first attempt of Green Day's Good Riddance as just a thing to look back on once I've made more progress. Should be uploaded soon!
    Matt Wildcat
    May or may not have just spent 45-ish minutes trying to record 10 full minutes of Not Ready to Die attempts, ready for posting.. Gonna take a loooooong time to upload to YT and all, but I'm super excited to share my progress! RIP my chest though, ouch XD
    Matt Wildcat
    Back to practising this morning. Finally added in the final third of the intro before the main riff, got a little bit of string buzz on the bottom two notes used but I'm working on getting rid of this. Managed to get my arm to relax a little more too, so playing is a bit more comfortable, and my downwards sweep feels better now that I'm using less pick. Video update after my lessons today! \m/
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    Anthony Peña
    That's really great! Yeah I feel that because after finally posting my playing on here, I've received tips that are already proving effective. This community is amazing.
    Matt Wildcat
    It really is! It's really motivational, too, I normally struggle to stick to things but coming on here, seeing all the progress and receiving all the advice has really pushed me to keep going.
    Anthony Peña
    That's really awesome! I've definitely been the same as far as struggling with commitment to stuff, so I'm sure being held accountable here will help! I'm glad it's helping you. Happy shredding Millie 🤘🏼
    Matt Wildcat
    So I know I said I was gonna upload an exercise tutorial today, but I've decided I'm gonna do it tomorrow instead for various reasons and take today as a bit of a rest.
    Matt Wildcat
    Alongside my Not Ready To Die work tomorrow, I'm planning on re-recording a little lesson I once posted forever ago and I'm gonna delve into a lot more detail, now that I've gotten the confidence to start talking in videos! It's a speed picking exercise that I'm working back into my practice routine, so hopefully it will help some of you with your warm-ups and playing!
    Matt Wildcat
    Spending this morning writing down all sorts of notes for me to keep by my amp so I can keep them in mind during my practises, and also annotating my physical tabs so I can visualise the picking patterns. This ended up really helping, as I've realised I might be picking No Ready to Die slightly off in the second half.

    From the start of that half, it's one note downwards and them a sweep up for the next 3 notes, then down, and then up 3, down one, up for the vibrato. In other words, it's exactly mirrored, but I don't think I was playing it that way yesterday. Gonna focus on getting that right, as well as making my sweeps more like a raking motion rather than a picking motion today! Already think I've got somewhere, so perhaps a video tonight? :D
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