Enter Sandman! No. One! No, not that one either. Seek And Destroy! No, I don't think it's that one. Master Of Puppets! No ... They have to many good riffs.
Hetfield and Mustaine are insanely talented riff writers. My favorite from either of them is probably the heavy breakdown of The Conjuring from Peace Sells that starts at about 2:55 into the song. Probably the best thrash riff of all time.
@@crazygamer6601 He said that in the special content of the first S&M concert explaining "How do I teach the orchestra how to play. Push here, then push here. I don't know the notes on the guitar" I think it was in the making of S&M documentary, but it was definitely in an interview in 1999 and James was describing it. I'll try to find it if I can. There are so many interviews to go through.
A lot of people are saying James doesn't pay attention to music theory while writing riffs, but I think it's still possible for him (or anyone, for that matter) to naturally gravitate toward a certain sound or tonality, which music theory can then be used to explain.
One remains my favorite riff from start to finish, and Hetfield in terms of picking rhythm technique is not human. Just look at the way he holds the picks when he strums! Awesome work!
He establishes that regardless of if it’s Kirk or James who wrote those riffs, the foundations are the same. You could also argue that Kirk picked up that writing style from James by the time the black album came out
Metallica stole enter sandman from another band. There's a vid on that very subject. Excel I think is the band. They ripped off a bunch of stuff but it's still good music
this is the first time I've watched a Metallica riff video and not a single downpick was played, yet I still learned something. Hats off to you sir, my dear mister Sir
Dude you should totally get a signiture guitar from James or Kirk. You are a big fan of them both clearly I think it would make since to get one of their guitars
Tyler- Love the Chicago Music Exchange shirt. That's my guitar shop I go to in Chicago. You are awesome and very inspirational for myself to push to play better and beyond my comfort zone.
Yeah I really don't think James is thinking about whether he's playing lydian or dorian notes and scales. He's just playing guitar not thinking about that technical music theory stuff.
I don't think for a second James thought "ah shit..that chord isn't derived from the Am scale..." I would be more apt to think of James writing from the mindset of using simple movable chord shapes, playing what he is feeling and moving through any and all possible permutations and finding what sounds right for his mood. If it sounds good, it's not wrong. In my humble opinion, James Hetfield is the single biggest metal guitar influence of the modern era. *Bows to riff God. Cool video! oh...favorite riff? damn, that's near impossible to pick just one, but I've always loved the quirkiness of the intro riffs to Leper Messiah.
That guitar is absolutely stunning -best looking PRS ever! Oh, and you made some pretty good points in there too! Thanks for continuing to share your insights
Explaining how Jaymz writes music when he wouldn't understand it himself! :) He plays from the heart, using his ears and fingers to accomplish what he wants to bring out from within, simple. :) \m/
I just started to figure out how scales and chords work together and this was such a HUGE visual demonstration!! With my favorite band ever as the subject no less 😅
How to write a Metallica-inspired song: Downstroke until someone tells you to play a chord and then play either 1, 3, or 5 and then continue downstroking. But only use power chords or 5 chords
Pretty cool to think about, that two tone method he uses is definitely unique. I may be a little biased because i’m a die hard Metallica fan, but that’s probably the reason I fell in love with them in the first place. I love the way that sounds.
Please do a video on how to properly hold a pick. I think it's an aspect of playing that is extremely important and often overlooked by beginners that could lead to bad habits and limit their growth.
I think he just lets his music speak for himself. I don't know if it's true, but that's what I choose to believe. It doesn't need to be technical or scientific or accurate even, it just speaks for itself. James is definitely a step above any other player, my honest opinion.
i have a a feeling james just plays by ear and feel. He would have learned some basic scales but i think a minor and e are nearly most of metallicas songs
Daw, and here I thought it was my saying "Guitar habits of James Hetfield" that inspired this video, but that was grandiose. Thanks Tyler, great video as always
Isn’t the first riff James played Rhiannon by Fleetwood Mac? Edit: Love how you included Hero of the Day! One of Kirks best moments I think! Amazing but sadly forgotten amongst some. And the Call Of Sandman
I love it when you talk Metallica, man. They're my favorite band, and I couldn't ever think of being like them, but you bring such a technical side to things while not going instantly to the more technical bands, like Rush or Yes.
As an offshoot of this; you should consider a series of: No matter how much theory you have, don't overthink it. It's still music and melody. Or: 'Why you can't hum an Yngwie solo but you can hum Ace Frehley stuff'.....
Weird I was just doing this the other day. With the C major scale (a minor relative) any open string is in the key. So you can do a baseline on the A string and play the scale up the next string, or do that for any other string. You can come up with simple chords or notes as long as they are not sharps or flats. Sounds cool too.
Jacob Lewis is Dave’s song The first three Metallica albums are actually Megadeth albums. That’s why AJFA sounded try hardy and had no flow and why they had to sell out because they’re not good musicians and couldn’t top Rust in peace aka the best thrash album.
@@H.E.M. No, they're not. He only had any part in a whole 6, possibly 7 songs over the course of three albums that total 26 songs. That's 20 songs without him. He had no hand in MOP at all, and only two riffs were used on RTL. He did have a far more significant hand on KEA with 4 writing credits there, but he still worked on less than half the album. So no, the first three Metallica albums aren't Megadeth albums. They didn't need to pull as much from Mustaine after KEA as they had Cliff, who would turn around and write a good chunk of RTL and MOP. Also, AJFA is both the best Metallica album, and they never sold out. And Rust in Peace doesn't touch RTL or MOP.
I thought you were going to say like what he said, "plugging into a nice loud amp with [a great] sound I'll just write a bunch of riffs right on the spot."
You are like the english teacher that asks to analyse a text and find its meaning where there is none. If i was gonna guess, James was just noodling on the open A like i and may other people do because it sounds cool. Thats why at the end there he doesnt stick to the scale. Whatever sounds good, goes. But its also nice to have the power of theory to understand why something sounds interesting, like what you have done with the video.
a video specifically on making licks and being in time with the music as i struggle with original licks and being on the beat or playing it slightly off the beat
Man’s using big words😂, trying to keep up!😂. Thanks for these types of videos man, really help me develop my guitar playing you legend with a crispy tone😂
I've got a good video idea for you. Probably one you could have some fun with, too. What do you do when you are writing an original song. Then you realize it sounds all too familiar. You have to ask - did I just steal someone's song? I'd love to hear your thoughts on that subject to a problem I think everyone has had.
Not on topic of Metallica; Taylor, please explore Cat Stevens album Tea For The Tillerman - track Sad Liza. The main riff was recorded on a piano, but I would think it would make a really cool guitar riff.
What's your favorite Metallica riff?
escape
The god that failed and My friend of misery are my favorites
Enter Sandman!
No.
One!
No, not that one either.
Seek And Destroy!
No, I don't think it's that one.
Master Of Puppets!
No ...
They have to many good riffs.
The Fade to Black bridge, before the "no one but me" lyrics
Hmm I like so many, I can’t choose
James' riff god powers can never be matched. Sad but true.
Nice pun!!
He is the master (of puppets)
And there's Dave Mustaine
There a lot of people who write better riff
Hetfield and Mustaine are insanely talented riff writers. My favorite from either of them is probably the heavy breakdown of The Conjuring from Peace Sells that starts at about 2:55 into the song. Probably the best thrash riff of all time.
Hetfeild - "I don't know the notes on a guitar."
He just plays from the heart.
When did he say that? Because he's written plenty of harmonies....
+brandon he probably means he doesnt know every fret. you can play harmonies without really knowing the notes
Just about every guitar player lol
The key to guitar playing imo is shape visualization
@@crazygamer6601 He said that in the special content of the first S&M concert explaining "How do I teach the orchestra how to play. Push here, then push here. I don't know the notes on the guitar" I think it was in the making of S&M documentary, but it was definitely in an interview in 1999 and James was describing it. I'll try to find it if I can. There are so many interviews to go through.
Me "So James, how did you write songs like Fade to Black, Sanitarium, or One?"
James "YEHAAAAHH
why did you miss a comma between Fade to Black and Sanitarium but put one after Sanitarium?
@@benparsons4979 I was thinking about thatttttt
Fade to Black Sanitarium...killer song, almost as good as Blackened Battery
@@bigloubowski1980 you win the internet today my friend
@@bigloubowski1980 ...And Justice for ST Anger
A lot of people are saying James doesn't pay attention to music theory while writing riffs, but I think it's still possible for him (or anyone, for that matter) to naturally gravitate toward a certain sound or tonality, which music theory can then be used to explain.
When I heard him play that riff for the first time I really thought it would end up being Unforgiven IV
I for sure thought it would be on Hardwired before it came out, I was kinda disappointed cuz its such a good melody lol
Daniel Morris Unforgivens are usually two albums apart so many next album.
@@prometheustv6558 they said unforgiven is done I think
It should be called un4given
@@vonmendoza1045 Na even better: UnforgIVen
One remains my favorite riff from start to finish, and Hetfield in terms of picking rhythm technique is not human. Just look at the way he holds the picks when he strums! Awesome work!
Tyler: translating the language of gods for boyzangurls like us.
edit: love that crispy tone
Ryan Dove his name is tyler?
whats a boyzangurl
amdinstartor yup
SquireCat boys and girls
The biggest secret is YEAH !!!
I like how he plays enter sandman as the first riff, and its VERY WELL DOCUMENTED that Kirk wrote that.
He establishes that regardless of if it’s Kirk or James who wrote those riffs, the foundations are the same. You could also argue that Kirk picked up that writing style from James by the time the black album came out
What's your point? The title of the video is the Metallica riff writing secret, not the JAMES HETFIELD writing secret.
Metallica stole enter sandman from another band. There's a vid on that very subject. Excel I think is the band. They ripped off a bunch of stuff but it's still good music
@@mrbeard3150 Yeah then A7X stole a bunch of Metallica riffs. The circle of riffs go round and round. It never ends.
@@mrbeard3150 I don't think they stole it I think they were just influenced by it, or maybe it was complete coincidence
Really nice video. James is by far my favorite thrash metal musician. His riffs cannot be topped.
this is the first time I've watched a Metallica riff video and not a single downpick was played, yet I still learned something. Hats off to you sir, my dear mister Sir
James Riffield...
Dude you should totally get a signiture guitar from James or Kirk. You are a big fan of them both clearly I think it would make since to get one of their guitars
i love Kirks guitars as they show what he loves
The call of ktulu riff is exactly the same chord that you play.
Without Am and Em scales, there can be no Metallica
I heared the call of ktulu in this video a hundred times.
How James probably thought of it-
This sounds cool
Your careful observation and thoughtful and accurate recreation and analysis of this obscure sample is really important and appreciated!!!!!!!!
Excellent video.
James is one of my all time favorite guitarists.
same
Man,i wanted to see someone's talking about this video so much.It is so inspiring and relatable.
This is my favorite video of yours in, like, the last year. Good stuff, man. Keep it up.
Tyler- Love the Chicago Music Exchange shirt. That's my guitar shop I go to in Chicago. You are awesome and very inspirational for myself to push to play better and beyond my comfort zone.
Yeah I really don't think James is thinking about whether he's playing lydian or dorian notes and scales. He's just playing guitar not thinking about that technical music theory stuff.
Shockheadd45 yes, and he was taught by joe satriani
@@numbers8015 I don't think James was taught by Joe satriani, I think that was only kirk.
Fr if he did thar metallica would suck
Hahah thats why i failed jazz band....
I watched that video of James and it was enough to inspired me to improve my writing. I love to hear your appreciation for it
Guys, James isn't in rehab. I locked him in my basement, so he'd teach me writing riffs.
@@chevyguy5525 Just found out that he broke my cage🙁
And Dr. Dre said? .... nothing you idiots Dr. Dre's dead he's locked in my basement.
I don't think for a second James thought "ah shit..that chord isn't derived from the Am scale..." I would be more apt to think of James writing from the mindset of using simple movable chord shapes, playing what he is feeling and moving through any and all possible permutations and finding what sounds right for his mood. If it sounds good, it's not wrong. In my humble opinion, James Hetfield is the single biggest metal guitar influence of the modern era. *Bows to riff God. Cool video! oh...favorite riff? damn, that's near impossible to pick just one, but I've always loved the quirkiness of the intro riffs to Leper Messiah.
That guitar is absolutely stunning -best looking PRS ever! Oh, and you made some pretty good points in there too! Thanks for continuing to share your insights
All the riffs from the and justice for all...album
I play like this from when I was young and I dont even know James play like this too until i discovered by miself,thats why I still love him lol
The real secret is : "YEAHHH"
thanks for copying my comment
Hey Tyler, I live near you I can’t wait to run into you sometime
If I was ever you, i would do this already
take camping chair and case of beer. you know the rest
Does he live in the Chicago area?
Disturbing...
Pervert!
This riff is such a bluesy riff, good job James
Sweet video man! 🤟😎👌
Explaining how Jaymz writes music when he wouldn't understand it himself! :) He plays from the heart, using his ears and fingers to accomplish what he wants to bring out from within, simple. :) \m/
I just started to figure out how scales and chords work together and this was such a HUGE visual demonstration!! With my favorite band ever as the subject no less 😅
I kept hearing the Fleetwood Mac song Rhiannon. Maybe James was channeling some Lindsey Buckinham.
One of the best rhythm guitar player
i had such bad writers block and this opened up so many ideas
I’m in love with that guitar 🎸
How to write a Metallica-inspired song: Downstroke until someone tells you to play a chord and then play either 1, 3, or 5 and then continue downstroking. But only use power chords or 5 chords
Pretty cool to think about, that two tone method he uses is definitely unique. I may be a little biased because i’m a die hard Metallica fan, but that’s probably the reason I fell in love with them in the first place. I love the way that sounds.
That riff from Hero of the Day gets me every time.
Please do a video on how to properly hold a pick.
I think it's an aspect of playing that is extremely important and often overlooked by beginners that could lead to bad habits and limit their growth.
I think he just lets his music speak for himself. I don't know if it's true, but that's what I choose to believe. It doesn't need to be technical or scientific or accurate even, it just speaks for itself. James is definitely a step above any other player, my honest opinion.
11 mins after uploaded, new record! Great stuff Tyler!
i have a a feeling james just plays by ear and feel. He would have learned some basic scales but i think a minor and e are nearly most of metallicas songs
Daw, and here I thought it was my saying "Guitar habits of James Hetfield" that inspired this video, but that was grandiose. Thanks Tyler, great video as always
I grew up learning metallica riff and mark tremonti when he was just in creed. Most of Mark melody are somehow same with how metallica is making it.
Isn’t the first riff James played Rhiannon by Fleetwood Mac?
Edit: Love how you included Hero of the Day! One of Kirks best moments I think! Amazing but sadly forgotten amongst some. And the Call Of Sandman
My mind is literally blown haha thank you for sharing this! 7:41
I love your cruchy tone, god that's cool !
Wow I felt a new beautiful dimension to my playing applying this.. Thank you 🙏🏻
I love it when you talk Metallica, man. They're my favorite band, and I couldn't ever think of being like them, but you bring such a technical side to things while not going instantly to the more technical bands, like Rush or Yes.
me too.
omg I was searching for this riff years now! thank you sir :D
As an offshoot of this; you should consider a series of: No matter how much theory you have, don't overthink it. It's still music and melody. Or: 'Why you can't hum an Yngwie solo but you can hum Ace Frehley stuff'.....
Wishing papa het a speedy recovery!
Can't help but to hear Fleetwood mac inspirations as well.
That was my favorite part of the video. It should be on an album.
Weird I was just doing this the other day. With the C major scale (a minor relative) any open string is in the key. So you can do a baseline on the A string and play the scale up the next string, or do that for any other string. You can come up with simple chords or notes as long as they are not sharps or flats. Sounds cool too.
YE YEAH
Good stuff man. Keep up these awesome videos!!
That guitar is stunning
The Call of Ktulu 2:43
edit: also 3:38
The Call of Kthulu is Cliff Bertons song.
Jacob Lewis *Burton and the intro isn’t
Jacob Lewis is Dave’s song
The first three Metallica albums are actually Megadeth albums.
That’s why AJFA sounded try hardy and had no flow and why they had to sell out because they’re not good musicians and couldn’t top Rust in peace aka the best thrash album.
@@H.E.M. No, they're not. He only had any part in a whole 6, possibly 7 songs over the course of three albums that total 26 songs. That's 20 songs without him. He had no hand in MOP at all, and only two riffs were used on RTL. He did have a far more significant hand on KEA with 4 writing credits there, but he still worked on less than half the album. So no, the first three Metallica albums aren't Megadeth albums. They didn't need to pull as much from Mustaine after KEA as they had Cliff, who would turn around and write a good chunk of RTL and MOP.
Also, AJFA is both the best Metallica album, and they never sold out. And Rust in Peace doesn't touch RTL or MOP.
@@H.E.M. lmao, know your facts before you tell them
It was no mess up. James meant to do that cause he is.. THE RIFF MASTER
Shanon Sipes MASTER...MASTER
Video pops up in notifications just as I'm listening to Enter Sandman - InstaClick
If you were to start a "reverse engineer" artists series, I would not hate that.
Let’s take apart the video of Rob playing flamenco. I want to tab so I can learn to play it. Haha.
I discovered this recently on my own and i never thought it might be useful
What a great video. Really breaking a style down, and all the other general knowledge.
Your so talented man, I wish I could play guitar like you
I thought you were going to say like what he said, "plugging into a nice loud amp with [a great] sound I'll just write a bunch of riffs right on the spot."
The riff you showed at 6:53 sounds both like Enter Sandman and The Call of Ktulu
Interesting approach. Thanks for pointing it out.
Step 1: mid scoop
Step 2: low e chugging
Step 3: power chords in between
Step 4: use this for like 10+ albums or so
That's more like Slayer 😂
@@princemjbp695 it's every thrash band
Slayer solo techniques; smack the crap outta the strings with your pick then have a seizure with the whammy bar at the same time
That's like the opposite of AJFA
Just make sure your fans as just as dumb and it will work
RIP that guitar pick, never to be seen again....
You are like the english teacher that asks to analyse a text and find its meaning where there is none. If i was gonna guess, James was just noodling on the open A like i and may other people do because it sounds cool. Thats why at the end there he doesnt stick to the scale. Whatever sounds good, goes.
But its also nice to have the power of theory to understand why something sounds interesting, like what you have done with the video.
I see that hollowbody that isn't out yet in the background. Definitely going to have to get one. I'm just a tiny bit jealous lol.
Freaking Hero of the Day, man.
Do you still have the grandmeister deluxe 40?
Main points noted down. Thanks a lot.
underrated riff: bridge after solo in Struggle Within
How do you not have over 1 million subs?
The keyboard to drawer ratio is off the charts.
I also spent days learning that riff, clean and distorted with palm muting
James probably doesn't give a shit about dorian and all that other music theory stuff, he just makes magic on the guitar by simply playing
The secret is simple: YEAHEAH!
a video specifically on making licks and being in time with the music as i struggle with original licks and being on the beat or playing it slightly off the beat
Master of puppet, Nightmare along especially I like his down picking technique
Nice CME shirt!
Nice Taylor ! Always informative contents !
Just get him his fuel, his fire, that which he desires 🤘🏻😎🤘🏻🔥
Antz Town underrated comment!
Man’s using big words😂, trying to keep up!😂. Thanks for these types of videos man, really help me develop my guitar playing you legend with a crispy tone😂
I've got a good video idea for you. Probably one you could have some fun with, too. What do you do when you are writing an original song. Then you realize it sounds all too familiar. You have to ask - did I just steal someone's song? I'd love to hear your thoughts on that subject to a problem I think everyone has had.
Not on topic of Metallica; Taylor, please explore Cat Stevens album Tea For The Tillerman - track Sad Liza. The main riff was recorded on a piano, but I would think it would make a really cool guitar riff.
This is like when my english teacher breaks down a book way too much
That hollow body hanging so close to the door is making me nervous!!
The fact that you teach us like this for free is a blessing.
Butter tone... Do you want butter??? Tyler gives you butter baby!
Anyone else notice he played the Enter Sandman intro riff incorrectly
I believe that's deliberate. He's demonstrating how this technique could reach the riff rather than the actual riff itself.
very lightning! much ktulu!
That riff at 7:30 sounds a bit like Ticks & Leeches... welp now I have to go listen to the entire Lateralus Album.