My monthly challenge to learn a new Megadeth riff a day—which I have cleverly called Megatober—continues. Did I bite off more than my guitar playing skillset can handle? Absolutely. Can you teach an old dog new tricks? Not according to the saying. But I’m very stubborn. I’m very quickly discovering what my limits are, but damned if I’m not enjoying trying these daily challenges.
If you watch the following examples of the second week’s progress, you may not share that enjoyment. Kudos to you for continuing anyway.
So last week I ended with entry 11—mostly because I wrote the initial entry a tad late. This week’s entry I’ll keep short as I attempt to bring the weeks back in line. So, let’s kick off right where the last entry ended.
Day 12 saw me playing New World Order for the first time. I like this riff a lot. There’s not a lot to it, but there’s not a lot to my guitar playing. It’s a perfect match!
Simple. The riff and the player.
Day 13 was not a simple day. And to be honest, it was a bit of a long day and my guitar playing suffered for it. I attempted Youthanasia and I’m going to say I barely made it. With a bit more than fifteen minutes of practice though, maybe I’ll get the hang of this one.
Sloppy! But fun. If I don’t enjoy this challenge, what’s the point? Anyhow, Day 14, that day was easier. Trust was the track I had a crack at and it’s a lot easier. Fun. But much easier.
Day 15 was not easy. But that’s technically the third week of this challenge. I’ll write about that one soon. I just won’t included day 15’s entry. Why? Because The Killing Road is damn difficult. Well, for my current skill set it is. But here’s an interesting fact about this challenge. Many of these songs I am attempting use guitar techniques I’ve never tried before—I’ve essentially been playing the same power chord style of metal riffage for over twenty years. In only three weeks though I have noticed improved technique and an increase in guitar enjoyment. That is exactly what I was hoping to achieve.
And I’ve still got ten days to go! #winning