Technical Embellishments

Once you’ve got a set of notes you like, experiment with these techniques and see if anything makes your riff pop. Try them all and be sure to mix and match.

Palm-mutes

Palm-mutes change riffs drastically; try mixing them with un-muted notes and experiment with light and soft mutes.

Slides

Sliding to or from a riff’s first or last note can make it ‘greasy’. Try moving a note higher up the neck and slide into it.

Bends

Try bending into notes from one of two frets below – make sure it’s quick and accurate to keep your riff intact.

Pinched harmonics

Nothing punctuates a riff’s most important notes like a nod to the king of squealies, Zakk Wylde.

Hammer-ons and pull-offs

Use hammer-ons and pull-offs for smooth riff or to embellish it with a quick flurry between two or three notes.

Staccato

Releasing pressure on the string will give you short, detached notes that are great for creating contrast.