Shieldmaiden

Hey, I wrote this one!

This is a very challenging track, meant for an intermediate or advanced player.

It'll put you through your paces on a variety of rock and metal techniques.

Here's the rhythm part that kicks off the song, after this we'll stick to the lead patterns.

Pay attention to the palm muting here!

Let's call this part "Verse A".

And now the lead comes in, doubling the rhythm in the first bar, and then separating into a lead melody.

You might be able to pick out an Extended Arpeggio here, and elsewhere in the song.

Now on to "Verse B". 

The time signatures get complex here, but the whole thing can still be counted in 4/4:

7/8 + 7/8 + 5/4 + 2/4 + 7/8 + 7/8 + 5/4 + 6/4 is equivalent to 8 bars of 4/4!

But it's easier to break down the flow of the song with this timing.

We also have a section of quarter notes tied to 16th notes (equivalent to five 16th notes in length), an uncommon timing that might take some practice.

The song returns to Verse A, and then moves on to the chorus. Relatively simple!

A brief interlude....

...leads in to the Bridge. I hope you practiced your C Shape Arpeggios.

From here we have 2 guitar solos back to back, here's the first. Maybe you can spy the 3 Notes Per String Form used here.

The second solo was written as a "response" to the first, like a conversation.

The last unique piece of the song is at the climax of the bridge, get ready! This is the toughest section.

We use Right Handed Tapping for a single note in the first bar to extend the range of our arpeggio.

Also, I've included an alternate ending in the notation. The first time through, play normally until you encounter the repeat bar.

Then, the second time through, skip the section marked as (1) and proceed to (2).

From there, the song repeats Verse A, Verse B, Verse A, and then closes out with another chorus.

Did you get all that? It took me a lot of practice to be able to play this song start to finish.

I broke it down just like I've written here, practiced each part separately, and then worked on putting it all together.

You can do it too, if you want it bad enough!