10 Increasingly Sick Riffs From The Masters You Can Learn Right Now

5. Eric Peterson - The Persecuted Won't Forget Main Riff

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2ptTFPYmaco Testament are a band so metal, should their output be spilling out of a set of speakers within the immediate vicinity you're more than likely to suddenly sprout a second appendage, complete with a tiny beard. For this incredibly tight riff you're going to have to jump to 9:20 on the video, where Eric dives into the grinding The Persecuted Won't Forget, something that even the man himself doesn't play up to speed in the tutorial. Whilst the technique of sliding along one string utilising multiple hammer-ons and pull-offs is something that you can build up yourself, what really brings this piece to life is pedalling off the low E string to add the necessary balls behind everything, injecting that timeless thrash sound behind everything. If you think you've got this one down, check out the on-album version of Persecuted, and be prepared to get very annoyed at your fingers again, trying in vein to increase the speed of what is already a very hard technique to Peterson's level.
Gaming Editor
Gaming Editor

WhatCulture's Head of Gaming.