Sundown Plunge (hard) · level 3 · goal 132 bpm

Sundown Plunge is an eight-bar lead riff in standard tuning: Blues-metal lead, F# minor pentatonic with a blue note, twelfth to nineteenth position, strings 1-3. This is level 3 of 3, played at 132 bpm; the three levels of the riff run from 92 to 132 bpm. It works on hammer-ons and pull-offs, slides, vibrato. The player loops the riff with drums and bass, starts at 70% speed and steps up 5% after every clean pass until you play it at full tempo.

Pick only the first note on each string during the dives and let the pull-offs roll. Entries still come in late, after a rest. The busy runs should sound loose, not drilled.

The three levels

1. Level 1 · 92 bpm · Blues-metal lead, F# minor pentatonic with a blue note, twelfth position, strings 1-3. Rest on the downbeat and come in on the "and." That lazy entry is the blues feel.
2. Level 2 · 116 bpm · Blues-metal lead, F# minor pentatonic with a blue note, twelfth position, strings 1-3. Play the triplets lazily, almost late, and keep the pull-offs strong so they're as loud as the picked notes.
3. Level 3 · 132 bpm · Blues-metal lead, F# minor pentatonic with a blue note, twelfth to nineteenth position, strings 1-3. Pick only the first note on each string during the dives and let the pull-offs roll.