Bluesy Double Stops

In this musical study, I’ll overview our target technique (bluesy double stops) over the rhythm track and then perform a solo designed to showcase them in a real world musical context.

Double stops have a much more intense sound (especially if you have distortion), than any single notes. They can act as an exclamation point in a phrase. With distortion, you can get some wicked overtones with various combinations of two notes. It gets even more wicked if you bend one or both of the two notes.

Slamming into a flat five interval at the beginning of a phrase is a sure attention getter, because the sound is very tense and abrasive. Unison bends (a static note plus a note bent up to that note, played simultaneously) are probably the most powerful way to play a single pitch.

Try adding more double stops than you’re used to in your soloing. Don’t be afraid of using very abrasive combinations of notes. You can always resolve them or just use them for a split second for a dramatic effect. In the second phrase, I used a trick where I played out of a minor pentatonic fingering, and then moved the exact same fingering down a minor third. The harmony is C sharp 7 (dominant). The C sharp minor pentatonic gives it a minor sound while the A sharp minor pentatonic gives a major sound (against the C sharp root). Try playing pentatonic scales and patterns with this concept of switching back and forth between a minor sound and major sound.

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