Picking Help?

[pipelineaudio]

My whole life, I've been one of those people with the "flailing fingers" where my second, third, and fourth fingers are pointing straight out and down. Also, I pretty much hold my pick at my fingertips.

I was watching some guitar videos last night, and for the first time ever I really tried kind of the closed fist thing and tried holding my pick on the side of my finger like in this image.

The left image here. My lifetime way of normally holding the pick wasn't really like the "incorrect" image on the right, it was more on the fingertips

I watched a ton of videos and don't quite have it right, but I noticed that palm muting the higher strings was WAY easier with the closed fist, and not sure if its the different way of holding the pick or the closed hand or both, but it seemed like things were much much more predictable. I feel like this really upped some speed and ease of playing.

I definitely don't have this right yet and could use some tips.

First of all, it seems very hard for my other fingers not to hit the strings, how do I keep them from doing that?

And I think I have the pick angle wrong. I'm really not at all used to have my pointer finger pointed back towards my wrist, I'm not used to holding the pick on the side of my finger instead of the tips, and I think I have the pick both in the wrong place and the wrong angle

What can I do to get this better?

 

[SpiderWars]

Try to find the best way for you to tremolo pick. You need to find that motion in your wrist that you will be able to do fast. One way that helps me is to lift my wrist off of the guitar and try to tremolo pick. It feels weird at first but after a while it gets there. Then lower your palm onto the guitar and play normal.

Everybody is different. You just have to find it thru trial and error but make sure you can do it fast. Practicing bad technique slow does bring improvement but you’re building a wall.

Check out at least the first couple minutes that I timestamped. He doesn’t have a closed fist but everything else applies.

 

[pipelineaudio]

Finally got a chance to watch this. I play EXACTLY like this guy. I want to try and learn the style where the pointer finger is pointed back towards the wrist and the fist is closed. But seeing him play this fast and clean kind of makes me think maybe I shouldn't bother changing my picking style. But it was pointed out to me just like how tire weight affects your spinning ability on a bike, with my fingers out, its more weight to swing, possibly limiting speed and I just feel more stable with the fist closed, but then my knuckles hit the strings...And the style where the pointer finger points back towards the wrist feels more predictable than how I and the guy in the video play, but I can't seem to get the angle correct for comfortable palm muting when its like that

What is giving me pause though is decades of playing and fixing parts in recording studios if the band couldn't play it or maybe they couldn't make it back into the studio. I use those "flailing fingers" to constantly mute any string I'm not playing. My muting was subconsciously trained by the studio itself and I do some weird shit with both hands to mute strings, especially on bends so not sure if I should really be moving away from that

 

[SpiderWars]

Finally got a chance to watch this. I play EXACTLY like this guy. I want to try and learn the style where the pointer finger is pointed back towards the wrist and the fist is closed. But seeing him play this fast and clean kind of makes me think maybe I shouldn't bother changing my picking style. But it was pointed out to me just like how tire weight affects your spinning ability on a bike, with my fingers out, its more weight to swing, possibly limiting speed and I just feel more stable with the fist closed, but then my knuckles hit the strings...And the style where the pointer finger points back towards the wrist feels more predictable than how I and the guy in the video play, but I can't seem to get the angle correct for comfortable palm muting when its like that

What is giving me pause though is decades of playing and fixing parts in recording studios if the band couldn't play it or maybe they couldn't make it back into the studio. I use those "flailing fingers" to constantly mute any string I'm not playing. My muting was subconsciously trained by the studio itself and I do some weird shit with both hands to mute strings, especially on bends so not sure if I should really be moving away from that

You’ll figure it out. I injured my right hand decades ago so I hold the pick with my middle finger/thumb. And I occasionally hybrid pick so my ring finger/pinky are mostly closed fist but always ready to hybrid pick.

Maybe try to incorporate some hybrid picking.

Another weapon that Tom Bukovac uses is the ability to load or stow his pick instantly. He can go from full fingerpicking to flat picking in the blink of an eye. The pick just seems to come out of nowhere. He tucks it into the fold of his index or middle finger.

 

[BDC]

Try to find the best way for you to tremolo pick. You need to find that motion in your wrist that you will be able to do fast. One way that helps me is to lift my wrist off of the guitar and try to tremolo pick. It feels weird at first but after a while it gets there. Then lower your palm onto the guitar and play normal.

Everybody is different. You just have to find it thru trial and error but make sure you can do it fast. Practicing bad technique slow does bring improvement but you’re building a wall.

Check out at least the first couple minutes that I timestamped. He doesn’t have a closed fist but everything else applies.

Woah that shit's for real........doing it clean......Much respect.....I like the way he talks too, I guy I could learn from......