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A look at Wes Hauch’s scale and arpeggio mastery.
In recent years, there has been an amazing influx of young, ultra-talented modern-metal guitarists. These new lions range from 7- and 8-string players in djent metal bands to traditional 6-stringers like shred-guru Plini and Brazilian wunderkind Kiko Loureiro, who currently holds the lead guitar spot in Megadeth. Within this crop stands a distinctive guitarist wielding his own unique ideas and interesting musical devices, the monstrously talented Wes Hauch. While he may not be a household name yet, his musical prowess and inspiring technical facility will leave many guitarists shaking their heads in disbelief and wanting to grab the nearest ax in the hope of assimilating a little bit of his fretboard wizardry.
Hauch broke onto the scene after his guest appearance on Periphery’s acclaimed second album, 2012’s Periphery II: This Time It’s Personal, which also featured outstanding performances from John Petrucci and Guthrie Govan. It was Hauch’s blazing lead work on the song “Mile Zero,” however, that brought him into the limelight of the metal and shred guitar community. Hauch has also recorded and toured with various groups including the Faceless, Glass Casket, Thy Art Is Murder, and Black Crown Initiate, to name a few.
Hauch’s command of building melodic and rhythmic intensity is beyond impressive, and his playing routinely employs a broad assortment of finger-twisting licks, smooth melodic phrases, intensely expressive string bends, and inspired sequential runs. The following examples will focus on revealing elements of his musical approach as well as his ability to build unusual melodic scale and arpeggio sequences. If you’re looking for some new licks, moves, and ideas to shake things up in your own playing, you’ve come to the right place!
To begin, Ex.1 features an interesting A harmonic minor sequenced legato