12 Essential 80's Death Metal Riffs (with Guitar TAB)

[@schillinger7814]

Solid song choices there pal. Brilliant vid and cheers for putting the TAB on there cause I'm getting the guitar now. Keep them coming!!!!

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Cheers thanks for watching 🤘🤘🤘

[@renatocamargo1843]

I love play in D standard. You can play almost everything. From Black Metal to Soft rock.

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Chuck taught me about the magic of D standard, and I never looked back

[@TrueScaffold]

D standard is amazing. Been playing in D standard for about quarter of a centrury now

[@myxangolife]

How do you play in D standard……Im 50 and just start in my guitar journey. Love Metallica, megadeth, the 80s in general for music and added avenged sevenfold to the list recently. So trying to learn different tunings.

[@TrueScaffold]

@@myxangolife What do you mean "how do I play in D standard"? 🙂 I play bass if that helps.

[@andrewholmes2576]

@@myxangolifedowntune E standard (normal tuning) by 1 step. So your E becomes D, A becomes G, etc

[@Trifixion22]

Excellent song choices and awesome playing! Especially dig the Demolition Hammer and Incubus picks.

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Thanks so much! The kids need to know what OSDM bangers really sound like 🤘🤘🤘

[@vorpalblades]

Should have done Pyroclastic Annihilation.

[@burgerkingisslay]

Exhume to Consume was the first "extreme" metal song I heard (my older brother brought home a borrowed cassette tape), and it opened up a whole world for me. It was what I hadn't yet realized I needed to hear - and the lyrics? Irresistibly horrifying and bleak.

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

That’s quite a harrowing intro to the genre haha! 🤘🤘🤘

[@Creativeusername617]

I like the song because it proves you don't need retarded speed tremolo picking to make death metal. You just have to play in time, the drums will do the work. Come to think of it, in most death metal, drums create the speed, not the guitars. You could have some harmonic minor descending riff played at half time of the drums but it'll still sound extremely heavy.

[@bobsurface908]

Subscribed for just the tabs. AWESOME. I've never even SEEN a Bolt Thrower or Emtombed tab. Thanks, mate.

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

@@bobsurface908 cheers welcome aboard! More hard to find stuff like this incoming!

[@drummer6231]

hi ,when you subscribe to this platform do you see the score in its entirety, of any song?

[@bobsurface908]

@drummer6231 Very rarely indeed. But to see ANY tab of any length for any of these bands is incredibly rare. And frankly, snippets of tab is usually enough to work out most of the rest of the song. Or even, to give enough info to allow you to work out a number of their songs in my experience.

[@drummer6231]

@@bobsurface908 thanks for your reply bob.👍

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

@@drummer6231 it's just the riff featured in the video for now! if you have any questions or requests don't hesitate to get in touch!

[@sozhran]

Great riffs, great choices, great playing, sick Eclipse \m/

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Cheers!! And yeah this guitar f’ing rules. Japanese model that I bought in the early 00s

[@Mazut0]

Great video, pretty rare guitar, 90's Esp Eclipse, I love these things!! Looks like you kept the OG pickups too, big fan of em

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Good eye! Yeah I love this thing! First proper guitar I got as a teenager, never made any mods to it. The pickups are indeed awesome

[@federicobosa5694]

great song chioces (not the standard album hits), great playing and also great tone, I think it pretty much sums up 80's death metal tones (crispy but not that distorted as it sounds in a mix actually). Kudos

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Cheers!!! 🤘🤘🤘🤘

[@kirstinline]

you made this look easy. nice work 👊

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Practice makes perfect lol. Thanks!

[@christopherdavis8248]

you should expand up to 50 Essential 80's Death Metal Riffs

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Excellent idea! I will almost definitely do this in the future

[@Silverhands]

@@eastvillageguitarmethodddthere are two Incubuses, Incubi?. Lol

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Yes! death metal incubus came first lol. They had to change their name (to opprobrium), but I still list them as incubus here for historical posterity

[@lynchie137]

@@eastvillageguitarmethoddd Why would they have to change their name though? They were using it first, and if anything, the other Incubus should have had to change their name. Well, that's how I happen to look at it....

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

@@lynchie137 no idea tbh. the DM Incubus probably didn't secure the necessary copyrights, I think they were on some no-name label

[@deathnecrobutcher3215]

this is so entertaining to watch especially for those OSDM fans like me keep it up!

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Hell yeah!!! More videos like this on the way! 🤘🤘🤘

[@paltmetal2hu]

Guitar tone is a little funky, but cool riffing nonetheless.

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Didn’t want anything too clean, this is old school death metal after all

[@SaintBeatrix]

@@eastvillageguitarmethodddi would argue it’s too clean for old school death metal. It’s too bright and snappy. Needs a bit more grit

[@holyG92]

Bridge pickup would have helped

[@DirtyDemos]

I'm not trying to be a prick by any means, but the tone ruins these riffs for me.

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Buncha armchair producers in here lol. I wanted to use a consistent tone throughout, so had to err on the side of cleaner than dirty. Also im using the bridge pickup, my switch is just twisted in the wrong direction rn

[@damnddevo]

Autopsy being there is always appreciated

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

One of the nastiest bands from that era

[@infinidominion]

Thought they were in C# tho

[@ryanxj9000]

Thanks. Hadnt heard a couple of these.

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Cheers, glad you enjoyed!

[@PentagramDave]

I salute your top tier muted down picks I'm dead

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Cheers! Appreciate it! 🤘🤘🤘

[@mustardsnack9338]

I love how its 80’s riffs, but had to include that 1990 Cannibal Corpse album! Haha killer stuff

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

The CC song was originally released on a demo in 89! Haha

[@mustardsnack9338]

@@eastvillageguitarmethoddd Got me there! Love the riffs

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Cheers thank you! 🤘🤘🤘

[@satarello]

I like your obscura sound...!!! and your playing...

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Love that album! Cheers!

[@brunocpimenta]

That picking hand being half stiff and half completly loose is buging my brain

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

DM palm muting should be fairly dynamic imo. Need more than one general technique to accommodate all these riffs

[@RAM-wv1vr]

Great list! I have them all! Unfortunately, you forgot the genesis of Death Metal: Possessed. Next time, 20 Essential DM Riffs.

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Thanks! True Possessed should be on a future video like this. Someone else suggested 50 riffs, might give that a shot!

[@devlord49]

Awesome! I'm glad I found your channel. :)

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Cheers! More stuff like this in the pipeline!

[@rcengineer]

Gorguts - Disincarnated Nocturnus - Aquatica Massacra - Apocalyptic Warriors Agressor - Prince of Fire

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Good picks! Gorguts is one of my favorites

[@Player85376]

Quite straight forward power chord based riffs

[@lautaromontoya3993]

nice book collection too

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Hey thanks!!

[@vincentzombi3916]

Awesome picks 🤘🏻🎃🤘🏻

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Cheers thanks!

[@DblakeDeathMetal89]

Hell yeah gotta have some Death on there for essential DM riffs!

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Chuck the GOAT 🤘🤘🤘

[@MR.EMusic84]

Love your video mate 🤘🤘 keep on rockin

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Cheers! 🤘🤘🤘🤘

[@danielpeschkes8337]

Soundtrack of my youth. I think Morbid Angel might very different from those riffs, but I liked them all.

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

🤘🤘🤘

[@marcintherisque]

Ah, Plebeian G. Great taste. 👾

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

😈😈😈🤘🤘

[@judysblueeyes]

Whoa those are some crazy ass riffs!!!!

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

🤘🎸🔥😈

[@DMITRYPRAKTIKA]

On first riff, I thought that video was on 2x speed. Damn.

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

lol! No cheating, promise 🤘🤘🤘

[@bmosk94]

Thats morbid angel for ya lol

[@domdomdomdom]

DEMOLITION HAMMER!!

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

😈🤘😈🤘😈🤘

[@germangomez7704]

La epoca dorada.

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Yes it is 🤘🤘🤘

[@scottbrady2301]

Can you do a 90s one next please

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Absolutely 🤘

[@REIRBL]

amazing!!!👍👍👍👍

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Thank you! 🤘🤘🤘🤘

[@REIRBL]

@@eastvillageguitarmethoddd 👍🎸

[@dantredogborsa7048]

Good job! 👏🏻👏🏻

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Cheers! 🤘🤘🤘

[@hammingus]

YES! YES! YES! I Love it!c🤘🤘🤘

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Cheers! 🤘🤘🤘

[@christopherdavis8248]

by the way I forgot to mention: subscribed!!!! double BTW: Nirvana 2002 (swedish death metal) recordings 89-91 is a must check out!

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

I know the name but never actually checked em out, good suggestion! Will include them in the future

[@christopherdavis8248]

@@eastvillageguitarmethoddd "Slumber" by Nirvana 2002. My favorite song by them!

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

I’ll check it out!

[@joaohenrique_23]

Raw as fuck. Well done.

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Thanks!! 🤘🤘🤘

[@humanperson3779]

Unpopular opinion apparently but I think the guitar tone in this video is nice and works well for the riffs

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Hahahaha the naysayers always scream the loudest. Think most viewers here are on your side tbh

[@humanperson3779]

Guitar tone is subjective anyway lol, nice selection and playing man

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Cheers thanks!

[@BruhMomentPatrick]

Leprosy was the best 80's death metal album, with Altars very close in 2nd place

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

I prefer altars myself, but it’s neck and neck either way

[@arturoperez2859]

Like desde Colombia

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

🤘🤘🤘🤘

[@dexter1706]

why was Circle of the Tyrants by Celtic Frost not in here? Every riff in that song could have been used

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

I definitely left a few off that prob should be on here. Gonna do another similar video in the future!

[@geartweaker8518]

Love the tone! Comment section sucks tho 😏

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Thank you! 🤘🤘🤘 yeah keyboard warriors are operating at full force lol

[@geartweaker8518]

​@@eastvillageguitarmethodddI love the way you can hear every note picked, makes it super aggressive. Your right hand tech is awesome

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

@@geartweaker8518 thanks so much! really appreciate the kind words. I've worked a long time to hone these techniques

[@J.Matt666]

tight! 🤘🤘🤘

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Cheers! 🤘🤘🤘

[@cephalicwasteland3504]

I saw this channel and thought this guy has the same Guitar as the pyrrhon guitarist… lol

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Ahem……it me lol

[@judysblueeyes]

lol! 😂

[@dbdbprairie3804]

Is that an LTD?

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

It’s an ESP Eclipse

[@sixxtus1825]

Did you use a pedal to change the tuning, since you use the same guitar on this video ? Wonder if this kind of pedal works great ...🤔

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Actually no, I just re-set the tuning throughout the video. Which I know isn’t ideal, going from E standard down to A lol. But I took it as a challenge!

[@sixxtus1825]

@@eastvillageguitarmethoddd Ok thanks ! I think I never had such a wide range of tuning on any guitar I have with the same gauge 🤔 Cheers from France !

[@Creativeusername617]

This guy gallops and tremolo picks like James Hetfield downpicks

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

DUDE!!! 🤘🤘🤘 honestly very flattering lol

[@damienthorn1800]

I like the tone, as it has that Severed Survival vibe

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Cheers, appreciate it! 🤘🤘🤘

[@Silverhands]

Lol this Mastodon master class.

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Those dudes came up with this music. And played in a death grind band called Lethargy before mastodon

[@whahappend8222]

What does Mastodon have to do with anything in this video?

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Read my comment above

[@ObieCS2]

No drop tuning riffs... guess that wasn't a thing in the 80s.

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

I don’t think drop tuning appeared in metal until the mid 90s. It was mainly a grunge and alternative rock thing before that I believe

[@HeathenMetalhead221]

​@@eastvillageguitarmethoddd it became popular in the 90s for sure but I Want You by the Beatles and Moby Dick by Led Zeppelin were both in dropped tunings

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

True! Good examples. Eddie Van Halen used drop D/C# a bunch too. “Unchained” is the first one that comes to mind

[@ocean_machine]

drop tuning is more of a hardcore thing. it makes it difficult to play melodies but it's good for bashing out power chords.

[@whahappend8222]

People ragging on your tone for not being exactly like the album is everything I hate about the kind of guitar player youtube has had a hand in creating. It's sad to see people who are more concerned with whether or not you're copying someone's exact tone than your choice in riffs. The thing is, it's 2024. If people are still impressed that it's possible to recreate the sonic profile of a guitarist what are we even doing? It's even less exciting than circle jerking over technique, because technique is a means to an end. For way too many people being able to nail James' And Justice tone is more interesting than the songs on the album.

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Yeah I’m trying to push back on the canned plug-ins and make something that actually sounds homemade

[@tfwnoyandere]

89 so early for A tuning

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Autopsy has to be one of the earliest examples of tuning down to A

[@tfwnoyandere]

@@eastvillageguitarmethoddd i believe almost a full decade before the first of the bands i listen to start tuning to 🅰️ on sixes (first nile album in 1998)

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Acid Bath was tuning down to A in the early 90s. But yeah Nile is also one of the earliest examples I can think of

[@Alexandr_Bombov237-fi9wz]

What the hell is in the video cannibal corpse and entombed? Demolition Hammer can't be called death metal in full. 1990≠80s

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

All those songs were released on demos in the late 80s. Demolition hammer not death metal? Ok boomer lol

[@ericwhatley5831]

🤘😈 🎸

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

😈😈😈🤘🤘🤘

[@OrlandoMartinez2014]

wow !!!!!

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Cheers 🤘🤘🤘

[@tkr157]

So what's the deal with 3 90s riffs in an 80s compilation?

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Those songs all initially appeared on demos released in the late 80s. I was waiting for this question eagerly hahaha

[@tkr157]

@@eastvillageguitarmethoddd That explanation I can live witheven though that 1990 looks weird in an 80 video. I'm glad that your waiting has come to an end. 😉

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Bands like cannibal corpse and entombed were very much a part of the development of the genre in the 80s even if their debut LPs landed in 1990. Not including them almost feels wrong tbh

[@pablo_makarenko]

Maybe, because 1990 is last year of 80s decade?

[@ashen11x22]

Are you playing on the neck pickup? It’s so muddy.

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Pickup selector is just twisted on that guitar, I’m using the bridge pickup. Another thread in here everyone was clamoring that my tone was TOO CLEAN lol

[@tobinstrike910]

When metal was great

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Truth

[@mikerauter1859]

good playing but Incubus and Demolition Hammer especially are thrash bro

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Ehhhh it’s a very fine line, especially in the 80s

[@mikerauter1859]

@@eastvillageguitarmethoddd fair enough, what do you consider the first true death metal record?

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Scream Bloody Gore. But reign in blood was righttttt on the verge

[@mikerauter1859]

@@eastvillageguitarmethoddd agree 7 churches is thrash

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Yeah I agree with that

[@Nemon9a]

They're too easy!

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Not really

[@chaseadams5037]

The guitars not very metal though 🤤

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Ok boomer. lol.

[@chaseadams5037]

@@eastvillageguitarmethoddd 🤤😏🤷🍆🤤

[@yarv884]

Every time I try to dig into death metal I get bored almost immidiately . I would rather listen to 12 random Pantera riffs. Sorry

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Check out Suffocation - “Pierced From Within” then get back to me

[@davidwinn2575]

I feel the exact opposite, but then again I prefer heavy music.

[@TH30guitar]

Napalm death is NOT death metal

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

lol. Ok boomer.

[@TH30guitar]

@ who says okay boomer any more 😭😭 and furthermore I’m only 16 and yes, I appreciate you are giving out tabs but napalm death was never death metal and carcass was never goregrind or grindcore, just the few misconceptions in grindcore. If you want a band that leaned to death metal would Extreme noise terror with their late 90s and early 2000s albums like damage limitation

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Ah cool a 16 year old telling me the ins and outs of a genre I’ve obsessed over for decades. Thanks for the history lesson!

[@TH30guitar]

@@eastvillageguitarmethoddd no worries, I didn’t mean to be cocky or anything I’ve just been super invested in the genre especially with wormrot

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

@ all good, sorry if I was also a little brash there. I included napalm in this video because the line between death metal and grindcore was very fine in the 80s. And both influenced each other tremendously. The genres have recently become more self-contained

[@wheeljork]

choke on it but not pull the plug? awww

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Wanted to use a thrashy Death riff. Too many to choose from!!!

[@NecropsY1]

Cannibal corpse dont sound right

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

I'll do some recon and see if I missed something

[@soldierbreakneck771]

Almost nothing played in beat.

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Lolllllllll

[@JorgeCaldare]

The guitar tone in this style of music before 2000's was horrible

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

lol oh, you mean all the best death metal albums ever created?

[@JorgeCaldare]

@@eastvillageguitarmethoddd i like bands like morbid angel, demolition hammer, pestilence, entombed, etc but to be honest i prefer the modern metal sound, cuz is heavier, even the voices in the modern death metal are wilder. But sometimes i used to listen old school albums.

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Won’t knock your enjoyment of newer stuff, I love a lot of modern death metal too. But you gotta respect the fact that the 80s and early 90s bands were literally inventing the style on the fly with Boss distortion pedals and modest amps. There was an immediacy + honesty to the music that has kinda been lost

[@JorgeCaldare]

@@eastvillageguitarmethoddd yeah, they we're the creators of this style, i respect that, sorry if my first comment was a little agressive or rude

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

No worries. I’m all about having a discourse about this stuff. But tbh my favorite guitar tones of all time are on None So Vile, Pierced From Within, Human, and Blessed are the sick.

[@istillsuckatguitar]

Good stuff. Thanks.

[@eastvillageguitarmethoddd]

Cheers! 🤘🤘🤘