You can't do that in METAL! With Brandon Ellis

Mozart harmonies and jazz arpeggios in metal? Par for the course with the awesomely inventive ‪@BrandonEllisGtr‬. Tie all this together with Brandon’s relentlessly hooky melody writing and signature swoopy vibrato, and it's impossible to resist the allure of his playing. The full conversation with Brandon clocks in at 1 hour and 18 minutes with 67 transcribed musical examples, including Brandon's rhythm parts and tablature for "How Very Dead" by the Black Dahlia Murder. Check it out at Cracking The Code: troygrady.com/...

[@DeanLamb]

This is awesome.

[@trasibleon]

Do lessons with Brandon video!!!

[@TommoGuitar]

You ain’t too bad yourself!

[@non_brewed_condiment]

Dean please do an interview with Troy.

[@FRANANGELICOONA]

YOU'RE awesome! - Keanu Reaves

[@austinmerz8005]

I love you bb

[@matthewmeserve73]

Brandon is that perfect mix of 80's shred, neo-classical and modern metal.. imo one of the best players in the business.

[@EL_DUDERIN0]

He makes it look so easy. It's not so easy. Brandon is such a great guitarist.

[@Rouwiinator]

his vibrato is absolutely otherwordly....

[@bassprofishe1549]

I see Troy Grady I click, I see Brandon Ellis I click. Double click actually coming in handy!!

[@troygrady]

We thank you doubly!

[@deftdigits]

@@troygrady He means Dolby.

[@TobyKBTY]

Brandon is a gem. His style, phrasing, chops and that goddamn vibrato. I got bored with a lot of shred and playing in modern metal the last decade, but I find Brandon extremely inspiring.

[@KaijuAlert]

Brandon is such a rad player. I feel like he understand vibrato, feel and attitude in a way few players in his generation truly grasp.

[@troygrady]

Yes!

[@Feverdream7777]

He reminds me of guys I knew in school that went on to Chemical Engineering degrees... they have the mind to deal with lots and lots of information and just naturally know the right thing to deal with among it all just effortlessly. It's a real gift and talent he has.

[@leftadrift3920]

hes definitely one of my favorite players and Jeff loomis

[@TheCyberMantis]

Loomis and Michael Romeo.

[@Jarrodpimental]

He’s so good I consider him one of my favorites and I actually hate his band. 😂

[@PLSGuitar]

@@Jarrodpimental Right there with you, don't like the band that much but he's in my top 5 metal guitarists for sure

[@leftadrift3920]

@@PLSGuitar Nevermore? I love that one... or was it Arch Enemy? cus not a big fan either

[@leftadrift3920]

Conquering Dystopia also great

[@m3m3sis]

He's such a great addition to black dahlia. The 80's touch is just the perfect flavour to tbdm sound.

[@mistano1]

Oh my lord. I'm sure I'm not alone in saying I've been waiting 2 years for this since the initial short was uploaded! What a treat.

[@themixmusicandmore6280]

I envy people who know theory to this degree but also I'm too lazy to learn it this extensively

[@albertxavierllavianevado4786]

Brandon is the modern age guitar hero. He's an excellent player!!

[@QwikVidz]

I can always watch Mr Ellis play

[@Guitar_Steve]

SUCH AN AWESOME VIDEO with Brandon. Thanks Troy! Love the talking during demonstration between you two.

[@kevinac4397]

Brandon is a master. Learned a lot from watching him on various platforms over the years, guitar setup and his music.

[@luchadormarkador3786]

Frock yea!!! sounds killer!!! always love hearing Brandon Shred and stuff.

[@jayyydiaz8066]

Omg , it’s finally here !!!!!!

[@necroriffmonger]

im a deeply ignorant guitarist. i dont know any theory at all. just stumble around the neck. so i have no idea what these two are talking about but i really enjoyed this video!!

[@qhodave]

All that theory talk is such a welcomed addition to the technical shred analysis. Haven't been here in a while and happy you do this now 👌🏻

[@jannewaan]

Haha the nervousness about fucking up in the end sounds too familiar 😂

[@Ebastine]

That turquoise Jackson is gorgeous!

[@troygrady]

Totally. It's a tricky color to get right on video so we kept going back and forth between the lights and camera until it looked exactly the same on the screen as it did in the room. So this is really what it looks like!

[@DeadGuitarDude]

The quality in Troy’s videos is amazing!

[@troygrady]

Thank you! We're grateful any time these great players agree to sit down with us

[@Youbombs]

One of my favorite guitarists of all time, so glad he ended up on here!

[@s4tchowns]

Feels like I have checked for this upload daily for the last two years or so :D There is no one like Brandon for me. Thanks for the video!

[@Madton]

Watching Brandon Ellis play makes me so inspired to learn and practice and also so hopeless because i'll never reach as close to even 1% of his chops. True master at his craft

[@troygrady]

You should never think that way! One thing that may help is understanding that great players are great often because they take the path of least resistance. They use motions which are easy and they pair them with phrases that are specifically designed to work with those motions. They're not out there suffering and making tiny gains for years and years. They're doing stuff in a way that is already known to work, which increases their odds of success from the start. From that starting point, work produces results in a much more expected way. We all have learning experiences like this with other skills - musical technique learning can work the same way.

[@Jarrodpimental]

If this video was in another language it would make exactly as much sense as it does to me now

[@LowdenFTW]

Yes more Brandon!

[@vlsis91]

Saw him with Black Dahlia and his golden scepter in June, phenomenal player, gives me motivation to keep playing guitar!

[@anttisaarinen4697]

The first scale they talked about, the major scale with a flat 6, I regognize it as the harmonic major scale. Great, weird and unique sound. Absolutely love mr. Ellis and Grady. Been waiting for this video for ages.

[@Iesous27]

This guy is the best modern guitarist in my opinion.

[@Diego-mc2go]

Brandon is a beast!

[@Johnsua-lr3qw]

That tone is amazing 🤘🤘

[@awguitarroom8033]

Amazing guitarist. Brandon and Ryan both. Been a fan of TBDM and Arsis for a long time

[@annas2nd]

Arsis deserves so much recognition! James Malone is a genius!

[@brownsfan7753]

Love this!!!

[@Locrian1]

Beautiful Playing

[@jamescendrowski4844]

If I wasn't watching I would swear your bends were a tremolo! Real nice bends.

[@pixxlethepaladin8269]

Simply incredible. Hot damn!

[@chupiconverge6034]

Amazing Sounds. Big like 👍🏿

[@Bulbcam]

TROY WHY DID YOU GATE KEEP THIS EPISODE FOR SO LONG 😭

[@damonstewart70]

Troy should get Ryan knight on here he's killer as well

[@troygrady]

Great player!

[@MikaTarkela]

That outro solo was so good! 😍

[@paulatreides1354]

brandon is such an inspiration , and i want his guitar so bad haha

[@Desaje]

Finally it’s here!

[@etburkentine455]

He reminds me so much of Jason Becker. So freaking good 👍🏻

[@krystian_went8537]

BRANDON ELLIS MY FAVORITE PLAYER🤘

[@wordofmouth7679]

I can identify with the guitar player theory. Those magazines usually had very good columns and lessons if you took the time to understand and incorporate it into your own playing and really digest the material. John Petrucci’s “Chopin’ up the fingerboard” article is a great example - it discussed the chord changes and chromaticism in guitar-specific exercises. I learned so much theory and so many modes just out of curiosity by the time I hit AP Music Theory, I breezed right through it by just learning a little bit of baroque western harmony part-writing and some ear training. Those magazines and the occasional guitar lesson videos my local video store carried were how learning was done before KZbin.

[@sunnibird]

I understood none of what was being said.

[@TheCyberMantis]

I definitely heard phrygian in there. Also sounded like something you would find in a Megadeth song.

[@removemental2873]

Have been hoping for this for a long time.

[@TheKierensaysmaybe]

Goddamn it I need crackle and sharktooth inlays.

[@CEB7832]

I feel bad asking a tone question when the playing is so interesting and great, but here goes: what is Brandon playing through during the demo with the green guitar? His tone is so thick and rich, it’s awesome!

[@damonstewart70]

That's not a lame question. But the interesting thing is. Once you find out the amp. It might not be for you. That happened to me with Marshall's. Loved other players through them but they weren't for me

[@troygrady]

Cornford Hellcat! Not really a super modern metal amp but he's tuned down to C (edit: only with the Kelly, the green guitar is standard tuning) so everything is fatter. I think the rest is just his guitar - it's a heavy piece of wood that has Les Paul vibes.

[@CEB7832]

@@troygradyHe was playing the same setup with both guitars? Sounds so different!?!

[@MrGul]

@@CEB7832 Different pickups = different sound.

[@hon8177]

Brandon's Jackson guitars are American and BETTER than any brand new American Jackson you can buy nowadays.

[@TommoGuitar]

1:58 is sooo relatable 🙂

[@ArtClark-ub7ce]

Like it! Bit like Blues Saraceno!! At my age get bored of same old same old....! My Kids do similarly inspired by movies etc. Bang on!!

[@chrisdaviesguitar]

Insanely good chops, fair play.

[@derickcutter8485]

More more more!

[@ltxr9973]

Awesome Kelly!

[@shaharbar]

Modern Day Randy Rhoads, love Brandon!

[@cosmicspaceship]

F*cking BADASS!

[@irmasil3]

We WANT Jacksons with KAHLERS!!!! WE DEMAND Jacksons with Kahlers!!!!

[@THRASHMETALFUNRIFFS]

I can agree with this... I have the USA Jackson RR1 with original "nonlicensed" Floyd but also the 80's NoName V with Kahler that is better in some ways. It's super easy to adjust the spring tension for different tunings and has a looser feel and huge travel and stays in tune forever even after a ton of SLAYER abuse.

[@whoisdin]

ffffffff. that was rad.

[@fourth80]

I watched the beginning while taking a dump. Absolutely BRUTAL shit!🤩💩🎸

[@theekonezung]

Sweet ! Would love a breakdown on Craig Goldy's picking technique please.

[@Burtallica]

Brandon's vibratto is :chef's kiss:

[@troygrady]

Agreed - it is swoopy and awesome!

[@michaelkaastrup5429]

in a few years Brandon will be the worlds best metal player Awesome playing 🙂

[@danlatulip4953]

Damn it Brandon! Ya wanna just come get my guitars I’m gonna go play clarinet or something

[@420247milo]

5:01 yes exactly sounds like a movie score. Kinda reminded me of MIB

[@seanlheeger]

The fretboard locks together.

[@AncientEvil80]

The Jason Becker of Death Metal

[@JobForAMaxboy]

I find his playing so much more interesting in demonstrations than in his recorded solos

[@troygrady]

The solo in the intro song in the clip is note-for-note the record, and I enjoyed the writing on that. He's following the changes and the changes are cool, so there aren't too many other ways that's going to sound.

[@АлександрСтафиевских-с5д]

Troy Grady super thanks so much. отличное исполнение хорошего хеви-метал. Brandon super.

[@troygrady]

Thanks for watching!

[@TechMetalRules]

Good stuff!

[@Sean.N]

fhakin deheeheecent

[@non_brewed_condiment]

Dude hell yes

[@MsDavo123]

it seems at 9:55 there was basically incredible luck happening ascending and descending triads but the speed with which he played it omg 😮

[@troygrady]

The nice thing about the economy patterns that Brandon uses for seventh arpeggios is that the picking motions simplify the string changes. As long as you're playing patterns that utilize the strengths of those motions, the hit rate can be pretty high even when going fast.

[@shubniggurath6464]

I like how Brandon can clearly play anything but still has a "normal" technique, like he doesn't do hyper-precise or minimal movements like Teemu or Quayle. His hands look like mine while playing, which shows that you don't necessarily need some exotic technique knowledge, just need to practice properly.

[@troygrady]

We've interviewed Teemu several times and his motions aren't super tiny when viewed up close - here's an example ( instagram.com/p/B_Q94Hcn8mr/ ). In general the small motions thing isn't really what most players look like when you get up close enough to really see what they're doing. This was emphasized a lot in old-skool guitar instruction but I think that's because it's what guitar teachers back in the day *thought* guitar playing should look like, rather than what it actually looks like. Short story, I wouldn't worry about that. Just do the techniques as fluidly as you can with a range of motion that feels easy for whatever speed you are going.

[@mookhaze]

Metal rules 🤘🤘🤘❤

[@RobJohnsonGuitar]

Brandon shreds !

[@reganmacneilexorcist]

Jackson Guitars 💯💯🤘🤘

[@Asc3ndans3y]

Oh man how long has this been in the making?

[@cris_horizons]

5:00 thats called chromatic mediant (one of 8 u can find) and his uses can find in 1800s music , nowadays can be on incidental music, score for films videogames, and of course modern metal symphonic music.

[@eriklessons]

What a talent!

[@MotorGoblin]

2:54 That Mb13 (or whatever you want to call it) is cool. Doesn't sound too augmented with the perfect 5th still grounding it but has some of that whole-tonish dreamlike vibe.

[@troygrady]

Yep awesome sound!

[@elephantricity]

new ctc content? heck yeah!

[@bitdevice]

The lick at 9:48 sounds exactly like the lick Teemu M played on this channel in another video (at least according to my memory it sounds the same).

[@troygrady]

Indeed they have very compatible stylings. I've been encouraging a team-up side project!

[@alfiesolomon3531]

Finally

[@albertmarkethinkpr1325]

This guy!

[@srhatfield]

5:00 Jake E Lee does that in Killer of Giants

[@charlieschuyler_1992ny]

ihsahn has been making music that sounds like this (harmonically as well as aesthetically) since the last emperor record (admittedly ihsahn’s lead chops, tho quite good, are not at ellis’s level)

[@damonstewart70]

I agree

[@1234drums]

Yeeeah 🔥

[@AmmoniakET]

whos this kid :) very good player!

[@willlacy112]

some of the stuff he played gave me a Nuno vibe

[@chrisking6695]

Wow 20 years later and we finally get a short video lol

[@troygrady]

We don't typically post entire interviews on our channel, but this is a nice self-contained conversation topic including the intro tune. So we're not trying to cheap out on you here! The full conversation is indeed available on Cracking the Code, and we do have a scholarship option for anyone who's in a bind and can't afford the full freight - just hit up ( troygrady.com/scholarship ).

[@zabmelody]

Hey Troy you need to invite Michael Romeo next 🔥

[@codygranrud6212]

Sweet

[@matenagy8978]

FINALLLYYYYYYY !!!!

[@yonikup2865]

Finally!!!!

[@chrisellerton1199]

I can play smoke on the water!! so yeah.

[@privateer0561]

Strangely getting a Steve Morse vibe despite the different playing style(s). Must be the hair.

[@jonsouth2166]

His economy picking is almost up to par with Rick Graham.

[@SamBrockmann]

Wait until they find out what the band Death did in songs!

[@troygrady]

Chuck was the best and Bobby Koeble actually commented on a previous lesson. His work on Symbolic is super duper tasty!