Bend and release: blues licks with a pull-off
Bends that go up a whole step and come back down before the next note, then a pull-off to the note below: on the B string's G, the high E's C, and the G and D strings. Releasing a bend in time and in tune is as much a part of blues phrasing as the bend itself, and the pull-off right after only sounds if the string is back at its fret.
Opens in the player looped and counted in, with drums playing along, and speeds up 5 % every 2 loops to 90 bpm. No account or microphone needed.
- Goal tempo
- 90 bpm
- Starts at
- 54 bpm
- Length
- 4 bars, looped
- Tuning
- E standard
- Time
- 4/4, swung
- Level
- Intermediate
- Plays with
- Drums
How to play it
Keep the fingers pressing as the string comes back down, so the released note sounds as clearly as the bent one.
Each bend goes up a whole step and comes back down within its beat, then a pull-off sounds the note below. Bar 1: G at the B string's 8th fret bent to A and released, pull off to E at the 5th, then D on the G string, picked plain and then bent, released and pulled off to C, and A on the D string.
Bar 2 does it on the high E string, C bent to D and back, pull off to A, then G and a held E. Bar 3 bends D on the G string and A on the D string, each released and pulled off. Bar 4 holds a slow bend and release on D for half a bar and ends on A.
The eighths are swung. A bend and release happens within its beat: up quickly, held for a moment, and back down before the next note.
Mistakes to watch for
- Releasing too late, so the pull-off comes after the beat.
- Easing the pressure as the string comes back, so the released note goes dead.
- Releasing past the fret's pitch, which happens when the string slips sideways under the finger.
A speed plan
The player starts at 60 % of the goal and plays each tempo twice before stepping up:
- 54
- 59
- 63
- 68
- 72
- 77
- 81
- 86
- 90
That's 16 loops and about 4 minutes before you're playing at 90 bpm. If it stops being clean on the way, stop the ramp there and loop that tempo until it is. With a microphone or an audio interface you can record while you play instead: Demiurg checks every loop and steps up only after two clean ones in a row, and back down after a poor one.
Questions
How fast should I play Bend and release?
The goal is 90 bpm in eighth notes, which is 3 notes a second. Start wherever every note is clean: the player begins at 54 bpm. Signed in, you can set a goal of your own, slower or faster, on the Exercises page.
What's the difference between a bend and a bend and release?
A bend goes up and stays; a bend and release goes up and comes back to the fretted note while it's still ringing. The release is heard, so it has to be in time and in tune just like the bend.
How do I keep the release in tune?
Let the string down under control, keeping the fingers pressing as it returns, and stop exactly at the fret. Practise it slowly at first, listening for the moment it's back at the fretted note.
More rock and blues exercises
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