Riff Weather
Riff Weather gives a forecast for tonight's gig: key, main weather, what the drums are doing and the chance of harmonised guitars. The forecast is calculated from the date and is the same for everyone, wherever you are. There is a playable riff that matches it, and an outlook for the next days.
How to use it
- Read the forecast: key, weather, chances and warning.
- Press Play to hear the forecast riff, with the drums the forecast promises.
- Check the outlook for the next days if you are planning the rehearsal room.
- Copy the forecast and send it to the band.
How is the riff forecast calculated?
The riff forecast is a daily forecast generated from the UTC date, so it is the same for everyone regardless of location. The date decides key, scale, main weather, drum addition, tempo, two probabilities and a warning.
The main weather is a riff technique: tremolo, gallop, chug, melodic or mixed. Each weather has a tempo range, from 70 to 200 BPM. The drum addition is a drum groove, such as blast, double kick, thrash or half-time. The scale is natural minor, harmonic minor, Phrygian, Dorian, Phrygian dominant or melodic minor.
The probability of harmonised guitars
The first probability is always for harmonised guitars and lies between 20 and 95 percent. The second is for something else that varies. If the chance of harmonised guitars is 50 percent or more, a second voice is added to the forecast riff.
Harmonised guitars are two guitars playing the same melody in thirds or sixths, a staple of melodic death metal and classic hard rock. The outlook shows the forecast for the next two days, so you can plan the rehearsal room.
Play the forecast riff
The forecast riff is a playable riff with tab. It plays in E Standard, is four bars long and follows the weather's technique, scale and tempo. The drums follow the drum addition.
Here is how to use it for practice:
- Play the riff with drums and listen first. Then read the tab.
- Practice bar by bar with a metronome, and raise the tempo only when the riff is clean.
- If the forecast is tremolo or melodic, work on picking stamina and clean shifts. If it is chug, work on muting.
- Copy the forecast and send it to the band before rehearsal.
Frequently asked questions
Is the forecast accurate?
It is exactly as accurate as every other forecast: it says what will happen and you play accordingly. It is calculated from the date and is the same for everyone.
Why is it the same forecast everywhere?
Riffs do not depend on location. The forecast is calculated from the date in UTC, so it is the same in Gothenburg, Gävle and Sydney.
Can I play the forecast?
Yes. The forecast riff follows the key, technique and tempo of the forecast, and the drums follow the weather. It plays with tab, metronome and drums.
What do key and scale mean in the forecast?
The key is the root note, for example E or C#, and the scale says which notes the riff uses, such as natural minor or Phrygian. Phrygian has a minor second above the root, which gives a darker sound.
Related tools
- Daily Riff: A new riff every day, the same for everyone, with tab, playback and a streak for the days you practised.
- Breakdown Generator: Big button, heavy chug riff: an emergency breakdown on the lowest string with tab, drums and shareable text.
- Riff Generator: Create a new guitar riff in any key, scale and tuning, with tab and playback.
- Brutality Meter: Measure how brutal a riff is, with sub-scores for tremolo, chugs, dissonance and melody. Unscientific but honest.
- Gothenburg Compliance Test: Test whether a riff follows the rules of melodic death metal: twin harmony, minor key, pedal tone and sequence.
- Riff Hero: A rhythm game for guitarists. Falling notes, drum backing, score, combo and stars on charts that train gallops, tremolo and blast beats.