AC/DC - Thunderstruck Pt.2 - All Rhythm Guitar Parts - Guitar Lesson

Iron Man 2

1990 4:54

Listen on Spotify Listen on Apple Music

About Thunderstruck Pt.2 - All Rhythm Guitar Parts

Few rhythm guitar tracks in hard rock are as physically demanding as the rhythm parts behind "Thunderstruck." Once the opening finger-picked intro gives way to the main body of the song, Malcolm Young's rhythm work locks in with a relentless, chugging E minor groove that never lets up. The challenge is not complexity but stamina and precision: keeping a tight, consistent pick attack at full tempo for the entire track without the momentum sagging. Your fretting hand has to stay relaxed or fatigue will blur your chord changes. AC/DC built this track around deceptively simple open-position and power chord shapes, but sloppy muting will expose every mistake at this tempo. Isolate the sections where the rhythm shifts or accents change and use the Practice Toolbar to loop them slowed down until the muscle memory is solid. When you can play each passage cleanly at a reduced speed, bring the tempo back up gradually before running the full song.

• The rhythm guitar parts rely heavily on E minor power chords with tight palm muting, so right-hand muting control is the core technique to develop.
• Stamina is a real factor here: the chugging rhythm pattern continues at pace for most of the track, making consistent pick attack the main physical challenge.
• Practise each distinct rhythm section in isolation using the Practice Toolbar before chaining them together, as the transitions are where timing most often breaks down.