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Greta Van Fleet - When the Curtain Falls - Guitar Lesson

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Key E minor
Greta Van Fleet - When the Curtain Falls guitar lesson video
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Classic Rock

Gain6
Bass6
Mid7
Treble6
Presence5
Master7
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Roll back the gain slightly and pick near the neck for a warmer, more open crunch.
Anthem of the Peaceful Army album cover
Anthem of the Peaceful Army
2018 3:43
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Greta Van Fleet Hard Rock 2018 E minor
Capo Advisor 0 E minor · Original key

About When the Curtain Falls

Heavy, swaggering, and built around a riff that sits right in the pocket of E minor, "When the Curtain Falls" is one of the most satisfying Greta Van Fleet tracks to work through on guitar. The main riff leans hard on open-position power chords and pentatonic vocabulary, so the fretting hand needs to be loose and confident rather than tense, letting the natural ring of E standard tuning do the work. At 120 BPM the tempo is manageable, but nailing the swagger means placing your pick strokes slightly behind the beat rather than rushing. The solo section demands string-bending accuracy and a feel for blues-inflected phrasing within the hard rock idiom, which is harder than it sounds at first. Use the Practice Toolbar to loop the solo entry point slowed down until your bends land exactly in tune. Once the riff feel and the bending intonation are both solid, the song comes together very naturally.

  • The song is in E minor and E standard tuning, so open-string resonance plays a big role in getting the riff to sound full and natural.
  • String-bending accuracy is the main technical hurdle, particularly in the solo section where blues-style bends need to land precisely in tune.
  • Looping the main riff slowed down is a good early step, as the groove depends on a relaxed, slightly behind-the-beat picking feel rather than mechanical precision.

How to Play When the Curtain Falls

Tuning: E Standard · Key: E minor · Tempo: 120 BPM

Use the section loop to isolate a passage, drop the speed below 100%, and set the metronome to 120 BPM to build it up to tempo.

Fender Stratocaster
Guitar

Fender Stratocaster

Jake Kiszka uses the Stratocaster's stock single-coils for crystalline, glassy tones in cleaner passages and arpeggiated sections, providing chimey contrast to his Les Paul's thicker voice. The single-coil bite cuts through the mix when he needs sparkling texture without the humbuckers' natural compression.

Gibson Les Paul Standard
Guitar

Gibson Les Paul Standard

Jake's primary instrument, the Les Paul's PAF-style humbuckers and mahogany body deliver warm, dynamic tones that clean up beautifully when he rolls back the volume and break into rich harmonics when he digs in. Running through cranked Fender and Marshall tube amps, this setup defines Greta Van Fleet's signature vintage-rock sustain and power.

Gibson Les Paul Custom
Guitar

Gibson Les Paul Custom

The Les Paul Custom's thicker body and refined pickups extend Jake's warm, compressed-but-dynamic tone palette, offering subtle variations in harmonic response compared to his Standard model. This guitar maintains the same 50s-style wiring philosophy, ensuring smooth volume roll-off that preserves high-end clarity during lead work.

Gibson ES-335
Guitar

Gibson ES-335

Jake deploys the ES-335's warmer, jazzier voice for passages requiring mellower sustain and reduced bite, complementing the Les Paul's aggression in Greta Van Fleet's dynamic arrangements. Its semi-hollow body naturally adds resonance and subtlety, perfect for blues-influenced solos and atmospheric textures.

Dunlop Cry Baby Wah
Pedal

Dunlop Cry Baby Wah

Jake's most prominent effect, the Cry Baby wah defines funky rhythm passages and expressive solos throughout Greta Van Fleet's catalog, adding vocal-like movement to his lead lines. Used sparingly but effectively, it's the primary seasoning in his otherwise tube-driven, minimal-effects signal chain.

MXR Phase 90
Pedal

MXR Phase 90

The Phase 90 provides psychedelic swirling textures on select Greta Van Fleet tracks, adding spacious, hypnotic motion without overwhelming the core tube-amp tone. This occasional effect reinforces Jake's vintage-rock palette, channeling 70s progressive influences while keeping the primary focus on warm, dynamic guitar fundamentals.

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