Any tips on style for strumming faster

I'm looking at songs like Daron Malakian on the SOAD song Chup Suey or that Head dude that got dunked in the Jordan river :) on the Korn song Got the Life where they play one of those, I guess you'd call it a fifth cord with the two octave notes and the fifth muted.

I kept slowing the pace down on the Sytem of a Down video to see how he is doing it, and it looks like it's all picked from the wrist with a little bit of rotation, but mostly flat, moving back and forth.

I can sort of play quick like that if I bend my wrist almost at a right angle, lifting my forearm way off the bridge, but that's ridiculous and has no control whatsoever.

Is it mostly just a matter of practice? Or is there a trick like barely hitting the strings? I've seen in some other videos where people strum fast from the forearm, but I don't think that's what I'm looking for. Any help would be appreciated.

practice with a metronome and as you build speed you can speed up the metronome. ;)

Developing speed takes practice. It's that simple. Regardless of whether you prefer alternate picking or more fluid techniques playing faster and more precisely requires the development of the muscles involved. Daron makes chugging away look and sound simple because he's been playing a long time, not because he uses some secret magical technique.

If your talking about the fast palmuting stuff I suggest listening to some of AS I Lay Dying's new cd and try some of their stuff. They use alot of the fast palmutes. If you can't download (it is very illegal to download music and I or Guitartricks are not held responsible if you try to download music) Just send me a pm ;) .

phew :o I was starting to think it was some sort of inate natural ability that some could strum faster than others and had naturally loser wrists or something. Then again, I've been practicing runs a lot lately and haven't been fiddling around much with strumming.

My alternate picking on the other hand is slowly getting faster, but it's a tedious practice. There was a breakthrough the other day though, where it somehow clicked and could play noticeably faster than I had been for a few weeks. Hopefully that will happen a few more times.

Thanks all. Yeah, I'll look up that band and of course I'll pay for it. :D

Muttonbuster try going down up down up down up, over and over again and try to mix it up between like 16th note beats and 32nd beats, its pretty easy once u get going. Start out slow then work your way up faster and faster.

You have to use upstrokes to play 16ths unless you're at a very slow tempo for punk. Down strokes only on 16ths is like 32nds alternate picking. at 120 bpm (most punk is at least that fast) 32nds are 8 notes per second!! most beginners struggle to get 16ths at 120, which is 4/sec. if you get to more than about 15/sec. it sounds like a blur.

But there’s not really a specific technique u could use, just practice doing what i already suggested and go for it.

Good luck! :)
Vince Rudd.

Fast picking is as much, or more dependant on your fretting hand. Try practicing your riffs, or solos, or whatever your needing speed with without using the picking hand so much, you know, not so many strokes! Most of the really sick shreeders are getting their sound mainly from the fretting hand, of coarse picking too, but with more finess than just grinding out 3000 rpm up stroke/down strokes mindlessly. Start workin those speed riffs , and fancy fingering with some, hammer ons, and pull offs(fret hand), and give your pick a break! but thats just me.