yeah i'm 13 and i went through the same thing it sounds like your biggest problem is you just play scales, by calling yourself a lead guitarist i presume you know scales, and you solos are probably boring because you just play scales positions up and down the neck, so you have to be creative do bends harmonics tapping whatever, and if you don't know them yet learn the modes,i think that they made my soloing a lot better, but you must know theory behind the chords and scales so you know what to use where.

alright since you like kirk hammet i'll use this A minor pentatonic exaple

A minor pentatonic scales 1st position pattern descending

e-20-17------------------------------
b--------20-17------------------------
g--------------19-17------------------
d--------------------19-17------------
a--------------------------19-17------
e--------------------------------20-17

know while this isn't the most exotic thing done in pentatonic it sounds a lot better than the above (taken from call of the ktulu (SP?)

e-20-17---------------------------------------------
b--------20-17------17-20-17---------------------------
g--------------19------------19-17------17-19-17---------
d----------------------------------19------------19-17---
a------------------------------------------------------17
e-

and so on another thing you could do to pentatonics is add the 'blue' not which is a -5 from the root note, if your playing normal pentatonics and then you play a root flatted 5 intervel it will sound really bad but you could do something like this from anthrax's finale


d-------------------------------------------------
a-2-2--2-2---5-7-5----5-6-7--2-2--2-2-----0-2-0--0-1-2
e-0-0--0-0----------7--------0-0--0-0-----------2-----

something like that i haven't played the song in a while

[Edited by shredisnotdead on 07-15-2002 at 06:53 PM]