By now, perhaps you are coming along well with the exercises. But you may wonder how on earth do you apply technique to soloing? This is a difficult question and is similar to the equally difficult question, "How do you play lead"? There are no strict answers to these types of questions. Some people prefer to learn a handful of riffs, and then their playing becomes dominated by their riffs. I prefer to view solos like vocal sections. Whether it is a solo, or a melody, I feel that something is always being communicated, and what better way to communicate than treating your guitar like a voice. So when I write solos, they usually are inspired by a melody and are dominated by the melody. A solo may have several main parts, and technique comes into the picture when I try to connect the parts meaningfully.

The exercises that follow show riffs from a few songs I recorded (some in dire need of a re-recording!). In the included audio files, you will notice that you don't hear the riff until several seconds after you start playing the file. I did this so that you can hear the musical context of the riff (i.e. what led up to it).

The use of bends and vibrato in a solo is a major component of phrasing. It can adds a sense of intensity. And it is a good way to lead into another riff. In this case it leads to a quick picked, descending run (what can I say - I am a sucker for quick descending riffs!). The descending run itself also illustrates a nice technique. Notice the accented pauses. Try to create your own riffs like this. They really sound much better than just playing in even time.

Make sure that you are accurate with your bends here. And play the descending run using alternate picking.