Top 10 Guitarists with the Oddest Picking Techniques

His wrist isn't broken, but it looks like one when he plays. He bends his wrist too much, and it looks like it hurts. In his own words, his picking technique "looks stupid as crap."

The weirdest thing is that he actually does the main two things traditionally:

1. He holds the pick with two fingers.
2. He uses his thumb and index finger.

Nevertheless, his picking style looks extremely odd because:

1. The position of his hand is very unusual.
2. The angle of his wrist is weird ("broken wrist").
3. The position of his fingers is also unusual (no extended fingers).

Because of that, his picking style looks weird as hell.

A good example of his technique is when he stretched his strings so much that he made it sound like a tremolo effect, vibrato, or whammy bar. Check out the Moonchild 1982 version in Germany, nearly at the end of the song.

In the 1978 Shadow Play version in Germany, he did the same (though not exactly like Moonchild). He also did tapping before Eddie Van Halen in the mid-'70s and used tremolo picking in several songs.

I haven't seen any other picking technique like this. He leaves his picks and stretches his Strat's strings by just shaking/stretching them.

Wilko Johnson was the original guitarist for the rock and roll band Dr. Feelgood. He doesn't use a pick. He instead strikes the edges of his fingers in a syncopated manner against the strings. This allows him to blend rhythm and lead guitar in a unique way. Watch any video of him with Dr. Feelgood in the mid-1970s, and then watch the video where he explains his technique. He makes it look and sound easy, but it's not.

Richie Kotzen doesn't use a pick!

He used to play with a pick, but around 2007, he changed his style and has been playing only with his fingers ever since.

1. Steve Morse of Deep Purple often holds the pick with three fingers instead of two (which is unusual).
2. He also has the most metal picking technique ever because his right hand often looks like a devil-horns hand! Or the Rock On gesture, if you prefer.

Michael Angelo Batio... What's not odd about this guy?

His picking style: he only moves his picking fingers, while the other fingers don't move! It looks like he's tickling and pinching. Also, his pick usually can't be seen ("shy pick").

He holds the pick with three fingers instead of two and holds it like a pen or pencil. You can see it in the image. James Hetfield looks like a "writer," but this technique worked great for him, obviously.

Both James Hetfield and Steve Morse of Deep Purple use three fingers, but their hands look different while picking.

No, it isn't what you think. He just holds the pick differently - with his thumb and middle finger. Eddie explained:

"In an instructional book, there was an illustration of how to hold the pick. It was to be held with your thumb and index finger. Well, I couldn't, for the life of me, hold it like that. It was very uncomfortable, and I felt like I had absolutely no control of the pick. I tend to hold it more with my thumb and middle finger, with a little bit of my index finger, but mostly just my thumb and middle finger. The only time I hold the pick with my thumb and index finger is when I am using the vibrato bar. Bottom line is, and I say this a lot, do whatever works best for you! There are no rules when it comes to being creative, and playing guitar certainly falls into that category."

No, he doesn't hold the pick with his middle finger (unlike Eddie Van Halen).

Kirk just often extends his middle finger, which looks very funny. He doesn't do it intentionally. It just happens.

He holds the pick "normally" (with his thumb and index finger), but the position and movement of his fingers look terrifying. When he moves his fingers, they look like creatures from horror movies or your nightmares. This can be seen partly in the image.

The young Synyster Gates used to hold the pick like an old lady holds a cup of coffee, but he changed that, so no fun anymore.