Slap and pop playing on guitar has become very common with genres that like to mix funky and percussive strums into their technique. Besides sounding cool it is a great skill to learn as it involves a focus on rhythm and timing, and it can be practiced along with common chord progressions and scales. Here are some of the reasons and methods behind slap and pop guitar techniques.
What is Slap and Pop
The point of slapping and popping strings is to get a louder or grittier sound from them, the modern slap techniques we see all stem from great double and electric bass players of the past. Being part of the rhythm section these bassists would thump and pluck the strings to bring more to it, these days many guitarists have adapted their methods. It is used across many genres now like blues, rock, funk, jazz, bluegrass, and more.
You can learn how to play guitar using slapping and popping techniques, and some guitarists use their fingers and palms to smack the guitar just about everywhere. There are some videos on social media where a player does everything but play the guitar! But it is still always amazing to watch, the whole point of all this extra flair is for more groove, percussion, and rhythm throughout the song.
Can You Slap and Pop Any Guitar?
You can add percussive effects to any part of your guitar playing if the timing is right. However some guitars will respond better, generally acoustics with large bodies will give you the best sound. Cheaper guitars with laminated tops will have a harder time resonating so don’t go hurting your thumb trying to get a super deep “thunk” if it isn’t possible!
This slap and pop can be done on the electric guitar; however, you will have to take a lighter approach. With no sound body, we aren’t going to be as rough in treatment of the strings. And speaking of strings, different styles and sizes can make a difference, the thicker ones can take more of a beating to make the necessary sound. Just be sure to ease into treating your guitar like a drum until you are certain what you can do!
The Slap
The most important aspect of the slap and pop is the first slap, it establishes a hard downbeat and can be played at various levels. We strike the low bass string with the side of the middle thumb joint to make a slap, smack, or thunk. It will take some slow practice to make sure you are aiming your thumb joint right. If you have ever played this technique on a bass, make sure not to hit it as hard, the guitar can’t handle that.
Once you find a sweet spot turn a metronome or drum machine on and start counting in 1 2 3 4 and slap on the 1 each time. It is okay if you hit the string against the fretboard, it can be a little sloppy in its ringing, but the strike needs to be on the beat. Your thumb will get sore, especially if you have thick acoustic strings, so prepare for pain!
Of course, with an electric, we will be hitting it lighter and wanting a more refined technique. A clean amplification is better at first to hear how the slap is going without any interference.
The Pop
After the downbeat slap, we wait until beat three and pluck a higher string in a chicken-picking manner. This means to put your finger under the string and pluck hard! Slap and then pop and try to keep it on the correct beats. Don’t pop too hard or you will break the string or sound bad. Play a G chord and hit the bass with a slap and then pluck one of the higher notes back and forth.
Once you start to get a feel for the technique, move through a chord progression like G-C-D, keep in mind as the bass string changes you want to slap the correct root note! It’s not easy so take it slow and be sure to slap and pop on the right beats and bass or treble section. Soon we want to speed this process up so the slap is on the beats 1 and 3 and then the hard pop on 2 and 4 which simulates a rock-back beat.
As you start to feel rhythm come together you can add more slaps and pops into the mix, funk music is made up of 1/16th notes so that is our goal. Try doing four slaps in a row (on the beat) and then adding in faster pops the next time and you will be on your way to an awesome groove.
The (Other) Tap
Normally when we discuss tapping it is on the fretboard, but you can also tap almost anywhere on the guitar. The point of slapping and popping is for a percussive effect, so now that you have the timing and beat you can try new ideas. The easiest tapping is to slap the bass string and then hit your pinky on the soundboard back and forth on and off the beat. Soon add other fingers in the tapping until you have a neat little groove.
Generally, the tapping occurs on the fretboard or the soundboard as those are the only places we will really project any sound. Electric guitarists can’t go as wild as acoustic players with this process, but that’s ok, they have shredding. The larger acoustic body guitar you have, the louder and more impressive your mix of slap, pop, and thumping will be.
Putting It Altogether
Try different tunings, the dropped bass will give you a thicker slap, and experiment with different genre backing drum rhythms. Let them play on a loop while you use simple 1-4-5 chord progressions (G-C-D or E-A-B or A-D-E) and blues scales. Always being sure to make a strong slap on the downbeat and then adding in the popping or tapping flair. As you begin to mix it up, refine where to best hit your thumb, experiment with the exact position that gives you the loudest sound and most bass.
In some songs you may want to take a lighter approach to the slap and pop to try for a different style, this minimal method still sounds great. This technique can even be used in heavy metal or bluegrass for adding deeper thuds or funkier vibes, basically, your guitar takes on whole new abilities. And once you start it is hard to stop, especially when you get it down to make really rocking blues riffs!
One of the coolest percussive techniques on the guitar is the slap and pop, it seems easy but it will take some practice to hit the right spot on your thumb. And the pop will need just the right pluck to sound correct, it will be essential to practice these movements. Be certain to have a backing drum, rhythm, or just a metronome so you get the rhythmic aspect right. Once you know the slap and pop you will be better at guitar and percussion!
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