How to play this part?

Recently, I want to play Pumped Up Kicks by Foster The People. And I found someone’s cover with tabs on Youtube. (by Harry - Music & Stuff)

The beginning was fine. But I just couldn’t play as smooth as him at 0:48 (6 8 6 Tuplet).

Do I just need to play really fast to sound smooth or is there any other technique?

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Hi @TD, welcome to the forums! What usually works best for me is practicing a song at a slower speed first. You can slow down YouTube videos to 0.75 or even 0.5 speed using the cog wheel icon at the bottom right. Once you’re able to play it slowed down, you can increase the speed again. Good luck!

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I did practice with 0.75 speed. It seems still too fast for me. I just tried to hear him at 0.5 speed. And I can hear he just played note by note really fast since it’s a triplet in 16th notes. Thanks!

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Have you tried playing it with a hammer-on? (And maybe a pull-off as well, but that’s probably not needed here.)

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Seconding what @Mike_NL and @TD said - first, slooooow 'er down. You’ll learn faster.
And @akos is right - this is a hammer-on with a pull-off. The ‘swoop’ is used to indicate both and you’ll know which by what ‘direction’ the notes are going - up or down the fretboard.

Play 6, hammer-on 8, pull off while 6 is ringing.

You can pluck this, too, if you’re a maniac. When going after triplets with a plucked tone, make sure you’re alternating your fingers. Unless you’re James Jamerson, a single-finger hook won’t cut it. :slight_smile:

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You made this so clear, which really helps me a lot! Very appreciate! :clap:

Edit:
I’ve tried a few times. It all makes sense now. Normal plunking always has the interval feeling between notes. But using hammer-on and pull-off can make sounds connect to each other. I just finished the course yesterday. I learned hammer-on and pull-off exists in Josh’s last module, but I really don’t know when to use them. Although I only can play this 6 8 6 super super slow, I’m really happy I can do it now!

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Congratulations!!! I’d rather sound good, slower, than sound bad at a crazy tempo. And your speed will pick up on its own from here :slight_smile: You got this!

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