There are two kinds of guitarists: those who hear the opening of "Knights of Cydonia" and calmly reach for their instrument, and those who immediately start galloping around the room pretending they're in a Spaghetti Western shoot-out. I am, proudly, the second kind, and Muse have only themselves to blame.
This is my one-minute-and-change guitar take on Muse's most gloriously ridiculous arena anthem — all galloping palm mutes, desert-noir swagger, and that unmistakable Matt Bellamy drama. If you've ever wanted to play the Muse riff that makes you feel like you're outrunning a posse on horseback, this is the clip.
How the Knights of Cydonia gallop actually works
The engine of this riff is the gallop: a down-up-down picking pattern that packs three notes into every beat (an eighth followed by two sixteenths), the exact same rhythmic trick that powers the metal warhorses of the 80s. Bellamy keeps it locked with tight palm muting — rest the side of your picking hand right where the strings meet the bridge, so every note comes out as a short, percussive "chug" instead of a ringing tone.
Harmonically it leans on E Phrygian dominant — the fifth mode of harmonic minor — which is where the whole thing gets its dusty, vaguely-Spanish, someone-is-about-to-draw-a-pistol flavour. Concrete takeaway: nail the palm mute first, then play the gallop at half speed. If the rhythm is even and the mutes are tight, the notes almost play themselves; rush it and you'll sound like a horse tripping over its own hooves.
Get it right and you're a lone gunslinger at high noon; get it wrong and you're the tumbleweed. Slow guitar-nerdery, galloping riffs and full tabs live over on my Patreon.