Dive bomb
A dramatic downward bend of the pitch produced by pushing the tremolo arm down until the strings go slack.
A dive bomb drops the pitch of a held note or chord far below its written value, often until the strings rattle against the pickups, and then releases it back to pitch. It needs a tremolo that can take the abuse without going out of tune, which is why locking systems were developed around it. Used sparingly it mimics a jet or a siren; used constantly it becomes a cliche, and on a vintage-style tremolo it will usually pull the whole guitar sharp.
Example: A metal lead that ends a phrase by slamming the tremolo arm down and letting the note collapse before snapping back is a dive bomb.
See also
Related
- PageWhammy bar
- PageFloyd Rose
- PageTremolo
- PageAccent
- PageAction height
- PageAlternate picking
- PageAaron Dessner
- PageAce Frehley