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Holy Wars... The Punishment Due

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Holy Wars... The Punishment Due by Megadeth

Holy Wars... The Punishment Due appeared on Megadeth's 1990 album Rust in Peace, a landmark in the thrash metal canon. The two-part epic kicks off with blistering riffs and a searing lead that showcase the band's technical prowess, clocking in at about six and a half minutes. The title hints at its split narrative: Holy Wars addresses religious conflict, while The Punishment Due imagines divine retribution, a pairing that has made the track a touchstone for fans and players alike.

Written at the peak of Mustaine's political and religious concerns, the song features Marty Friedman delivering the blistering lead lines that define the Rust in Peace era, backed by Ellefson's bass and Menza's relentless drums. Its two-part structure, lightning-fast tempo shifts, and razor-edged riffs helped cement Rust in Peace as a high-water mark for thrash, and it remains a go-to study in speed, precision, and expressive phrasing for guitarists.

🎸 Want to know the techniques, practice tips, and lesson details? Scroll below the lesson!

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What You'll Learn

In this Megadeth guitar lesson, you'll break down Holy Wars into its essential sections—the explosive main riff sections, the mid tempo heavy groove, and the furious lead solo. We'll cover the core riffs with palm-muted, fast alternate picking; the transitional phrases; the use of two-handed techniques; and how to shape dynamics to mimic the track's aggressive yet precise character. The lesson will also highlight tricky parts to watch for, such as the tempo changes, tight muting, and clean execution of rapid scale runs, with a practical plan to practice in chunks, then connect sections for a complete performance.

Advanced; prior skills in accurate alternate picking, palm muting, and lead-line phrasing will greatly help.

🎸 Techniques Used

Palm muting with aggressive alternate pickingFast tremolo picking and precision timingPower chords and rapid-fire riffing with string skippingLead guitar solos with fast arpeggios and tapping

Practice Tips

💡Start by isolating the main riff and practice with a metronome at half speed to lock in muting and even attack.
💡Break the solo into small cells (3-4 notes each) and practice them slowly before weaving them together at tempo.
💡Dial in a tight tone with moderate gain and relaxed wrist to handle the fast picking and clean lead phrasing.