Riff Tone

Only Pain

GOJIRA

Guitarmetal2010s+

Original Gear

GuitarESP Eclipse (custom, mahogany body, EMG pickups, 6-string, Drop C tuning)

AmpDiezel VH4 (likely Channel 3 or 4 for high-gain rhythm)

PickupsEMG 81 (bridge, active humbucker)

Amp Settings

gain9

bass6

mid5.5

treble6.5

reverb1

presence6.5

Effects & Signal Chain

modulationDigitech Digitech Whammy (model unknown, likely Whammy 4 or 5)

noise_gateUnknown Noise Gate (model unknown, likely TC Electronic Sentry or ISP Decimator II)

Notes

Studio recording for 'Magma' (2016); Joe Duplantier and Christian Andreu both used ESP Eclipse guitars with EMG 81 pickups and Diezel VH4 amps for the main heavy rhythm sections. Gear confirmed for 'Magma' era studio sessions, not live. No evidence of additional boost/overdrive pedals in the riff section. Whammy pedal is used for pitch effects but not for core rhythm tone.

Tone Character(10)

tight and percussiveaggressive palm mutingsaturated high-gainarticulate attackmodern metal clarityfocused midrange punchcrushing heavinesscontrolled feedbackminimal ambiencepercussive low-end

Difficulty

The riff requires tight, aggressive palm muting and precise rhythm, with some sections using the Whammy pedal for octave jumps. While not extremely fast or technical, the combination of rhythmic accuracy and pedal timing makes it intermediate.

Sources

Gojira – Magma - Gear & Equipment Used on the Album Christian Andreu, Gojira Guitarist Gear | Equipboard Which of their songs do you find "easy" to play on guitar?Whammy Pedal settings : r/gojira

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