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Metallica - Fade To Black Pt.1 - Intro & Verse - Guitar Lesson

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Key B minor
Metallica - Fade To Black Pt.1 - Intro & Verse guitar lesson video
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Ride the Lightning (Remastered) [2016 Remastered Version] album cover
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1984 6:57
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Metallica Thrash Metal 1984 B minor
Capo Advisor 0 B minor · Original key

About Fade To Black Pt.1 - Intro & Verse

Few guitar moments in Metallica's catalog hit as hard emotionally as the opening of "Fade to Black," and that impact comes entirely from restraint. The intro begins with clean fingerpicked arpeggios in B minor, a texture that demands a light, even touch across the strings. Getting each note to ring clearly without buzzing is the first real challenge, and players who usually rely on a pick will need to pay close attention to right-hand fingering consistency. As the verse builds, the dynamic shift from clean to driven requires you to stay aware of both your picking attack and your tone control. The chord voicings and melodic phrasing here lean on the melancholic quality of the B minor tonality, so understanding where the key wants to pull and resolve will help your phrasing feel natural rather than mechanical. Use the Practice Toolbar to loop the fingerpicked intro slowed down until your fretting hand can hold the shapes cleanly while your picking hand stays fluid and relaxed.

  • The intro relies on clean fingerpicked arpeggios in B minor, making right-hand finger independence a key technical focus for this section.
  • Keeping each arpeggiated note ringing without muting adjacent strings is the core challenge, so slow, deliberate practice pays off quickly here.
  • The verse builds dynamics gradually, so controlling your picking attack to match the swell from clean to driven tone is essential.

How to Play Fade To Black Pt.1 - Intro & Verse

Key: B minor · Tempo: 110 BPM

The intro of "Fade To Black" is built on clean fingerpicked arpeggios in B minor, and the biggest pitfall for most players is rushing the picking hand before the fretting hand has cleanly formed each chord shape. Nail the arpeggio pattern at a reduced tempo using the speed control before attempting the full 110 bpm, since any muted or buzzing notes become very audible in a clean tone. The transition from the delicate clean intro into the heavier verse is where dynamic control matters most: keep your picking attack light during the arpeggio sections and consciously increase it as the distorted passages begin. Loop the intro-to-verse transition specifically until the volume and tone shift feels natural rather than abrupt.

Use the section loop to isolate a passage, drop the speed below 100%, and set the metronome to 110 BPM to build it up to tempo.

Gibson Les Paul Standard
Guitar

Gibson Les Paul Standard

Kirk Hammett's vintage 1959 'Greeny' Les Paul Standard delivers warmer, more dynamic PAF-style tones that contrast his EMG-equipped ESP guitars, adding organic sustain to his lead work. This guitar's traditional construction gives his solos a thicker, less compressed character than his signature models.

Gibson Les Paul Custom
Guitar

Gibson Les Paul Custom

While not Hammett's primary choice, the Les Paul Custom shares the Les Paul's warm PAF pickup character and thick body resonance, offering heavier players an alternative to Strat-style designs for achieving Metallica's crushing rhythm tones.

Gibson Explorer
Guitar

Gibson Explorer

James Hetfield's early Gibson Explorer established his signature angular shape and thick body tone, delivering the aggressive midrange attack essential to Metallica's crushing rhythm style before his ESP signature models became his primary tool.

Mesa/Boogie Dual Rectifier
Amp

Mesa/Boogie Dual Rectifier

Kirk Hammett's Dual Rectifier heads provide the high-gain, midrange-forward aggression that lets his solos cut through Hetfield's scooped rhythm tone, creating definition and clarity in Metallica's dense wall of distortion.

EMG 81
Pickup

EMG 81

Hetfield's bridge EMG 81 delivers the hot, compressed output with tight low-end that defines Metallica's palm-muted riffs, the ceramic magnet and active preamp cutting through heavy arrangements with focused, aggressive attack.

EMG 60
Pickup

EMG 60

Both guitarists use the neck EMG 60 for warmer, more articulate rhythm tones and smoother lead voicings, balancing the 81's aggression with clearer note definition across Metallica's dense arrangements.

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