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Metallica - Master of Puppets - Intro - Guitar Lesson

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Key E minor
Metallica - Master of Puppets - Intro guitar lesson video
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Master of Puppets (Deluxe Box Set) album cover
Master of Puppets (Deluxe Box Set)
1986 8:35
Listen on Spotify Listen on Apple Music
Metallica Thrash Metal 1986 E minor
Capo Advisor 0 E minor · Original key

About Master of Puppets - Intro

The intro to "Master of Puppets" is one of the most recognisable moments in thrash metal guitar playing, and it earns that reputation through sheer precision rather than complexity alone. The main riff sits in E minor and is built almost entirely on downpicked power chords, driven at a relentless tempo. That consistent downpicking is the core challenge here: your picking hand needs to stay locked in, tight and controlled, without creeping into alternate picking as fatigue sets in. New players almost always underestimate how much right-hand stamina this demands before the left hand ever becomes a problem. Start well below performance speed, using the Practice Toolbar to loop the riff slowed down, and only push the tempo once every note is clean and every pick stroke feels identical. Metallica built much of their early sound on exactly this kind of mechanical, unyielding right-hand technique, and this intro is one of the best possible exercises in developing it.

  • The intro riff relies almost entirely on strict downpicking, making right-hand stamina the primary obstacle for most guitarists learning it.
  • Playing in E minor, the riff uses low, palm-muted power chords that require tight muting control to keep the bottom end focused and aggressive.
  • Practise the main riff in short loops at reduced speed before raising the tempo, as sloppy pick strokes become very audible at full pace.

How to Play Master of Puppets - Intro

Key: E minor · Tempo: 220 BPM

The intro riff runs at 220 bpm using strict downpicking throughout, which is the central challenge: maintaining consistent pick attack and tight palm muting across every note without switching to alternate picking as fatigue sets in. Begin by looping just the main riff at reduced speed until the muting pressure and pick angle feel locked in, then raise tempo gradually, since sloppy muting at high speed is the most common mistake. The riff sits in E minor and uses a moveable power-chord shape, so fretting-hand accuracy matters less than right-hand stamina here. Watch for the moment your palm muting starts to loosen as your forearm tires, because that is when the riff loses its signature aggression.

Loop the hardest passage and creep the speed up from around 70 percent until it holds at 220 BPM.

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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