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Metallica - 72 Seasons - Guitar Lesson

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Key E minor
Metallica - 72 Seasons guitar lesson video
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72 Seasons album cover
72 Seasons
2023 7:39
Listen on Spotify
Metallica Heavy Metal 2023 E minor
Capo Advisor 0 E minor · Original key

About 72 Seasons

At 154 BPM in Eb Standard tuning, "72 Seasons" hits hard from the first bar. Metallica built the title track around a driving, palm-muted riff that sits in E minor and never lets up, so your picking hand endurance is the real test here. The tempo is fast enough that keeping those muted chugs tight and even will take genuine work, especially through the longer riff sequences where tension tends to creep into the forearm. Dropping to Eb Standard means every string sits slightly lower in tension, which helps the heaviness of the tone but also makes precise fretting more important since strings can go soft under a sloppy grip. Use the Practice Toolbar to loop the main riff slowed down until the pick strokes feel automatic before you push back toward full speed. The Heavy Metal feel here depends entirely on rhythmic precision, so clean up the muting before worrying about the lead sections.

  • The main riff uses aggressive palm muting in Eb Standard tuning, so consistent right-hand pressure is critical to getting the correct heavy, chunky tone.
  • At 154 BPM, the rhythm part demands strong picking-hand stamina, and even small tension in the forearm will cause the riff to fall apart at speed.
  • Eb Standard lowers all six strings by a half step, giving the riff extra weight while requiring careful fretting to keep notes from going sharp or buzzy.

How to Play 72 Seasons

Tuning: Eb Standard · Key: E minor · Tempo: 154 BPM

It is played in Eb standard, a half step down, so tune down before you start or every position and bend will sit a half step sharp against the recording. At 154 bpm it moves fast, so the real test is building picking stamina and keeping every note clean at speed.

Loop the hardest passage and creep the speed up from around 70 percent until it holds at 154 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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