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Metallica - Enter Sandman Pt.2 - Verse, PreChorus & Chorus - Guitar Lesson

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Key E minor
Metallica - Enter Sandman Pt.2 - Verse, PreChorus & Chorus guitar lesson video
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Metallica Thrash Metal E minor
Capo Advisor 0 E minor · Original key

About Enter Sandman Pt.2 - Verse, PreChorus & Chorus

The verse, pre-chorus, and chorus sections of "Enter Sandman" cover a lot of ground in one sitting, and each part has its own demands on your picking hand. The verse riff is built on tight, palm-muted downpicking in E minor, and keeping that mute consistent at 123 BPM is harder than it looks: even a slight slip in right-hand pressure will blur the chug. The pre-chorus opens things up with a riff that lifts off the mute and pushes toward the chorus, so the transition between those feels is worth isolating. Use the Practice Toolbar to loop that pre-chorus-to-chorus shift slowed down until the change feels automatic. In E Standard tuning, nothing is being transposed, so what you hear on the record is exactly what you play, which makes it a clean reference point. Metallica built this track in Thrash Metal but dialed the tempo back enough that the groove sits heavier than a typical shred workout, so focus on feel and precision over speed.

  • The verse riff relies on strict palm-muted downpicking, so building stamina and consistent right-hand mute pressure is the main physical challenge here.
  • All three sections are in E Standard tuning, meaning no retuning is needed and the tab matches the original recording exactly.
  • The pre-chorus to chorus transition involves a clear shift in picking dynamics, and looping it slowed down is the fastest way to lock it in.

How to Play Enter Sandman Pt.2 - Verse, PreChorus & Chorus

Tuning: E Standard · Key: E minor · Tempo: 123 BPM

Use the section loop to isolate a passage, drop the speed below 100%, and set the metronome to 123 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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