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Muse - Starlight - Guitar Lesson

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100%

Tools

BPM
Key B major
Muse - Starlight guitar lesson video
Guitar 365
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Amp Settings

Classic Rock

Gain6
Bass6
Mid7
Treble6
Presence5
Master7
AI tone preset

AI-selected preset based on genre and era — adjust the knobs to taste.

Roll back the gain slightly and pick near the neck for a warmer, more open crunch.
Listen on Spotify
Muse Alternative Rock B major
Capo Advisor 0 B major · Original key

About Starlight

The bassline in "Starlight" gets most of the attention, but the guitar part has its own character worth understanding. Running at 128 BPM in B major with E Standard tuning, the rhythm guitar sits in a clean, compressed tone that locks tightly with the pulse of the track. The chord voicings are relatively open and not technically demanding, but nailing the feel, specifically that steady, almost mechanical strum pattern driving the verses and chorus, takes more control than it looks. Muse build the song around a spacious Alternative Rock texture, so your tone and timing need to be precise rather than busy. Resist the urge to add extra motion. If the strumming pattern is slipping, use the Practice Toolbar to loop the chorus slowed down until the rhythm feels locked in your picking hand before bringing it back up to tempo.

  • The guitar sits in E Standard tuning throughout, making this an accessible entry point for players not yet comfortable with alternate tunings.
  • Tone control matters here: a clean, lightly compressed electric sound with some chorus or light reverb gets you close to the recorded texture.
  • The main challenge is rhythmic consistency in the strumming pattern rather than any single difficult technique or fast lead work.

How to Play Starlight

Tuning: E Standard · Key: B major · Tempo: 128 BPM

Use the section loop to isolate a passage, drop the speed below 100%, and set the metronome to 128 BPM to build it up to tempo.

Vox AC30
Amp

Vox AC30

Bellamy uses the Vox AC30 for clean, chimey passages that contrast with his high-gain rig, providing warm tube breakup and natural chime on atmospheric sections. Its low-wattage headroom lets him achieve responsive, dynamic tones without sacrificing clarity.

Dunlop Cry Baby Wah
Pedal

Dunlop Cry Baby Wah

The Cry Baby wah is essential to Bellamy's lead vocabulary, particularly on "Knights of Cydonia," where it sweeps across his sustained, pitch-shifted tones. The pedal's responsive sweep complements his aggressive playing style and synth-like effects chain.

Electro-Harmonix Big Muff Pi
Pedal

Electro-Harmonix Big Muff Pi

Bellamy pairs the Big Muff's smooth, sustaining fuzz with his bridge humbucker for soaring lead tones that retain clarity even under extreme gain. Its warm compression makes it ideal for long, singing sustain passages layered with the Fernandes Sustainer system.

DigiTech Whammy
Pedal

DigiTech Whammy

The Whammy is Bellamy's signature effect, enabling octave-shifted harmonies, pitch-shifted leads, and dramatic dive bombs used across nearly every Muse album. It transforms his sustained notes into orchestral layers that define Muse's progressive rock signature sound.

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