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Metallica - Bleeding Me - Guitar Tab

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Key E minor
Metallica - Bleeding Me guitar tab video
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Load (Remastered Deluxe Box Set) album cover
Load (Remastered Deluxe Box Set)
1996 8:18
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Metallica Heavy Metal 1996 E minor
Capo Advisor 0 E minor · Original key

About Bleeding Me

At 89 BPM in Eb Standard tuning, "Bleeding Me" sits in a slower, more brooding corner of Metallica's catalogue, and that tempo is deceptive. The song stretches across eight minutes, demanding patience and consistency from your picking hand rather than the kind of explosive burst you might expect from Heavy Metal. The main riff is built on heavy, palm-muted low-end chugging with deliberate chord swells that need a controlled right hand to land the dynamics correctly. Getting the transition between the muted passages and the open, ringing sections to feel intentional, not accidental, is where most players need work. The lead playing in the back half of the track leans on sustained bends and vibrato, so if your vibrato is inconsistent, it will be exposed here. Use the Practice Toolbar to loop those bend-heavy phrases slowed down until your intonation stays true at the top of each bend. Tuning down to Eb Standard gives everything a slightly heavier, looser feel, so make sure your guitar is properly set up for the drop before you start.

  • The song is tuned to Eb Standard, dropping every string a half-step, which adds weight to the low-end palm-muted riffs and requires slight intonation adjustments.
  • At 89 BPM over eight minutes, consistent picking-hand dynamics and stamina matter more here than speed.
  • The back half features sustained lead lines with wide vibrato, making controlled finger vibrato a key technique to practise for this song.

How to Play Bleeding Me

The song moves through: • Intro James & Kirk, • Verse 1 James, • Interlude 1 - James, • Verse 2 - Kirk, • Interlude 2 - Kirk, • Chorus 1 - James, • Interlude 3 - Kirk, • Slide Kirk, • Chorus 2 - Kirk, • Bridge Riff, • Chorus 3 - Kirk, • Guitar Solo, and more.

Tuning: Eb Standard · Key: E minor · Tempo: 89 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. The arrangement runs through 12 distinct sections, and the solo is the steepest jump, so isolate it on its own. At 89 bpm the slow tempo leaves every note exposed, so timing, vibrato, and dynamics matter more than raw speed.

Loop each section and focus on clean, even timing rather than speed, with the metronome at 89 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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