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Metallica - Fuel - Guitar Tab

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Key E minor
Metallica - Fuel guitar tab video
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Classic Rock

Gain6
Bass6
Mid7
Treble6
Presence5
Master7
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Roll back the gain slightly and pick near the neck for a warmer, more open crunch.
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1997 4:30
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Metallica Heavy Metal 1997 E minor
Capo Advisor 0 E minor · Original key

About Fuel

Few Metallica tracks demand this kind of relentless right-hand stamina from the very first bar. "Fuel" opens with a high-velocity, palm-muted riff in E minor that barely lets up across the whole song, and at 149 BPM the picking hand gets a serious workout before the fretting hand even breaks a sweat. The tuning is Eb Standard, so drop every string a half step before you start. That slight detune thickens the tone and eases string tension just enough to keep the galloping alternate picking from locking up at speed. The chord shapes themselves are not complicated, but keeping the palm mute tight and consistent while picking that fast is where most players struggle. Use the Practice Toolbar to loop the main riff slowed down, gradually nudging the tempo up until the mute stays clean at full speed. The pre-chorus chug and the transition into the chorus are also worth isolating in the same way, since the rhythm has to stay locked or the whole feel falls apart. Metallica built this track as a pure momentum machine, and that is exactly what it asks of your picking hand.

  • The song sits at 149 BPM, making consistent palm-muted alternate picking the central technical challenge for rhythm guitar.
  • Eb Standard tuning is used throughout, so tune every string down a half step before attempting the riffs.
  • The main riff stays in E minor and relies on tight palm muting rather than complex chord shapes, making right-hand control the priority.

How to Play Fuel

The song moves through: • The Fuel Riff, • Verse - James, • Verse - Kirk, • Chorus - Kirk, • Bridge - Kirk, • Solo - Kirk, • Last Chorus - Kirk Octave, • Bridge James, • Solo - James Riff, • Chorus - James, • Final, • Gear used.

Tuning: Eb Standard · Key: E minor · Tempo: 149 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.

Use the section loop to isolate a passage, drop the speed below 100%, and set the metronome to 149 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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