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Metallica - The Struggle Within - Guitar Tab

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Key E minor
Metallica - The Struggle Within guitar tab video
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Metallica (Remastered) album cover
Metallica (Remastered)
1991 3:53
Listen on Spotify
Metallica Heavy Metal 1991 E minor
Capo Advisor 0 E minor · Original key

About The Struggle Within

Closing out the Black Album, "The Struggle Within" is one of the more aggressive tracks Metallica packed onto that record, and it rewards guitarists who are willing to work for it. The song runs at 120 BPM in Eb Standard tuning, so drop your whole guitar a half step before you start. Playing in E minor at that tuning gives the riffs a slightly darker, heavier feel than they would at concert pitch. The main riff is tight and percussive, built on low-string palm muting with quick chord stabs that demand clean left-hand muting to avoid unwanted string noise. The transitions between the verse and chorus sections are where most players slip up: the rhythmic accents shift just enough to throw off your picking hand if you are not listening closely. Use the Practice Toolbar to loop those transitions at a reduced speed until the accent pattern feels natural, then bring it back up to tempo gradually. The solo section calls for confident picking control and good vibrato on the sustained notes.

  • The song uses Eb Standard tuning, meaning every string is tuned a half step down, which slightly thickens the tone of the palm-muted riffs.
  • The main riff relies heavily on precise palm muting and rhythmic chord stabs on the low strings, making right-hand consistency the key challenge.
  • At 120 BPM, the picking patterns in the verse riff are fast enough that even small lapses in left-hand muting will produce noticeable string noise.

How to Play The Struggle Within

The song moves through: • Intro - All Guitars, • Verse 1, • Chorus 1, • Verse 2, • Chorus 2, • Guitar Solo - Kirk, • Guitar Solo - James, • Bridge, • Verse 3, • Chorus 3.

Tuning: Eb Standard · Key: E minor · Tempo: 120 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 10 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 120 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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