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Damage Inc.

MetallicaView all Metallica tabs

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Damage Inc. by Metallica

Damage, Inc. is the closing track on Metallica's 1986 album Master of Puppets, a relentless showcase of their peak-speed thrash. Its snarling riffs, ripping tempo, and hard-hitting groove epitomize Metallica's aggressive approach in the mid-80s and helped propel Master of Puppets to iconic status in heavy metal history.

During the recording, the band pushed their precision to the limit, delivering brutal down-picking assaults and tight rhythm interplay between James Hetfield's rhythm guitar and Kirk Hammett's aggressive lead accents. The track's cultural impact endures: it's a crowd favorite in Metallica's live sets and a rite of passage for players chasing fast, tight thrash riffing.

🎸 Want to know the techniques, practice tips, and lesson details? Scroll below the lesson!

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What You'll Learn

In this lesson you'll learn the signature fast, down-picked main riff that powers Damage, Inc., plus the palm-muted chug sections, the verse/chorus shifts, and the short lead accents that punctuate the groove. We'll break the song into manageable sections, practice with a metronome at gradually increasing tempos, and focus on clean muting, precise downstrokes, and locked-in rhythm with the drums. By the end you'll be able to play the core rhythm track with solid speed and clarity, and have a framework for tackling the lead moments in a Metallica-style attack.

Advanced — prior skills in clean alternate picking at high speed, strict palm muting, accurate power-chord chugs, and tight timing with a fast backing track are very helpful.

🎸 Techniques Used

Palm MutingAlternate PickingPower ChordsDown-Picking/Down-StrokesRiff-Based Timing & Accents

Practice Tips

💡Break the riffs into small phrases and practice each at a slow tempo with a metronome, then progressively weave them together up to the target speed.
💡Keep the palm muting even and tight across every chug—adjust your pick grip to maintain precision at high speed.
💡Isolate tricky transitions (intro to verse, verse to bridge) and loop them at a comfortable tempo until they feel effortless with a drum backing track.