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Electric Funeral

Black SabbathView all Black Sabbath tabs

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Electric Funeral by Black Sabbath

Electric Funeral is a doom-laden gem from Black Sabbath's 1970 album Paranoid. Written by the classic lineup of Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, Geezer Butler, and Bill Ward, the track showcases Sabbath's pioneering approach to heaviness: a slow-to-mid tempo groove built on heavyweight riffs and eerie atmosphere. The song's menace and sparse, driving urgency helped cement Sabbath's role as a blueprint for early heavy metal, influencing countless bands in doom, stoner, and extreme rock. Its recording captures the band leaning into a darker, more cinematic sound that would become a hallmark of Sabbath's enduring influence on rock culture and the broader metal genre.

🎸 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 core driving riff and the verse groove that define Electric Funeral, how to palm-mute for that tight, chugging texture, and how to move between the muted rhythm section and the louder push at key moments. We'll break down the main riff into manageable pickups, cover the technique needed to keep the groove locked to the drums, and discuss a few subtle dynamic choices that help the tune breathe. We'll also highlight a brief, punchy ending section and point out tricky timing spots where steady metronome work will pay off in a faithful, powerful performance.

Intermediate; helpful if you have solid rhythm, palm muting, power chords, and a basic familiarity with blues-based pentatonic phrasing.

🎸 Techniques Used

Palm MutingPower Chords / Octave RiffsDownstrokes / Aggressive PickingRiff-based Timing in a Groove

Practice Tips

💡Start with a slow metronome (around 60-70 BPM) to nail the main riff’s tight, muted groove before stepping up to tempo.
💡Keep the muting precise: rest the picking hand lightly on the strings to prevent unwanted ringing while delivering a strong, percussive attack.
💡Once clean at slow tempo, practice the transition from the muted verse to the louder peak with consistent rhythm so the groove remains locked with the drum groove.