The Day That Never Comes – Metallica

Metallica's "The Day That Never Comes" is a masterclass in modern metal guitar playing, combining expressive lead work with powerful rhythm techniques. At LickLibrary.com, our note-for-note guitar lesson breaks down this monumental track in full detail, giving you the opportunity to dive deep into the stylistic nuances and techniques that define Metallica’s signature sound. This song is not only a fan favourite from the Death Magnetic album but also an incredible study piece for intermediate to advanced players looking to build expressive lead guitar skills and tight rhythmic control. Andy James breaks down this classic track in this exclusive Lick Library video tutorial.

Song Overview

“The Day That Never Comes” is an emotionally dynamic piece, starting with clean, arpeggiated sections and gradually building into explosive thrash-driven riffs and a soaring, harmonised solo. This dynamic structure showcases the contrasting guitar styles of James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett—Hetfield’s tight rhythm precision and Hammett’s expressive lead guitar voice.

Guitar Techniques Covered in the Lesson

Clean Arpeggios and Chord Progressions

The intro and verse sections of the song revolve around beautifully played clean arpeggios and thoughtful chord progressions. These passages offer a great opportunity to refine your picking accuracy and tone control, as well as your fretting-hand clarity.

Benefit: Mastering arpeggios in a clean setting improves your precision, builds finger strength, and develops your ability to voice chords clearly in a melodic context.

Palm Muting and Power Chords

As the track intensifies, we delve into aggressive rhythm work, featuring tight palm muting and heavy power chords. Hetfield’s downpicking mastery and rhythmic control make this section an essential study for building metal rhythm chops.

Benefit: Learning to play with tight palm muting refines your muting technique and boosts your rhythmic discipline, essential for playing metal and rock with clarity and punch.

Alternate Picking and Legato Runs

The solo features rapid alternate picking lines and fluid legato phrasing, combining hammer-ons, pull-offs, and smooth transitions. These sections are designed to increase your speed and fluidity across the fretboard.

Benefit: Strengthening your alternate picking and legato leads to greater control and stamina, essential for executing fast, seamless runs in solos.

String Bending and Vibrato

Hammett’s expressive playing shines through his use of string bending and vibrato, which give his solos an emotive, vocal-like quality.

Benefit: Developing confident bends and vibrato improves your phrasing and expressiveness, allowing you to play lead guitar that truly sings.

Dual Guitar Harmonies

In the climactic instrumental section, dual guitar harmonies create a rich, layered effect that is a hallmark of Metallica's later work. Learning to play these harmonies is not only fun but also helps with ear training and fretboard knowledge.

Benefit: Working with harmonised leads enhances your understanding of scale relationships and builds a sense of melodic interplay—great for band scenarios and composing your own harmonies.

About the Guitarists: James Hetfield & Kirk Hammett

James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett are one of metal’s most iconic guitar duos. Hetfield is renowned for his precision rhythm playing, delivering crushing riffs with downpicked intensity. His right-hand stamina and muting techniques are legendary. Kirk Hammett, on the other hand, brings a melodic and expressive flair to Metallica's sound, combining pentatonic shredding, bluesy bends, and modal runs. Heavily inspired by classic rock and heavy metal greats, Hammett's solos always serve the song, often with a dramatic, storytelling quality.

Learning from this track gives students direct insight into the creative interplay between rhythm and lead guitar, and how two distinct styles can complement each other within a powerful metal context.

Summary

This LickLibrary lesson for "The Day That Never Comes" not only gives you an in-depth look at every section of the song, but also sharpens your technique and musical understanding across a range of essential guitar skills. Whether you're interested in developing expressive lead techniques, building metal rhythm stamina, or simply expanding your repertoire with one of Metallica’s modern classics, this lesson is packed with value.

Techniques Covered in This Lesson

• Arpeggios
• Chord Progressions
• Palm Muting
• Power Chords
• Alternate Picking
• Legato
• Pull-offs
• Vibrato
• String Bending
• Dual Guitar Harmonies

Ready to take your playing to the next level? Dive into the full lesson for The Day That Never Comes and unleash your inner metal guitarist.