Sanitarium Music Theory (Patreon)

Metallica's "Sanitarium" kicks off with a series of arpeggiated chords using an E pedal tone. 

The Em-C-D chord progression places us squarely in the E Aeolian Mode (E-F#-G-A-B-C-D) The key of E minor contains 1 sharp (F#). 

Next, James Hetfield injects harmonic interest into the mix by temporarily shifting to the E dorian Mode (E-F#-G-A-B-C#-D) 

I've included the tab and video for the intro below, as well as the music theory analysis. 

If you really want to blow up your modal knowledge, check out the modal primary chords for each mode. Understanding the harmony will actually make you sound good, instead of random wanking....

Muhahaha