A 12-string bass appears in the intro of Metallica’s “Wherever I May Roam.”
The song’s opening uses unusual instrumentation for Metallica, including Asian-flavored sounds from a gong and sitar. It also features an overdubbed Warwick twelve-string bass, which adds a distinctive resonance to the introduction.
That 12-string bass is used primarily for effect during the opening accented notes. After the intro, the main bass part is performed on a standard-tuned four-string bass, making the unusual instrument a carefully chosen color rather than the song’s constant foundation.
The detail is easy to miss because the track quickly moves into a full heavy-metal arrangement. “Wherever I May Roam” was released as the album’s fourth single in October 1992 and reached number 25 on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart.