Linkin Park · Meteora · song 3
Somewhere I Belong tuning.
Somewhere I Belong (Linkin Park, 2003) is in B♭ Standard, about 10 cents sharp (A ≈ 443), measured by TuneLit from the record.
Measured by TuneLit
10 ¢ sharp
Measured on this song itself: Tune moves every string +10 ¢.
Linkin Park · Meteora · 2003
About Somewhere I Belong
Somewhere I Belong was the first single from Meteora (2003), and one of the few Linkin Park songs whose tuning is genuinely disputed. The most-viewed tab, on Songsterr, tunes all six strings down to B♭ Standard (B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ G♭ B♭), six half steps below standard, and a reader at Songfacts names the same tuning; the most-voted Ultimate Guitar tab plays it in the album's Drop C♯ instead.
TuneLit measured the song about 10 cents sharp (A ≈ 442.5), against an album at concert pitch, so Tune adds 10 cents. The record has low B♭ notes in both bass octaves and nothing under them, which fits the B♭ tab, and the audio check agrees with B♭ (0.999). It would also accept the Drop C♯ tab, though, so the audio cannot settle the dispute on its own.
B♭ Standard is very deep for a normal 6-string, and light strings go slack and buzz; heavier strings help. The same six notes are the low six strings of a 7-string in B Standard tuned down a half step, if you own one. If you would rather not retune that far, the Drop C♯ version keeps you in the tuning of the rest of Meteora, at the cost of the lowest notes. Either way, remember the extra 10 cents.
Tip: Choose between the B♭ Standard tab and the Drop C♯ tab first, then let Tune add the song's 10 cents.
Step by step
Tune your guitar like the record
- Tap Tune like this: the tuner switches to B♭ Standard, every string +10 ¢, the notes Somewhere I Belong was recorded in.
- From the album's Drop C♯: String 6 down 3 half steps (C♯ → B♭), String 5 down 5 half steps (G♯ → E♭), String 4 down 5 half steps (C♯ → A♭), String 3 down 5 half steps (F♯ → D♭), String 2 down 5 half steps (A♯ → F), String 1 down 5 half steps (D♯ → B♭).
- String 6 sits 6 half steps below its standard E2. On a normal set (.046) it keeps only about 50 % of its usual tension and feels loose. For the usual feel use about a .065 string, or a baritone guitar.
- Turn String 6 to String 1 until each shows ✓ in tune. Somewhere I Belong sits 10 cents sharp on the record: at A 440 your guitar would sound that much flat against it, which Tune already corrects.
- Then play Somewhere I Belong along with the record: its lowest open note and your String 6 should ring together without a wobble.
Or the other way round
Move the record into your tuning
Rather keep your guitar as it is? Let Play along move Somewhere I Belong instead. Add your own copy, for example from your CD (it never leaves your device); the link already says the song is in B♭ Standard +10 ¢. Choose E Standard at A 440 and Somewhere I Belong moves up 5 half steps and 90 cents, at its own speed. Slow it down or loop a few bars to learn it, and save the result as a WAV file.
Questions
What tuning is Somewhere I Belong in?
B♭ Standard +10 ¢: B♭ E♭ A♭ D♭ F B♭, low to high, at the pitch TuneLit measured on the record.