What is PM Strumming?

Question

I am trying to play the song Inside The Fire by Disturbed, and on the tab sheet, it show some notes with PM - - right under it. The same line of notes are written twice, but the second line has those characters under the tabs. When I hear people playing that part, it sounds like the song, but I don't know how they are doing it. How do I play it like that?

http://ca.youtube.com/watch?v=6gXhZXtMxu4

It plays after the first verse. The first verse plays twice, and then the PM verse comes in using the same notes, but sounds a bit different.

Answer 1

PM on tab means Palm Muting.  This is a technique that allows the guitarist to control the duration of notes and to help articulate that their is a rhythm happening.  

How to palm mute.  It's all in your right hand technique and can also help you with your picking as well as palm muting lends you a more comfortable right hand position to allow a more natural fluid motion when it comes to techniques such as Tremolo Picking, Gallup Picking,  Alternate Picking, and so on.

Place your right palm at the base of your guitars bridge making sure that your pinky finger is resting comfortably below your 6th string. Your whole palm should not be on the bridge only the meat of your hand between your pinky knuckle to your wrist bone. This will probably end up changing your pick grip as well though your index finger, ring finger and thumb should be the only digits on your pick though there is no wrong way to hold a pick it's all personal preference.

This is how bands like Metallica among the many famous ones get their chugging sounds combined with the right distortion.

Palm muting is a great technique with out the guitar would sound very muddy and it would just be music with no articulation and thats what music is all about expression of soul.

Now be reminded that over palm muting everything is definitely not a good thing, there will be times were palm muting is not called for the music weither your playing another persons music or not.

I suggest studying these bands to learn great palm muting techniques, and to help develop both your left hand and right hand techniques.

Metallica

Megadeth

Slayer

Trivium ( This band now uses 7 string guitars )

Killswitch Engage

Shadows Fall

All That Remains

God Forbid

Anthrax

Iced Earth (Great for developing Gallup Picking techniques)

Chimaira

Nevermore ( This band uses 7 string guitars )

Emperor ( This band has an album that uses 7 string guitars )

Dissection

Morbid Angel ( This band uses 7 string guitars )

Cannibal Corpse

Pantera

A Perfect Murder

Unearth ( This band uses 7 string guitars )

Fear Factory ( This band uses 7 string guitars )

Divine Heresy ( This band uses 7 string guitars )

Cradle Of Filth

Children Of Bodom

Bullet For My Valentine

Ozzy Osbourne ( Both Randy Roads and Zakk Wyld )

Arch Enemy

Those are just to name a few.  All bands I've played to and have helped me develop all my techniques including palm muting and has taught me when and when not to use palm muting.

I hope that has helped you

( ***NOTE: Sorry for labeling some bands with 7 strings you can also tune down 2 1/2 steps from where you have your guitar tuned. Heres a conversion chart for matching the 7 string sound with your 6 string.

Nevermore and Morbid Angel play in a flated tuning so you'll need to tune to Bb-Eb-Ab-Db-F-Bb.  Unearth and Fear Factory use the regular tuning so you'll need to tune to B-E-A-D-F#-B.  Divine Heresy plays one complete step down so you'll need to use the tuning A-D-G-C-E-A as well as for Korn. ***)

Take care I hope I wasn't confusing.  

Answer 2

PM means palm mute.

So, the palm of your picking hand is placed lightly on top of the bridge (the metal piece where the strings go into). This takes practice to get since you have to pick (or strum) and keep your hand on the bridge at the same time, but it's what makes that muffled sound.