Artist: Boy sets fire          II/2003
Song: My life in the knife trade
Album: After the eulogy (2000)
Tuning: Dropped d
Tabbed by: Bassic (Bonn/Germany)      
Mail: [email protected]

/ = slide up
 = Slide down
h = hammer on
p = pull off
A = 10; B = 11; ... 

intro (0:04) 4x
G —C————C5————5/9——B——C—————I
D ———————————————————————————I
A ———————————————————————————I
D ———————————————————————————I

verse (0:50) 2x
G —————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————I
D —————————————————————————————————————————————————5—555—44444—2—2—I
A —————————————————————————————————3—333—33333—3—3—————————————————I
D —2—222—22222—2—2—5—555—55555—5—5—————————————————————————————————I

G —————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————2—2—I
D —————————————————————————————————————————————————5—555—44444—————I
A —————————————————————————————————3—333—33333—3—3—————————————————I
D —2—222—22222—2—2—5—555—55555—5—5—————————————————————————————————I

bridge (1:26) (played soft)
G —————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————I
D —5—5—5—5—5—5—5——————————————————————————————————————————————————I
A —————————————————3—3—3—3—3—3—3—/—7—7—7—75—5—5—53—3—3—3—3—3—3———I
D —————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————I

G —————————————————————————————————————————————————4h54—4———5p4————I
D —5—5—5—5—5—5—5——————————————————————————————————————7———————7———I
A —————————————————3—3—3—3—3—3—3—/—7—7—7—75—5—5—5—————————————————I
D —————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————I

refrain (1:45) 3x
G ——————————————————————————————————I
D /2—5—2————————————————————————————I
A ———————5—————5—5—/3—5—3———————————I
D ————————————————————————5———5—5—5—I

refrain—end (1:58)
G ——————————————————————————————————I
D /2—5—2————————————————————————————I
A ———————5—————5—5—/3—5—3———————————I
D ————————————————————————5—————————I

verse (2:05) 2x
bridge (2:42) 
refrain (3:00) 3x
refain—end (3:13)

outro part A (3:39)
G ——————————————————————————————————————————————————I
D —555——555—5——————————————————————————————————————I
A ————————————555——555—5/777—777—5—3333333333333333—I
D ——————————————————————————————————————————————————I

outro part B (3:57) 2x
G —————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————I
D —5—555—55555—5—5—5—555—55555—5——————————————————————————————————I
A —————————————————————————————————5—555—55555—5—5—5—555—55555—5—5—I
D —————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————I

G —————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————I
D —————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————I
A —7—777—77777—7—7—7—777—77777—5—5—3—333—33333—3—3—3—333—33333—3—3—I
D —————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————I

outro part C (4:32)
G —————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————I
D —5—555—55555—5—5—5—555—55555—5——————————————————————————————————I
A —————————————————————————————————5—555—55555—5—5—5—555—55555—5—5—I
D —————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————I

G ————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————I
D ——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————5—I
A —7—777—77777—7—7—7—777—77777—5—5—3—3—3—3—3—3—3—3—3—3—3—3—3—3—3—3————I
D ————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————I
             
Of course its not 100% perfect (especially the refrain), but so far my
interpretation sounds pretty good and shall only support your own ideas.

Feedback, replenishment & corrections welcome!!

About Boy Sets Fire

Boysetsfire was a post-hardcore band from Newark, Delaware and West Chester, Pennsylvania that formed in October 1994. Boysetsfire was composed of guitarists Chad Istvan and Josh Latshaw, bassist Robert Ehrenbrand, drummer Matt Krupanski, and vocalist Nathan Gray.

How to Read Bass Tabs

Bass tablature (tabs) is an easy way to learn songs without needing to read traditional sheet music. Here’s a quick guide to understanding the symbols and techniques commonly found in tabs:

1. The Basics

Strings and Frets:
Each line in a tab represents a string on your bass:
- The top line is the highest-pitched string (G on a 4-string bass).
- The bottom line is the lowest-pitched string (E on a 4-string bass).
Numbers on the lines indicate which fret to press. For example:
```
G|-------------------|
D|-------------------|
A|---3---------------|
E|-------------------|
            
```
This means you play the 3rd fret on the A string.

2. Common Techniques

Hammer-On (h):
Play the first note by picking it, then press down on a higher fret with another finger without picking again.
```
G|-------------------|
D|-------5h7---------|
            
```
Pull-Off (p):
Pluck a note and then "pull off" your finger to let a lower fret ring.
```
G|-------------------|
D|-------7p5---------|
            
```
Slide (/ or \):
Move your finger up (/) or down (\) the fretboard while maintaining pressure.
```
G|-------------------|
D|-------5/7---------|
            
```

3. Advanced Techniques

Bend (b): Push the string up or down to raise the pitch. Example: G|-------7b9---------|
Vibrato (~): Shake the string slightly after playing a note to create a vibrating sound. Example: G|-------7~----------|
Muted Notes (x): Rest your finger lightly on the string without pressing a fret and pluck for a percussive "click" sound.

4. Rhythm and Timing

Tabs don’t always indicate timing, so listen to the song while reading the tab. Wider spaces between numbers mean longer pauses, while closer numbers indicate quicker notes.

5. Slap and Pop

Slap (s): Strike the string with the side of your thumb for a percussive sound.
Pop (p): Pull the string away from the fretboard and let it snap back.

Practice Makes Perfect

Tabs are a great tool to learn songs, but mastering the techniques takes practice. Listen carefully to the original track and play along to lock in the rhythm. Don’t rush — smooth, accurate playing is more important than speed. Happy jamming! 🎸

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Boy Sets Fire — My Life In The Knife Trade bass tabs