The Tragically Hip - New Orleans is Sinking - Guitar Tab

About New Orleans is Sinking

Few Canadian rock songs lean as hard on a single repeated guitar figure as this one. The backbone of "New Orleans is Sinking" is a brooding, swampy riff rooted in E minor, and at 120 BPM in standard tuning you have enough room to really dig into each note and feel the groove breathe. The challenge is not raw speed but attitude: the riff has to sit slightly behind the beat to get that murky, humid feel right. Rob Baker and Paul Langlois trade rhythm and lead duties throughout, so pay attention to where the texture opens up for fills versus where you need to lock in tight with the bass. The extended live versions that The Tragically Hip became famous for stretch those spaces even further, making this a great study in dynamic restraint. Use the Practice Toolbar to loop the main riff slowed down until the behind-the-beat feel is natural before bringing it back up to tempo. Alternative Rock rhythm playing often lives or dies on exactly that kind of groove control, and this song will sharpen it.

• The main riff sits in E minor and relies on feel and timing rather than technical complexity, making tone and groove the real challenge.
• Both guitarists in the band share rhythm and lead roles, so learning the song fully means sorting out which parts layer and which alternate.
• Using the Practice Toolbar to loop the opening riff at reduced speed helps you lock in the slightly behind-the-beat feel before playing it at full tempo.