Okay, so this is one of my favourite songs and
I just wanted to submit a version that sounds accurate and is
fairly simple to play. This is actually a tab of someone else's cover
on YouTube, katieboeck, and so many people wanted her to write
a tab for it that I thought I might as well, it sounds beautiful :)
This isn't actually how Justin plays it, he restrings his guitar to
Nashville tuning but you need different strings for that, there is an
explanation on YouTube of how to play Holocene with Nashville tuning
like Justin Vernon does.
Finally (sorry about the essay :/) there are two ways I have found
of playing this. There's the way on katieboeck's tutorial, and a
slightly different way that sounds more like the actual recording.
All you do for the different way is tune your low E string down to a C.
I'll put the C string tab in brackets below the note it substitutes/on the
low E string :)
Holocene
Tuning: Standard (unless you use the C tuning then it's CADGBe)
CAPO 6 (all fret numbers are relative to capo, so fret 1 is actually fret 7 but I'll write 1)
Intro, Verses & Bridge (where there's a gap let the B ring for a bit, listen to the song
and you'll get it)
e|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
B|---3---3---0-----3---3---0------0---0---0---0---0----0---0---0----0---0---0----|
G|---------4-------------4----------2-------0---2--------0---2--------0---2------|
D|-5---5---------5---5----------2-------0------------0------------0--------------|
A|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
E|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
e|------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
B|----0---0---0-----0---0---0-------0---0---0-------0---0---0-------0---0---0---|
G|-----0---2----------0---2-----------0---2-----------0---2-----------0---2-----|
D|--0-------------2-------------------------------------------------------------|
A|--------------------------------3---------------3---------------3-------------|
E|------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
e|-------------|
B|----0---0---0|
G|------0---2--|
D|-------------|
A|--3----------| and that's the verses, then repeat for the second part of the verse,
E|-------------| from 'you fucked it friend...' till 'off your feet...'
Then after 'off your feet' keep repeating:
e|-------------|
B|----0---0---0|
G|------0---2--|
D|-------------|
A|--3----------|
E|-------------|
till 'magnificent' then just after the word magnificent ends it carries
on like this (if you're using the C tuning it kicks in here :D):
[ Tab from: https://www.guitartabs.cc/tabs/b/bon_iver/holocene_tab_ver_6.html ]
e|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
B|-----0---0---0---------0---0---0------0---0---0-------0---0---0-----0---0---0----|
G|-------0---2-------------0---2----------0---2-----------0---2---------0---2------|
D|----------------------------------0---------------0---------------0--------------|
A|---------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
E|-0(4)-------------0(4)-----------(2)-------------(2)-------------(2)-------------|
e|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
B|----0---0---0------0---0---0-----0---0---0-----0---0---0-----0---0---0---------|
G|------0---2----------0---2---------0---2---------0---2---------0---2-----------|
D|--0----------------------------------------------------------------------------|
A|-----------------3-------------3--------------3------------3-------------------|
E|-(2)------------(0)-----------(0)------------(0)----------(0)------------------|
e|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
B|----0---0---0------0---0---0-------0---0---0-------0---0---0-----0---0---0-----|
G|------0---2----------0---2-----------0---2-----------0---2---------0---2-------|
D|--2-------------0---------------0---------------0-------------0----------------|
A|-------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
E|-(4)----------(2)--------------(2)-------------(2)-----------(2)---------------|
e|--------------------------------------------------------------------------------|
B|----0---0---0------0---0---0-------0---0---0---------0---0---0-----0---0---0----|
G|------0---2----------0---2-----------0---2-------------0---2---------0---2------|
D|----------------------------------------(7)--------0--------------0-------------|
A|--3-----------------------------------------------------------------------------|
E|-(0)-----------0(4)-------------3(7)--------------(2)-------------(2)-----------|
e|-------------------------------------------------------------3-----|
B|----0---0---0-----0---0---0---------0---0---0---0---0---0----3-----|
G|------0---2---------0---2-------------0-------0-------0------------|
D|--0-------------0--------------------------------------------------|
A|---------------------------------3--------2-------3----------2-----|
E|-(2)-----------(2)-------------------------------------------3(x---|
Then just repeat the verse for '3rd and Lake...' and then play the chorus again
The bridge is just a quite version of the intro, but I think the opening riff goes on for
a bit longer at the end of the bridge before the final chorus.
Hope this helps!! Good luck with learning, it's such a beautiful song x
