Electric Guitar Day 9 - Green Day Style Power Chords
In this video
Brain Stew introduces movable power chord shapes - the technique that opens up the entire world of rock guitar.
Once you master this shape, you can play thousands of Rock riffs but also explore genres beyond like, Pop, Punk, and of course, Blues.
Power Chord Shape:
For A5 - Index finger at fret 5, ring finger at fret 7 (two frets higher)
Optional: add pinky at fret 7 on string 4 (creates fuller sound)
Keep fingers in this formation while moving on the fretboard as a unit for other chords!
The Sliding Motion:
Think of your fingers on an abacus - they stay in formation and slide together.
For this riff:
From A5 (frets 5-7), slide 2 frets down to:
G5 (frets 3-5) - one finger slide
F#5 (frets 2-4) - another slide 1 fret
F5 (frets 1-3) - final 1 fret slide
Then E5 (open power chord)
Crucial Technique - Tuck the Elbow In!
Keep your fretting hand elbow tucked into your side. This is THE key to power chords. Here's why:
Puts everything at the correct angle
Allows your 3rd and 4th fingers to reach
Keeps wrist straight
Makes the stretch between index and ring finger manageable
Amp Settings:
'Brown Sound' setting on Boss Katana with everything at 5/10. This gives you enough Gain!
To play along with the original Green Day recording, you'll need to tune down by half a step (E♭ tuning). There's a bonus video below explaining this tuning - Everything is played exactly the same, just tuned down.
Learn this riff sets you up perfectly for the final song, which combines a lot of what we've learned so far.