Learn To Play Four Riffs From Nirvana's Nevermind
- Paul Andrews
- September 23, 2021
Today is the 30th anniversary of Nirvana’s album Nevermind and what better way to celebrate than to learn four awesome riffs from the album.
So grab your guitar tune up and lets get rocking…
1: Smells Like Teen Spirit
This is the song that started it all and a definite must know for every guitarist. This riff only contains four power chords and is often called a beginners songs but the rhythm is not easy and is what most people struggle with..
The rhythm is 16th note-based and contains muted strums. Go slow and take your time with it
2: Come As You Are
This is another must-know riff for guitar players and one that will really help your single-note playing. If you are going to play along to the original music you will need to tune all your strings down a whole step to match the sound on the recording. Alternatively you could search YouTube for a version in ‘standard tuning’ and play along with that one instead.
When it comes to playing the riff be sure to use a finger per fret meaning first finger in fret one second finger in fret two and your third finger in fret three
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3: Lithium
This is another riff where you will need to tune down each string a tone to play along with the recording. Just like with Come As You Are you could search YouTube for a version in ‘standard tuning’ and play along with that instead.
I have presented this song at three different levels so there should be something for everyone from power chords to arpeggios to palm muting.
4: In Bloom
This riff is a great one to just crank up the distortion and rock out. The tempo is slow so if you are new to power chords this is a great song to get used to moving around the neck.
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