This week's Riff features the intro chord progression from the song "When I Come Around" as played by the band Green Day. This is a straight ahead progression that is based around four different chords, which are G 5, D 5, E Minor, and C 5. Three out of four chords in this progression are "5th Chords", also known as "Power Chords", which are very common in the music of a band like Green Day. There are three things to watch for in this progression that are essential to getting the sound of the song. The first is the use of "Overdrive" or "Distortion". If your amplifier has this function, crank it up to get that full, heavy sound. The second thing to watch for is the use of "Palm Muting" with the picking hand. A big part of the "chugging" sound that you hear in this progression comes from the use of palm muting. The third thing to watch for is the use of "Fret Hand Muting", which is when the fingers of the fretting hand muffle the strings while the picking hand is still strumming the strings. You will hear this technique used with the first three chords in this progression. Remember that you can SLOW DOWN the video and LOOP IT until you can get each chord change up to speed, and really try to nail the palm muting as well as fret hand muting techniques.
Once you've learned the intro riff section, then click here
http://www.store.fretlight.com/product.php?id_product=350
to purchase the full MIDI song from the Fretlight Store!
To download this week's Video Riff, click the download link shown below, save the video to your computer, and open it up through Fretlight Studio (using Video Player).
Don't forget to check back next week for your next FREE Video Riff!
Have Fun :)
The Fretlight Team
If you would like to watch a short sample clip from this video before you download it, click here:
www.fretlight.com/riffoftheweek/WHEN_I_COME_AROUND_SAMPLE.wmv
Download the FULL version of the “Fretlight Video Riff: When I Come Around” by clicking here:
http://www.fretlight.com/riffoftheweek/(intermediate)_When_I_Come_Around_Riff.fvp
