A good rock song can get your audience on edge.It should make them want to fight against the system and have fun.If you want to write a rock song that does all that, you need to know how to think, write lyrics, and compose classic rock music.You can blast the roof off your venue just like the pros.
Step 1: Pick the themes of your song.
The most common themes in rock music are rebellion, liberation, sex, and drug use.Romantic love is a big theme in the genre.You can use your own experiences as inspiration.If you want your rock song to sound authentic, you need to know how it feels.John Lennon wrote a song about quitting heroin.
Step 2: You should come up with a title for your song.
Look for phrases in books and watch for them on TV shows and movies.You can write it down in a notebook or on your phone.These phrases can become the title of your song, and that title can be the foundation for your lyrics in the chorus and verse.
Step 3: Think of a hook based on your title.
If you can come up with a title that is particularly catchy, then you should play around with it.It can serve as your hook, the part of the song that sticks in your listeners' heads and stays there, because it's pithy and memorable.A quick rule of thumb is that if a phrase sticks in your head, it will stick in other people's heads.A variation of the Rolling Stones song "Paint It Black" serves as a hook: "I see a red door and I want it painted black."
Step 4: A chorus is built around your hook.
If you want your hook to be memorable, you should include it in the chorus.The hook is usually put at the beginning or end of the chorus.The lyrics of your chorus should deal with the themes of the song in a vague way.In the first line of the chorus, there is a reference to a starman waiting in the sky.
Step 5: You should write the first verse of your song.
Specific examples and concrete imagery are what your verse should include.The lyrics in the verse give your audience a more solid idea of what your song is about.In the first verse of the song, The Donnas sing, "I'm on my second drink, but I've had a few before, and I think that I want you on the floor."
Step 6: The other two parts of your song should be patterned after the first.
It should be easy to come up with your other 2 verses once you have set the rhythm and tone of your song in the first verse.Keeping to the same rhythm and patter is what you should do with your other verse.In the second verse of "When Doves Cry," Prince sings "Dream if you can a courtyard/ An ocean of violets in bloom/ Animals strike curious poses" in the same rhythm as the first verse.
Step 7: Think about including a bridge.
A bridge is like a second chorus in your song, it deals with your themes in vague terms, but adds something new and unexpected that breaks up the monotony.The bridge in Heart's "Barracuda" uses a different rhythm to stick out from the rest of the song.
Step 8: Do you want to beat or decide?
Depending on what style of rock you want to make, your rhythm and beat will be determined.Punk rock has a faster, driving rhythm, heavy metal uses a 4/4 time signature, and reggae rock uses syncopated beats.If you want to play a particular genre of rock music, you should search online.
Step 9: The power chords can be used.
Many of the most famous rock songs use power chords rather than traditional ones to give the music a less smooth, edgier sound.Power chords are formed by pressing down on the 2 strings below the top string and the neck of the guitar with your first and third fingers.The G power chord can be formed by pressing on the third fret and the 2 strings below the top string.The power chords for E, A, G, and C are used in the song "Smells Like Teen Spirit".Acid rock songs use the same type of chords, but they use a distortion pedal to make them sound different.A smooth, softer sound is what independent rock tends to go for.Smooth sounds and experimentation with music from other genres are hallmarks of Glam rock.
Step 10: Add in other classic rock instruments if you start with an electric guitar.
The foundation of rock songs have been electric guitars.While writing your song, use an electric guitar as an accompaniment and to help develop your melody.You can add instruments to your song once it's finished.You should try to break the strings on your guitar.Rock music has a destructive vibe.It emphasizes a heavy beat from the bass guitar and drums.Joan Armatrading tends to focus on melody instruments like guitar and piano and use other instruments just to achieve a full sound.
Step 11: There is an instrumental solo.
Every great rock song has a killer instrumental solo with an electric guitar.Adding in bits and pieces of your melody will help you write your solo.If you want to show off your skills, try different combinations and see what you come up with.A long, improvised instrumental solo is usually by an electric guitar.Punk rock tends to be pretentious and unnecessary.The guitar part in Guns N' Roses song "Sweet Child O' Mine" is a simple variation of a scale that Axl Rose heard Slash play in rehearsal.