Knowing The Genre When Writing Guitar Songs

When you can finally get to the point of knowing the guitar well enough that you can actually begin writing guitar songs, that's an exciting time! Not only are you able to translate beautiful music from your fingers, but the songs can now be your own creations.

Now, if you're very new to writing your own music, the first question you might come across is..

"What genre do I write in?"

Sometimes, this isn't even really a question and it's an out-of-body decision. I know that the first time I really began writing songs on my own, they were a mix of hardcore and rock.

And it made sense because that's what I listened to.

So, pick your genre and have it be something you really enjoy. If you want to go country, hike up your cowboy boots. If you want to rock n' roll, break out the sex and drugs. And then...

Listen to the genre... a lot.

Usually, this isn't even an issue because the genre you picked was something you've been moved by and hearing for a long time. (...That's why you picked it...)

However, if you don't listen to it often, you need to start because you need to be familiar with what's out there.

Find well-written and poorly-composed songs.

Yea, the good and the bad. You need to hear what's good so you know what the majority of people like and you need to know what's bad so you'll realize the things that are not as well-received.

It's sad to say, but not everyone that's writing guitar songs that gets exposed to the public is good at it. (Some people just have awesome managers.)

Identify the stylistic trends.

If you just simply listen to music for enjoyment, chances are that you've never really thought about what makes a genre the way it is.

Really, just sit down and think while you groove to a couple of your favorite tunes and try to make sense of what they're doing.

And the answers aren't that complex once you catch on to the thought process.

For example, would you treat a metal guitar part the same as a country part? Probably not.

Metal would be fast, full of distortion, and rigid with lots of double-picking. Country leans towards full acoustic-style chords, on a clean channel, and with common 5ths and 4ths in the chord progressions.

Pick how you use the information.

I'm not telling you to write songs that everyone loves, and I'm not telling you to write things that will make senior citizens clutch their ears in terror either. At this point, I'm telling you to make a decision that's true to you.

After all this collection of data, you should realize what's more of your style. You might enjoy making very experimental music that only a handful of people can really appreciate in order to create a cult following.

Or maybe you want to go for full conformity and try to be recognized as the next artist to bust out a typical radio-hit. It's in your hands and only you can decide your music.

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My important guitar supplement links:
How To Guitar Play- Important Tips For Beginning Guitarists
Fast Electric Guitar Learning Course
Best Acoustic Guitar Lessons

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