10 Easy Guitar Riffs (That Don't Appear On Other Lists)

The genre of punk rock is not exactly renowned for being technically complex, but that only serves to make it all the more accessible for beginner guitarists, as a handful of power chords is all that is needed to learn a large majority of punk rock songs. Case in point: the Sex Pistols, the progenitors of the genre who burst into the music scene with the release of their legendary debut album, 1977's "Never Mind The !*$%, Here's The Sex Pistols". Very few punk bands have had the mainstream impact that the Sex Pistols had, as their raw songwriting and instrumentation essentially gave birth to the genre as we know it today.

"Pretty Vacant" is one of the main singles from the Sex Pistols debut (and only) studio album, and straight from the beginning, the song is captivating and explosive. The track begins with an incredibly simple riff; the three notes of an A power chord played as an arpeggio, which might sound tedious on paper, but in execution, creates an entrancing introduction that is made all the more mesmerising when the drums and bass come in. The verses and choruses are all comprised of simple power chord progressions, which all form to create a straightforward, yet stunning punk rock track.