Easy Guitar Songs for Indie Fans

[meahtenoha]

So, I figure there's quite a few guitar players around here. 

When most folks start playing guitar they get the standard 'easy' songs: "Smoke on the Water", "Good Riddance" etc

But there are so many great indie bands out there that I'm sure we can make an updated list of great indie songs that are easy for beginners (3 to 5 chords max). 

Share your suggestions below!

[blake]

I've started a collaborative playlist and added some songs (though I recognize I'm drawing pretty heavily from mid-2000s indie, as that's when I was learning guitar). 

https://open.spotify.com/user/blakedurham/playlist/5SXTyyxiMtddBcZcZoLo8w

[meahtenoha]

Some good suggestions in there @blake! I love 'Lazy Eye' so I might look up those chords soon. 

Some other ones I recommend to beginners:

spotify:track:2cbic3TiUENlJX91y67ARR:small

spotify:track:5OQsiBsky2k2kDKy2bX2eT:small

spotify:track:04rMpRstoJt3uvqyNGKczX:small

[meahtenoha]

Another great one that only has 3 chords:

https://open.spotify.com/track/1LzNfuep1bnAUR9skqdHCK:small

chords here:

https://tabs.ultimate-guitar.com/m/mazzy_star/fade_into_you_ver5_crd.htm

[CloudTapes]

Some very good selections here! 

Nirvana was my staple artist when I was learning. 

Alvvays has some simple songs, like "Archie Marry Me". They feature some guitar leads, but the chords themselves are simple progressions. 

https://open.spotify.com/track/5HLes17mwCwKt81mi0Tk35

The Thermals is another band that has used simple, punk-esque chords to great effect.

https://open.spotify.com/track/2uwr0BPTi9qsfDeku6sSQN

Biffy Clyro has done well utilizing common chord progressions in songs like "Machines," and "God & Satan," but the latter does feature a time signature change in the bridge.

https://open.spotify.com/track/04aBNbWBOgv0kcTaT4WQoj

Cloud Nothings have some simple songs, but also with some leads over the top.

https://open.spotify.com/track/4ebz0AQonOk427qxoDAHyH

Unfortunately I'm not as tuned in to indie music as I used to be!

[Jiana]

I love this topic! To take it a step further, I think when you're first beginning it's really important to know what styles you enjoy, which is why I'd suggest (after learning basic chords and strumming) taking a look at Goliath Tutorials.

When I first started playing I found him incredibly helpful - especially for getting comfortable with fingerpicking, hammer ons, pull offs, and alternate tunings. Each song is accompanied by tabs and an indepth video tutorial, which is great tool for visual learners. He also offers alternate fingerings for the dreaded barre chords in case you're not at that stage yet.

You can also sort through the tutorials by diffculty for those who are at a more advanced level. If you're looking to get the hang of fingerpicking, you can't go wrong!

spotify:user:1248187732:playlist:6BI2CeH5RfkChAMyB0tyxF

[stig2009]

this my playlist songs to jam to

there are some very easy songs to learn in this playlist for any guitar lovers out there enjoy over 160 songs 

https://open.spotify.com/user/stig2009/playlist/1xtPEt5eIEQMlVQddZefcT

stig2009 

[pbarrene]

I’ve added a song called to the playlist. It’s a bit difficult to play and you need an amplifier or so to make an echo effect, but I think it’s a nice guitar song:

https://open.spotify.com/track/53KH5aEFGi0PMlwAvpCT5t?si=M_ESUdIYQFCNz2Fme8eRXQ