and for instance in NYC cops, the opening lead guitar also plays a big riff.
― AlXTC from Paris, Monday, 24 July 2017 13:14 (six years ago) link
Well, nitpicking, but the opening lick never recurs, does it?I mean, I can't really disagree with you, it's definitely riffs as in it's - quite memorable - figures, and a lot of them define the song. But on the other hand, they're just small two tone figures, so simple, so mechanical, and really much more distinctive for the way they change the rhythm - the way the bass and rhythm guitar begins being syncopated right before the chorus.
― Frederik B, Monday, 24 July 2017 13:30 (six years ago) link
ahah, right after writing about "barely legal" I though the exact same thing : I haven't listened to it in a while so yeah, maybe it doesn't come back... which makes it even stronger than I thought it was !so yeah, you might not count it as a riff then (that said, that reminds me of an interview with Bernard Butler about "animal nitrate" where he said that its opening riff was very important especially because it's only played once during the song).as for the other riffs, yeah, I totally get what you mean. of course, riffs like "seven nation army" are more obviously "riffs".but back to "barely legal" and its 4 notes riff, there's not really a difference in nature if you compare to classic riffs like "satisfaction".and the riff for "hard to explain" is also not essentially different from "sweet child of mine".(not comparing quality here obviously)
― AlXTC from Paris, Monday, 24 July 2017 13:41 (six years ago) link
"soma" has a great riff
― reggie (qualmsley), Monday, 24 July 2017 13:58 (six years ago) link
For me, the difference is that the riff in Satisfaction lives by it's singularity, the way it sounds like an alarm, the little human ways it's played differently through out the song. It communicates as a figure. The riffs in Barely Legal doesn't communicate on their own, but in their interplay. I would never say the opening figure defines the song, I remember the switch between verse and chorus, mainly.
But we are mostly just having different ideas of what riffs are.
― Frederik B, Monday, 24 July 2017 14:06 (six years ago) link
I mean, clearly there are rhythms in a White Stripes song as well, but making totally accurate descriptions wouldn't sound so good.
― Frederik B, Monday, 24 July 2017 14:08 (six years ago) link
Soma is one of their songs where I really don't get what is rhythm guitar and what is lead guitar
― Frederik B, Monday, 24 July 2017 14:10 (six years ago) link
Is "Sweet child o'mine"'s lead guitar line a riff for you ?
― AlXTC from Paris, Monday, 24 July 2017 14:36 (six years ago) link
i love that Hard To Explain gets away with only a single chord in the chorus
― ufo, Monday, 24 July 2017 14:43 (six years ago) link
uh ? nah there are like 3 chords in there iirc.
― AlXTC from Paris, Monday, 24 July 2017 14:50 (six years ago) link
But the rhythm guitar plays one chord only. Good trick. They do the same in Barely Legal opening riff, that stays the same though chords change around it.
Yeah, I'd say Sweet Child of Mine is a riff, and a kinda Strokes'y one at that, no? 12:51 especially sounds a lot like it. But it has that precise inhuman nature as well.
― Frederik B, Monday, 24 July 2017 15:00 (six years ago) link
yeah it's only the bass that changes and it's relatively low in the mix,
there are a lot of strokes riffs/parts that sound very like sweet child o mine, but always in a much tenser context
― ufo, Monday, 24 July 2017 15:05 (six years ago) link
yeah, they did that trick a lot. it's a good one to create some harmonic tension (and it was fun watching Albert Hammond Jr strumming his guitar like a maniac on these parts).
― AlXTC from Paris, Monday, 24 July 2017 15:06 (six years ago) link
The whole thing is really just a G-chord, though, you're right it's true, with Julian traveling from D to H to G.
― Frederik B, Monday, 24 July 2017 15:27 (six years ago) link
love them H chords
― a serious and fascinating fartist (Simon H.), Monday, 24 July 2017 15:30 (six years ago) link
Oh, right, it's different in England and US. B, not H.
― Frederik B, Monday, 24 July 2017 15:33 (six years ago) link
I've been laughing my tits off at the idea of a riff without any rhythm in it for the last half an hour... I assume Frederik drinks water without the h2o in it, too...
― The Anti-Climax Blues Band (Turrican), Monday, 24 July 2017 16:04 (six years ago) link
Well, I'd wish you'd laugh a while longer, but it was nice to have a cordial enriching discussion while you weren't here.
― Frederik B, Monday, 24 July 2017 16:16 (six years ago) link
It was fun learning Last Night with my band and realizing that I just play one chord during the intro and chorus. The parts of that song sound very weird individually
xp
― Vinnie, Tuesday, 25 July 2017 01:41 (six years ago) link
omg the riff debate is back!! yesssss
― flappy bird, Tuesday, 25 July 2017 02:55 (six years ago) link
yeah the "one chord" thing is everywhere on their first lp (I don't remember for the following ones).like on "hard to explain" alone they use it during the pre-chorus AND the chorus !
― AlXTC from Paris, Tuesday, 25 July 2017 08:19 (six years ago) link
someday
― k3vin k., Sunday, 8 July 2018 06:05 (five years ago) link
used to hate Last Nite when it was ubiquitous, now I love it and would probably be my vote
― flappy bird, Sunday, 8 July 2018 06:20 (five years ago) link
if only for the chorus
it's a fucking incredible song
honestly embarrassed to say I finally heard the album for the first time a couple of weeks ago. its good
― k3vin k., Sunday, 8 July 2018 06:23 (five years ago) link
+1 love this record
― rap is dad (it's a boy!), Monday, 9 July 2018 02:11 (five years ago) link
room on fire is good too. would have taken 10 more records in this same vein
― rap is dad (it's a boy!), Monday, 9 July 2018 02:12 (five years ago) link
first track got robbed. that sick bass line.
― Hazy Maze Cave (Adam Bruneau), Monday, 9 July 2018 23:16 (five years ago) link