Lithium By Nirvana
Plug your guitar, hit that D5 chord with all your strength, let it ring.
The sound that comes out if you follow the above step is exactly what made the song “Lithium” special. It’s one of those rare pieces in Nirvana’s discography that relies heavily on emotional voltage. The use of the guitar is unpredictable; the heavy voice of Kurt Cobain gives it a raw feel.
As you learn this song on guitar, you will find how a simple chord progression, when played right, can outlast the impact of intricate chords. “Lithium” is a song that truly defines the yin-yang dynamic in the form of a quiet-loud contrast, which is also the signature of Nirvana.
The verse sections fully take advantage of the fragile vocals of Kurt Cobain, which will take you back in time when you used to hear a lullaby before bedtime. Then comes a chorus filled with distorted guitar, which is full of chaos and cathartic, which feels like a suppressed outburst finally getting a chance to be released.
Throughout the song, you will see a pendulum movement between calm and eruption that matches the theme of maintaining a fragile balance between sanity and insanity.
Strumming Pattern For Lithium By Nirvana
“Lithium” captures the true essence of the quiet-loud-quiet signature energy of Nirvana. To understand the strumming pattern, it is crucial to know in which part of the song you have to be gentle and where you have to pour energy.
The strumming pattern circles around power chords, and the verse section smartly uses muted strings to create that chugging rhythm.
Use the following pattern for verse parts with the light downstrokes to get as close as possible to the original recording: D D D D.
- D = Down Strum.
- U = Up Strum.
If you wish, you can also add occasional upstrokes in between the downstrokes to uplift the overall groove of the song: D DU D DU.
The chorus section is the complete opposite of the verse because here you will be using distortion as a tool to make the guitar voice loud, loose, and explosive. Here’s the strumming pattern for the chorus: D D DU D DU.
FAQs – Lithium By Nirvana Song Guitar Lesson
Q1. What is the tempo and the time signature I need to follow when playing “Lithium” by Nirvana on guitar?
Ans. Set the tempo to 121 BPM and use a 4/4 time signature. We know you might be thinking the song has a loose feel to it; still, the tempo remains the same. To mimic the energy of the music, you need to master dynamics, not the speed.
Q2. Is there any solo or fills section present in “Lithium” by Nirvana?
Ans. There is no solo present in the song; Cobain puts in melodic fills along with rhythmic variations when transitioning to the next song.
